The Most Ultimate Action Movies at Fantastic Fest 2021

Bussi is the best and most reckless cop in the Reykjavik police force. When, after thwarting a bank heist, he’s paired up with Hördur, the best and sexiest cop in Gardabaer, sparks start to fly. Professionally and personally.

FULL DESCRIPTION

Bussi is a Supercop in Reykjavik. Although his methods go against all the rules, his arrest count is the highest in town. His superior officer looks the other way and always finds excuses for his actions. But Bussi quickly finds a competitor in Hördur: a multi-millionaire, multilingual ex-model genius-turned-cop who’s the best in the county of Gardabaer. After they join forces to thwart a bank heist in Reykjavik, a round of drinking at the local bar leads them to have a wild night together. With no clues about what the robbers were after at the bank, Bussi and Hördur are paired up to solve the case.

If Michael Bay directed a gay comedic version of LETHAL WEAPON, COP SECRET would be the result. Never taking itself seriously, its violence and action sequences are offset by strong dramatic moments. Both Bussi and Hördur are believably flawed characters that evoke empathy supported by a solid backbone of a plot, crafting a film where the drama, comedy, and action are perfectly balanced.

Believe it or not, director Hannes Thór Halldórsson is actually a professional Icelandic football player. And not just any footballer: He’s the goalkeeper named “man of the match” in the 2018 World Cup game against Argentina for saving a penalty kick and ending the match in a draw. COP SECRET is his directorial debut and should the football family ever forsake him, his film family will be more than happy to welcome him on a full-time basis. (ANNICK MAHNERT)

DANCE OF DEATH

1976, DIR. CHI-HWA CHEN, 90 MIN., TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA, HONG KONG

BRIEF SUMMARY

FULL DESCRIPTION

Though she’s best known today for playing Bruce Lee’s doomed sister in ENTER THE DRAGON, Angela Mao was also a movie star in the early 70s with her own string of hits from Golden Harvest Films. Among the top-level talent she worked with on films like HAPKIDO and THE HIMALAYAN was a young up-and-coming actor and stunt performer by the name of Jackie Chan. In the latter half of the decade, as Chan’s career began its ascension and Mao’s went into decline, the two wound up working together on an wacky kung fu comedy called DANCE OF DEATH in which Chan handled the direction of the fight scenes and let Mao take the lead in a part you’ll swear was intended for Chan.

In fact, it’s Chan’s imaginative fight choreography and the stunt casting of Mao as a very Jackie-like leading man (?!) that make DANCE OF DEATH ripe for rediscovery. After her/his teachers and schoolmates are wiped out by a white-haired “crazy horse”-style practitioner, goofball student Fei Fei (Mao) encounters two wacky old kung fu masters who teach her/him several strange new fighting techniques for revenge, including one they refer to as “dancing girl” that is based on a performance they witnessed in a brothel. The humor rarely rises above the level of crossed eyes, flatulence and cartoonish sound effects, but for Mao fans it’s a delight to watch her working so closely with Chan (to the point of mimicry) and proving herself as adept at broad comedy and slapstick as she is at martial arts. (GRADY HENDRIX)

DYNASTY

1977, DIR. CHANG MEI-CHUNG, 92 MIN., TAIWAN, PROVINCE OF CHINA, HONG KONG

BRIEF SUMMARY

FULL DESCRIPTION

Now! DYNASTY! On the surface it looks like just another indie kung fu flick from Taiwan, but within minutes this crazy train has picked up a full head of steam and is on its way to a Never Never Land of wild weapons, mass mutilation, and major mayhem…all in 3-D!!! Superkicker Dorian Tan Tao-liang would go on to train an army of talent, like leg fighter John Liu as well as Jonathan Ke Quan who would play Short Round in INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM and Data in THE GOONIES. Here he plays the emperor’s son who flees a rebellion staged by a super-evil general (Chin Kang, who played the sinister blind monk in MASTER OF THE FLYING GUILLOTINE the previous year).

This basic setup is all the framework the movie needs to unleash a series of rollicking fight scenes staged by Han Ying-chieh who choreographed a bunch of early Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan movies, so you know he’s going to bring the pain. Studded with bizarro weapons, the action is spiced up by a super-sophisticated use of 3-D which plops every severed limb in the audience’s lap and gives every running battle extra depth. Fun fact: the 3-D used here was the beta testing for Super Depth, a brand new portable system developed by American porn director, Michael Findlay. He was thrilled to see his new system put to such creative use and was on his way to the Cannes film festival six weeks after DYNASTY opened to introduce it to the world when a helicopter accident on the roof of New York’s Pan Am building sent the chopper’s 28-foot-rotor scything through the crowd of boarding passengers, killing Findlay instantly.

But Dynasty lives…forever! (GRADY HENDRIX)

HOSTAGE: MISSING CELEBRITY

2021, DIR. GAM-SUNG PIL, 94 MIN., KOREA, REPUBLIC OF

BRIEF SUMMARY

FULL DESCRIPTION

After selling over 100 million cinema tickets, winning every major award, and capturing the hearts of the nation time and again, what is there left to do for Hwang Jung-min? Getting kidnapped, of course. Korean superstar Hwang lends his star wattage to the punchy action-thriller HOSTAGE: MISSING CELEBRITY, in which he plays himself, a box office star who has to prove his action credentials in the real world when he’s held for ransom by a gang of demented thugs.

From debut filmmaker Pil Gam-sung under the watchful tutelage of action maestro Ryoo Seung-wan, serving here as producer, HOSTAGE: MISSING CELEBRITY kicks off with Hwang attending a press event for his latest action film in which he shares the screen with his NEW WORLD co-star Park Sung-woong, also playing himself. Hwang returns home after the event but when he drops by a local convenience store, he’s recognized by people on the street — but these are no ordinary fans. Before he knows it, he finds himself stuffed into a van and wakes up tied to a chair in a dank room in the countryside, sharing the room with another kidnapped young woman and an assortment of scraggly criminals.

This remake of the Chinese thriller SAVING MR. WU differs from the original by casting the lead as himself. Fans of Hwang and Korean cinema will delight in the many references to ace K-thrillers, not least because Pil’s film stands shoulder-to-shoulder with them. The film sees a chained-up Hwang being put through the wringer and learning stunt work the hard way through a daring escape, but these are just a handful of highlights in a Korean summer discovery that also features breathtaking car chases, bone-cracking dust-ups, and explosive surprises. (PIERCE CONRAN)

A young man’s ability to surreally “be one” with cars sparks a revolution that could save transport in his community. When his invention inadvertently accelerates the underlying problems, our hero’s quest must grow bigger than his own personal ambitions.

A hard-won truce between rival yakuza gangs threatens to erupt into bloody violence when a psychopathic hoodlum is released from prison and vows to avenge the death of his boss.

A burnt-out cop and a by-the-book young detective team up to catch a vicious serial killer lurking in the garbage-filled alleys of Hong Kong in Soi Cheang’s grimy monochrome masterpiece.

A blind assassin armed with a vicious flying guillotine is out to kill the legendary one-armed boxer (martial arts superstar Jimmy Wang Yu). 36 Cinema presents MASTER OF THE FLYING GUILLOTINE with live commentary by RZA!

A man is spirited away to another world where he encounters a strange cult of super sentai worshipers.

Those are just some of our top selections though, you can check out the full Fantastic Fest 2021 lineup here!