According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Belgian will be in attendance for the second edition of the California festival with his new movie set to open the event.
Also starring David Castaneda and Elijah Rodriguez, We Die Young sees Van Damme take on the role of Daniel, a military veteran who comes to the rescue of a group of young boys caught up in the crime barrio of Washington, D.C.
Van Damme’s Latest Comeback
In order to do so, he’ll have to take down a ruthless and highly influential drug lord.
Written and directed by Lior Gellar, who has bagged Academy Award and Emmy nominations in his career to date, the film marks Gellar’s directorial debut. We Die Young will debut at the festival on February 7th. Will keep you posted as to when a first trailer will make its debut!
What are your thoughts on Van Damme’s latest efforts?Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
In John Wick, he was out for revenge while the sequel John Wick: Chapter 2was all about repaying old debts.
This time around, our favourite assassin is on the run with with a $14 million price tag on his head and an army of bounty-hunting killers on his trail.
After killing a member of the shadowy international assassin’s guild, the High Table, John Wick is excommunicado, but the world’s most ruthless hit men and women await his every turn.
Returning to the John Wick universe are Keanu Reeves (The Matrix Trilogy, Speed) as the eponymous John Wick; Laurence Fishburne (Boyz n the Hood, The Matrix Trilogy); Lance Reddick (White House Down, American Horror Story); Tobias Segal (Sneaky Pete, Mindhunter) and Ian McShane (Deadwood, American Gods).
Will This Be the Most Ultimate Wick?
They will be starring alongside new cast members Halle Berry (Monster’s Ball, The X-Men franchise); Mark Dacascos (Brotherhood of the Wolf, Only the Strong); Asia Kate Dillon (Orange Is the New Black, Billions); Jason Mantzoukas (The Dictator, The Lego Batman Movie); and Angelica Huston (The Royal Tenenbaums, The Addams Family).
John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum is directed by Chad Stahelski (the John Wickseries), written by Derek Kolstad (the John Wick series), and produced by Basil Iwanyk (Sicario, The Expendables) and Erica Lee (Sicario, A Private War).
Keep an eye out for John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum to arrive in cinemas in May 2019. We’ll keep you up to date on any more news or trailers here at The Ultimate Action Movie Club!
Are you excited for Keanu Reeves returning John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
Copycats is a bimonthly column about popular action movies and the low-budget films they inspire. Each column, we take a popular action movie and find its cinematic doppelganger, revel in their similarities and dissect their differences. Some of these copycats are good enough (or strange enough) to earn their place in action movie history, but most are being chronicled here to preserve their existence – for better or for worse.
Synopsis of both films: Twin brothers, who are separated shortly after birth and grow up to be very different (one respected, one streetwise), somehow become entangled in each other’s lives – action ensues.
As the Ultimate Action Movie Club has pointed out in the past, Jean-Claude Van Damme loves playing twins (https://ultimateactionmovies.com/5-things-guaranteed-make-jcvd-movie-ultimate/ ) – and he’s done so in four movies and one short-lived sitcom. Double Impact is where that all started with JCVD playing naïve and preppy Chad and Hong Kong tough guy Alex. Alex and Chad are separated after their parents are brutally murdered over – Alex is taken to an orphanage and Chad is taken to America by the parents’ bodyguard (Geoffrey Lewis). The two are reunited 25 years later and avenge their parents’ deaths.
Any true action movie fan didn’t have to read the synopsis of Double Impact, because, heck, it’s DOUBLE IMPACT. THERE ARE TWO JEAN-CLAUDE VAN DAMMES! You could have said twin Jean-Claude Van Dammes open an ice cream parlor and it would have been a hit in 1991! And this movie was a hit, grossing $80 million on an under $20 million budget.
Shortly after its release, Hong Kong action hero Jackie Chan (who was still an obscure figure in American action movies) set out to play twin brothers, who were also separated at birth during a violent crime and who also grew up to be vastly different people – one well-thought-of and one tough guy, in Twin Dragons. The production, a fund-raising project for the Directors’ Guild of Hong Kong, was a huge hit in Hong Kong and its surrounding markets because … THERE ARE TWO JACKIE CHANS!
As a formula, it just works.
Which is better?
I’m going to declare a tie on this one, because while they are similar in basic themes, both movies have their good and bad moments. The twin interaction scenes in Double Impact look a lot better, but the fight scenes in Twin Dragons are vastly superior. Double Impact relies heavily on the charm of its star, while Twin Dragon has Hong Kong cameos galore.
What’s funny about this film is how long both American audiences had to wait to compare the two. Double Impact was released in the U.S. in August 1991 and Twin Dragons was released in Hong Kong in January 1992, but it wasn’t released in the U.S. until April 1999 during the big Jackie Chan push of the late 1990s (which was, coincidently, about a week after The Matrix was released, which put the final nail in the traditional action movie coffin – but that’s another story).
In markets like Japan, both movies came out within months of each other (Double Impact was released in Feb. 1992 while Twin Dragons hit Japanese theatres in April 1992), making comparisons easier to make, but because the U.S. audience had almost a decade between both releases, many never realized they were basically the same movie!
Article by Eric LaRose – a Wisconsin-based connoisseur of action, horror and sci-fi movies from the ‘80s and ‘90s. A former journalist and podcaster, Eric wrote the ending to the Toxic Avenger Part 4, but the only person who will back up that claim is his wife.
Who do you think wins in this COPYCATS! showdown between Double Impact and Twin Dragons? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
That’s according to Crews himself, who revealed as much during an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
According to Crews, a crucial scene in the film was changed in order to give Crews more screen time. Stallone apparently made the change after the Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor impressed him with his enthusiasm and effort on the set.
Crews was originally planning on an entirely different approach to the project though.
“When I was on that movie, I wasn’t getting a lot of light and they kept changing the script and I just kept disappearing,” Crews said.
“I was like, ‘You know what, I’m gonna mail it in. I’m gonna say my lines and go home. I wanna get out of here.’ And something told me, ‘Terry, this is an opportunity of a lifetime. You have this chance to make history.’”
His efforts did not go unnoticed.
Stallone’s UAMC Blessing
“All of a sudden, Sly’s like, ‘You know what, I like that. Wait a second right here. Wait a second right here. I’m gonna change the movie!’” Crews added. “And he rewrote the movie.”
Crews went on to star in both The Expendables sequels and has enjoyed consistent success on the small and big screen in the years since.
The hallmarks of a true Ultimate Action Movie Club hero!
Are you a Terry Crews fan? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
An ultimate ranking list of the best of the sci-fi action Robocop movies!
This ultimate ranking of the Robocop movies will be an odd ranking list, I’ll admit: I’m going from best to worst.
Why?
Let’s be real: we all know the original is going to be number one on this list. While I have encountered some fans who prefer Robocop 2 (usually for nostalgia reasons, though not always), most Robocop aficionados I know treasure the original as one of the great 1980s sci-fi action classics alongside Aliens and Predator. All pretty predictable. Lists are fun when the end is a surprise.
The real question is this: does Robocop 3 or Robocop ’14 get the title of worst in the franchise? It’s a harder question than one might initially think, a battle between two major disappointments, with each film disappointing fans in different ways. So, let’s save that for the end, shall we?
The original, the iconic classic, the best movie in the franchise bar none. Despite the Cold War era politics and big hair, Robocop’s satire is still timely. The black comedy, ultraviolence, and action scenes retain their punch after thirty-plus years. Peter Weller is both badass and emotionally vulnerable as the titular hero, giving an iconic performance, and cinema got two of its best bad guys in the forms of the gleefully psychopathic Clarence Boddicker and the delightfully oily Dick Jones. All around, a practically perfect piece of cinema and an ultimate action masterpiece.
Once again, no surprise. While Robocop 2 is not the classic its predecessor is and features a great deal of flaws, it still has enough fun moments and creative ideas to make it a worthy watch, even if only once. The final fight between Robocop and Robocop 2 has to be one of the best moments in the whole franchise, a tour de force of stop motion animation. Now, time for the final battle. Hold onto your hats!
Robocop ’14 is the definition of needless remake. It cannot decide whether it wants to be a reimagining of the original with the same dark comedy and satire, or if it wants to form more of its own identity as a somber sci-fi thriller about AI and free will.
This confused tone combined with its bloodless performances and lack of much in the way of narrative drive make the remake a forgettable affair. It’s not a total waste—Michael Keaton and Gary Oldman are pretty good (they aren’t wasted the way Rip Torn and Mako are in Robocop 3), and there is one memorable action scene lit only by gunfire—but the movie is ultimately disposable, like 95% of reboots and remakes these days.
There are certainly better ways you can spend two hours (see number one and two on this list), but I can think of one that is much, much worse. Keep scrolling.
So, I just said I thought the remake was boring. Why in heaven would I claim Robocop 3is worse than boring? What could be worse than a movie slowly pushing you into the realms of slumber? Even Steven Spielberg once said his greatest fear as a storyteller was boring the audience.
Well, in my opinion, there is something worse than boring. There’s insulting, which Robocop 3 definitely is to the two films which preceded it. Here, everything is dumbed down, from the violence to the satire to Robocop himself, an overt attempt to get the kids into theater seats since it turned out the series had a young following that discovered the first two films on video (an attempt that didn’t work either, since the film bombed).
Robocop 3 also gives Officer Lewis, the badass, strong-willed cop played by Nancy Allen, an ignoble, almost glossed-over death by gunfire. Despite being Murphy’s confidante and partner-in-arms, he doesn’t seem all that bothered by her being gunned down. In fact, he’s rather chill as she gasps out her final words and pleads to be avenged!
The movie pretends to have a soul, writing in a half-hearted bond between the kid sidekick character and Murphy, laying the sad music on thick when Lewis dies. But it’s all fake and manufactured, so by the numbers that you can’t get genuinely invested. At this point, the filmmakers are just treading water, not doing anything interesting with Robocop himself or his world.
Yes, the remake might bore me, but the third film in the original trilogy annoys me, so void is it of anything worthwhile.
Of course, you might feel differently. Some would rather feel something than boredom, even if it’s a negative feeling. It’s an age-old question, one fans will never satisfactorily settle.
What’s your ranking of the Robocop franchise films? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
A retrospective into how Bullitt has endeared as a classic 1960s actioner.
Even before their 80s/90s heyday, action and thrills have always been a big part of the movies. During the silent era, comedians like Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd peppered their movies with daring stunts and wild chases which inspire filmmakers like Jackie Chan and Peter Jackson to this day.
Between the 1920s and 1950s, a great deal of Hollywood’s action-based output came in the form of the swashbuckling adventures of matinee idols like Douglas Fairbanks and Errol Flynn. Sword fights and breathless escapes were action staples in this sort of fare, and remained so for decades.
There were two major stepping stones in the action genre outside of the US: Alexander Nevsky in the 1930s and Seven Samurai in the 1950s. With innovative editing and grittier presentation of violence, these two movies left a major impact on filmmakers worldwide. However, the biggest evolution of the action genre was yet to come.
The 1960s were a major turning point for culture in general, and that includes movies. The big Hollywood studio system that had been in place since the late 1910s was crashing hard. Movie moguls struggled to stay current with the changing tastes of audiences who were losing interest in sword-and-sandal epics and bloated movie musicals.
In this moment of great cultural transition flourished the beginning of modern action cinema. Action movie staples like the Dollars trilogy and the James Bond cinematic franchise took root early in the decade. For many, the quintessential 1960s Hollywood action movie remains Bullitt.
Steve McQueen in Bullitt
Bullitt is the story of Frank Bullitt (Steve McQueen, never more badass), a no-nonsense, resourceful San Francisco cop disillusioned by “bullshit” in high places, particularly from the ambitious and unpleasant DA Chalmers (Robert Vaughn). Bullitt’s assigned to protect a high-profile witness named Johnny Ross from the Chicago mob, only for the guy to be killed in mysterious circumstances. In hot water with Chalmers as a result, Bullitt becomes determined to find out who killed Ross, even if he has to bend the rules to get the job done.
So, what makes Bullitt the granddaddy of the 80s/90s action golden age? Firstly, McQueen’s Bullitt exhibits many of the qualities one associates with the great 80s/90s action heroes. Like Ellen Ripley or John McClane, he isn’t a superhero, but an ordinary guy who relies on his wits and resourcefulness to survive a hostile world.
There’s nothing movie star glamorous about Bullitt. He’s a slob at home and not above guzzling down instant coffee before trudging off to work. His relationship with his chic girlfriend Cathy (Jacqueline Bisset) is strained by the nasty nature of his job.
Exposed to the worst of humanity on a regular basis, Cathy insists he’s “living in a sewer,” and that one day, it’s going to catch up with him. Like later action heroes, Bullitt is someone who has looked death in the face time and again, often using his wry sense of humor and pride in his competence to stay sane.
One of the First Great Actioners
Bullitt (1968) Directed by Peter Yates Shown: Steve McQueen (as Lt. Frank Bullitt)
Secondly, the film has a host of fine action set-pieces any later action film would be proud to have. Action in Bullitt mostly comes in the form of on-foot chases and shootouts. One pursuit in a hospital is particularly memorable, with Bullitt navigating dark corridors and tight spaces as he chases a would-be assassin, one moment the predator, the next moment prey. It’s suspenseful and well-paced, shot with realistic understatement though no less exciting.
Without the crutch of modern CG, the movie feels authentic. McQueen insisted on shooting on-location in San Francisco and doing his own stunts whenever possible. Bullitt’s realism gives it that edge-of-your-seat quality, pulling no punches in showing the consequences of navigating a vicious underworld.
The jazzy Lalo Schifrin score does a great job in contributing to the movie’s nervous, violent energy. However, the filmmakers know when to let scenes play without accompaniment. Later films tend to underline action with bombastic music, but in Bullitt the chase scenes often go without scoring of any kind, adding to the tension.
The Most Ultimate Car Chase of All Time!
Then there’s the car chase, the centerpiece of the movie’s reputation. Let me tell you, I watch movies from the silent era on up to the present, and the car chase from Bullitt has still got to be one of the best-edited, best-choreographed chases in the century-plus history of cinema. Every bit as ultimate as its reputation, easy! Without this chase to break new ground, we wouldn’t have gotten fare like The Road Warrior, to say the least.
What makes this chase so special? There’s the (here’s that word again!) realism of it, firstly. It wasn’t uncommon for car chases to be shot in-studio during the studio system days, which took a toll on their effectiveness. The sound effects are also immersive, the screeching tires and roaring engine really putting the audience in the car with Bullitt.
The driving is not presented as flawless either, with those cars taking punishment as they tear up the pavement. Small mistakes such as Bullitt missing a turn were left in too, adding to the scene’s visceral edge.
The pacing is also divine. What starts as two hitmen slowly tailing Bullitt in the San Francisco streets takes an unexpected turn when he starts trailing them. Then they hit the gas, and off the two cars go, racing through the streets, then continuing the pursuit outside the city. The stakes raise gradually, culminating in a deadly finish.
UAMC Bites the Bullitt
Some argue the car chase is all Bullitt has going for it, that otherwise the movie is “dated,” but I can’t agree. It’s true that despite its twisty presentation (the movie begs for a follow-up viewing so you can absorb all the details), the story is pretty standard police procedural fare.
Those who relish the more extroverted style of 80s/90s action films might have to get used to the more understated presentation of Bullitt. However, Bullitt is still a top action-thriller with enough stylish flair and emotional weight to make its mark, even without its historical significance.
What are your favorite scenes and memories from Steve McQueen’s Bullitt? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
No Merchandising. Editorial Use Only. No Book Cover Usage. Mandatory Credit: Photo by Moviestore/REX/Shutterstock (1551765a) Bad Boys, Martin Lawrence, Will Smith Film and Television
Will Smith and Martin Lawerence are Loading up for “Bad Boys For Life”
Smith posted a video confirming the news on Instragram. In the image, a stack of scripts can be seen which appear to confirm the film’s official title as: Bad Boys For Lif3.
He captioned the picture: “Day 1. I’ll keep y’all posted.”
Smith had previously written the phrase “@BadBoys For Life ” in the caption for a video in which he and Lawrence confirmed the movie was happening, but at that stage it wasn’t clear that was the title.
In addition to the rapper’s Instagram posts, the film’s official synopsis was revealed by Heroic Hollywood:
“The new installment centers on the Miami PD and its elite AMMO team’s attempt to take down Armando Armas (Scipio), head of a drug cartel. Armando is a cold-blooded killer with a vicious, taunting nature. He is committed to the work of the cartel and is dispatched by his mother to kill Mike (Smith). Nuñez will take on the role of Rite, the tough and funny criminal psychologist who is the newly appointed head of AMMO and Mike’s former girlfriend- and the one who got away.”
While that synopsis has yet to be confirmed by anyone involved in the project, it paints a vivid and exciting picture of what could be ahead.
There’s still a long way to go before we see Smith and Lawrence reunited on the big screen though, with the film due to arrive in cinemas at some point late in 2020.
What are your thoughts about “Bad Boys For Life”? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
Jean-Claude Van Damme is Back in ‘The Bouncer’ (2019)!
The first trailer for Jean-Claude Van Damme’s latest film, The Bouncer, has landed online with the Muscles from Brussels on top form in the new sneak peek.
The Bouncer, which is being released under the name Lukas in certain countries, sees the Belgian taking on the titular role as a struggling single parent trying to balance raising an eight-year-old daughter with life as a nightclub doorman.
But when a violent encounter with a drunk patron sees Van Damme’s character up in front of the authorities and at risk of losing custody of his daughter, he’s suddenly forced to go undercover to infiltrate a violent criminal organisation.
Van Damme’s Most Recent Finest
A violent, realistically brutal action effort that, aesthetically at least, draws comparisons with the semi-autobiographical effort JCVD. It’s a distinctly European affair too, with much of the film’s dialogue coming in Van Damme’s native flemish.
The Bouncer is due to arrive on January 11th. It’s already earned rave reviews following a series of film festival screenings and, at just 82 minutes, it’s an easy watch for action fans hoping to keep up with all things JCVD.
What are your thoughts on the trailer for JCVD’s The Bouncer? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
In which we breakdown how the UAMC would remake ‘The Last Dragon’ step-by-step.
Once a coworker of mine discovered that I was writing for the Ultimate Action Movie Club, he began incessantly badgering me about one of his favorite 80’s movies: The Last Dragon.“Dude, you HAVE to watch it,” he would demand.“It’s gotta be the most underrated action movie from that decade!”
I eventually broke down and watched it on a Sunday morning, if for no other reason than to shut him up!However, I must admit, it was actually a pretty good flick!I mean, it’s not the most ultimate action movie I can think of, but it does check off a lot of the right boxes: engaging fight scenes, an endearing protagonist, a satisfying climax, etc. If you haven’t seen the film, it is currently available to stream on Netflix, so give it a watch and let us know what you think in the comments!
Here’s the thought I kept having throughout the movie: could The Last Dragon be successfully remade for modern-day audiences?The 2000’s have been ripe with remakes of 80’s action movie (The Karate Kid, The A-Team, Red Dawn, Robocop, just to name a few), but very few of them were able to live up to the original.In all honesty, The Last Dragon has perhaps the best potential for a sufficient contemporary makeover of any 80’s action movie.
Here are 6 keys to that success:
1) Go Darker!
The Last Dragon has a very lighthearted tone, often rotating between kitschy jokes that more or less work and slapstick gags that are more silly than lasting.While this cheery vibe makes for a relatively enjoyable ride, it drastically decreases the stakes.
A scene with “Bruce” Leroy (Taimak), the film’s hero, goofily eating popcorn with chopsticks in a movie theater doesn’t exactly make the audience feel as though anyone in this movie is in any real danger.Furthermore, Leroy’s “nemesis,” Sho’ Nuff (Julius Carry), the “Shogun of Harlem,” is depicted as a chest-thumping, shutter-shade wearing meathead with a gang of senseless minions for 95% of the film, but the audience is expected to just accept it when he ends up being a legit fighter for the film’s finale.
In order to make the stakes real, the remake should take a page out of Batman’s book and go darker.You can keep in some of the humorous sight gags, but add some real gravitas, perhaps by having Sho’ Nuff kill off one of Leroy’s family members.
2) Roll High Quantity of Bad Guys into One Quality Villain
The Last Dragon has two main villains: Sho ‘Nuff, the Shogun of Harlem, and Eddie Arkadian (Christopher Murney), a businessman/mob boss.Sho is a man bent on fighting Leroy for…reasons?He does everything he can to force Leroy to fight him, even vandalizing Leroy’s family pizza store.Eddie wants to get his lady friend (girlfriend?) into the limelight as a singer, but when he can’t strong-arm a music show host into playing her music video, he decides to play dirty.
Although the two villains ultimately come together to attack Leroy and Laura, it would make for a much better conclusion if you just rolled both of the villains into one.That way, Leroy isn’t splitting his focus on two villains.I’d make Sho the main villain and lend some motivation as to why he hates Leroy.
3) A Modern Soundtrack
Music is an integral theme of 1985’s The Last Dragon.Laura Charles (Vanity), the lead’s love interest, is a singer/DJ.Eddie Arkadian’s entire motivation is to strong-arm Laura into playing his girlfriend’s music on the air.
At one point, a video of Bruce Lee’s fights is meshed together with a very 80’s instrumental while the two lead characters watch in awe.Music is such a large part of the film that it’s practically a character!For the remake, it is pivotal to keep that deep-rooted importance on music, but instead of the pop and R&B tracks of the original, utilize a fresh, modern influx of hip-hop.
This will make the film’s Harlem setting feel more authentic, as well as give the younger audiences something to relate to.Throw in an original jam courtesy of Drake or Kendrick Lamar, there’s no telling how much buzz this soundtrack could generate.
4) Tighten Up the Plot
At its core, the 1985 version of The Last Dragon was a story about a boy who realizes that greatness was inside him all along, finding the confidence to both defeat his enemies and get the girl.However, it was so watered down by random scenes and unnecessary subplots that it is easy to get distracted from the main message.For the remake, the plot needs to cut out all the weird, superfluous things going on in the original.
The subplot about Angela’s dream to become a popstar?Cut it.The weird, unaddressed murder fish?Bye-bye.Completely random full cuts of music videos?!No way!If you can hone in and focus on what this movie is actually about, you will have a much less muddled final product.I mean, how did Sho ’Nuff end up having “the glow” in the final fight scene?These key plot details need to be addressed or explained with some backstory.
5) A Fresh New Cast
I know you’re thinking it, but no, this is not the part where I submit Michael B. Jordan for the lead role of Leroy (unlike seemingly everyone, I don’t think he is the best thing since sliced bread).
That being said, in order for the remake to work, there does need to be a talented cast of up-and-comers on board.Leroy and Laura absolutely must have chemistry, and the lead villain absolutely must ooze evil.Just spit-balling here, but Trevante Rhodes (Moonlight, 12 Strong) would make a solid Leroy Green, and Zazie Beetz (Deadpool 2,Geostorm) would make a perfect Laura Charles.
Hell, if you were somehow able to nab someone like Mahershala Ali to play the antagonist, you could probably even get away with keeping his name as Sho ‘Nuff, assuming he uses the nickname ironically.
6) Don’t Hide from the Demographic
With the massive successes of Black Panther and the new Creed movies, it can be safely assumed that whitewashing is becoming a thing of the past in Hollywood, which is a triumphant feat!In that regard, the original The Last Dragon was truly quite ahead of its time.
There weren’t too many movies made in 1985 with almost entirely African-American casts, but director Michael Schultz wasn’t afraid to go there.What’s more, the film doesn’t feel like it was made with one particular demographic in mind; people of all races can watch and sympathize with “Bruce” Leroy Green’s journey to become a karate master.
If the remake can replicate its predecessor’s ability to resonate with audiences of all backgrounds while focusing a story on an African-American in Harlem, it has the potential to be a box-office smash.
Although he wasn’t born until 1991, don’t assume this feisty millennial can’t tell Tom Selleck from Tom Cruise. Nick Hemming has long been an action movie aficionado, comic book enthusiast (ONLY Marvel; DC sucks!), and all-around wunderkind. When he isn’t watching movies, he is probably writing about them.
What do you think of our 6 steps to remaking The Last Dragon? Let us know in the comments or on our Facebook page!
UAMC honors the Italian B-Movie Director Enzo G. Castellari and the ultimate action worthy Light Blast!
Light Blast(1985) is an action, crime, sci-fi B-movie by Italian director, Enzo G. Castellari. It stars Erik Estrada, best known for playing Officer Frank Poncherello in the television series ChiPs (1977–1983).
Good preparation for his role in Light Blast as a San Francisco cop. A city being held to ransom by a mad scientist with a death ray. His demand: five million dollars or he melts another target.
The Great Enzo G. Castellari
Light Blast is one of director Enzo G. Castellari’s later movies. Castellari started churning out Italian B-movies in the 1960’s. He started with the popular genres of the day including Spaghetti Westerns and War Dramas (sometimes called Macaroni Combat).
But where Castellari earned his reputation was with 1970’s crime dramas (sometimes called Poliziotteschi or Eurocrime). These pre-Ultimate-era action crime dramas were very entertaining. Quentin Tarantino agrees. He referenced some of them in his own films. Imagine movies such as The French Connection (1971) but with more action, violence and Italian style.
Fine, but why am I telling you this? Because after a five year gap, Castellari returned to action crime drama with Light Blast. Only this time updating the formula for a 1980’s American audience.
Erik Estrada to the Rescue
Remember the face melting scene from Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981)? You’ll be seeing much more of that visual effect here. Erik Estrada saves San Francisco from this fate with police procedural plotlines and copious action scenes. Those action scenes include fist fights, gun battles and car chases.
In fact the stunt and explosion laden chases are my favourite scenes in the movie. And as far as I’m aware, no one else has done a Baja buggy chase through city streets. Another thing I enjoyed was the soundtrack which partly imitates The A-Team theme. Also good is the pacing with action scenes well distributed throughout the film’s running time.
Light Blast’s Ultimate Potential
Holding Light Blast back from greatness are a few problems. Chief amongst which is the budget which is too low. By the mid-1980’s, Italian cinema was starting to struggle. Audiences around the world were happy to watch big-budget American action movies on home video instead of supporting their home-grown cinema industry.
Under those circumstances, it’s impressive how well the production team managed to make Light Blast look like a big American action movie. They achieved this feat partly by saving money in creative ways. My favourite being the demolition derby scene. To save money, Light Blast reuses demolition derby stock footage.
That same stock footage previously used during the title sequence of Disney’s Herbie movie The Love Bug (1968), and romantic race-car musical Fireball 500 (1966). Elsewhere in the movie, the cheapness is inescapable. The visual effects when the death ray is fired look particularly cheap and old fashioned.
UAMC Recommended
Overall, Light Blast is good fun. It has all the action you’d hope for from a 1980’s action movie. Just not done in a big-budget Hollywood way. Light Blast is instead a cheesy, low-budget, Italian version of the 80’s American action movie. And in my opinion, a good example of those things done well. Recommended unless you demand big name actors and directors and high production values.
Hywel Price-Evans is currently seeking the Vice President role within OCP’s Security Concepts Division after the position recently become vacant. He is passionate about the future of urban pacification and discovering obscure action movies from the home video era.
What are your thoughts on Light Blast? Let us know in the comments!
” in the caption for a video in which he and Lawrence confirmed the movie was happening, but at that stage it wasn’t clear that was the title.
