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The Film

On first hearing the title, you might guess that this is a Hong Kong adaptation of the much-filmed Edgar Allan Poe story. It is, largely, an adaptation, but not of that. Writer/Director Stephen Shin apparently wanted to do a straight remake of Luc Besson’s Nikita, but the rights weren’t available (because they had already been sold in preparation for John Badham’s Bridget Fonda starring Point of No Return [Aka: The Assassin]). Shin made this instead. He makes some cosmetic changes, but in structure and many specifics, it remains very recognisable. You could say that Shin went from remake to ripoff in his concept of the film. Which isn’t to say it’s bad.

Former model Jade Leung debuts as Catherine, who kills a truck driver who tries to molest her, then the cop who comes to arrest her. As she’s taken to her trial,...

Pablo Picasso was apparently supposed to have said “good artists copy, great artists steal”. In the world of transnational cinema this is especially true when we see re-imaginings (to use the modern parlance) of particular films. With Luc Besson’s “La Femme Nikita”, the original “inspired” an incredibly dull American remake, TV series and inevitably an unofficial Hong Kong take from D&b Films. It would be hard pressed to argue that they were great artists and Stephen Shin would hardly be considered a visual stylist as Luc Besson in his prime. Yet this is more than just a facsimile copy and does have merit in it’s own right.

After killing a truck driver for assaulting her, Catherine (Jade Leung) is found by the police and shoots one of them unintentionally. After being attacked in jail by vengeful officers, she attempts to escape whilst on route to court.

Diego Boneta has signed on to star in a limited series currently in the works at HBO Max, Variety has learned exclusively.

Hailing from Legendary Television, the series is titled “Brujo” and will feature both English and Spanish dialogue. It is inspired by the true story of the infamous Adolfo Constanzo and the power he acquired as his acts of dark magic came to light. The series will play out through the eyes of his two most unlikely followers who helped Constanzo in his rise to fame as the go-to witch doctor for celebrities, politicians, high-ranking police officers, and powerful crime families, through his evolution into a notorious cult leader and serial killer.

Boneta will serve as executive producer in addition to starring. The show will reunite him with multiple members of the series “Luis Miguel: La Serie,” on which Boneta currently stars for Netflix. Daniel Krauze will serve as...

Director Jose Giovanni was best known as a screenwriter for a number of important French auteurs throughout the 1960’s, having written items like Jacques Becker’s Le Trou (1960), Claude Sautet’s Classe Tous Risques (1960) and the novel upon which Melville’s Le Deuxieme Souffle (1966) was based. Many of his own directorial efforts have faded into obscurity, but his 1973 title Two Men in Town, a political drama documenting the social ills associated with the death penalty, has recently received resurrected interest thanks to Rachid Bouchareb’s 2014 remake, retooled for the American Southwest and predicated on issues of immigration. Starring Alain Delon and Jean Gabin in their last of three on-screen collaborations, it’s an interesting item, though Giovani’s overly protracted first half doesn’t sit well with the finale’s obvious sermonizing.

Social worker Germain Cazeneuve (Gabin) tirelessly works as a bridge between prisoners and authorities, doing the best he...

Oh to be a fly on the wall during this family dinner! As George Clooney and Amal Clooney continue to spend part of their summer at their private home near Lake Como, the Hollywood couple is making it a priority to enjoy time with their extended family. Such was the case Tuesday evening when the pair invited close to 13 people for a special meal at Gatto Nero restaurant. E! News has learned George's parents as well as Amal's mother were in attendance for the gathering that began around 7 p.m. local time. "They were very down to earth. Clearly, they required some privacy, but they were fine about sitting in a room with other diners," a source told E! News. "The restaurant was...

We return with another edition of the Indie Spotlight, highlighting recent independent horror news sent our way. Today’s feature includes details on The Book, which brings together some of the biggest names in Italian horror, a trailer for Dead of the Nite, new releases from Cavity Colors, and much more:

First Details on The Book: “The Book sees the ultimate collaborative Italian horror film unfold before your very eyes. A one off project of unprecedented scale, The Book brings together, for the very first time, the writers, directors, actors, composers and artists behind the finest Italian genre cinema of the past sixty years. This includes the creative forces behind the Giallo movement, Spaghetti Westerns, Eurocrime and more. Each director will be given the opportunity to showcase their own personal vision of Rome, spread across a dozen episodes. Each segment in this feature film will contain a unique blend of macabre thriller,...

Fantastic Chicago screening series Terror in the Aisles is giving Italian horror fans something to be thankful for this weekend (sorry, I’m so sorry) when they follow the Midwest premiere of Gary Schultz’s acclaimed new horror/comedy Devil In My Ride with rare 35Mm prints of Argento’s immortal Suspiria and Lucio Fulci’s The Black Cat. That’s […]...

One of Arrow Video's great success stories is the championing of Dario Argento's work on home video in the UK.  I know what some of you may be thinking, and perhaps championing Argento isn't exactly controversial position to defend, but no one had really taken up the challenge of rescuing many of these Argento features in Britain from BBFC cut purgatory.  Many of Argento's features have been sliced and diced by the BBFC, and for the most part, home video distributors have made do with the cuts in order to have a marketable product.  Arrow Video, however has taken some of these very same films, including their recent Blu-ray/DVD release of Inferno, back to the BBFC for reclassification, and they won!  They are currently awaiting a decision on Deep Red (Profondo Rosso), which has yet to be seen completely uncut in most areas of the world.  This is...

Chicago – The great cult movie studio Blue Underground continues their pattern of excellent Blu-ray releases for unheralded horror gems with the recent releases of the Lucio Fulci zombie film “City of the Living Dead” and one of the most underrated westerns ever made in “Django”. While they don’t have much in common outside of studio and cult status, both are worth a look.

Blu-Ray Rating: 3.0/5.0

“City of the Living Dead”

Even though I admire some of his technique and willingness to do whatever inspired him, I was never a huge Lucio Fulci fan. The man has often been called the Italian Herschell Gordon Lewis and is probably most well-known for “Zombi II” and “The Beyond,” two films from the late-’70s and ’80s that earned Fulci a reputation for extreme gore. A large number of his films have been banned around the world and his “The New York Ripper...

From the moment I discovered the sick and twisted genius of The Gates of Hell (1980, aka City of the Living Dead), I knew I was a Lucio Fulci fan -- and a few weeks later (after experiencing the horror-geek heaven that is Fulci's Zombie (1979)), I knew I had to track down more of his movies. Over the intervening years I've seen and enjoyed (or seen and laughed at) movies with colorful titles like A Lizard in a Woman's Skin (1971), Don't Torture a Duckling (1972), The Psychic (1977), The Black Cat (1981), The Beyond (1981), The House by the Cemetery (1981), The New York Ripper (1982), Manhattan Baby (1982), Conquest (1983), and The New Gladiators (1984), which is cool for me because now I know a good deal about the...