Entertainment in the year of the Tiger-
Happy new Year to all who are celebrating the Lunar New Year and the Year of the Tiger. There is an amazing amount of iconic films,series and books heading your way and if it’s pop culture you know where to find the details-right here at Reviews on the Edge.
Starting right out of the gate Kino Lorber brings us the 1985 action film Remo Williams The Adventure Begins (Special Edition) Bluray. Directed by Bond veteran Guy Hamilton. Starring one of my favorite actors-Fred Ward(Tremors & Secret Admirerer). Based on the Warren Murphy/Richard Sapir whose paperback pulp action novels- The Destroyer from the ’70s and ’80s. They were a staple of newstands and bookstores the world over... Still in print and even with new stories available. Remo was the perfect assassin. Trained by Chuin(Joel Grey).
We get the origin and his first mission. No greater or stranger “father/son”, teacher/student” relationship. The humor comes from the abilty to understand what it means to be Chuin. After all you have a master at the art of assassaniation who is addicted to “Americas one gift”:soap operas. So that alone is worth the view.
This time round he is out to get a bent general and his business man partner Charles Grove of Grove Industries(Charles Cioffi).
And when it’s time to get down to action Remo does not disappoint:
A plethora of villians/henchmen including a diamond chip toothed killer. The dentist bill alone.
Then throw in what might seem to someone as an incredibly unorthodox training regime. Like oh diving in and through sand piles and climbing the scaffolding surrounding the Statue of Liberty
or balancing on top of a ferris wheel car plus those late night balancing acts on single poles of various heights. OH this doesn’t sound too hard. Well try it in the dark…crash!!..is what your gauranteed to hear in the next store apartment/brownstone. Think New York. as in city.
Remastered in HD and bursting with extras that include audio commentary from the producer & co-producer respectfully: Larry Spiegel and Judy Goldstein. Featurettes with regards to the writing process, production, the training for the role and two more. A trailer with a bonus radio spot(love these).
Look for this mid February. Not a bad Valentines gift for the guy or gal who has everything.
Rounding out the cast is Miss Jane Way herself- Kate Mulgrew, Wilford Brimley & J A Preston.
Kino-
The Adventure Continues-
Who Doesn’t love Movie Tie Ins…
I know I do …. back in the day this was a most common way of promoting movie releases. Every movie worth it’s weight in gold excuse the expression had a soundtrack release and a tie in book a paperback.(which took in most of my bookshelf to my mom’s dismay. Lots of dusting. But I was a movie geek and an avid reader). I also loved -absolutely a good soundtrack and a catchy theme song or a main title. And I still do..
Over at Notefornote Records & tying into Kino Lorbers’ Remo bluray is the 35th Anniversary LP 2 disc Limited Edition release with one red & one mint green. With the complete Craig Safan score for the first time.
MVD-
Coming up in the next edition and keeping with sweeping entertainment in the year of the Tiger we are just heating up during this wintery weather. Martial arts is making a big comeback with some classic titles and true action heroes of the times John Lui. Wang Yu, Cynthia Rothrock and more. New York Ninja, The Chinese Boxer, the Tiger Claws Trilogy (Cynthia), Discliples of Shoalin(Fu Sheng) and from Darkforce a couple of Drive-In double feature Blurays with coming attractions(trailers) and intermission/snackbar ads all in remastered in HD…
The Chinese Hercules(Bolo)/Bruces Ninja Secret & The Black Dragon(Jason Pai Pao and Ron Von Clief)/Enforcer From Death Row. Now available from MVD Group. See above link…
Coming from these “guys” -one of the hardest working houses in Home Entertainment, Vinegar Syndrome…
the long awaited 4K release of Dead Heat. This one truely puts to test that old saying “the only good cop is a dead one” .
Join Joe Piscopo and Treat Williams as one dead cop who’s itching to solve one last case-his death. Also starring Darren McGavin and Vincent Price, Keye Luke and Mel Stewart.
And from Mill Creek Entertainment everyones favorite genie Barbara Eden in I Dream of Jeannie on Bluray- the complete series…And we’re just getting started. Til next time stay warm and be safe out there-where there is…
This is Doc sayin goodnight…and pleasant dreams…
Bonus & related material-
Tommy Shaw’s What If from Remo Williams The Adventure Begins. Shades of M-TV.
The only piece of music that was not availabe at the time for release was Remo’s theme by Tommy Shaw( I have to confess when I heard the song I originally thought that Journey/Starship had recorded this).
Tommy Shaw of Styx(‘75-approx ’85) went on a solo career with both music written and performed for the then current pop of the ’80s and in the ’90s, He also helped form another band -Damned Yankees. Currently at 68 years of age and still rock’em, the audience that is.
We are talking M-TV World Premiere video … back in the day ala 1985:complete with Statue of Liberty footage-which at the time of Remo’s production schedule the Lady of Liberty was under some extensive restoration..with scaffolding intact it made for great scenes as Remo dispatches some of the films bad guys. It must have put some feathers in a ruffled state as in the line of investigations ongoing of one of our potential villains-George Grove(Charles Cioffi-The Theif Who Came to Dinner). A weapons and Tech developer for the US Millitary.
The intro cover art from the very first paperback novel for the Destroyer .
And as the cover points out a rival- a number one at that.to the Executioner series by writer Don Pendleton featuring the character Mack Bolan. These guys battled it for years at the newstand. ***the irony is that Remo has appeared in 150 novels compared to Mack Bolan ‘s as of 2020- 464 novels. And yet no film or TV show.
Fan art — Featuring the name of the secret secret agency known as CURE and answers only to the President.
