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Macho Movie Monday #3 - The Equalizer

Details: Published on Monday, January 05 2015 18:53; Written by Johnny M

My intention with M3 is to recommend some of my favorite movies that may not be easily found otherwise. I’m already breaking this rule with the very mainstream Equalizer, but I felt that I needed to. Although this move received mostly positive reviews and is a new release blu-ray, it is not being talked about or seen enough. And hey, it's Monday-ish anyway!

What Movie Is This?

The Equalizer (2014)

How Long Is It?

132 min

Where Is It From?

USA

What language are they speaking?

English

Who is in it?

Denzel Washington, Chloe Grace Moretz, Martin Csokas

What is the irrelevant Rotten Tomatoes score?

61%

What does it say in the synopsis thing?

Robert McCall (Denzel Washington), a man of mysterious origin who believes he has put the past behind him, dedicates himself to creating a quiet new life. However, when he meets Teri (Chloë Grace Moretz), a teenager who has been manhandled by violent Russian mobsters, he simply cannot walk away. With his set of formidable skills, McCall comes out of self-imposed retirement and emerges as an avenging angel, ready to take down anyone who brutalizes the helpless.

How about a trailer?

Why should I watch It?

Some of this is going to sound familiar. An over the hill badass befriends a young girl and comes out of retirement to right some wrongs against her. The bad guys are Eastern Euorpean mob. You know the type. Flashy clothes, bad accents, worse hair. You've seen it all before. While the plot may sound tired, it never gets boring because The Equalizer features an A list cast that really sets it apart from most action based films. Denzel Washington and Chloe Moretz bring a real legitimacy with them and craft characters that we can really care about. Not something you can say every day in the modern action genre. We aren’t getting this great character work at the expense of any action, either. After what could be considered a slowish opening twenty minutes or so, the move really kicks it into high gear with some very enjoyable R rated brutality.

I can’t imagine any fan of Denzel’s or the genre not enjoying the hell out of this movie. Supposedly it tested so well that the original ending was altered to leave room for sequels. That will make plenty of sense when you see it and let me say that I am totally on board for more Robert McCall! I should also mention that I have never seen the original TV series, so I have no feelings about how similar or different it may or may not be to it.

Ok, you sold me. Where can I get it?

Pretty much everywhere. If you'd like to help out our site with expenses, Amazon has it on Blu-ray, DVD and Instant Video.

See you next time! No promises.

In Macho Movie Monday, John spotlights his favorite lessor known action, adventure, martial arts and assorted B-movies from around the globe. While the title of the blog may demonstrate superb use of alliteration, it doesn't actually come out on Mondays or any other regular schedule.

Send recommendations, comments and complaints to John at hhwlod dot com.

Macho Movie Monday #4 - Undisputed II: Last Man Standing

Details: Published on Monday, January 05 2015 18:53; Written by Johnny M

It's Saturday night and you know what that means! Time for Macho Movie Monday!

What movie is this?

Undisputed II: Last Man Standing (2006)

Who is in it?

Michael Jai White, Scott Adkins, Mark Ivanir

Who directed it?

Isaac Florentine

How long is it?

98 minutes

What country is it from?

Kuwait

What language are they speaking?

English

What’s the irrelevant Rotten Tomatoes Score?

70% (audience)

What’s it about?

Imprisoned in Russia, a man (Michael Jai White) relies on his street-fighting skills while fighting boxers in the ring.

How about a trailer?

Sure, but beware this is what we call "Red Band". It is unrated and has some salty language.

Why should I watch it?

As I flipped through my substantial blu-ray collection looking for titles to cover in the future, the same two actors kept popping up. Michael Jai White and Scott Adkins. They are very similar in that they are both very talented and charismatic martial arts talents, and they both seem to be struggling to break into mainstream movies. Sure they have had small roles in big big films like White’s cameo in The Dark Knight and Adkins’ in Expendables II, but neither of them have reached the action star status that you would expect. White seems to have been doomed by his portrayal of Spawn in the 90’ lives action adaptation and you could even blame Adkins’ struggles on his involvement in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Hopefully this has begun to turn around for White, who has landed a recurring role on TV’s Arrow as The Bronze Tiger. Luckily for the both of them, they have carved out a great niche in the direct to video action market, and Undisputed II was basically what started it all.

Undisputed II is really what this blog is all about. It’s a no nonsense action movie with great talent, superb fight choreography and larger than life characters. The franchise has been very well received and a financial success. While White did not return for the sequel, Adkins’ “Boyka” has reached cult hero status, and returned for Undisputed III. Part 4 is in development now and Adkins has confirmed his involvement. Any fan of the martial arts movie genre needs to check out Undisputed II. The fights are legendary and continually show up on “best of” lists all over the internet. This movie is what really changed my preconceived notions about direct to video action movies and hopefully it will do the same for you.

Ok, you sold me. Where can I get it?

The Blu-Ray is not in print in the US. There is a German import out there, but it is Region B, so you would need a region free player to watch it.

The DVD is available on Amazon and Amazon Instant Video!

See you next time! No promises.

Send recommendations, comments and complaints to John at hhwlod dot com.

Infinity War Trailer Recreated In Full HD

Details: Published on Sunday, January 04 2015 20:06; Written by Johnny M

Youtuber Divij Sonak has recreated the previously leaked trailer for Infinity War in full high definition. He did this by combining HD footage from past Marvel films and the actual sound from the event. The result is quite awesome and a far better viewing option than the leaked footage.

His notes on the project:

"Here's my attempt at recreating the leaked trailer of Avengers - Infinity War in full high definition. I know I'm pretty late into the part but its only by the time I finished this that I realized others had already done it. Being a Marvel fan, I nevertheless, had to complete this.

I thought of using the exact same sound from the event to keep the reverb feel of the dialogues and of course, the crowd reaction. This was also because doing the sound seemed a bit difficult for me (I'm a newbie you see)

Some shots were also replaced with shots I saw as the best / closest substitutes. This is thus more of a video recreation than an aural one."

New Look At Ant-Man From Trading Card Set

Details: Published on Monday, January 05 2015 14:40; Written by Johnny M

Shot by Shot Look at Ant-Man Teaser Trailer

Details: Published on Sunday, January 04 2015 09:59; Written by Johnny M

So the Ant-Man teaser trailer was pretty much just that, a massive tease. Although there isn't too much revealed, let's take a look and see what we can dig out of these super fast paced 15 seconds!

First shot is of a beat up Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) being escorted by the autorities to somewhere. He doesn't seem to be under arrest, though. No cuffs.

When we eventually get close enough to read the logo on this building, it says "PYM" and has a design that looks like it's made of particles or atoms. For the sake of alliteration, we'll call this the Pym Particles Plant.

Here's Evangeline Lilly as Hope Van Dyne with her awesome Janet Van Dyne hairdo. Looks to be passing by some server racks in some sort of tech lab.

This looks to be a flashback with Michael Douglas' Hank Pym. The tech looks much older. It probably takes place in the Agent Carter/Howard Stark era, as we know they both apppear in the film.

Here's Corey Stoll as Darren Cross, thankfully without his God aweful The Strain wig. Can't make out much from the text on those windows. There is a logo of some kind on the left and it seems to say "Lab" on the right. A bunch of important looking people are following him somewhere...

Prison Fight!!! Maybe Scott was being arrested in that first shot!

At first glance this looked like a training sequence, but upon further review I'd say it's a torture scene. You can see the bag over the victim's head and that he is tied up to the ceiling.

UPDATE- Our friends on Reddit suggest that it's a headgear, not a bag over his head, so maybe it is a training sequence after all.

So who is our torturer? Is that Hope Van Dyne? That doesn't really make sense, but the hair length and color seems to be pretty close to Evangeline Lilly's character. If it is in fact a training sequence, then it all does fit.