Lee B. Golden III

About Lee B. Golden III

https://mediumblue-gerbil-491410.hostingersite.com

Native New Yorker. Been writing for a long time now, and I enjoy what I do. Be nice to me!

Posts by Lee Golden:

MILE 22: Forget Diplomacy. Forget Military. Meet Overwatch In The First Official Trailer

UFC champ-turned-actress and WWE star Ronda Rousey may have had a hell of an uphill climb in the last several years, but she’s proven her resilience along with her filmic potential since breaking out in 2014’s The Expendables 3. Her fruition also comes in parallel to the international success seen by actor and martial artist Iko Uwais (Beyond Skyline) since emerging in under the auspices of Gareth Huw Evans nearly a decade ago and flourishing toward a bigger career to date. For this and apart from being a fan of the genre their talents are relatively attributed to, I couldn’t be more proud, nor excited for the upcoming theatrical release of STXfilms’ new franchise hopeful, Mile 22. Both aforementioned cast members join the committed actor/director partnership that is actor Mark Wahlberg and Peter Berg who are now five years-strong in their four-for-four collaboration that also bears the potential for a […]

FALLING CAMELLIA: Perilous Brotherhood Weathers The Storm In The Official Teaser

Lee B. Golden III

Award-winning filmmaker Kimura Daisaku has a new novel adaptation on the way with period pic, Falling Camellia (Chiri Tsubaki). Toho has already put together a teaser which should garner some attention for chanbara fans looking forward to a compelling swordplay drama with themes centered on sacrifice, loyalty, love and war. Such is the case for Hanmuro Rin’s novel that foundates the narrative telling of a gifted swordsman who, after being ousted by his corrupt boss and upon the dying wishes of his wife, returns to his old estate in favor of a former comrade with whom he shares a bitter romantic rivalry. The cast enlists Okada Junichi with actress Aso Kumiko and actor Nishijima Hidetoshi for the film’s September 28 release. Check out the teaser!

ESCAPE PLAN 2: HADES Welcomes You To The Zoo In The Official Trailer!

Lee B. Golden III

If you’re sitting here and wondering just why in the name of all that is pure and true is Escape Plan 2: Hades, headed to the ancillary market instead of theaters, you’re definitely not alone. Indeed it’s happening though, gladly as one of two forthcoming sequels following the 2013 hit film starring A-listers, returning actor Sylvester Stallone and trilogy newcomer Bautista. Ray Breslin (Sylvester Stallone) manages an elite team of security specialists trained in the art of breaking people out of the world’s most impenetrable prisons. When his most trusted operative, Shu Ren, is kidnapped and disappears inside the most elaborate prison ever built, entirely computerized and constantly changing shape, Ray must track him down with the help of some of his former friends. Steven C. Miller directs with a cast that rounds out with Jamie King, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Jesse Metcalf, Huang Xiaoming and Wes Chatham for a […]

THE HIT LIST: May 14, 2018

Lee B. Golden III

It’s been another loaded weekend for me so save for sleep, preferred R&R has been nil – although news out of Cannes and other updates pretty much kept me on my toes… or typing thumbs. Whatever you wanna call them, I suppose! L to R (top): Matt Emig, Amy Schumacher, Eric Jacobus, Kawui Joa, Cameron Early L to R (bottom): Luis Fernandez, Xavier Luo, Braxton McAllister, Talyn Edelson, Kyle Potter Time to feast once more on another weekly installment of The Hit List, starting with another stimulating round of stunt reels to get the juices going and as such, Matt Emig does so accordingly with his own reel to kick off the first playlist. Rounding it all out are reels courtesy of Braxton and Michaela McAllister, Cameron Early, Siamak Samie, Jan Znidarsic, John Nania, Joshua Walters, Shawna West, Gabriel Baxter and Jesse Jacobson, and a hard-hitting fight choreography reel by […]

Sci-Fi Thriller POSSESSOR Casts Andrea Riseborough And Christopher Abott

Lee B. Golden III

Among other titles, actress Andrea Riseborough will hit theaters later this year for Panos Cosmatos’ hugely celebrated Nicolas Cage thriller, Mandy following its Cannes Film Festival Directors Fortnight selection. In the meantime, she’ll be setting forth with upcoming Catch-22 actor Christopher Abbott in Arclight Films’ latest prospect, acclaimed Antiviral helmer Brandon Cronenberg’s new sci-fi, Possessor, which he also wrote. The film will center on Riseborough in the role of Tasya Vos, an agent for a secretive organization who uses brain-implant technology to inhabit other people’s bodies, driving them to commit assassinations for the benefit of high-paying clients. As the plot reads on, something goes wrong on a routine job, and she soon finds herself trapped in the mind of an unwitting suspect (Abbott) whose appetite for violence turns out to rival her own. …Hm. Just trying to picture how that is going to play out on screen is an adventure […]

WARRIORS: Live-Action CG-Hybrid Cat Clan Tale Moves Forward At STX

Lee B. Golden III

It was in 2016 that Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba announced a pairing with Harry Potter producer David Heyman to adapt Warriors for the big screen. Two years later, their efforts now have more push courtesy of STX Entertainment board member Greg Pritzker who joins in to produce the adaptation of pennamed three-way author collective “Erin Hunter’s” 2003 HarperCollins YA book series which is described as follows: For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by their ancestors. But the warrior code has been threatened, and the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger. The sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying—and some deaths are more mysterious than others. In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty… who may turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all. Award-winning scribes Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger […]

KUNG FURY 2: THE MOVIE Lines Up Financing, Character Details For September Shoot

Lee B. Golden III

One of the biggest and most important keys to getting a feature film going with help from partners at a major market at Cannes is obtaining funding. Filmmaker and actor David Sandberg knows this all too well having earned a world of support for his 2015 OTT half-hour 80’s-inspired fantasy martial arts time travel fantasy thriller, Kung Fury. Fast forward to 2018 and following brewing announcement since then for its feature film fruition and long since debuting at Cannes, Sandberg’s return to the sales floor this year is proving to be well worth the effort. Andreas Wiseman’s exclusive at Deadline on Monday is confirming a September production start for Laser Unicorn’s feature film evolution, Kung Fury 2: The Movie. The report reveals that Argent Pictures, the backer of the 2017 hit drama, Hacksaw Ridge, has joined the upcoming action-comedy production as a financier and producer with Sandberg set once again […]

Jiang Wen’s Wuxia Adaptation, HIDDEN MAN, Sees Warner Bros. Boarding As Co-Producer

Lee B. Golden III

A local release date is still in the works for Jiang Wen’s new thriller, Hidden Man. In the meantime, news out of Cannes has it on good terms that Warner Bros. is investing in the pic as co-producer through its deal with its conjoined venture with CMC Capital Holdings, Flagship Entertainment. The film loosely takes its cues from a wuxia novel by Zhang Beihai that will follow suit with Wen’s famed Bullets trilogy, telling of a swordsman who returns home as a spy to solve a five-year old murder case. The celebrated filmmaker and Rogue One co-star’s return to the helm is said to be a film festival prospect later this year upon its summer release in China. Wen is joined by wife and actress Zhou Yun, as well as The Final Master star Liao Fan and Rise Of The Legend and Operation Mekong star Eddie Peng and The Hidden […]

WATCH ME KILL: Bear Witness To Jean Garcia’s Grim Testimony In The First Official Teaser

Lee B. Golden III

Grave Bandits helmer T.A. Acierto’s dark new thriller, Watch Me Kill, is expected to release locally in the Philippines this December, and with nothing short of the visible change of pace for local TV actress Jean Garcia that has some fans curious. The film hails from Acierto’s indie banner at Cinebandito Entertainment and with the official teaser already online as of a month ago I love the gritty, rustic tone and visage it delivers right down to the stylish red font in the title and credits. Moreover, that it was also shot on Super 16mm film is also a warm and welcoming plus, and equally so for local actress Jean Garcia who became much more prolific on television here in recent memory. Hers is a fitting change of pace that has fans curious with Garcia starring as a brooding hitwoman who takes comfort in brutally rescuing a young girl held […]

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Vincent Zhao’s THE UNITY OF HEROES Lands At Well Go USA

Lee B. Golden III

We’ve got a ways to go before we learn any more about what’s in store with actor Vincent Zhao on several titles, save for one, at least. The IQIYI release of his latest Wong Fei Hung revival, The Unity Of Heroes, has been hitting the sales floor at Cannes and just racked up a raft of sales as reported by Screen International on Monday. In the late Qing Dynasty, the East India Company produces a narcotic by conducting human testing in Guangdong. These secret tests begin to come to light when one of the test subjects crashes into Wong Fei Hung’s famed medicine clinic. The initial official trailer has been online for a while now, while fans of Zhao can also expect a U.S. trailer courtesy of Well Go USA in due time. Other territories include Clover Films for Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei, China 3D for Hong Kong and Macau, […]

Period Action Epic, VIKING DESTINY, Lands At Saban For U.S. Distribution

Lee B. Golden III

Film Mode Entertainment has been busy at the Cannes market with its package of titles for buyers. Their latest prospects now lie with Saban Films who’ve officially acquired producer and Hard Boiled Sweets helmer David L.G. Hughes’ epic odyssey adventure, Viking Destiny, which also managed to nab earlier territories in the U.K., Germany, Italy, Australia & New Zealand and The Middle East. Written and directed by David L.G. Hughes, the film explores the legendary crusades of Scandinavian explorers. Incredible action sequences containing exceptionally high production value are sure to wow audiences worldwide. In VIKING DESTINY, Odin, the Norse god of war and wisdom, is played by STAMP. The adventure/fantasy centers on a young Norse girl, the rightful heir to the Viking kingdom, who is banished after she’s framed for the murder of her father, the king. The expert team behind these action sequences along with the performances by such a […]

JCVD Thriller FULL LOVE Returns To Cannes Under Rodin Entertainment

Lee B. Golden III

It was earlier this year that action star Jean-Claude Van Damme announced a whole raft of film titles to come hailing from his Rodin Entertainment banner which launched sales at Cannes this week. The official website took off as well with the annouced completion of at least two recent titles – We Die Young and The Bouncer, and further included the long-awaited title, Full Love, which is now on display at the market floor. The film’s long journey to fruition began a decade ago with the film’s production, mired by reshoots and title changes after screening to a mixed reception at Cannes in 2010 and its subsequent languishing ever since. Van Damme wrote and directed this, his second feature film, in which he stars as Frenchy, former soldier with PTSD now working as a cabbie in East Asia, and is driven to fight to improve the situation of a beautiful, […]

Martial Arts Mob Comedy MADE IN CHINATOWN Sets Art Camacho To Helm Alfred Hsing Debut

Lee B. Golden III

Changes are in the midst for upcoming New York City-set martial arts mobster comedy, Made In Chinatown following last week’s exclusive report. Acclaimed filmmaker, stunt multi-hyphenate and author Art Camacho (Half Past Dead 2, Assassin X, Confessions Of A Pit Fighter) is being tapped to direct the new pic which rolls cameras in June. Stuntman, world-class wushu stylist and champion Gold medalist, actor Alfred Hsing will make his starring debut from a script by executive producer and author Mark V. Wiley. Mingling tropes from various memorable hit films like Kung Fu Hustle, Analyze This, Micky Blue Eyes and Big Trouble In Little China, Made In Chinatown centers on Vinny, a Chinatown resident who, with the help of his sifu and a select few good friends, works to assimilate himself into the Italian mob lifestyle and gain top-tier status whilst in pursuit of the girl of his dreams. Dubbed as “The […]

Feel The FURIE In This Teaser Poster For The Upcoming Veronica Ngo Action Thriller

Lee B. Golden III

I’m actually daunted by this small update seeing as how Cannes is just now underway with sales and this Vietnamese poster for upcoming action thriller, Furie, went live on my birthday earlier this year. Arclight is repping the new film at the Cannes market with a Vietmam release date set for September 2 and having just spotted this poster after yesterday’s first look at The Rebel and Clash star and Bright co-star Veronica Ngo’s first look image, I simply couldn’t resist. In the vein of the international box office hit action film The Raid, Furie follows Hai Phuong (Ngo) a gangster who retired from the life of crime after the birth of her daughter. Despite lying low in the countryside, she can’t seem to escape her violent past when her daughter is kidnapped right before her eyes. Hai Phuong is forced back into the life she swore she would leave […]

Don “The Dragon” Wilson Emerges At Cannes In German-Produced Action Thriller, THE HITMAN AGENCY

Lee B. Golden III

I never really grew aware of the term, Krautsploitation. Apparently that’s the subgenre of independent action flicks rolling out of Germany with respect to titles like Nico Sentner’s 2015 action film, Atomic Eden – that one never sat well me and even, to this day, boggles the mind as to why some fanboys love it. Going forward however, the more revelant news now turns us toward that film’s co-star, writer and producer Dominick Starck who makes his entry this week by way of Starck Entertainment and R.J. Nier Films at the Cannes market for his debut, The Hitman Agency courtesy of sales reps, Generation X Group GmbH. Everett Ray Aponte leads the cast with Erik Hansen, and 11 time kickboxing champion Don “The Dragon” Wilson also starring. The ambitious professional hitman Lucas Kane (EVERETT RAY APONTE) hunts and tortures his old predecessor Joseph Kyler (ERIK HANSEN) in the basement of […]

RENDEL 2 Moves Forward At Raven Banner

Lee B. Golden III

The last few years have seen the wheels turn quite a bit for director Jesse Haaja who made history in debuting Finland’s first comic book superhero movie, Rendel. Nowadays he’s developing other properties including Furrow, but that doesn’t necessarily count out prospects for a sequel while genre specialist Raven Banner has anything to say for it. Such is what includes Jeremy Kay’s Screen International report this weekend with word that sales on a sequel to the Finnish superhero hit film have launched at the Cannes market. Producers at Black Lion Pictures and Frozen Flame Pictures are planning an early 2019 shoot on Rendel 2 which has Haaja returning to the helm to follow up the story of a family man previously resurrected from near-death with a brutal, masked alterego to seek revenge in the name of a city crying out for justice against a criminal organization and their pharmaceutical cohorts. […]

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Review: BLINDSIDED: THE GAME Plays Fair And Firm To An Industry That Needs To Open Its Eyes Already

Lee B. Golden III

Making shortfilms as prologues to subsequent longer-form projects is nothing new in film and television. It is equally delightful and surprising when it goes unannounced and, as expected, delivers tenfold on its intentions with the engaging audience. It wasn’t exactly foreseen last Spring when actor, martial artist, stuntman and filmmaker Eric Jacobus started garnering festival praise with twelve-minute narrative short, Blindsided. At twelve minutes, it achieves nearly everything you might expect or enjoy in a shortfilm or proof of concept right down to the ending without necessarily feeling baited to wait for more. Instead, it garners your furthered interest in the character and universe, and that is simply that. Going forward however, whatever said interest that entailed clearly took hold of the people at JB Productions, Jacobus’ shared independent film banner with industry stunt coordinator and Blindsided director Clayton Barber. Just over a year later and with the concerted efforts […]

SNAKE EYES: G.I. Joe Spin-Off Taps ‘Bright’ Sequel Writer

Lee B. Golden III

Paramount Anyone’s guess outside the studio circuit is as good as mine at this point regarding what lies ahead with a third G.I.Joe film; Murmurs of Dwayne Johnson circling working title, Ever Vigilant, may ring a bell for those keen on recent news over at That Hashtag Show which should keep fans of The Rock amply pleased. It’s worth noting Hasbro’s recent efforts toward IP expansion on its various properties other than Transformers, and we’ve yet to hear more than what we’ve been given with respect to current scripting and development efforts. Clearly they’ve got their work cut out for them, although that’s not stopping them from striking while the iron is hot. Thus, now comes word of a new G.I. Joe spin-off courtesy of an exclusive from The Hollywood Reporter’s Borys Kit which will focus on key team member, Snake Eyes. Actor, martial artist and comic-con favorite Ray Park […]

WIRO SABLENG: A New Legend Is Born In The International Trailer For The New Martial Arts Fantasy Adaptation

Lee B. Golden III

Instantly, Friday’s campaign kick-off with the official teaser trailer for Angga D. Sasongko’s latest, Wiro Sableng, delivered hard and heavy courtesy of a certain merc-with-a-mouth. It’s certainly an inviting feat apart from what we now get with an official international teaser trailer for the masses abroad as starring actor Vino G. Bastian readies to hit screens this August from 20th Century Fox and Lifelike Pictures. Taken from the pages of the long celebrated action adventure novel saga from Bastian’s father, author Bastian Tito, the story itself is set in the 16th century and centered on the axe-wielding hero of legend who accrues a number of skills on his adventures. Folks familiar with the IP or the language might be a lot more keen on what sorts of story gems the teaser trailer hints at but the footage itself hints and something pretty spectacular. And even better: seeing Yayan Ruhian in […]

Vertigo/DC Comic Adaptation THE KITCHEN Now In Production

Lee B. Golden III

Vertigo/DC Today in news for folks ever roused by living in The Big Apple, principal photography is officially underway as of Friday in New York City’s famed Manhattan subsect, Hell’s Kitchen, for New Line Cinema’s gritty drama, The Kitchen. Oscar nominated Straight Outta Compton scribe Andrea Berloff is directing from her own script based on the Vertigo/DC Entertainment comic book series from creators Ollie Masters and Ming Doyle, and with a September 20, 2019 date stamped from Warner Bros. Pictures. Starring Oscar nominee Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids), Tiffany Haddish (Girls Trip) and Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid’s Tale), The Kitchen centers on three 1978 Hell’s Kitchen housewives whose mobster husbands are sent to prison by the FBI. Left with little but a sharp ax to grind, the ladies take the Irish mafia’s matters into their own hands—proving unexpectedly adept at everything from running the rackets to taking out the competition…literally. Also starring […]