Lee B. Golden III

About Lee B. Golden III

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

Posts by Lee Golden:

Get Liberated In The New Trailer For Ericson Core's POINT BREAK!

As it stands, out of any and all expectations there may be from director Ericson Core‘s upcoming Point Break remake, there are quite a few things I’m looking forward to here with regard to some of the iconic scenes from the 1991 film this one is based on, including the epic footchase chase, and the fight choreography by Can Aydin. Other than that, it’s fair to hold remakes to a specific standard these days, as some fall shorter than others. The decisions to remake a film is of a touchy nature, especially when it comes to this one and the tone being introduced when it comes to the next level of dynamic action and stunts to incorporate the drama. Needless to say, I like the potential here seen in this trailer. We get many of our key characters in our millieu of extreme sportsmanship played by daredevils living life on […]

White's NEVER BACK DOWN 3 Adds Nathan Jones, Cinematographer Ross Clarkson

Lee B. Golden III

Fans of martial arts action star Michael Jai White can feel free to keep their antennae up a little longer as production awaits for his next directorial move with Never Back Down 3. White‘s attachment to the direct-to-DVD 2011 sequel in 2011 as its co-star and director has lended itself as one of the greatest additions to the genre’s history as a movie geared toward mixed-martial arts fans by and large and with a third on the way, given all we’ve heard thusfar, we can more than likely expect something special out of this next line-up. The word is that the roster has officially added former wrestler-turned-actor Nathan Jones, according to a social media post from veteran cinematographer Ross Clarkson who shared the attached photo just above. After a career spanning fields such as powerlifting, MMA and wrestling, Jones began his continuing resume in Jackie Chan’s First Strike (1996) before landing […]

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Jackie Chan's Movie And Media School Opens In Wuhan

Lee B. Golden III

Remember back in 2013 when action star Jackie Chan talked about launching his own school for aspiring film professionals? Well, that just happened. While the 61-year old action cinema mainstay was busy stirring up enthusiam with a special award to fund young filmmakers with the aid of the Marche du Film at Cannes, plans were already unfolding for Chan‘s new school which had its celebratory opening six days ago as of this report. THR writes that The Jackie Chan Film and Television Academy of the Wuhan Institute of Design and Sciences officially opened to the public May 20, where Chan himself will serve as the Dean. The school, where Chan said he hopes to utilize his own experiences in conjunction with that of others to provide an outlet, as well as an interactive venue for students between classrooms and actual sets, is stated to be a lifelong dream for the […]

Superhero Comedy JIAN BING MAN Gets A Trailer With Van Damme Fully Stretched And Ready!

Lee B. Golden III

Well it was only a matter of time before action star Jean-Claude Van Damme would reappear in another comedy. His acting has grown pleasantly stronger in recent years so it’s still great to watch him get silly from time to time. And his latest, Jian Bing Man (a.k.a. Pancake Man), serves quite the delicious example. The film is set to arrive in July with Van Damme starring opposite actor and director Peng Da who plays a lowly street food vendor who somehow acquires his powers through the creps he sells. Somehow it leads to a final battle between him and Van Damme possibly in the role of the villain – although not plot details are available to discuss that end. Suddenly I’m reminded of Meteor Man and Blankman. Hm. Only this could be cooler. Because Van Damme. The film has some useful footage making the rounds this summer before its […]

CHASING SOULS: Catching Up With Actor, Martial Artist And Musician J. Cheung

Lee B. Golden III

Photo by Xin Wuku Those of you who have been reading Film Combat Syndicate since the site launched twenty seven months ago may be familiar with one of my first interviews. Certainly it was one of my biggest assignments at the time and it helped stretch my brain muscles a bit while learning how to handle the specific HTML standards of working a blog, whilst diving me deep into the inner-workings of one of Asia’s most inspired groups of up-and-comers to date, thr3guys, a group dedicated to performing and filmmaking martial arts choreography, as well as still-photography with founder, martial artist, hip-hop musician and up-and-coming actor, J. Cheung and others modeling in front of the camera. It was good for a time, although it wouldn’t be long before the group would find itself split later that year. Nowadays with its members moving on to other endeavors, I had been in […]

PREDATOR: DARK AGES Is The Shortfilm You Want More Of!

Lee B. Golden III

Getting my day off to a bit of an abrupt start while blogging, director James Bushe’s newest homage to epic sci-fi, Predator: Dark Ages didn’t upload to its channel right away before could add it to this week’s Hit List last night prior to clocking out. Anyway, it’s finally online and comes just off the heels of its positive response by comic-con attendees in London just this weekend, and having screened and reviewed it for myself on Saturday, I’m long proud to know everyone will have been in for a real treat. SYNOPSIS: Set during the Crusades, the faith & fighting skills of a group of Templar Knights is put to the test when they encounter the Predator. Their battle is the thing Myths and Legends are born from. Adrian Bouchett and Amed Hashimi lead the ensemble cast with actor Phillip Lane as the iconic alien hunter. Watch it right […]

THE HIT LIST – May 25, 2015

Lee B. Golden III

Glad I took my time in getting this Hit List together with all the videos and pics to display. Its been a busy week for me so I hope this will suffice. I should, right? As always, let’s start off with the usual assortment of fantastic stunt reels now available online. Reel Deal Action member, actor and stunt professional Can Aydin has been coming into his own for sometime now. His story is an amazing one and I had the distinct pleasure of meeting him last month as he was in the good company of friend and industry fight coordinator and stuntman Jonathan Eusebio. Aydin‘s body of work is currently poised to include his debut ensemble role with Reel Deal Action under directors Ufuk Genc and Michael Popescu for the upcoming milestone German martial arts action comedy, Plan B. Until then, you can currently his choreography and other stunt work […]

Hulk Hogan Talks Potentially Joining THE EXPENDABLES 4

Lee B. Golden III

A fourth installment of The Expendables franchise has had its fair share of on-again/off-again treatment since the third film released last August. However, knowing how passionate franchise star Sylvester Stallone is about his projects, it’s fair to say that it isn’t too late for another movie, especially since the previous one showed some strength at the global box-office. That said, I guess we can start taking note of just which faces we can speculate would be in the running to join the film on either side of the hero/villain coin, and there are plenty to go around, and as of this week, former wrestler Hulk Hogan is reportedly looking for a spot in the line-up. According to Uproxx, Hogan was on hand recently at the Body Pro Expo in London where he talked about WresleMania 32 among other things, as well as his reported discussion with Stallone on the matter […]

Conan Screenwriter: 'The New Film Will Be An Unforgiving, Primal Dance Of Death!'

Lee B. Golden III

For those who’ve been praying to Crom for the lasy thirty years for another Conan film, it’s fair to say the fictional Hyborian deity has heard you! The franchise itself, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger is based on the work of 1930’s pulp-fiction author Robert Howard, whose story finally lended itself a path through past a series of challenges up to its release of the first film in 1982. Writers Oliver Stone and director John Milius adapted the material to their script which begins its story with young Conan witnessing the brutal murder of his family and people at the hands of a snake cult leader and his army and growing into a mighty Cimmerian warrior with a thirst for vengeance! The film was a commercial success and grew its following from there with a sequel under director Richard Fleischer, and while its continued success led to the hopes of a third […]

One Hitoshi's BAKUMAN Comes To Life In The Latest Trailer!

Lee B. Golden III

Never has the battle for a great manga been more epic! Such is the case for director One Hitoshi’s latest directorial endeavor adapting the upcoming live-action feature, Bakuman, based on the 2008 Weekly Shonen Jump publication and the animared series that followed. The script from manga authors Ohba Tsugumi and Obata Takeshi reunite Rurouni Kenshin cast members Satoh Takeru and Kamiki Ryunosuke in a story of a young university student who falls in love with an aspiring voice actress, and, with the help of a fellow classmate, finds new meaning in his late uncle’s aspirations in manga artistry and sets out to create their first manga. I’m not familiar with the original material, but I’m glad this looks like more than just a mushy love story and it looks like it will be a lot of fun to watch when it arrives this October for Japan audiences. Komatsu Nana also […]

My Two Cents: IRON MAN 3 (2013)

Lee B. Golden III

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Keeping up with superhero movies can be challenging, and without a doubt, writer and director Shane Black’s Iron Man 3 is no exception. That said, I finally got to rent the film over the Memorial Day weekend and it was definitely a step up from the second film. Robert Downey Jr. reprises the role of billionaire genius/playboy/philanthropist/title superhero Tony Stark in a story that follows the events from Joss Whedon’s 2012 film, The Avengers. Beneath his façade, Stark is intrinsically haunted by the weight that comes with protecting the world and the fear of losing love interest Pepper Potts, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, all while a new threat emerges in the headlines in the form of Ben Kingsley‘s iteration of the villain, The Mandarin. However, as a story like this would have it, not all is what it appears to be […]

Cannes 2015: MACBETH’s Alicia Vikander Tapped For ASSASSIN'S CREED And The Next 'BOURNE' Film

Lee B. Golden III

Actress Alicia Vikander is making waves at Cannes this weekend as her most recent film with actor Michael Fassbender, Justin Kurzel‘s adaptation of the Shakespeare classic, Macbeth is set to premiere. The Ex-Machina starlet is reportedly postioned for two major movies set to release next year – Kurzel‘s Assassin’s Creed and actor Matt Damon’s next Jason Bourne film with director Paul Greengrass. Assassin’s Creed reunites its two Macbeth stars and director for a feature film inspired by the hugely successful Ubisoft Game whose initial setting revolves around a man swept into a thrilling adventure with the help of a device that unlocks and ultimately “bleeds” past lives and memories as a clandestine assassin in search of the Pieces Of Eden, powerful artifacts that can control the fate of mankind. Plot details are not known while the film, which was finally greenlit back in February, currently has its production geared for early […]

TERMINATOR: GENISYS: TV Spot, Japanese Poster And More

Lee B. Golden III

I found some cool Japanese poster art for director Alan Taylor’s Terminator Genisys via cinematoday on Friday, and there’s no doubting that this film has already fired up a huge conversation about its validity with regard to the essence of the previous films. The film reboots the franchise for a new trilogy that now puts Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke), taken in and raised from childhood by her accompanying T-800 model Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger), and time traveling soldier Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) on a new mission that cuts right through the first film and pits them against a new cyborg killers, including an advanced model Terminator formulated into the body of John Connor (Jason Clarke), once the leader of the human resistance against Skynet. And something to do with an app. Complicated, I know. Still, I’m inclined to believe the fanbase will show out in July when the film arrives. All […]

Shortfilm Review: PREDATOR: DARK AGES

Lee B. Golden III

It’s been almost a year since filmmaker James Bushe launched crowdfunding for his own inspired take on the hugely successful sci-fi property, Predator. The film franchise itself remains ever more popular with a reboot on the way and clearly the fandom is still there, specifically from Bushe who is now on the verge of finally unleashing a world of pain and death all his own with the new short, Predator: Dark Ages. The film takes off and lands viewers straight into Middle-Age madness as Thomas (Adrian Bouchet), a war-torn templar knight and his men arrive to a camp in England as ordered by the Archbishop to regroup and strategize against a possibly more dangerous force of evil. The camp’s priest implures Marshall to bring Sied (Amed Hashimi), a middle-Eastern scholar, along as a consultant despite the two sharing different, warring religious ideologies, but all, except for Sied as a first […]

Magnet Announces Its Release Of Home Invasion Thriller, TIGER HOUSE

Lee B. Golden III

Director Thomas Daley‘s chilling new home invasion thriller, Tiger House isn’t too far off from its U.K. release on August 24, but its debut in North America will be just a few months later in October with a date pending. Magnet Releasing is showcasing its latest trailer in the meantime, which is a similar to the first trailer shown last week, but otherwise worth sharing. It’s a contained survival thriller with actress Kaya Scodelario as our underdog to cheer on against four menacing burglars led by Dougray Scott, in a millieu of uncertainty with an underlying mystery that may need solving before she dies. SYNOPSIS: One fateful night, troubled teenager Kelly sneaks into her boyfriend Mark’s house to deliver some sobering news: she’s pregnant. But tonight, she is not the only unwelcome visitor: an armed gang breaks in. Mark’s father Doug manages a bank and the gang plan on using […]

THE LATIN DRAGON SPEAKS: An Interview With REDEEMER Star Marko Zaror!

Lee B. Golden III

It’s been well over a decade since Chilean martial artist and stuntman Marko Zaror transitioned his career, thus landing in our sights with his debut role in the action-packed feature, Kiltro. Billed as the first South American film of its kind, it helped put Zaror and its director Ernesto Diaz Espinoza on the map toward greatness as the two forged a path through film that would ultimately see them become festival favorites by and large. Nowadays, Zaror‘s fourth film with Espinoza, Redeemer, is on the cusp of releasing to North American audiences next month, and it’s a real pleasure to still see films like this exist for the big screen, even as films like these are allocated to limited targeted metropolitan theater chains and VoD/digital platforms. Zaror and action stars like him don’t get the mainstream treatment that Hollywood once gave to the genre in the 1990’s when movie goers […]

Two More Join Fuqua's THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN

Lee B. Golden III

It’s been a few days since MGM’s forthcoming Western reboot, The Magnificent Seven announced at least one more key role in the form of actor Peter Sarsgaard who will play the villain, via Variety. Since then it’s also been stated that actor Jason Momoa dropped out after his name began circulating a few weeks ago, but casting has moved on with at least two more now in the mix. Deadline reports that actors Manuel Garcia-Rulfo and Martin Sensmeier will play the respective roles of “Vasquez” and “Red Harvest”, joining lead actor Denzel Washington in a remake of director John Sturges’s titular 1960 Western adaptation of an earlier Kurosawa classic. The new film reunites Washington will his Training Day and The Equalizer helmer Antoine Fuqua from scribe John Lee Hancock’s final draft which centers on a group of five outlaws hired to protect a small mining town from a ruthless gold baron. […]

Gabrielle Union Joins Jamie Foxx In SLEEPLESS NIGHT For Open Road

Lee B. Golden III

It’s been a while since I’ve heard from actress Gabrielle Union. Immediately the first thing that comes to mind when I think of her is her role in Cradle 2 The Grave and Bad Boys 2 and I’m happy to still see her name make the rounds when it comes to the action genre. No kung fu stuff here though. THR confirmed that the actress will be joining actor Jamie Foxx in director Baran Bo Odar‘s new film, Sleepless Night. The film was announced back in January from Open Road Films ahead of its position this year at Cannes with Foxx staking his claim along with actress Michelle Monaghan in respective roles reprising those from an original French cop thriller released in 2011. SLEEPLESS NIGHT is the story of Vincent Downs (Jamie Foxx), a seemingly corrupt Las Vegas cop. When gangsters kidnap his son as ransom for a shipment of […]

Lin To Direct Cinemax Bruce Lee-Inspired Crime Series, WARRIOR

Lee B. Golden III

Well this is fancy! Cinemax is reportedly beefing up efforts toward developing a Bruce Lee-inspired serial crime drama titled Warrior. Fast And Furious franchise helmer Justin Lin is poised to executive produce and potentially direct the pilot from a script by executive producer, Banshee co-creator Jonathan Tropper which centers on an anti-heroic, gifted fighter who is thrown into a crisis that undermines his quest for revenge. The series was the first of several projects that began conception early on as Lin pacted with Chinese media magnate Bruno Wu for the launch of TV enterprise, Perfect Storm Entertainment a few years ago. The project is based on Lee’s earlier writings which never saw the light of day after his death in 1973, until they were discovered by Shannon Lee, daughter of the iconic film legend and CEO of Bruce Lee Enterprises, prior to jumping aboard with Lin and Wu and introducing […]

Watch John Salvitti Go To Work In A New POUND OF FLESH Action Featurette!

Lee B. Golden III

Hopefully you’ve been motivated to check out action star Jean-Claude Van-Damme‘s latest blistering performance in director Ernie Barbarash‘s latest thriller, Pound Of Flesh. If not, then perhaps my earlier review will get the juices going, lest you miss out on one of the seasoned martial arts star’s most sizzling and brutal performances to date. Writer Joshua James lends his script to a story that sees a former operative taking on Macau’s criminal underworld when a good Samaritan act results in a stolen kidney with his dying niece’s life on the line. The action gets unapologetically violent and bloody, and the man assigned to designate the brutality is none other than Hong Kong veteran stuntman and fight choreographer John Salvitti who’s latest video presents a brief look into some of the action with great highlights to boot. And yes, he’s Boston-born so Dropkick Murphys for the win! Check it out right […]