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:

Exciting HAKKENDEN Teaser And Poster Reveal Cannes Darling Koji Yakusho As The Man Behind The Immortalized Samurai Tale!

After spending a good portion of the past decade bringing Fullmetal Alchemist to life on the big screen, director Fumihiko Sori is back to take on a new property with Hakkenden. Sori directs from a screenplay he adapted from Futaro Yamada’s novels in the early eighties, with a cast led by Koji Yakusho who scored Best Actor at the 76th edition of Cannes for his role in Wim Wenders’s Perfect Days. For this, we get a full-on dive into the imaginative and spectacular samurai-themed world explored in Hakkenden, or “The Legend Of The Eight Dog Samurai” as some would know it. Sori’s Hakkenden casts Yakusho in the role of Edo period novelist Bakin Takizawa, who spent 28 years writing 106 volumes of his heroic tale (even as his health deteriorated) with the help of ukiyo-e artist Katsushika Hokusai, played by actor Seiyo Uchino (Fullmetal Alchemist 2 & 3). Also starring […]

TACFEST 2024 Brings The Heat Back To Illescas With Loads Of Action And Martial Arts Fanfare In May

Lee B. Golden III

Our own Mike Garcia has been busy previewing some of the stuff that’s ramping for the sophomore edition of the Toledo Action Films Festival And Expo, or TACFEST & EXPO. You can check out his select write-ups by clicking here, while the word is now out for the five-day event kicking off in the Spanish municipality at the Illescas House of Culture on May 15. Action cinema, despite being one of the most watched genres in the world, still does not have the respect it deserves, and has always been undervalued in the most important festivals and awards ceremonies, which is why it makes a year TACFEST was born, where they wanted to pay tribute to the genre that has given us more action heroes to admire than any other. TACFEST & EXPO 2024 hails from Castilla la Mancha Film Association, in collaboration with the Association International of Martial Artists […]

DAY LABOR: R. Ellis Frazier’s New Survival Thriller Hits The Ground Running In May!

Lee B. Golden III

Freestyle Digital Media is heading up North American VOD rights to action thriller Day Labor. The R. Ellis Frazier-directed pic will release to rent or purchase on all digital HD, cable, and satellite platforms, and on DVD, starting on May 3. In DAY LABOR a regular day turns into a deadly game of survival when a Latino American veteran who seeks work as a day laborer in order to keep his family afloat, is mistakenly dropped off at a private ranch in El Paso, Texas to be hunted for sport. Frazier directs from a script by Sean Crayne and Brian Frank Visciglia. Day Labor stars Amy Johnston, Danny Arroyo, Roberto Sanchez, and Louis Mandylor, along with Corin Nemec, Gary Cairns, Chris Ashworth, and Kevin Gage. and directed by R. Ellis Frazier. Ojan Missaghi and David Wachs produced the film with Solmaz Kermani as exec producer. “Making DAY LABOR was a team […]

FREE FALL: Zoë Bell Actioner Taps Zachary Levi To Star, New Zealand Shoot Later This Year

Lee B. Golden III

Celebrated stunt laureate and actress Zoë Bell is gearing up to shoot rock climbing action thriller Free Fall. Zachary Levi of Shazam and Harold And The Purple Crayon fame will headline the film with cameras set to roll in New Zealand later this year. Written by Sean Finegan and Gregg Maxwell Parker, Free Fall tells the story of a father’s attempt to reconcile with his estranged daughter in New Zealand on a rock-climbing trip that turns deadly as an accident leaves them stranded hundreds of feet in the air. As a storm sets in, the two must fight against the elements and terrifying heights in order to survive. Free Fall also marks the latest project partnering XYZ Films and Auckland-based Tavake Ltd. (Madam) whose Tom Hern and Nua Finau are producing. Navid McIlhargey and Erik Olsen will exec produce alongside, Finegan, Parker and Levi. Levi is an accomplished American actor and […]

DIE BAD: Ryoo Seung-Wan’s Breakout Makes Its Jeonju Festival Debut In 4K Next Month!

Lee B. Golden III

The ceremony continues for anyone ardently following the work of director Ryoo Seung-wan. The hitmaker’s career of more than two-decades is now readying one of Ryoo’s biggest throwbacks for the 25th edition of the Jeonju International Film Festival, with Ryoo’s 2000 feature debut, Die Bad. Sung-bin accidentally commits manslaughter while breaking up his friend Suk-hwan’s rumble. After serving his sentence, Sung-bin reaches out to Suk-hwan but now a police investigator, Suk-hwan avoids Sung-bin. One day, Sung-bin saves a mobster by chance, and follows him into the world of violence. Suk-hwan’s brother Sang-hwan secretly enters the gang finds a place under Sung-bin’s wing, making their relationships even more twisted. As Ryoo’s fans know, the four-part Die Bad was key to solidifying Ryoo in the action genre for years to come. Boxing drama Crying Fist, modern day martial arts fantasy romp Arahan, and gangbuster delight City Of Violence have all earned their place […]

HE BLED NEON: Action Thriller Casts Joe Cole For Music Video Director’s Feature Debut

Lee B. Golden III

Deadline’s Andreas Wiseman reports that Drew Kirsch will debut direct action thriller feature, He Bled Neon. A Prayer Before Dawn star Joe Cole will lead from a script by Tim Cairo and Jake Gibson. After his estranged brother’s mysterious death, Ethan’s (Joe Cole) journey to Las Vegas for the funeral unravels a dark web of crime, forcing him to confront his past as he delves into the city’s gritty underworld to uncover the truth, risking everything he holds dear in the process. Wiseman notes He Bled Neon is based on a story by Nate Bolotin “who was inspired by his early experiences growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada.” Bolotin is co-founder of XYZ Films who is producing the pic alongside Two & Two Pictures. XYZ is also repping world sales next month at the Marche du Film with WME repping domestic. Music will be scored by Grammy nominated Zhu, and […]

TWILIGHT OF THE WARRIORS: WALLED-IN Doles Out Raw Deals And Deadly Blows In The Official Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

The 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards were the place to be over the weekend where laureates like actor and film legend Sammo Hung were on hand to accept his Lifetime Achievement Award for the over 200 films he’s done in the last sixty years. The South China Morning Post’s Edmund Lee captured the celebrated mainstay most recently ahead of his ceremony and you can read all about it here. In the meantime, Hung’s festivities have since arrived just in time as Media Asia and distro outlets therein have already begun ramping up the latest campaign for Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled-In, in which Hung joins an ensemble cast topped by Louis Koo and Richie Jen. Based on the hit manhua penned and inked by Andy Seto and “Yuyi,” the movie also reunites Hung with filmmaker Soi Cheang who also took home Best Director at the awards ceremony for last year’s […]

DUSK FOR A HITMAN Review: A Gripping Snapshot About A Hitman With A Killer Choice To Make

Lee B. Golden III

Dusk For A Hitman will be released On Digital, and On Demand on April 19 from Saban Films. For those of you gravitate to the true crime story end of the genre, it’ll behoove you to take a gander at Dusk For A Hitman. Raymond St-Jean directs from a script he wrote with Martin Girard, casting Éric Bruneau for the lead of the late 70s-set drama about an underworld hitman, and the inevitable choice he’ll have to make if he’s to save the ones he loves. That impasse is set by a flurry of violent events spearheaded in the dark crime tale by hitman career criminal and drug addict, Donald Lavoie (Bruneau). His job entails either collecting or assassinating people who flake on payments. Imaginably, his lifestyle is also a bit of a balancing act between working for leading crime boss Claude Dubois (Benoît Gouin), and playing loving father and husband […]

A FATHER’S DEBT Is Paid In Blood And Grit In The Official Teaser For James Campbell’s New Revenge Short

Lee B. Golden III

I took a day to unwind on Thursday and I felt it necessary to work my way back in now that the official teaser for A Father’s Debt is finally here. The short film is the latest work from director James Campbell who wrapped principal photography on the project last month. Terry Riley struggles to deal with the sudden death of his daughter from suicide and takes it upon himself to seek revenge against those he believes to be responsible. But – as with all things – the truth eventually comes out… The Northeast English director is currently tracking to make a trilogy of shorts in the region following last year’s horror thriller, Seeing. Campbell is also adamant about his use of 16mm which he made a case for at the time via Indiegogo: From the very beginning we have wanted to shoot this project on 16mm film as we […]

Titans Of War Clash In The New KINGDOM: RETURN OF THE GREAT GENERAL Official Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

Even at this stage, I’m a little aghast that some film fans are only just getting around to Shinsuke Sato’s Kingdom adaptations. Others are just as new as they are to other films like the HiGH&LOW franchise. Honestly, I really hope I’m doing my part in fixing that given the stateside availability of most of these titles in the last several years. At any rate, the Kingdom franchise lives on, from the pages of Yasuhisa Hara’s hit manga to Toho’s sprawling live action spectacle, the Warring States epic now reaches its latest climax in Sato’s Kingdom: Return Of The Great General. Opening July 12, actor Kento Yamazaki returns alongside Ryo Yoshizawa, Kanna Hashimoto and Takao Osawa for a story that sees the Qin State battling to unify China. The next chapter – as teased by Kingdom: The Flame Of Destiny – now sees unfolding a mystery behind the death of […]

JOHN WICK PRESENTS: BALLERINA: Trailer Footage At CinemaCon Teases The Next Explosive Chapter In The Assassin Saga

Lee B. Golden III

CinemaCon kicked off its Lionsgate showcase on Wednesday in part with a look at the latest John Wick spin-off from director Len Wiseman. Therein confirmed is the film’s official title, John Wick Presents: Ballerina, as is the appearance of franchise star Keanu Reeves in the Ana de Armas-led action thriller. Barring a yet TBA synopsis, the film is set to take place between the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick: Chapter 4. In the interquel, de Armas stars as Rooney, a ballerina on a mission to hunt down the murderers of her family. The film also features reprising actors Anjelica Huston, Ian McShane and late actor Lance Reddick in his final screen role following his passing prior to the release of Chapter 4. A trailer was also presented for the audience. The Wrap’s Kristen Lopez details the footage as follows: The early-look trailer shows Rooney, […]

KITTY THE KILLER Claws In A U.S. Theatrical And Digital Release In May. Catch The Trailer!

Lee B. Golden III

Epic Pictures Group has since unveiled the official trailer for slick Thai assassin thriller comedy, Kitty The Killer. The film that earned its director Lee Thongkam the Daniel A. Craft Award for Excellence in Action Cinema at last year’s NYAFF is set to release in theaters on May 3, followed by a digital platform release on May 7. Ploypailin Thangprapaporn leads the cast along with Denkhun Ngamnet, Somchai Khemklad and Vithaya Pansringarm for the story that pays ardent homage to the stylings of Timur Bekmambetov, Quentin Tarantino and Edgar Wright. For this, we get a tale of an office worker thrust into a world of seedy criminal underworld politics and skullduggery, wherein he’s handed the title of Guardian, and inducted into a vast organization of clandestine assassins known as “Kitties”. The film also stars Aomkaham Natchanok Kamonrattanaban, Keetapat Pongruea and Sutina Laoamnuaichai, and features action sequences coordinated by Panna Rittikrai […]

THE ROUNDUP: PUNISHMENT Trailer Pits Don Lee Against Cybercrime For The U.S. Release!

Lee B. Golden III

As a small courtesy, I’m just going to mention here that there’s a mid-credits scene in Lee Sang-yong’s The Roundup: No Way Out, which connects straight to the franchise’s latest entry. That would now be The Roundup: Punishment, with the undoubted reunion of leading man Don Lee and character actor Park Ji-hwan for another rippling crime story ripe with rib-breaking action and laughs to boot. During the investigations of a drug trafficking app, the Monster Cop Ma Seok-do (Don Lee) and his team discover a connection between the wanted app developer, who was killed in the Philippines, and a massive illegal online gambling organization. Meanwhile in the Philippines, Baek Chang-gi, a former elite soldier, has been controlling the Korean online illegal gambling market, terrorizing it with kidnap, assault and murder. His partner, the IT genius CEO, Chang Dong-chul plans an even larger scheme in Korea. To put an end to […]

INVASION: Get A Look At The New Dutch Action Thriller Coming Soon To The U.S.!

Lee B. Golden III

Merely a day away from its release in the Netherlands is Bobby Boerman’s latest action thriller, Invasion. The cast is led by Tarikh Janssen, Fedja van Huêt, Jasha Rudge, Gijs Blom, Ortál Vriend, and Gijs Scholten van Aschat. Out of nowhere, Curaçao and Aruba are attacked by a dictatorial neighboring country. Politics in The Hague is astonished. When the conflict rapidly escalates, three young Marines must make a difference. Soon the barracks on Aruba are also under fire and the airspace is closed, while the Dutch ambassador still has to be evacuated from enemy territory. The rescue mission of the new Marines therefore becomes a race against time. The official trailer is already live while the news is out that Well Go USA have acquired the pic in a deal with its producers, international sales agent StudioCanal. Invasion (or Invasie as its regionally known) is also produced by Dutch Film […]

Bill Skarsgård in THE CROW (2024) PC: Larry Horricks

THE CROW Moves To August For Lionsgate

Lee B. Golden III

The trade s are hot on the heels of this year’s events at CinemaCon. That means a few early blurbs and bits of news as the days progress, including reports now that Lionsgate is pushing The Crow from its June 7 date to August 23. Bill Skarsgård stars in the Rupert Sanders-directed adaptation of James O’Barr hit graphic novel. The movie revamps the Alex Proyas-directed 1994 dark fantasy thriller that headlined actor Brandon Lee in his final screen role – about a musician brought back to life by a mystical bird to seek vengeance against the men who murdered him and his fiancée, Shelly, played by Sofia Shinas. Skarsgard takes the mantle for the reboot with a cast that also lists FKA twigs and Danny Hutson. Click here for previous trailer coverage. Read more at Deadline. Lead photo: Larry Horricks

6 HOURS AWAY: Guillermo Iván Races Against Time To Save His Wife In The Official Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

Freestyle Digital Media is proudly announcing its latest upcoming release, Nicolás Di Blasi’s 6 Hours Away. The official trailer arrived last week for the action thriller starring Guillermo Iván (Shrapnel, As Good As Dead) from a script by Garry Charles (The Getback, Lights Out). 6 HOURS AWAY tells the story of ex-Marine Chris Montano (Guillermo Ivan) and the struggle he faces when his wife is kidnapped by a drug cartel leader. Chris then travels to Mexico where he is confronted with an ultimatum – he must assassinate the cartel leader’s six rivals, or never see his wife again. But what will Chris do when he discovers the truth about the love of his life? Chris has 6 hours to take 6 lives… however he can. 6 Hours Away was produced by Ruben Ozuna Gallardo. It also stars Roberto Sanchez, Lara Wolf, Zach Rose, Oscar Lopez, Oscar Torre, Osvaldo de Leon, […]

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THE ROUNDUP: NO WAY OUT Review: Don Lee Is Thrice The Muscle And Bustle In Lee Sang-Yong’s Hard-Hitting Action Comedy

Lee B. Golden III

Lee Sang-yong’s The Roundup has a shorter runtime in comparison to Kang Yoon-sung’s 2017 predecessor, The Outlaws. I’m fascinated by this in terms of its characteristics for success, and the momentum handed to it in course of its fruition as a franchise nowadays with a total of four movies in its deck. The same goes for its third chapter, Lee’s The Roundup: No Way Out, which opened in Cannes and in South Korea last summer. Whatever the case is or may be, there’s no question that Lee capitalizes on just about everything that worked in the 2022 sequel. That film’s writer Kim Min-sung, as well as its Cha Woo-jin, paired up to pen The Roundup: No Way Out, for a story that beefs things up plenty in the action department without losing a beat in the energy that keeps it going. Par for the course is frontman Don Lee, centerstage […]

CUSTOMS FRONTLINE: Catch Nicholas Tse And Jacky Cheung In The Explosive Official Trailer

Lee B. Golden III

As the world of Hong Kong action fandom waits with baited breath on Derek Kwok’s Raging Havoc and what lies ahead for New Police Story 2, actor Nicholas Tse now takes the stage along with Jacky Cheung for Herman Yau’s latest action thriller, Customs Frontline. The July 5 Emperor Motion Pictures release is now viral with a brand new trailer making the rounds and lending a taste of the thrills to come, including the action on which Tse himself serves as choreographer. Written by Erica Li, Customs Frontline centers on Chow Ching-Lai (Tse) and Cheung Wan-Nam (Cheung), two Hong Kong customs officers who share a close student/mentor relationship. On a case involving a seized cargo ship containing illegal weapons out of Thailand, Ching-Lai joins Interpol on a mission to catch an elusive and powerful arms dealer, but a drastic decision by Wan-Nam threatens to complicate things further. Customs Frontline also […]

Netflix’s AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER: Book I – WATER Review: A Decent Adaptation With A Fair Ebb And Flow

Lee B. Golden III

This review was previously published for supporters at Buy Me A Coffee on March 12. I didn’t have much access to Nickelodeon in 2005. It’s a circumstance that certainly made getting on the Avatar: The Last Airbender hype train all the more challenging at the time, although I had other matters of interest in film I was tending to on a blog I started with similar inspirations echoed on this one. Alas, it’s 2024 and little did I know that as someone centrally known to cover this genre amid the near two-decade-long fame of the show, at least one good way to get chewed out by your friends is to not have seen it, and admitting it publicly. Oof. Thus, at the behest of a few of my mutuals in light of the recent live-action exploits from showrunner Albert Kim for Netflix, I did my homework. For this, I can […]

BLACK MASK Eureka Blu-Ray Review: Two Discs. One Movie. No Mercy!

Lee B. Golden III

Eureka Entertainment is the latest banner to carry the mantle for director Daniel Lee’s 1996 action sci-fi, Black Mask. The release marks the latest since the film’s transition to overseas markets, with U.S. labels Artisan Entertainment and Distant Horizon nabbing the title for its own remixed version a few years later. Based on a 1991 manhua by Pang Chi-Ming and Li Chi-Tat, the Jet Li starrer centers on the former member of a clandestine unit, once subject to a government experiment to create supersoldiers. Tsui-chik (Li), formerly of Squad 701, maintains a low profile as a librarian who spends his time buried in books. He gets along with his co-workers, and his best friend is Shek (Lau Ching-wan), a Hong Kong Inspector who oftentimes finds himself rescuing Tsui-chik from muggers and gangsters. Little does Tsui-chik know that his former team has resurfaced to cause a stir in the criminal underworld, […]