"Know How I Knew You Were Gay? You Like Coldplay."

I just saw The 40 Year Old Virgin and man, that shit was hilarious. Speaking as a professional geek, I have to say that they hit all the marks. Steve Carell is so good in this movie, he even topped his performance as Brick Tamland in Anchorman. One of my favorite scenes comes as Carell's character begins to sell off his massive action figure collection and he starts saying goodbye to Aquaman. It's rather emotional. Poor Aquaman.

I didn't have any other reason to post, other than to extol the comedic excellence of Mr. Steve Carell. But since I'm here, I'll vent a little. So, I'm watching Much Music the other day. I don't normally watch Much anymore because all they play is crap and all their VJ's are flamingly gay. It actually sickens me how low Much has sunk in the last few years. They're almost as bad as MTV now. But it so happened that they were talking about Tim Burton's new movie The Corpse Bride. I was intrigued since I am a huge fan of stop-motion animation. But then Mr. Homosexuality himself, Devon Soltendieck, comes one and whines about the CGI in the movie. HELLO DOUCHEBAG IT'S FUCKING STOP-MOTION ANIMATION FOR CHRIST'S SAKE! Needless to say, it angered me to no end. So, I just had to bitch about it and write douchebag in really big letters. Sorry for the rage.

In Space No One Can Hear Leif Garrett

I was in the mood for some sci-fi flicks recently. I had been watching so many westerns lately that I felt a brief change of pace might help whet my cinematic appetite. So, with a quick trip to the video store (and I'll spare you my rant against video stores), I rented the latest incarnation of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. I had already seen this movie once, but I wanted to check out what they did with the DVD. I must say it was pretty snazzy. Some throw away deleted scenes, some "making of" specials and the usual fare. But, the disc did have a cool random function (ie: the improbability drive) thats takes you to seemingly hidden bits and random parts of the movie and the extras. I was quite pleased with the treatment this flick got on DVD.

Following that newer foray into sci-fi flicks, I went back to one of my favorite decades for movies: the 1980's. So, I watched the original TV miniseries V. For years I have seen bits and pieces of the series, but I had never seen the TV movies that started it all. I rather enjoyed the original movie. It had elements of Arthur C. Clarke's "Childhood's End" as well as being an obvious retelling of Nazi occupation. Plus, Robert Englund kicked ass and he wasn't even Freddy Kreuger, simply amazing. There were lots of other notable 80s and TV actors in the movie, like Jason Bernard, Evan C. Kim, and the Dad from Boy Meets World. I've got the next part of the V series, The Final Battle, and I'll be watching it as soon as I have about 5 hours that I can spare.

Finally, on a sad note, I saw a Lee Van Cleef movie I didn't overly enjoy. God's Gun, a spaghetti western from the mid 70s which featured Van Cleef (in two roles), Jack Palance and Richard Boone (of Have Gun - Will Travel fame). Now, I'm quite familiar with poor dubbing, but this mvoie had notably poor dubbing. Worst of all, the American actors (like our man Lee Van Cleef) were dubbed into English by other people. I find it very distracting to see Van Cleef in action and hear him speaking with someone else's voice. Even the voice they used for Jack Palance was way off. God's Gun was really slow and had lots of potential that was simply wasted. Too much time was spent on young Leif Garrett's character Johnny, who goes mute for seemingly no reason. Personally, I was shocked that I didn't absolutely love a movie that had not one but two Lee Van Cleef's in it.

"Back Off, Man. I'm A Scientist."

Quammy's Top 5 Things, in no particular order, that make the first Ghostbusters movie great:

1. Rick Moranis. His character is friggin' hilarious. There is a great sequence in the movie where Moranis' character Louis is having a party. Since he's an accountant, all of his party guests are also clients of his. So whenever someone arrives, he goes into a spiel about the guest's income and tax needs. The majority of the party sequence is one long continuous shot as he walks around his apartment. Apparently, the bulk of his dialogue in this scene is also improvised, which rocks considering he name checks Nova Scotia, oh yeah.

2. Smoking. It's 1984, so everybody is smoking. To me it sucks that nobody smokes in movies anymore. Why are people so uptight about this? Thankfully, this movie is over 20 years old, so all our heroes smoke. We probably would have thought less of them if they hadn't.

3. The Music. Thank you Ray Parker Jr. I'd like to know how many hundreds of times I've heard the theme song to this movie. I can only imagine. I also love the Mick Smiley track "Magic," which plays after that jerk Walter Peck lets the containment unit blow up and all the ghosts start flying around New York City. Thanks to the 99 cent bin at Backstreet Records in Fredericton a few years ago, I will never have to be without a copy of the soundtrack on vinyl.

4. Ecto-1. The Ghostbusters' trusty transport. This vehicle alone is likely the reason I love old cars. Especially cars with tail fins. Someday I shall own an old Caddy convertible from the 60s with tail fins and big headlights, or maybe an amphibious car.

5. Reginald VelJohnson. You may remember him as Carl Winslow from Family Matters, but to me he will always be Sgt. Al Powell, one of LAPD's finest, in Die Hard. Sure, he may have only been in Ghostbusters for like two and a half seconds, but this appearance marked one of first times Reginald would play a cop on film. A typecasting which would follow him for the bulk of his career. Seeing his brief cameo in this movie always brings a smile to my face. Watch for him as he announces that the Mayor of NYC will see the imprisoned Ghostbusters. Don't blink or you will miss him.

The Good, The Bad And The Poorly Dubbed

Seeing as I still haven't found a new job, I've been watching a lot of movies lately. Though in all fairness, I probably would have watched as many (if not more) movies were I still employed. But I needed an opening paragraph, so here we are.

The Good: Silverado. After searching several malls, two provinces and numerous pawn shops I finally acquired a copy of Silverado. I have to hand it to my Father, after much persistence he located a store in the Bridgewater Mall that carried the Silverado gift box set. I mean, of all places, Bridgewater. If you are from the maritimes (especially the South Shore), and you probably aren't, you would know that Bridgewater is the last place you are likely to find anything outside of a stabbing or a sexually transmitted disease.

All Bridgewater bashing aside, I must say that Silverado was worth the quest. It was a really entertaining new-style western. Despite being from the eighties and being entirely without the presence of Clint Eastwood it was still quite enjoyable. The notable cast includes Kevin Kline, Danny Glover, Kevin Costner (who I did not hate in this movie), Brian fuckin' Dennehy, and John Cleese. Yes, John Cleese in a western. Silverado had all the great elements of a classic western with some good revisionist touches as well. It even had a guy getting shot and then falling from a rooftop, what classic western doesn't have that?

The Bad: Point Blank. I wanted to like this movie, I really did. It was based on the same novel that spawned one of my favorite newer movies Payback. But, I was just seriously bored while watching this movie. I know it's super old and probably employs various art house cinema techniques that I'll never understand, but any movie with Lee Marvin and (introducing) John Vernon should have kicked my ass. I'll go ahead and ruin it for those who haven't seen it by saying that this is one of those movies where the main character may-or-may-not-be dead the whole time. Boo-urns. Plus, whenever I see John Vernon I just want him to be yelling "Delta House!!!"

The Poorly Dubbed: The Kid With The Golden Arm. Another Shaw Brothers classic like Five Deadly Venoms and Five Fingers of Death. While not quite as good as those other kung fu flicks mentioned, Golden Arm was not without its charm. My copy was (of course) a super cheap DVD reissue, so the picture quality was very poor, but still watchable. The Shaw Brothers movies are always a cut above your average kung fu flick so Golden Arm is no exception. Plus, what other movie has an alcoholic secret government agent fighting guys with names like Silver Spear, Iron Robe and Bronze Helmet? Seriously, I'm asking.

"Everybody Has The Right To Be A Sucker Once."

Tequila is the devil's nectar. I was having a great time drinking with some friends on Friday night before it was all brought to a horrible end, courtesy of two shots of Prairie Fire, a hellish mix of tequilia and tabasco sauce. Even now I cringe at the thought of its firey taste. Perhaps, before consuming said shots, I should have stopped for a moment and inquired, "what are these?" But they were both gone before I realised what I had done. I knew as soon as I had finished them that they had finished me. Luckily, I made it a few feet outside of the pub before spilling my guts behind an old boathouse. Only today am I getting over the hangover. I don't drink that often, so when I do I always end up paying for it the next day.

In my weakened state, I could do little more than watch TV and movies all day long. So I got around to watching Two Mules For Sister Sara at some point during the evening. While this movie is not part of the Spaghetti cannon of movies, it does come close. It has an excellent score courtesy of Ennio Morricone. It was shot entirely in Mexico (amazing scenery) and directed by Don Siegel. Clint Eastwood's character definitley smacks of the "man with no name," but a lot of westerns from the late '60s and early '70s seemed to draw from Leone's trilogy. While this movie was not as good as the Leone westerns it still has a certain charm.

Happy Birthday To Me

It's my birthday today, I'm turning/I turned 24. I've been a little depressed as of late, seeing as I've moved from my rathole apartment in Fredericton to my parent's house in Chester. But there is far too much booze to drink and far too many movies to watch to keep me down. One of the bonuses though of being at home, is that I can have some quality time with my father watching movies. The old man loves westerns, which is just further proof that I'm turning into him as I get older.

My sister, who recently returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan, bought me a copy of the new Ghostbusters boxset for my birthday. I can recall being quite obsessed with Ghostbusters when I was a kid, but how many young boys circa 1985 weren't? The boxset looks pretty sweet. It has both movies, some deleted scenes, and two episodes of the oldschool cartoon. I urge you to seek it out if you are a fan.

And finally, I should like to share with you a recent dream I had. I rarely remember my dreams, but when I do I'm always amazed/confused/amused. So, in my dream, I'm standing at Grauman's Chinese Theatre (a place I have never been). I walk past some of the famous handprints and look up to see John Wayne standing there. I walk up to the duke, shake his hand and tell him that I'm a big fan of Rio Bravo. He thanks me, smiles, and I walk away. Then, in my dream, I stop and ask myself, "wait a second, isn't John Wayne dead?" Maybe I've been watching too many westerns lately.

"Somebody Once Wrote That Revenge Is A Dish That Has To Be Eaten Cold."

Quentin Tarantino must have seen every movie ever made. I can't watch a Kung Fu flick or a Spaghetti Western without feeling like I've seen it all before in Kill Bill. Case in point: Death Rides A Horse. If you've been reading this blog at all (and who might you be by the way?), you would know that I'm a big Lee Van Cleef fan. So, I'm watching Death Rides A Horse and it's all there: the music, the revenge line, the close up on the eyes with visions of betrayal flashing in the background. So much Kill Bill. But then again, I can't really blame Tarantino for lifting so many great parts from so many great movies because if I was in his shoes I'd do the same thing. Seriously though, if you check out the movie connections link on IMDB for Kill Bill Vol. 1, there are over one hundred movies referenced, I've seen maybe twenty of them.

All in all though, Death Rides A Horse was awesome. It had a good revenge theme going, not unlike The Grand Duel. Also it had great music from Ennio Morricone and of course a great performance from our man Lee Van Cleef. I picked up this movie on a cheap Lee Van Cleef doublesided DVD, the other side featuring Beyond The Law.

Just like the wave of cheap Kung Fu DVDs that sprang up after the Kill Bill movies, it's good to see a lot of cheap Western DVDs have begun surfacing as well. There are certainly some good and obscure titles available right now, mind you there is a lot of crap out there too. The print quality on these movies isn't always the best and I'm not a big fan of the full screen format, but I just can't argue with great (and cheap) Spaghetti Western DVDs.

Abbott & Costello Meet Chuck Norris

I think I was born predisposed to be a fan of the old school Universal Studios Monster movies. I can remember being obsessed with The Creature From The Black Lagoon for years before I even saw it. I love those new DVD boxsets they have out now. I bought the Black Lagoon collection (the second movie has Clint Eastwood's first screen appearance) and will probably pick up more of them in the future.

I mention the old Universal movies because I just watched Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein the other night. I first hear about this movie after reading an interview with Fred Dekker. He mentioned this movie as being an influence on his 1987 movie The Monster Squad. Now, I have to say that Monster Squad is one of my all-time favorite movies. As cheesy and totally 80s as it is, it still ranks near the top of my favorite movies list. So after I read the interview, I decided that I had to see the Abbott & Costello movie. Hence the recent purchase on an Abbott & Costello boxset.

The movie was pretty funny, all very classic old-timey humor (it was 1948 after all). The movie had Abbott & Costello meeting up with not just Frankenstein but Dracula and the Wolf Man as well (played by Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney respectively.) There were a lot of similarities between this movie and Monster Squad which made me enjoy it all the more. Even Dracula's cartoony transformation from bat to vampire was awesome. Lon Chaney seemed underused, but was still at the top of his game. No Mummy or Gillman like in Monster Squad but an enjoyable horror comedy all the same.

Also, I recently watched Good Guys Wear Black. Ever since I saw The Octagon a few months ago, I've been watching a lot of old Chuck Norris movies. Now, The Octagon kicked ass, but Good Guys was a little dull. I will say that Norris does do a really cool jump kick through the windshield of a speeding car. But this movie is short one Lee Van Cleef and a buttload of ninjas. Every action movie should have some ninjas in it somewhere, am I wrong?

"My Name Is Quammy. I Have A Problem..."

I buy too many DVDs. It's scary. I went out yesterday with a shopping agenda. But, by the time I got home it had all gone to hell. I planned on looking for Silverado and The Searchers. I picked up The Searchers but Silverado was nowhere to be found. I ended up buying seven other DVDs, SEVEN. A Sonny Chiba flick, a Wes Anderson flick, a Lee Marvin flick, an Abbott & Costello boxset, another western (with Robert Duvall I think), the first Naked Gun and the first Beverly Hills Cop. And I almost bought that new He-Man collection that's out. Damn.

Out of those purchases, I decided to watch Beverly Hills Cop first. I've seen all the Beverly Hills Cop movies before, in fact I still have all of them of VHS, but fuck it. This movie always makes me laugh. There's a heck of a cast in it: prime era Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, Bronson Pinchot, etc. I'd say it almost has a John Landis feeling to it, not to discredit the actual director though. I wish Eddie Murphy was still this funny. On a side note, there is great gag where Murphy's character is walking down the streets of Beverly Hills. He sees this couple in crazy-80s leather outfits (a la Michael Jackson) and he doubles over with laughter. What's really funny is that Murphy wore a similar get up in his classic stand up video Delirious. What was with all that 80s leather anyway?

Even Shatner Had A Bug Problem

Quammy's Top 5 Killer Bug Movies

1. Them
2. Tarantula
3. The Deadly Mantis
4. Kingdom Of The Spiders
5. Empire Of The Ants

"If You Want A Guarantee, Buy A Toaster."

Just finished watching The Last American Virgin again. I'm a sucker for 80s teensploitation flicks and I was first drawn to this one because of its connection to Devo (spot the guy wearing the trademark red Energy Dome and a New Traditionalists-era t-shirt). For the most part this flick is pretty generic: the house party, loads of T&A, the comedic quest to lose one's virginity, etc. But at about the 60 minute mark this movie takes a hard right turn into seriousness city. I won't spoil anything, but the first time I saw it I remember being totally thrown for a loop. A recommended flick for fans of 80s movies, for sure. As far as star power, there was the guy who played Troy in Goonies, Diane Franklin (who whould later star in one of my favorite John Cusack movies Better Off Dead), and the chick who did the voice of Samantha Stanky on the Simpsons.

I also recently watched some Clint Eastwood flicks. Being the obsessive movie enthusaist I am, I feel it's my duty to see as many Eastwood flicks as I can. So I rented The Rookie the other night. Sadly, not one of Eastwood's better pictures. Some quality moments and explosions but not all gold. I mean Raul Julia as a German, what were they thinking? I also caught the last half of Joe Kidd on TV, looked like a decent western. It had John Saxon, Robert Duvall, and Eastwood with his full-on 70s asskicking swagger.

And since I've already ragged about this on IMDB, I should mention I saw the latest Bruce Willis flick Hostage. This movie was alright for the most part, but it has an unforgivably crappy ending. Serious suck.

God Bless The Discount Bin

I had some gift certificates for Wal-Mart, so against all my better judgement I found myself at the mall the other day. Within a stone's throw of the doors there were some large, brightly colored and boldly marked bins of cheap DVDs. God bless these discount bins. I might hate Wal-Mart but I can't argue with cheap DVDs. So I went about scouring the bins. I picked up a requisite Clint Eastwood flick, yet another Police Academy DVD, and the '80s remake of The Blob.

I like both versions of The Blob. The original is great. Steve McQueen is the quintessential cool '50s guy with a hot car and his best girl. The effects hold up well considering how old the movie is. And I just love old school Horror/Sci-Fi movies from the fifties. So many great movies about giant bugs, flying saucers, and fantastic robots. The remake was gorier than I remembered. But considering I've only seen it on TV before I can understand why I didn't remember the nastier parts. Lots and lots of melted bodies.

On a different note, I just finished watching Play Misty For Me, Clint Eastwood's first directorial effort. A decent seventies thriller. It's a very transitional movie for Eastwood, he's moving away from his western image of the sixties and into his tough/cool guy image of the seventies. Not my favorite Eastwood picture but not a dud by any means.

"Son Of A Bitch, I'm Sick Of Those Dolphins."

I read this article on slate.com today about The Life Aquatic and I couldn't get over how negative it was. Then I checked out the movie's page on IMDB. The discussion boards were a veritable battleground. Harsh critics against the defenders of the faith. So much hostility. Personally I love the movie, but I had to see it more than once. I've probably seen it five times now and I find it gets better every time I see it. It just has so much going for it: Bill Murray, Anjelica Huston, Owen Wilson, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Wes Anderson's brilliantly subtle style, Mark Mothersbaugh's music, Seu Jorge doing Bowie songs in Portugese, and cool stop motion animation. For me it's right up there with The Royal Tenenbaums, people need to stop crapping on Wes Anderson.

But speaking of Bill Murray, I watched Caddyshack again the other day. Picked up a VHS copy for $3 last week from the good folks at Digital World, the best pawn shop in Fredericton. I buy so much stuff there I get a 20% discount. They call me "Obscure Movie Guy."

Finally for all the Kung Fu movie fans out there I would recommend watching Fists of Bruce Lee if you get the chance. While it does not have the real Bruce Lee it does have Bruce Li, who was in other good flicks like Blind Fist of Bruce. Fists has some kick ass seventies music, including Paul McCartney's "Live and Let Die." Other highlights include: Lo Lieh with a killer metal hand, Ping-Ao Wei the effeminate gangster, and a crazy honkey with nunchucks.

Is It Wrong To Like The Police Academy Movies?

I must have been eight or nine years old when I saw my first Police Academy movie. In the years since I have seen all of the movies numerous times (except for Mission To Moscow, once was enough). Now, I'm not trying to praise or defend the series in any way. If you're going to watch a Police Academy movie, you know exactly what your in for. These movies can get pretty lowbrow and just plain dumb at times. And yet, I always get a laugh out of them. I love how the '80s had this entire genre of academy/school movies. Though out of the bulk of those movies the Police Academy series had to be the most successful and dear to me. They had so many great '80s comedic actors: Bob Goldthwait, Tim Kazurinsky, G.W. Bailey, Michael Winslow, etc. Heck, Steve Guttenberg was the A-List guy for most of the series, that guy was everywhere in the '80s. I particulary love the first four movies. In my opinion, once Bob Goldthwait left the series the movies started to tank. Until recently I found it kinda hard to find copies of these movies. But now, thanks to the endless supply of DVDs out there, you can pick up most of the movies for around $7 a pop. Truth be told though, I'll still hang on to my VHS copies of the first two movies. Those two big plastic clamshell cases are displayed with pride on a shelf somewhere right now.

"Can You Spare A Smoke, Stranger?"

Quammy's Top 5 Lee Van Cleef Movies

1. For a Few Dollars More
2. The Stranger and the Gunfighter
3. The Grand Duel
4. The Bravados
5. High Noon

Subtitles & Matte Paintings

I kinda went el-cheapo when I got my Kurosawa DVDs and only now am I regretting it. I watched Seven Samurai the other day. The film print was fine but the subtitles nearly drove me mad. Periodic spelling mistakes, cryptic translations and a crippling lag between the spoken dialog and its appropriate subtitle. If the Criterion DVDs weren't $50 a pop I would have picked them up. But instead I picked up cheap copies off Ebay. In fairness though, Seven Samurai's subtitles weren't nearly as bad as those on the Lord of the Wu Tang DVD I got at Wal-Mart for $4.

I watched The Thing again recently. Picked up the newest DVD version which had an interesting documentary about the flick. Some amazing stuff about the Albert Whitlock matte paintings used in the movie. One of the things I hate about the new digital era of film making is that great stuff like Whitlock's work gets lost. I hate CGI for the most part. Film techniques peaked for me with Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

"NPH Wouldn't Do That."

Something got me thinking about C.H.U.D. today. I don't know what brought it to my attention, but before I knew it I was on IMDB defending the director's cut of the movie. C.H.U.D. has been one of my all time favorite movies for a few years now. One of my guiltiest secrets is that I own at least six copies of it. I won't bother explaining why I have six copies of the movie because its really not that interesting. Needless to say, I really like the movie.

I watched Harold & Kumar again. For a stoner-buddy-comedy its damn funny and smart. It has all the right gags, hilarious guest stars (a few choice Canadians actors among them), and excellent replay value. The movie is all over the place and yet it follows and incredibly simple linear path. Plus, NPH tripping balls.

I've been trying to cut down my movie collection lately. I had earmarked a stack of old VHS tapes, when I noticed I hadn't even watched a few of them. So, last night after work I toss in Mannequin. I was sure I was going to be praying for death within fifteen minutes. But when the movie kicked in and I recognized all the choice '80s actors I was hooked. Besides Andrew McCarthy, there was G.W. Bailey, James Spader, and Estelle Getty. It was so '80s it hurt. I honestly put the tape back in the keep pile after I watched it. I love 80's movies.

My Faith in Zombie movies has been Resurrected

I've been bummed out by zombie movies lately, but my love of the genre has just risen from the grave. And while I know that that was a lame thing to say, I couldn't think of any better way to begin a zombie movie related rant. I just watched Shaun of the Dead again. I cannot say enough good things about this movie, it's fan-freakin'-tastic. Though, I remember when it first came out it was acclaimed as being the first horror/zombie/romantic comedy film. I even heard the horrible buzz term "Zom-Rom-Com" being tossed around. I would prefer to call movies in this genre "Hor-mance" films, as opposed to "Zom-rom-coms." They're like date movies where everybody dies. But, I have to say that the distinction of being the very first horror/zombie/romantic comedy would have to belong to Peter Jackson's flick Dead Alive. Possibly the most disgusting movie ever made. My favorite part is the lawnmower sequence.

So, thanks to Shaun of the Dead, I'm actually excited about zombie movies again. I think I might even watch Land of the Dead when it comes out. I had pretty much decided to bail on the movie when I heard that John Leguizamo was in it. I figure Romero might have one good one left in him, who knows. It couldn't possibly be any worse than Resident Evil: Apocalypse. Not to suggest that Romero had anything to do with the RE flick, but merely to emphasize how unbelievably bad that movie was.

"I Second The Nomination."

I'm about 45 minutes into The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance when I'm thinking to myself, "this is a damn fine western." And then sure enough, as if to seal the deal, the man himself appears. Lee Van Cleef, a veteran of some of the greatest westerns ever made. Like his role in High Noon, Van Cleef plays the strong, menacing, silent type. A hard nosed, squinty tough guy. He might have only had a few lines in Liberty Valance, but they were damn fine lines. It wasn't great just because of him though, the rest of the cast was superb, at least by more traditional standards. I especially enjoyed watching a drunken John Wayne stumbling about, trashing a saloon and burning his own house down. And while I haven't seen too many films by John Ford as of yet, his name is always up there with the great American directors and this film certainly lives up to such a reputation. Liberty Valance is a classic western, filled with great themes of honor, liberty (no pun intended), justice, compassion, civility and (dare I say it....) friendship. And now that I've just read that last sentence I know that I am too tired to type rationally anymore.

Beloved Remakes & The Perils Of Full Screen

Just finished watching Karate Warriors, a remake of Yojimbo, featuring '70s martial arts film god Sonny Chiba. I've made it my mission as of late to watch as many Yojimbo remakes as I can get my hands on. As for Karate Warriors, overall it was a decent flick with some kick ass fight sequences and great slow-mo camera tricks. Though, the whole time I was watching the movie I was getting pissed off with my DVD. I've gotten used to the usual quality of the post-Kill Bill wave of cheapo Kung Fu DVDs floating around all the discount bins. Said quality is often poor at best, but I would kill for a better quality copy of this movie. The DVD I watched was a craptacular full screen transfer, which made some of the fighting difficult to follow. It also had some of the worst audio I've ever heard, the quiet parts were too quiet and the loud parts were too loud. Though, despite my obsessive nitpicking of the DVD I would definitely suggest that fans of Sonny Chiba check this flick out. Good story, good fighting, and classic seventies kung fu music.