One of the loopiest kung-fu movies ever made, a garish masterpiece of martial kitsch by the hard-boiled master of the genre, Chang Cheh. The five muscle-bound paragons of the title have fighting skills so hyperdeveloped that they border upon the occult, each modeled on the behavior of a different venomous beast: centipede, snake, lizard, toad, and scorpion. This "poison clan" is embroiled in a complex plot to lay claim to an ill-gotten fortune, but the story line feels like an afterthought. The nonstop wall-crawling action sequences, which match up the cast members in every conceivable combination, are the be all and end all here. This is late, decadent Chang Cheh, without the poise and sweep of earlier epics like Blood Brothers and Vengeance (the noble David Chiang-Ti Lung team ups that inspired John Woo), but it's great fun on its own terms. The painted masks worn by the Venoms, which make them look like berserk extras in a wrestling film, are based upon the belligerent warrior face paint of Chinese opera. -David Chute.

SCHOOL OF THE HOLY BEAST Japan's most notorious Nun-Exploitation film: School Of The Holy Beast (Sei Juu Gakuen) directed by sexploitation guru, Norifumi Suzuki, plunges into a maelstrom of hidden torture, secret masochistic desires, and blasphemous rites as Yumi Takigawa takes religious vows to find out what terrible things happened to her mother inside the Sacred Heart Convent. When she finds out - with the help of a lecherous archbishops, a lesbian mother superior and a line-up of fellow nuns ready to whip her (in the films most deliriously over the top scene)with a gauntlet of rose-thorns - hell is loose. Beautifully shot, a shocking unforgetable Masterpiece by the director of "Beautiful Girl Hunter" - Dario Argento meets the Marquis de Sade. CULT EPICS MOST ANTICIPATED RELEASE OF THE YEAR.

The first film in Takashi Miike's `Black Society Trilogy' portrays a world of alienation that finds its expression in rape and murder. In this twilight world, where gangster and law enforcer attract and repel each other in waves of violence, Tatsuhito, a dirty cop pursues the gay Chinese warlord, Wang, through the night world of Shinjuku and over to Taiwan. Shinjuku Triad Society is a shocking investigation of a dehumanized society, in which Tatsuhito fights to obtain a glimpse of salvation. SPECIAL FEATURES Interview With Director Interview With Editor Full Length Commentary By Tom Mes, Acclaimed Writer On Japanese Cinema Sleeve Artwork Trailer Biographies & Filmographies Scene Selection RUNNING TIME 102 MINS APPROX ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN PRESENTATION NTSC DVD-9 REGION 1 JAPANESE LANGUAGE OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES.

Akira Kurosawa's sequel to Yojimbo is more lighthearted and less cynical, a rousing adventure with Toshirô Mifune reprising his role as the scruffy mercenary who becomes an unlikely big brother to a troupe of nine naive samurai. Shuffling into a secret meeting where the proud young men discuss the graft choking their clan, Mifune's Sanjuro scratches his scraggly beard and distractedly rubs his neck like some common peasant while giving them advice on appearances and truths: "People aren't what they seem," he warns the dubious lads. "Be careful. " Naturally they aren't, and Sanjuro grudgingly adopts the well-meaning but hopelessly ill-equipped heroes, giving the starry-eyed youths a series of lessons in real-world honor and respect while saving their skins from reckless attacks and impulsive plans. It isn't the subtlest of Kurosawa's films-the repetitious lessons and speeches delivered to the thickheaded samurai are rather obvious-but it's one of his most entertaining. Mifune, gruffly at ease with the boys, is hilariously discomforted in the presence of a cultured lady, who sees through his shaggy exterior and imparts a little wisdom of her own. Mifune bounds into action in a number of impressive sword fights-wonderfully choreographed lightning-quick battles in which Mifune leaps all over the widescreen image-but an increasing sense of waste, of futility, hangs over the action scenes, culminating in a tense but meaningless duel of honor. The accompanying trailer on the DVD features brief behind-the-scenes glimpses of Kurosawa directing Mifune through an action sequence. -Sean Axmaker Toshiro Mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in Akria Kurosawa's tightly paced beautifully composed Sanjuro. In this sly companion piece to Yojimbo the jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clan?s evil influences and in the process turns their image of a "proper" samurai on its ear. [+]

Inspired by the highly popular Jackie Chan vehicle City Hunter (1992) and its 1996 sequel, this action-packed anime borrows liberally from its predecessors (not to mention several American blockbusters, most notably Speed), so it's not going to score any points for originality. What it does offer is energy to spare and a trio of characters who are sure to please adolescent anime fans looking for an outlet for their hormonal overload. That's because ace crimefighter Joe Saeba-a. k. a. "City Hunter"-is at least as interested in "nookie" as he is in busting bad guys, and when he's not trying to score with one of his legion of female admirers, he's getting his skull battered by Kaori, his jealously protective sidekick and would-be girlfriend, who wields a gigantic sledgehammer the way Ken Griffey Jr. swings a Louisville Slugger. City Hunter's latest object of desire is Amy Makaze, a damsel-in-distress whose brother-now known only as "The Professor"-has turned from military heroism to ruthless terrorism and now plans to destroy several major Japanese cities in revenge against the government that betrayed him. It's up to City Hunter to foil the madman's scheme, and the big showdown involves a bullet train, a series of bombs set to chain-react, and a few well-placed slams of Kaori's massive sledge. It's shamelessly derivative as action plots go, but City Hunter is vibrantly animated with style to spare, and best of all, it doesn't take itself the least bit seriously. [+]

The film opens on a peaceful summer afternoon at the Masaki home in Okayama-where it's never peaceful for very long. A mysterious girl appears and begins calling Tenchi "Daddy. " Predictably, she causes uproar among the women of the Masaki household. Ryoko takes an immediate dislike to her; Sasami quickly befriends her. Mayuka was created by the demon Yuzuha, the embodiment of the Tree of Darkness. She fell in love with Yosho, Tenchi's grandfather, when he was a child on Jurai, but was driven away by his guards. After centuries of nursing her hatred, she plans to strike at Yosho through Tenchi. Ryoko and Tenchi battle Yuzuha in a weird netherworld filled with vicious but saccharine-looking toys. They finally defeat her with the help of Ayeka, who enables Tenchi to use his Jurai powers: he cleaves the demon in two with the Lighthawk sword. The second Tenchi feature is the oddest of the three, with the strongest conflicts among characters: Tenchi even loses his temper and slaps Ryoko. [+]

''A nuclear explosion sets off a massive earthquake. An astronaut on a reconnaissance mission notices that the epicenter of the earthquake appears to be moving straight towards the heart of Korea. This is no ordinary earthquake - the legendary reptilian monster Yongary has been awakened by intense radiation. With martial law declared and the city evacuated, the army and air force battle the fearsome creature with tanks and rockets, but their weapons are useless. Ilo, a brilliant scientist and his precocious eight-year-old sidekick Icho must desperately attempt to devise a plan to save the city and defeat Yongary, the monster from the deep. Yongary was Korea's first entry into the kaiju movie genre. Although it drew heavily on the imagery and storyline of Godzilla, Yongary retained a unique regional feel that continues to impress viewers today. Starring: Young Il Oh & Chung-Im NamProduced by: Tae-Jin ChaDirected by: Ki-Duk KimCinematography by: In-Zip Byon DVD Details: Includes Bonus Gallery of Posters and PhotographsRun Time: 78 minutesNumber of Discs: 1Originally Released in 1967ColorNo region encoding; For global distribution. Packaging: DVD STYLE BOX Operating System: DVD MOVIE Weight:. 450000 PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS AND COMPATABILITY PRIOR TO PURCHASING THIS ITEM. [+]

A prequel, set in Saigon during the fall, and the weakest link in the trilogy, unacceptably restrained in both action and emotion. Chow Yun-fat plays a younger version of Mark, his original character, a hesitant young man digging for his roots in Vietnam, which was also Tsui's birthplace, and we get to watch him assemble his totemic trappings: the duster overcoat, the French shades, the twin. 45s. The surprise is that he gets most of them from a torchy dame played by Anita Mui (the seductive singing ghost from Rouge), who's a more-than-worthy high-noir love object. She can perforate miscreants with the best of them. (John Woo wrote the original script, only to be supplanted as director by his boss and supposed pal, Mr. Tsui; much of Woo's original material ended up in his later magnum opus Bullet in the Head. ) -David Chute.

Based on Arsene Lupin the French gentleman thief the Lupin character a rakish devil-may-care antihero first appeared in Japan in a short manga collection drawn by Katou "Monkey Punch" Kazuhiko in 1967. Since then Lupin III has become a famous figure in Japan and has spawned hundreds of popular comic books and animated television shows and movies. Similar in many ways to James Bond Lupin sports tailored suits and wacky gizmos and stays witty under fire. Sometimes he seems bumbling or clownish but when Lupin gets serious there isn't a valuable in the world safe from his schemes. The only live-action Lupin adventure THE STRANGE PSYCHOKINETIC STRATEGY appeared in 1974 and featured Lupin going up against the a brutal crime syndicate aiming to steal a priceless national treasure and put him out of the picture permanently. Along the way Lupin teams up with the surly sharpshooter Jigen and the frisky cat-burgler Fujiko as he outwits the ruthless gangsters and outruns the relentless pursuit of Inspector Zenigata. System Requirements:Running Time 82 Mins. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: NR UPC: 875707000499 Manufacturer No: DT004.

In Love Song of Vengeance, Shurayuki-hime-a. k. a. Lady Snowblood, "Yuki" for short (played by Meiko Kaji)-continues her advertures in the female samurai saga that inspired Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill. In Lady Snowblood, Yuki avenged her family by slaying the four criminals that killed her father, raped her mother, and predestined her to the life of a justice-seeking assassin. Love Song of Vengeance picks up where Lady Snowblood let off, not so much as a sequel like Inagaki's Samurai Trilogy, but a continuation of the lone assassin's adventures (similar to Zaitochi). Sentenced to death for her crimes of murder, Yuki is given pardon by Kikui, a secret government police agent. In return for her freedom, Kikui wants Yuki to assassinate anarchist Ransui and obtain a secret document he is hiding. While carrying out her orders, Yuki discovers the document in question is actually a letter incriminating agent Kikui. Always one to be on the side of justice, Lady Snowblood switches sides, joining anarchist Rasui to face off, expose, and destroy the crooked agent. [+]

Starring: SAIF ALI KHAN, HRITHIK ROSHAN, ESHA DEOLSynopsis: God works in strange ways. He makes us aware of the important people in our life - our parents, grandparents, and friends. But the one person who will matter most in our life - the one we will love and cherish - He keeps secret from us. Only He knows! And only He decides when and how he will tell us. Who we will fall in love with? Who will fall in love with us? Na Tum Jaano Na Hum is the story of Akshay, Rahul and Esha, three beautiful people dreaming of that one special person. Three young hearts with but one unfulfilled longing. Three souls that yearn to be touched by the magical wand of love. Three innocents in a fix, floundering on the complicated path of love. Only he knows the ending. Only he holds the key to their happiness. [+]

301 302 explores the mysterious disappearance of one of two young women who live across the hall from each other in a modern apartment complex in Seoul, Korea. The women, referred to by their apartment number, each share common yet dissimilar obsessions. Official Selection - Sundance Film Festival and Official Selection - Berlin International Film Festival.

The director and action-magician John Woo (Face Off) can always be counted on to create spectacular violent set pieces, with bodies and broken glass gracefully airborne in slow motion. But everything else in this feature-length TV pilot is grindingly conventional. Woo managed to rise above Jean-Claude Van Damme in Hard Target, but there's not much he can do with Dolph Lundgren's Jack Devlin, a kick-boxing former U. S. Marshall turned bodyguard, assigned to guard the body of a drug-addicted supermodel (Kam Heskin, from TV's Sunset Beach). Between shootouts, the elements of the future series are wheeled creakingly into place: a spacious Ikea deluxe apartment with a built-in armory, a caustic eye-patched sidekick (Saul Rubinek), and even a precocious freckle-faced girl (Padraigin Murphy) who becomes Devlin's stepdaughter, when his best buddy is rubbed out. The gorgeous showdown scene between Devlin and the psycho-stalker bad guy (Phillip MacKenzie) takes place in a milk-bottling plant, with the white stuff splashing all over-but this is TV fare, so there's no red stuff mixed in. Action addicts are advised to stick with the world-class gunplay films of Woo's Hong Kong period, A Better Tomorrow, The Killer, and Hard Boiled. -David Chute.

When a number of unsolved crimes are linked to an enigmatic foundation, newly assigned prosecutor Kang steps up his investigation using his own brand of justice. But after he realizes the man behind the vast corruption of bribery, embezzlement and murder is an old nemesis, hell discover just how far this conspiracy goes.

The mesmerizing Gong Li stars in this true story of a Chinese painter, Pan Yuliang (Gong Li), whose work was celebrated in Paris yet rejected at home. At fifteen years old, she was sold into prostitution. Her life changes when she marries with a high official. Through her husband, she finds expression in western painting, and furthers her studies in Paris. Although internationally acclaimed as an artist, her past always continued to haunt her at home in China; and it was only after her death that she finally received the acceptance she so desperately sought.