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Category:    Home > Reviews > Horror > Monster > Martial Arts > Chile > Supernatural > Hong Kong > Young IP Man (2020/*all Well Go Blu-rays)

Bone Cold (2022*)/Fist Of The Condor (2023*)/Sakra (2023*)/Time Bandits 4K (1981/Criterion 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray w/Blu-ray)/Unwelcome (2022*)/Venture Bros.: The Complete Series (2004 - 2018/Adult Swim/Cartoon Network/Warner DVD Set)/Young IP Man (2020/*all Well Go Blu-rays)



4K Ultra HD Picture: B+ Picture: B/B+/B/B-/B+/C+/B+ Sound: B/B+/B/B-/B+/C+/B+ Extras: C/C/C/B/C/B-/D Main Programs: C-/C+/B/C/C+/B-/C+



Here are a wide variety of genre films from fantasy to martial arts to surreal animation...



Bone Cold (2022) can't decide if it wants to be a creature feature, a psychological drama, or a casualty of war type film. Two elite snipers are sent on a mission to eliminate a deadly enemy, but one of them kills the wrong guy by mistake. Haunted by his mistake, the sniper is compromised and ends up trying to get his friend out of a hairy situation where an inhuman creature is also entangled. Highly reminiscent of Predator in some instances, the film fails to create a memorable monster with the result being some kind of goofy-looking digitally enhanced creature you might find at a Spirit Halloween discount section. It doesn't look alien but kind of like one of those bad interpretations of an unmasked Jason Voorhees from the Friday the 13th films only with long fingers like a Xenomorph ripped from the Alien series.


The film stars Jonathan Stoddard (Falling for a Killer), Matt Munroe (Independence Day: Resurgence), Trinity Bliss (Avatar: The Way of Water), Jennifer Khoe (Fear Frequency, Overrun), Shaan Sharma (TV's The Chosen), Elise Greene (Torn: A Wicked Trilogy), and newcomer Danielle Poblarp.


Bone Cold is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and a lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). Shot digitally on a lower budget spectrum, the film translates fine to disc and looks fine with all things considered.


Special Features:

Making of Featurette

Blooper Reel

and an Original Theatrical Trailer


Bone Cold is an honest effort, but isn't too original and needed some stronger leads, more action, and a more memorable monster to pull off what it sets out to do.



Fist Of The Condor (2023) stars Marko Zaror is a big stakes martial arts adventure from Chile with high production value and the kind of thrills one would expect from a film like this that's certainly trying to call back to other martial arts epics in its wake. The plot isn't too overly complicated as a martial arts master of the trade (Zaror) must kick butt in order to protect an ancient manual that contains secrets within of how to push past the limitations of the human body and become the ultimate warrior. Of course, there are evil martial artists that seek to learn this ancient power from the book as well, but only the worthy warrior will remain standing.


The film stars Marko Zaror, Eyal Meyer, and Fernanda Urrejola; plus is directed by Ernesto Diaz Espinoza.


The film is presented in its original widescreen aspect ratio of 2.00:1 and a lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The money is on the screen and the film was clearly made with passion and appreciation for the genre. The presentation doesn't have any glaring issues and actually looks quite nice throughout for the 2K Blu-ray format.


Special Features are typical and nothing too special:

Behind the Scenes

and a Trailer.


Fist of the Condor isn't breaking any records for original writing, but it has enough action and martial arts to keep the attention span of fans.



International martial arts super-star Donnie Yen stars and co-directs Sakra (2023) which is a new adaptation of one of the most influential martial arts stories of all time: Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.


In the film, Yen stars as a supernatural leader who is exiled after being framed for murder. As he goes on a journey of self discovery, he comes across many vicious characters who are out for blood. As expected, the film showcases beautiful choreography and high production value with some breathtaking scenes of combat. The disc itself comes stateside on Blu-ray courtesy of Well Go USA with a fine HD presentation and not too many special features.


The film stars Donnie Yen, Yuqi Chen, Kara Wai, Yue Wu, and Eddie Cheung. Action director Kam Ka Wai also co-directs with Yen.


Sakra is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1 and has several different audio mixes in Cantonese, Mandarin and English including lossless Catonese Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mixdown for older systems), Mandarin in DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 and lossy Dolby Digital 2.0, and English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 and 2.0 Stereo.


Special Features: a Making Of featurette and an Original Theatrical Trailer.


Sakra is definitely worth a watch if you're a fan of Donnie Yen or martial arts films in general.



Terry Gilliam's Time Bandits 4K (1981) is one of the director's most beloved films, yet despite seeing why, I have never been one of its big fans. Love the cast, often like the look and that it got made at all is somewhat remarkable, but now its back and in 4K. For decades, we have seen many bad home video versions and in all that, The Criterion Collection edition has been the 'holy grail' (could not resist) version serious fans have wanted. Now they can get it in this impressive upgrade.


Here's a link to my thoughts on the film in a weak, basic Blu-ray no one way happy with:


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/10258/Long+Good+Friday+(1980)+++Mona+Lisa+(1986


And another review by someone who liked the film more in its long out-of-print DiviMax DVD edition from the now defunct Anchor Bay Home Video:


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/788/Time+Bandits+(Anchor+Bay+DVD/Divimax+Edition


That DVD actually had a lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 EX sound upgrade that was not bad, but has dated in this era of lossless sound. Of course, the film has also become a curio for a few reasons and has even larger fans than any of our reviews here would represent, but


The 2160p HEVC/H.265, 1.85 X 1, Dolby Vision/HDR (10; Ultra HD Premium)-enhanced Ultra High Definition image from its new 4K scan of the original 35mm camera negative has some stylized softness, but is the best the film has ever looked on home video by a long shot and has exceptional color. On the one hand, some shots are even above my letter grade, but on the other, more fo the shots were originally softer than I though over the years from all those bad transfers and it turns out more than a few shots (early on at the young boy's home, for instance) are just soft because they were shot that way.


You can also see that on the much softer and problematic 1080p 1.85 X 1 digital High Definition image that remains one of all the bad versions. The sound on both disc versions is PCM 2.0 Stereo with the original Dolby A-type analog noise reduction with monophonic surrounds the film was originally issued in. However, the 4K offers a new transfer from the original stereo magnetic soundmaster that has more detail and depth than the regular Blu-ray. Outside of a mint 35mm or maybe 16mm print of the film in unplayed condition, the 4K version of Time Bandits is the best way to see the film anywhere.


Extras include a lenticular paperboard slipcase for the Blu-ray case, a foldout poster with tech info and an essay by critic David Sterritt, while the discs add a feature length audio commentary featuring Gilliam, cowriter-actor Michael Palin, and actors John Cleese, David Warner, and Craig Warnock, plus...


  • Program on the creation of the film's various historical periods and fantasy worlds, narrated by film writer David Morgan and featuring production designer Milly Burns and costume designer James Acheson


  • Conversation between Gilliam and film scholar Peter von Bagh, recorded at the 1998 Midnight Sun Film Festival


  • Appearance by actor Shelley Duvall on Tom Snyder's Tomorrow show from 1981


  • Gallery of rare photographs from the set


  • and an Original Theatrical Trailer.



Unwelcome (2022,) from filmmaker Jon Wright (Grabbers) and is a pretty original and fun little goblin based horror film. A married couple needs up moving to Ireland into a nice little home to get away from the city, but they end up falling prey to some murderous goblins that grow weary if they are not fed. The film is by no means a masterpiece, but it's a fun little romp that tries something different and calls back to some '80s goblin cult classics such as Ghoulies.


The film stars Hannah John-Kamen, Douglas Booth, Colm Meaney, Jamie-Lee O'Donnell, and Kristian Nairn.


Unwelcome is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1 and a lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit). The film feels professional and cinematic enough and translates fine to the 2K Blu-ray format.


Special Features featurettes: Behind the Scenes and Making the Redcaps.


While not perfect, Unwelcome tries something new and anything with goblins is always welcome in my book.



The Venture Bros.: The Complete Series (2004 - 2018) is finally offered in a full DVD set with all seven seasons of the more on than off-again TV hit for the Adult Swim block of Cartoon Network's programming. We have covered most of the seasons, including some Blu-ray versions, so here are the links to our past coverage:


Season Three Blu-ray/DVD Set (includes details on the first two seasons)

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/8473/Venture+Bros


Season Four Blu-ray Set

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/10872/Venture+Bros

DVD Volume One

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/10607/Metalocalypse:+Season+3+(2009/Blu-ray)+++The


Season Five Blu-ray Set

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/12647/The+Venture+Bros.+-+The+Fifth+Season+(2013/


Season Six Blu-ray Set

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/14467/Adventure+Time:+The+Complete+Sixth+Season


Season Seven DVD Set

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/15464/The+LEGO+Movie+2:+The+Second+Part+(2019/W


Most of them are written by a big fan of the show, but as much as I liked some things I saw, the approach to humor and deconstruction was uneven and sometimes too obvious, but I can see the appeal overall and why the show has fans. It is still being talked about for a reason, including its free form that we rarely see anywhere on TV today, despite claims of some kind of 'golden age' which is not as true as it might seem. Now you can see for yourself with this set.


The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image and lossy Dolby Digital (2.0 Stereo in early seasons, 5.1 mixes for all the seasons above) are as good as they can be in this format, even with some softness and minor aliasing errors. Despite a complaint about on Blu-ray season being visually disappointing, the show is just coming in as HD video became a more common part of production. Some fans might want Blu-ray all the way, but others (like many fans of the classic Dr. Who series) will be happy to more than settle for the show in this format.


Extras repeat all the previous season releases, though a paper foldout gives more specifics on the extras and titles of all episodes.



Lastly, Young IP Man (2020) is an action packed adventure from frame one with impressive martial arts choreography, cinematography, and production design and the quality that is to be expected with this fine series of international films. This is the ''Young Karate Kid'' of the series and shows that the series that transcend its leading man of Donnie Yen if necessary in this prequel film which stars Zhao Wnhao.


The film stars Pantheras Freedman, Jonathan Kos-Read, Feng-bin Mou, Yuqing Shi, and Xiaohu Tong. When his school is overtaken and students held for ransom, the Young Ip Man (Freedman) does whatever he can whilst entered into a dangerous plot in the process.


Young IP Man is presented in 1080p high definition on Blu-ray disc with an MPEG-4 AVC codec, a widescreen aspect ratio of 2.65:1 and a lossless, Mandarin DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) / lossy Mandarin Dolby Digital 2.0 and lossless, English DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 with English subtitles and lossy English Dolby Digital 2.0.


No Special Features.


Young Ip Man isn't bad by any means, but maybe not too memorable in the long run.



- Nicholas Sheffo (4K, Venture) and James Lockhart

https://www.facebook.com/jamesharlandlockhartv/



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