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Hanzo and the Green Destiny

 Monday: The Killers (1964)

           Two hitmen are hired to kill Johnny North, a former race car driver. When he doesn't put up a fight when they kill him they decide to find out more about him. One source tells them that Johnny had escaped with a million dollars. The hitmen want the money so they track down Johnny's former partner, Earl. Earl tells them about how Johnny was a promising driver with real talent. Then he fell for a woman named Sheila. Sheila always went for men who's jobs put them in dangerous situations. Earl cautioned Johnny against falling for her but to no avail. Sheila had been connected to a gangster but seemed to want to leave that life and really loved Johnny. After an accident that ended Johnny's racing career he went to a dark place. Sheila convinced him to do a job for her gangster former lover. It didn't go as planned. I thought this movie was good. Ronald Reagan played the gangster. This is the first movie I've seen with him in it. He was an ok actor.

Tuesday: The Wicker Man (1973)

         Howie is a police sergeant. He received a letter from a small Scottish island about a missing girl. Howie goes to investigate. The people of the island are very strange. At first they deny that the girl ever existed. Then when they do admit to knowing her they don't say anything else. They have a strange religion that they believe has helped their crops grow. Sex has a big part in their worship. Their May day celebration is coming up. Howie has found almost no clues. He is told to leave before the celebration. Unable to leave he discovers the dark act at the center of the celebration and he decides to take action. This movie was ok. Really weird. I had always heard that this was a really scary movie. Don't get me wrong there are some scary and creepy moments, but in the end you don't see much. I guess it's more of the idea of what happened than actually seeing it.

Wednesday: The Drowning Pool (1975)

           PI Harper is back to solve another case. He goes to Louisiana to help an old girlfriend named Iris. She received a letter threatening to expose her cheating. Iris doesn't want her husband finding out, even though they aren't very committed to each other. Harper learns of Iris's daughter and overbearing mother-in-law. One day after returning to his hotel two men force him into their car. They take him to their boss, a oil baron after Iris's mother-in-law's land. He wants Harper to spy for him and get that land. Harper refuses. Later he follows a lead on the former driver of the family. Everything becomes twisted together and Harper isn't sure which case he is solving. I thought this movie was ok. Not as good as the first movie, Harper. 

Friday: Mortal Kombat (2021)

         There is a great struggle between the champions of Earth and the champions of the Outworld. A descendent of a great warrior, Cole, finds out that he is one of the champions chosen to fight. A warrior named Sub-Zero is tracking down all of Earth's champions and killing them. Cole and the other Earth Champions are gathered together to train and prepare for Mortal Kombat. Whoever wins gets Earth. I thought this movie was good, but a little cheesy. This is based on the video game. I have only ever played the arcade game. So I don't know all the lore or fighters. Although I did notice they used the arcade game music during some fighting scenes, which I thought was cool. There were some cool fights. Especially between the characters Hanzo and Sub-Zero. I saw in an interview that the actor who played Sub-Zero, Joe Taslim, was so fast during fights that they had to tell him to slow down so the camera could see what he was doing. He is the real deal. So is Hiroyuki Sanada (Hanzo).

Saturday: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) 

          This is a Chinese movie. Shu Lien is a female warrior. She is friends with the legendary warrior, Mu Bai. He is retiring from fighting. Mu Bai asks Shu Lien to deliver his legendary sword, Green Destiny, to a friend. Shu Lien agrees hoping this means their forbidden romance can finally happen. But soon after she delivers the sword it is stolen by a skilled warrior. The warrior has been taught in the same way that Mu Bai has. Shu Lien realizes that the warrior is the governor's daughter. The daughter had learned how to fight from another female warrior. Mu Bai and Shu Lien have to track down the daughter and stop her. That's the best I can summarize it. It's complicated. I thought this movie was good.

Sunday: The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926) 

        A magician makes a flying horse to present to the ruler of the capital. The ruler wants to buy the horse. The magician won't take money. The ruler says he can have whatever he wants. So the magician chooses the ruler's daughter. The ruler's son, Prince Achmed, won't allow this. He goes to fight the magician. But he ends up under a spell and flies off on the horse. Achmed is able to land the horse on a magical island. There he sees the demon's ruler, a beautiful woman named Pari Banu. He kidnaps her and they fall in love. Then she is taken by the magician and sold to an emperor. With the help of a witch and later Aladdin, Achmed fights to get her back. This movie is alright. It is a German made movie set in the Middle East. It is a silent film. The story is told by using shadow puppets. It is a very unique movie. 

             

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