Divine-HD: Mahogany *+ (1975, Drama)
Summary: You know those movies that seemed really, really awesome when you were a teenager? Then, when you saw them again as a adult, you recognized them for the romantic dreck they always were? Mahogany exemplifies the breed. Made in 1975, Mahogany is mired in tedious melodrama that is not enhanced by a predictable and sexist ending. Diana Ross, a poverty-stricken young woman, pulls herself up by her camisole straps until she is at the top of the fashion world. Along the way she meets terrible people who want to use her. They break her heart. She has trouble bouncing back. One of those troubled people who seem to flock to Ross's unstable character is a deranged photographer, played with wild abandonment by Anthony Perkins. His psychotic performance gives this film its only energy. Ross remains unfulfilled until she finds love with inappropriate Billy Dee Williams, who shows none of his usual charisma. --Rochelle O'Gorman
These two were on before this month but hardly seen because of Schedule problems.
Here's the schedule for both today:
10:30 AM Legend of the Swordsman
12:15 PM Dragon Lord
2:00 PM Legend of the Swordsman
3:45 PM Dragon Lord
5:30 PM Legend of the Swordsman
7:15 PM Dragon Lord
9:00 PM Legend of the Swordsman
10:45 PM Dragon Lord
12:20 AM Legend of the Swordsman
2:05 AM Dragon Lord
3:40 AM Legend of the Swordsman
5:25 AM Dragon Lord
HD Cinema (106): The Legend of the Swordsman (1992)
Summary: It's not necessary to see the first Swordsman before you see Swordsman II--though some of the characters are the same, the cast is almost completely different. Into the thick of a clan feud in long-ago China comes young swordsman Ling (Jet Li), who has a romantic attachment to the leader of one side of the feud (Rosamund Kwan). However, on the other side is an evil sorcerer, Asia the Invincible (Brigitte Lin), who has found a magical scroll that will give the user formidable powers if the user castrates himself. Not only has Asia done so, over the course of the movie he transforms into a woman. Ling accidentally meets the newly feminine Asia, who remains silent to hide her still masculine voice, and they find themselves in the throes of a powerful attraction. But this much of the plot is only the tip of the iceberg; Hong Kong movies routinely pack enough story for three films into one, and Swordsman II is no exception. What is exceptional is the emotional power of the story, the superb performances, and the spectacular and hyperkinetic cinematography. Lin is completely magnetic and Li is at his buoyant, charismatic best. There's something so delightful and inviting about the special effects in Hong Kong films that it's simply more fun to believe them than not, even if they aren't realistic by Hollywood standards. At their best, Hong Kong fantasies (like A Chinese Ghost Story or Green Snake) become much more than camp. An epic of amazing scope and surprising richness, Swordsman II is quite possibly one of the greatest movies ever made. --Bret Fetzer
HD Cinema (106): Dragon Lord (1982)
Summary: Dimension Home Video presents DRAGON LORD, an action-packed martial arts adventure written, directed and starring Jackie Chan ("Shanghai Knights," "Rush Hour,") one of the world's greatest action stars. This fast-paced thriller is choreographed by renowned legend Corey Yuen of "Hero" and "Jet Li's The Enforcer." In DRAGON LORD, Dragon (Chan) and his buddy Cowboy (Mars) have been best friends since childhood, through thick and thin. But when they both fall head over heels for the same woman, the friends become rivals for her. When they come across a gang stealing valuable Chinese artifacts, Dragon and Cowboy join forces again and high-kick into gear to prevent the thieves from doing their dirty work.
