Throw Down: An Action Cinema Podcast

Ep. 32: Fist of the North Star (1986)

Where must we go, we who wander this wasteland in search of our buffer selves? In a bleak, post-apocalyptic shell of a world, cities crumbling and the wastes ruled by violent warlords, everything is left to sheer strength. Muscle is all that matters, and to ascend to godhood your only option is to become so powerful that you become an immense giant, towering over the meek and willing to crush them with a casual blow. Toyoo Ashida's filmic adaptation of Buronson and Tetsuo Hara's bloodbath martial arts manga transforms the manga's first major arcs into nonstop action chaos, a one of a kind thrill ride that fully tests the expressive capabilities of action in animation. Join Jack and Vaughn on this week's episode as they discuss all of Fist of the North Star's moments of action bliss and so much more. Throw Down will be going on a temporary hiatus for now, but rest assured that we love making this show and we'll be back to regularly talking about the best, the worst, and everything in between as soon as we're able. Until then, for more words, thoughts, and action adoration, find us all around the internet. Vaughn on Step Printed [https://stepprinted.com/], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/Zebra/?ref=stepprinted.com] and Twitter [https://twitter.com/XeroZebra?ref=stepprinted.com]. Jack on The STACKS [https://thestacksdotcodotuk.wordpress.com/?ref=stepprinted.com], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/jckdvnprt/?ref=stepprinted.com], and Twitter [https://twitter.com/jckdvnprt?ref=stepprinted.com]. Looking for more shows? Check out Jack on The STACKS [https://open.spotify.com/show/0mQaf7o2bTBGthV6eur2Zt?ref=stepprinted.com&si=676a7fac055048b2] and Vaughn on I’m Thinking of Spoiling Things [https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cy7OcwcfnZSsVCCPXcIav?ref=stepprinted.com&si=dca2a7737e214e33].

Ep. 31: SPL Kill Zone (2005)

Starting out by directing low budget horror and Category III exploitation films, Wilson Yip made a name for himself in '90s Hong Kong with breakout hits like Bio-Zombie, a Dawn of the Dead influenced zombie film taking place in a claustrophobic Hong Kong mall, and Bullets Over Summer, a buddy cop hangout film that earned him enough credibility to start directing for studios like Golden Harvest. In 2005, he teamed up with legendary martial artists Donnie Yen and Sammo Hung to produce Sha Po Lang - released overseas as SPL: Kill Zone. A thematic contemporary alongside the rest of 00s Hong Kong cinema, SPL is bleak and brutal, an uncompromising landscape of violence where everyone is ready to scrap and fight at a moment's notice and every character is laser focused on a revenge mission that leaves everyone around them bloodied, dead, or forgotten. Join Jack and Vaughn this week as they talk about Wilson Yip's career, Sammo Hung as a ruthless villain, Donnie Yen's blindingly fast martial arts, and whether or not this film stretches itself too thin on a flimsy narrative. Next week we’ll be back with Toyoo Ashida's legendary muscle fantasy anime Fist of the North Star. Until then, for more words, thoughts, and action adoration, find us all around the internet. Vaughn on Step Printed [https://stepprinted.com/], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/Zebra/?ref=stepprinted.com] and Twitter [https://twitter.com/XeroZebra?ref=stepprinted.com]. Jack on The STACKS [https://thestacksdotcodotuk.wordpress.com/?ref=stepprinted.com], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/jckdvnprt/?ref=stepprinted.com], and Twitter [https://twitter.com/jckdvnprt?ref=stepprinted.com]. Looking for more shows? Check out Jack on The STACKS [https://open.spotify.com/show/0mQaf7o2bTBGthV6eur2Zt?ref=stepprinted.com&si=676a7fac055048b2] and Vaughn on I’m Thinking of Spoiling Things [https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cy7OcwcfnZSsVCCPXcIav?ref=stepprinted.com&si=dca2a7737e214e33].

Ep. 30: Parole Violators (1994)

This week on Throw Down, Jack and Vaughn open Pandora's box - the world of 90s SOV B-movie action, this time featuring Patrick G. Donahue's maniacal Parole Violators. The host of a vigilante public access television series is desperate to keep his program on air, putting himself in absurd danger for absolutely no reason to document himself apprehending recently released criminals violating their parole. It all goes south when two men he once put in prison are released, seeking vengeance by kidnapping his girlfriend's daughter. The ensuing rampage of roundhouse kicks and dialogue delivered entirely as if every character were trying to speak over the music at a club makes for a wild ride of schlock perfection, the greatest kind of microbudget action you could ask for. For the curious: https://newgoldstudios.com/ [https://newgoldstudios.com/] Next week we’ll be back with Wilson Yip's triad face melter SPL: Kill Zone. Until then, for more words, thoughts, and action adoration, find us all around the internet. Vaughn on Step Printed [https://stepprinted.com/], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/Zebra/?ref=stepprinted.com] and Twitter [https://twitter.com/XeroZebra?ref=stepprinted.com]. Jack on The STACKS [https://thestacksdotcodotuk.wordpress.com/?ref=stepprinted.com], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/jckdvnprt/?ref=stepprinted.com], and Twitter [https://twitter.com/jckdvnprt?ref=stepprinted.com]. Looking for more shows? Check out Jack on The STACKS [https://open.spotify.com/show/0mQaf7o2bTBGthV6eur2Zt?ref=stepprinted.com&si=676a7fac055048b2] and Vaughn on I’m Thinking of Spoiling Things [https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cy7OcwcfnZSsVCCPXcIav?ref=stepprinted.com&si=dca2a7737e214e33].

Ep. 29: Born To Fight (2004)

Hot off the international success of Ong-Bak (2003), stunt choreographer and Thai action veteran Panna Rittikrai set out to make another no holds barred stunt showcase, featuring a cast of his Muay Thai Stunt team and a group of Thai national athletes. A loose remake of his debut film, Born to Fight commits itself entirely to its mind boggling action and death defying stunts wrapped around a simple narrative that keeps the stakes big without getting bogged down in the details. The final 40 minutes are an endless action setpiece that starts at an unprecedented level of intensity and never stops ramping up the madness. Join Jack and Vaughn as they return from the Maytrix to exploring the vast world of action cinema this week on the show. Next week we’ll be back with Patrick G. Donahue's action schlocksterpiece Parole Violators. Until then, for more words, thoughts, and action adoration, find us all around the internet. Vaughn on Step Printed [https://stepprinted.com/], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/Zebra/?ref=stepprinted.com] and Twitter [https://twitter.com/XeroZebra?ref=stepprinted.com]. Jack on The STACKS [https://thestacksdotcodotuk.wordpress.com/?ref=stepprinted.com], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/jckdvnprt/?ref=stepprinted.com], and Twitter [https://twitter.com/jckdvnprt?ref=stepprinted.com]. Looking for more shows? Check out Jack on The STACKS [https://open.spotify.com/show/0mQaf7o2bTBGthV6eur2Zt?ref=stepprinted.com&si=676a7fac055048b2] and Vaughn on I’m Thinking of Spoiling Things [https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cy7OcwcfnZSsVCCPXcIav?ref=stepprinted.com&si=dca2a7737e214e33].

Ep. 28: The Matrix Resurrections (2021)

Nearly two decades after the conclusion of the original Matrix trilogy, after initially expressing an explicit intent to leave the story where it ended, Lana Wachowski returned to her world of cyberpunk and philosophy as a way to process grief and to protect her IP from corporate bastardization. The result is a massive swing as beautifully earnest and idiosyncratic as anything either of the Wachowskis have ever done, an unsurprisingly romantic epic that updates outdated ideas about stiff and bleak corporate oppression; trading them for a slick, post-irony world where everything is about itself and nihilism reigns. A world where we are gaslit into questioning our sanity at every turn, where we are talked out of radicalism through fear of uprooting the functional status quo. Received with as much divisive contention as every other Matrix sequel, Jack and Vaughn are here to dive in and break down The Matrix Resurrections. At last. Next week we’ll be back with Panna Rittikrai's stunt showcase masterpiece Born To Fight. Until then, for more words, thoughts, and action adoration, find us all around the internet. Vaughn on Step Printed [https://stepprinted.com/], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/Zebra/] and Twitter [https://twitter.com/XeroZebra]. Jack on The STACKS [https://thestacksdotcodotuk.wordpress.com/], Letterboxd [https://letterboxd.com/jckdvnprt/], and Twitter [https://twitter.com/jckdvnprt]. Looking for more shows? Check out Jack on The STACKS [https://open.spotify.com/show/0mQaf7o2bTBGthV6eur2Zt?si=676a7fac055048b2] and Vaughn on I’m Thinking of Spoiling Things [https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cy7OcwcfnZSsVCCPXcIav?si=dca2a7737e214e33].