Killer Imports is a regular feature on Film Junk where we explore foreign-language films from around the world that haven’t yet had their chance to shine.

Originally, I had seen The Enforcer when it was called My Father is a Hero on a Chinese DVD. The movie had been completed in 1995. Chronologically, this puts The Enforcer after Fist of Legend and before Black Mask in Jet Li’s list of movies. I have seen over half of the thirty-nine movies that Jet Li has acted in (or fought in) so far, and all of his post 1993 movies (except for his latest, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor).

With the exception of Zhang Yimou’s Hero, I prefer the movies where Jet Li plays a contemporary action hero despite Jay’s belief that I like all my action when it’s done on wires. I don’t really appreciate the Once Upon a Time series with Jet Li that many martial arts fans find so endearing. The Enforcer is contemporary and set in Beijing and Hong Kong.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

I thought I would give my opinion about fan reaction to what we know so far about J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek, which is to be released in three months. Most of the hardcore Trekkies who hold Star Trek canon dearly have been expressing dismay at what the previews have shown us. In providing my response, I will also share my initial reactions to the new Star Trek movie and update you on how I feel about the upcoming movie.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

Okay, I admit I’m being silly and irreverent, but I really did put some thought and research into this article. We often take for granted things that are in plain sight, so I’ve taken it upon myself to give homage to these inventions that seem to be irreplaceable at least in my mind.

When you think about it, there are some things that we think we might use forever, but something may be invented to take its place. For example, the wheel doesn’t seem to be used anymore in the 23rd century. Some form of anti-gravity seems to have made the wheel obsolete.

Here are the inventions that will survive to the 23rd century and beyond!

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Killer Imports is a regular feature on Film Junk where we explore foreign-language films from around the world that haven’t yet had their chance to shine.

As a film genre, the western has not been one that I have followed with any enthusiasm. Westerns seemed to me to simply be retelling the same good guy versus bad guy story with variations on that theme. I realize that the love of my life, Star Trek, is based on a western. But Star Trek offered a wider range of storytelling because of the unknown of outer space.

Growing up, there were only two westerns that I can really remember enjoying: Shane and The Magnificent Seven. With Shane, I think the little boy was someone I could relate to in the movie. The whole theme with the effeminate, handsome hero standing up to the bully was something I could cheer for. I suffered from the “hero worship of older brother” syndrome, so when the little boy cries out for Shane at the end of the movie, I guess I could imagine my older brother abandoning me.

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Killer Imports is a regular feature on Film Junk where we explore foreign-language films from around the world that haven’t yet had their chance to shine.

Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles is not the kind of movie you would expect to be reviewed in a column called Killer Imports. It has no violence of any kind. It has no action scenes. It has no fighting except for verbal pleading that’s done in a loving way. After a while, RATM had me thinking about similarities it had with Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino. I’ll get to this later.

The director, Zhang Yimou, had been known for his dramas with vivid cinematography like Raise the Red Lantern. And then he directed two martial arts films that won the praise of many with Hero being in my top 10 films of all time. RATM was a return to telling a simple character drama. His latest career accomplishment was directing the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

The debate on whether Star Trek should return as a movie rather than a television series could be focused on either of two different time frames: the late 1970s or the late 2000s. In both cases, there had been no Star Trek television series on the television airwaves for several years. And also in both cases, a movie was finally decided upon, but I think for two different reasons.

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Killer Imports is a regular feature on Film Junk where we explore foreign-language films from around the world that haven’t yet had their chance to shine.

Silver Hawk is a superhero movie based on a comic book. I have never seen the comic book, so I don’t know if the filmmakers have adhered to it. The movie stars Michelle Yeoh who gained some renown for her stint as a Bond Girl in Tomorrow Never Dies. She probably caught the attention of the Bond producers from her role in the Jackie Chan film, Supercop. She was the older female lead in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. She also did some non-action acting in Memoirs of a Geisha. She had a small non-action acting role in Jet Li’s Fearless, but her part was cut in the North American version because she was in the framing story that dealt with a bid to include Wushu, a form of martial arts, in the Olympics.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

Since the articles that are the most popular on Film Junk are Top 10 Lists, I’ve decided to succumb to the commercial pressures. (Besides, Sean suggested that I do some.) As usual, I’ll be trying to subvert your expectations as best I can in order to avoid repeating the same things that other people have said in their similar lists. I’ll try to add some historical background as to how the invention actually came to be, and sociological effects that might not be so obvious. And where possible, I’ll try to add some notes on what future developments may be in store for further improvements.

I’ll avoid being technical in order to avoid hurting your brain. Ha ha. My arrogance is unbecoming; I should have said “to avoid hurting my brain.” Gene Roddenberry was fond of saying that the success of Star Trek was partly due to its tact of not talking down to its audience because the television audience was smarter than how smart television executives thought it was. I wonder what he would have thought of the Internet community.

Oh, also, Star Trek didn’t really invent these devices, but it popularized them, or provided inspiration for their realization in the everyday world. They have become ubiquitous.

Here we go…

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What qualifications do I have for writing a column about foreign film?

When I was growing up in a small Canadian town, the local cinemas only played popular American films. I got a brief glimpse of Asian cinema when martial arts became popular in the ’70s. I went to see the first Asian film that opened the martial arts craze in North American theaters, Five Fingers of Death, and I subsequently saw all the Bruce Lee films with my parents or my occidental friends.

On television, we had three over the air channels. (Cable television wasn’t available.) One of the three television channels was a French station. Late at night, it would show French films. It wasn’t long before I grew to appreciate French cinema. And it wasn’t because of Francois Truffaut or any of the other New Wave directors specifically, I don’t think. I also didn’t really understand the language even though French was a mandatory class at school as I was growing up. You see, the thing about French films is that they had nudity.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

When I think of all the freedom I’ve had my entire life from the ’60s onwards living in the Promised Land (Canada), I must admit that I feel much regret that I haven’t “made a difference.” And since I prescribe to Star Trek’s philosophies which include the ideals that life should be about making a difference and living a fulfilling life, I feel especially empty. The strange thing is that when I look back on my life, I don’t regret any of the paths that I took. Except for parental pressures, I’ve always felt unencumbered to choose my own way. I’ve always admired the stances that university students took in the ’60s against the establishment, and felt that I’ve benefited from the changes that liberation instigated. Some people have expressed the notion that this rebellion ended up not making a difference with people of that generation ending up building corporate America and creating a new but equally oppressive establishment.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

A new year will be shortly upon us. Some see this as a chance to change or to correct some perceived deficiency. But to some, change is not permitted. There exists a tribe of Trekkies who highly value Star Trek canon. I am not a member of that tribe. And I don’t know why I’m not, because I think I should be. Maybe I should first explain what is meant by Star Trek canon.

Star Trek takes place in a fictional universe; however, the established rules of that universe should be followed consistently from adventure to adventure, and the events that happen are taken as real in that universe. Even for non-science fiction stories, the audience can only follow a plot so long as everything that is seen is internally consistent within the story. And if a story depends on or is a continuation of past events, audiences expect the details to be the way they were established in history.

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Treknobabble is a continuing series of columns written by uber-Trekkie Reed Farrington in anticipation of the upcoming J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie.

As far as Star Trek is concerned, Christmas doesn’t seem to be celebrated. Years ago, there was an official book called, “Star Trek Celebrations.” It described all the human and alien ceremonies, rituals, and holidays that were depicted in the episodes of the various series. Birthdays were celebrated such as when Spock gave Kirk a book in the second movie, but the birth of Christ was not mentioned. In deference to all the religions on Earth, Star Trek was politically correct before the term came into common usage. Assuming that Sean will post this on Christmas Eve so that all you Film Junkies will have something to read while waiting for Santa, I thought that I should write a Christmas-themed Treknobabble anyway.

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