31. Liverleaf (Eisuke Naito, 2018, Japan)
Director Eisuke Naito channels “Lady Snowblood” here and most of the action and bloodshed are in the second act which is nicely marked by the arrival of a snowstorm in the countryside. I really enjoyed the conflicts we see against the snowy backdrops. One scene in particular that stood out was when Nozaki bites her lip in a fit of rage and blood lines her lips. She and her love interest Mitsuru Aiba (Hiroya Shimizu) kiss and there is a pseudo vampiric exchange between them that I found very stylish.(Matt Ward)
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32. BuyBust (Erik Matti, 2018, Philippines)
The film starts a bit slowly, building the tension and introducing the characters, but as soon as the story moves to the slums, the action picks up and never actually stops, taking over the whole narrative. Hand-to-hand combat, guns, knives and any kind of weapon one could imagine are used in an unending series of brutal battles, against both experts and simple people (including housewives). The death toll presented on screen is unprecedented, as cops, criminals and slum residents fall like flies with no-mercy whatsoever. (Panos Kotzathanasis)
33. The Witch: Part I. The Subversion (Park Hoon-jung, 2018, S. Korea)
On the surface, movies like “The Witch Part I. The Subversion” serve as efficient genre vehicles. The fast-paced action scenes, the scenes of (teenage) drama and the magnificent fight choreography have become something of a trademark of modern South-Korean cinema starting with Park Chan-wook's “Oldboy”. However, as with his previous works, Park Hoon-jung also stresses something more sinister at the core of this world which seems fictional, but at the same time so very close: the existence of social layers and gaps which define our lives. (Rouven Linnarz)
34. Maria (Pedring Lopez, 2019, Philippines)
The action choreography by Sonny Sison (who also worked in “BuyBust” and plays a small part in the film as an MMA trainer) is exceptional, with him taking full advantage of the aforementioned combination to present a number of rather impressive action scenes, featuring martial arts (hand-to-hand combat and the use of various weapons) and guns. The ones in the nightclub (particularly the brutal ending of the fight of the two women and the killing of one of the villains with pills) and the final, quite lengthy one in the rain during the night are the most memorable, although the majority of them are rather good. (Panos Kotzathanasis)
35. Furie (Le Van Kiet, 2019, Vietnam)
“Furie” doesn't break barriers, nor does it attempt to, but what it does well is tell a familiar story through the female perspective and give the audience a tirade of thrilling, almost non-stop action sequences skilfully planned and executed, while also introducing a much wider audience to the hidden Vietnamese treasure that is action star Veronica Ngo. More of this, please! (Rhythm Zaveri)
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36. Bring Me Home (Kim Seung-woo, 2019, S. Korea)
The film definitely benefits from the casting of Lee Young-ae as the lead, since her performance as the desperate mother, Jung-yeon is strong and her screen presence is still magnetic. She has to portray a suffering mother character that goes through hell: loses her husband, she gets threatened, beaten up, but she never gives up hope. In fact, her acting seems to have matured even after years away from the big screen. (David Chew)
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37. Ulbolsyn (Adilkhan Yerzhanov, 2020, Kazakhstan/ France)
The world “Ulbolsyn” briefly re-visits is stuck up in the past. Women eat in separate rooms, they are being locked in basements and beaten up in so called purification ceremonies that are supposed to chase the demons away. In other words, some kind of exorcism of free will and behavior that challenges the patriarchy. However, the main hero is full of surprises. When she's denied help by the police, she calls for her own army of armed professionals, and finally for a different kind of assistance.(Marina D. Richter)
38. Barbarian Invasion (Tan Chui Mui, 2021, Malaysia)
References to the body and body awareness are everywhere, starting with the hardness of the martial art training. She asks sifu Loh where her true self is, only to be harshly punched on her nose as a demonstration that her real self is where that pain comes from. Lines of the dialogues often refers to corporeal experiences like when Moon describes working with her ex-husband: “It would be like asking me to eat something that I have just vomited” or when the monk clearly states: “The mind is the prison of your body”.
39. Vengeance is Mine All Others Pay Cash (Edwin, 2021, Indonesia)
Edwin will address various issues, ranging from sexual tension to jealousy to violence against women and revenge. Nonetheless, the stylistic craziness and pastiche and mocking vibe never leave. There will be more painted boards (this time on backs of trucks) coming to life, insane stories of terrifying gangsters reluctant to visit a dentist or even some extra supernatural spice.
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40. Arisaka (Mikhail Red, 2022, Philippines)
Asides from that, “Arisaka” follows many of the generic tropes of a revenge movie: There's the merciless gangster, the injured underdog, and the unexpected friendships and other elements typically seen in the genre. But rather than taking away from the film, these tropes actually just make the ride way more fun. It may be up for debate whether “Arisaka” is director Mikhail Red‘s best work to-date, but the intensity makes it fun, and the messaging, when not too overwhelming, makes it thought-provoking.
