I am in seven minds as we say on these shores! [which doesn't mean we all suffer from multiple personality disorder but to be confused as what to chose in regards to something that has several alternative options!]
I do two blogs on Asian worldweird cinema; this one and a site for trashy Vietnam war movies filmed in the Philippines WHEN THE VIETNAM WAR RAGED... IN THE PHILIPPINES (which may sound like an odd set-up if you're not familiar with these particular movies, how can the Philippines be made to look like the jungles of Vietnam, not to mention how can Filipino actors be made to look like the Vietcong, but trust me, once you figure out how to overlook these anomalies you're in for a fun ride!).
The thing is, where do I index a film like DARK DAY EXPRESS? Here or there? It's a crazy and wild movie from the Asian backyard so it's right up our alley here at BACKYARD ASIA - but on the other hand: there IS an awful lot of machine gun fighting, EXPLODING HUTS (lots of those in Filipino war flicks... just the concept: huts... that... explode... when you shoot at them!!!), and general mayhem... so that way it ought to fit in on the trashy war site.
However... altho the film DOES feature expat gwilo actors it's NOT from the Philippines but from Thailand! So you see: a major dilemma if I ever saw one (yes, there is starvation and unemployment en masse in this world but this is my own personal - less important but still irritating - dilemma for tonight! Argh! Haha).
Anyway, if nothing else I'll post this uber-rare trailer here while I think about where to post these entries. And like the trailer the film itself is also uber-uber-rare! I'm aware of only two VHS releases; one in Spain (dubbed into Spanish) and the other in Greece (dubbed into English) but both of those releases are extremely rare. A nice fellow on Cinehound forum provided me with a dvdr dupe off a screener from the distribution company in Hong Kong who took care of the distribution for the world market (and bloody obviously didn't do a very good job of it as it seems only those two aforementioned countries bought it for video release!).
The trailer upload comes curtsey of Knetan (Kenneth Brorsson) of the cool and highly recommended HK review site Oh so good Hong Kong reviews and obviously he got a copy from the same friend as it has the same annoying Filmark logo plastered all over the right top cover (and it continues thru out the whole damn movie but I'm happy to at least be able to watch this fun movie).
A BRIEF WORD ON THE MOVIE
DARK DAY EXPRESS is about a mysterious guy who hires a bunch of mercenaries for a trip to the nearest dangerous jungle to find *something* for him. They're not being told what it is but the two million dollars he waves in front of each of their noses is enough to convince them it's a really, really good idea to go into an unknown jungle describe by the locals as "Don't go in, you're not coming back".
It would be the biggest cinematic surprise if they didn't encounter danger and wild stuff once they get to the jungle so that's exactly what happens. There's also a silly chick who keeps wanting to take a dump and her *shirtlifter* friend. For some reason these older Thai action movies always found room for the compulsory gay guy, and by gay I mean overly gay. Gay as in so gay it's CARTOON GAY! If you buy the notion that films are a representation of real life you would think there are no ordinary gay men in Thailand.
One of the main characters is played by the German actor Christoph Klueppel who went to Thailand and starred in a bunch of wild films many years ago. Some of his other movies include IN GOLD WE TRUST, THE LOST IDOL, MISSION HUNTER 1 & 2, and SATANIC CRYSTALS. Fred Anderson of Ninja Dixon blog has just made what he describes as a "massive" interview with Klueppel (who still lives in Thailand by the way) and will post it on his blog sometime in the near future. I really wish someone would release more of these films on DVD (or SOME of them at least!!).
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