EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

Hsiang Ying (Chia Ling) has been betrayed by her master, who tells her that he killed her father before tossing her off a cliff and when she survives that and a battle with wolves, he locks her inside a cage. She’s saved by Ku (Chiang-Lung Wen) but it turns out that the real killer is his uncle, a maniac who has two skulls that sit on his shoulders and, when called upon, can fly around and bite people.

Now known as the Heartless Woman, she goes on episodic adventures that have her battling ripoffs of other martial arts movies, such as a one armed boxer (Phillip Ko!) and a monkey king. Like many kung fu films from Taiwan, the budget is low and the imagination is high. I wish it spent all the time with its heroine instead of going into comedy, but I still had a blast watching it. Seriously, the final bad guy may have the most amazing weaponry ever.

Also known as Flying Masters of Kung Fu, this was released by 21st Century.

You can watch this on Tubi. You can also get it on blu ray from Gold Ninja Video.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

Also known as The Six Thousand Dollar N*****r, this is a regional Miami superhero crime comedy directed by Rene Martinez Jr. (The Guy from Harlem, Road of Death).

Two criminals — Bob (Benny Latimore) and Jim (Lee Cross) — pay Dr. Dippy (Peter Conrad) six grand to create a superhero formula. You may think that such a thing would cost more which is why what the doctor makes kills whoever drinks it in just six days. They pay a homeless man named Steve (“Wildman” Steve Gallon) to take the potion and help them rip off a jewelry store. Well, they trick him into it and then tell him he’s going to die soon unless he finds a cure.

Steve falls for Peggy (Joycelyn Norris) and takes her virginity, which is really an uncomfy scene filled with no consent at all and Steve’s the hero. How strange that Dr. Dippy and his tall lover Monica (Wild Savage) have the better relationship?

Wildman Steve also shows up in  Rudy Ray Moore’s Petey Wheatstraw: The Devil’s Son In Law, which makes sense, as he’s very close to Dolemite here. He also is obsessed with ass washing, which has to be a Redd Foxx reference, as the comedian had an entire album titled You Gotta Wash Your Ass. Much like Foxx, Wildman released party animals, which were stand-up comedy records filled with dirty jokes that were sold under the counter at record stores. He also was a DJ on the radio and did many charitable efforts for Miami’s unhoused population, which won him the Cultural Ambassador’s Award.

Despite the title, this has nothing to do with The Six Million Dollar Man.

You can get the AGFA blu ray of this from Vinegar Syndrome.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

Based on The Vulture is a Patient Bird by James Hadley Chase, at the time, this was the most expensive movie made in Bollywood. In addition to stars such as Dharmendra, Zeenat Aman and Shammi Kapoor, imported actors like Rex Harrison, John Saxon and Sylvia Miles all get in on the action.

Sir John Locksley (Rex Harrison), the greatest jewel thief in the world, decides his most prized possession, the Shalimar Ruby, should be passed on to a worthy successor. He invites every other master jewel thief in the world to his island estate to participate in a deadly contest.

Yes, this feels like the set-up for a Jess Franco movie. Instead, it’s a Bollywood action film with Countess Rasmussen (Miles), Col. Columbus (Saxon), Dr. Kuhkari (Kapoor), Romeo (OP Ralhan) and Raja Bahadur Singh all fighting to win that prized stone. Well, Singh dies right away, so SS Kumar (Dharmendra) takes his place. I mean, that diamond was worth $135 million in 1978, so you can figure out why everyone is trying to murder each other.

Directed by Krishna Shah, who made his name on Broadway, this had unique cuts for India and the U.S. The American version was released by 21st Century as Raiders of the Sacred Stone and Raiders of the Shalimar. They also re-released another Shad movie, The River Niger. He’d go on to direct, write and produce American Drive-In and Hard Rock Zombies.

The story came from Stanford Sherman, who also wrote Any Which Way You Can, Krull and The Ice Pirates.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

Jennifer Baylor  (Lisa Pelikan, Ghoulies) takes care of her father Luke (Jeff Corey), a man obsessed with religion and who can’t cook for himself. When she was seven, she accidentally killed a preacher’s son with the snakes that she can mentally control and has refused to be near them ever again, even if her father begs her again and again to help at his pet store.

Somehow, she goes to Green View School. Everyone else is rich and protected by Mrs. Calley (Nina Foch). As for Jennifer, her only friends are lunchlady Martha (Lillian Randolph) and a teacher by the name of Jeff Reed (Burt Convy) who sees just how horrible of a school this is. Jennifer is targeted by the richest of the rich kids, Sandra Tremayne (Amy Johnston). This includes taking her clothes when she’s naked in the shower and being photographed unclothed and the only other girl who stands up for her, Jane (Louise Hoven), being assaulted by Sandra’s man Dayton (Ray Underwood).

The part where Sandra deserves death — well, she did deserve something, but this is as far as it gets, let me tell you — is when she buys Jannifer’s favorite pet store cat, kills it and leaves it in her locker. Then she kidnaps Jennifer and throws her in a car, then leaves her tied up as cars circle her. At that point, every snake in the city comes to Jennifer’s aid, killing everyone left and right in a scene of cathartic snake revenge right out of a Category III movie. At the end, Mrs. Calley is bit by a snake from her desk and Jennifer and Jane laugh.

Director Brice Mask was a Disney background artist and was produced Ruby. He wasn’t tired of ripping off Carrie, so we got Jennifer. This was written by the same writer, Steve Kranz, who was joined in the scripting by Kay Cousins Johnson, who was an actress before starting as a writer.

Originally released in 1978 by American-International Pictures, this kept playing drive-ins — 21st Century had it for a bit — even when it was playing on TV as Jennifer the Snake Goddess.

I love that it was called Horrible Carnage in France.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

An American soldier — on his way home from the Vietnam War — is left for dead and is saved by a pair of Japanese stragglers from WWII, who train him in the way of the samurai. This movie is also known as Deadly Force, The Force and The Black Samurai, as well as several other titles. It’s a compound of blaxsploitation and the kung fu genres, with some social commentary mixed in along the way.

I’ve always been fascinated by the Japanese soldiers who didn’t surrender after World War II. Here, they help our hero Doug — James Iglehart, who was Randy Black from Beyond the Valley of the Dolls — learn the ancient fighting skills he’ll never to make it back home.

Turns out that Doug and his buddies —  McGee (Leon Isaac Kennedy, Too Sweet from the Penitentiary) and Morelli (Carmen Argenziano, Grave of the Vampire) —  have stolen gold on the way back from Vietnam for a crime boss. On the way back, they stab our hero, slash his throat and dump him off the boar. Luckily, those aforementioned Japanese soldiers are ready to teach him that violence really does solve issues.

McGee really wants Doug’s wife Maria, who is played by Jayne Kennedy, who appeared on the cover of Playboy and was selected by Coca Cola USA as the Most Admired Black Woman in America. She was married to the actor playing McGee — Leon Isaac Kennedy — in real life. And back in the days before the internet, the two appeared in a sex tape so infamous, it’s referenced in a Mr. Show sketch (it’s at the beginning of the “Show Me Your Weenis!” episode where Wyckyd Sceptre gets caught on tape).

I just posted the screencap so that the review itself doesn’t get flagged on Amazon.

The soldiers that help our hero are played by Joe Mari Avellana, who was the Scourge in Wheels of Fire, and Joonee Gamboa, whose characters constantly bicker back and forth.

This movie has an amazing tagline: “She’s in Playboy. He’s out of Penitentiary. Jayne Kennedy and Leon Isaac in Fighting Mad.” A bit misleading, as he’s the villain, but what can you do?

Cirio H. Santiago is to blame — or praise — for this. He made more movies than we’ve probably reviewed on this site like Wheels of Fire, Demon of Paradise and Stryker.

This was rereleased by 21st Century.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

If you want to see what Donald Pleasence movies I’ve seen, here’s the Letterboxd list. I love him because he was a working actor. Like John Carradine, he was there when you needed him. And at times, he’d show just how good he was. But he’s a workmanlike — in a good way — presence in so many movies.

Directed by Lee Madden (The Night God Screamed, the Alan Smithee who made Ghost Fever) and written by Hugh Smith (second unit director of Abby, writer of The Glove), Night Creature has Pleasence as Axel MacGregor, a writer and big game hunter who has unleashed a deadly black panther and doomed everyone around him which is a real problem as his daughters Leslie (Nancy Kwan, Wonder Women) and Georgia (Jennifer Rhodes) have just come to town along with Ross (Ross Hagen, who also produced this movie), a guide who seems pretty sleazy.

All this movie should be about is Pleasence hunting this animal that has already hurt him and he’s brought it to his turf for one last battle. You have the great thespian monologuing and trying to imitate the big beast and man, his eyes bugging out and him snarling and that’s the best.

At times, I’m given to just yelling out Pleasence line reads, like “The evil is gone” and “I shot him six times.” I celebrate him eating at a salad bar in 90s giallo. I’ve read that he drank through this entire movie and I in no way want to judge him for that. My memories of the actor are always wonderful and he lives again every time someone watches one of his films, whether he’s playing a President, the devil or a preacher who turns into a warthog.

This was released by Dimension Pictures and rereleased by 21st Century.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

You can call this War of the Wizards or The Phoenix but either way, this movie is astounding. It was co-directed by Chang Mei-Chun (Dynasty, Revenge of the Shogun Women) and Sadamasa Arikawa (the director of special effects for films such as Destroy All Monsters; Son of Godzilla and The Mighty Peking Man).

This played in the U.S. with a horrible dub but that doesn’t matter. What does is that this movie has fantastic visuals and seems closer to a fantasy children’s movie. I have no idea why it doesn’t get discussed at all because it’s just stunning.

Tai (Hsiu-Shen Liang) is a poor fisherman who reads all he can to become a better person. He finds the Magic Vessel of Plenty and the Bamboo Book of All Knowledge, which allows him to become a rich man, but he shares his wealth by buying his fellow townspeople food. This doesn’t impress the woman he’s in love with, Jasmine (Hoi Si-Man), who wants nothing to do with him even if he is rich and successful now.

One after another killer comes his way to take his life but end up killing one another first. He’s saved by Violet (Terry Hu) and Hyacinth (Chow Chi-Ming), who promise to protect him so he decides to marry them both. That’s stopped by two old wizards who claim that Tai is filled with lust and has no idea that fate is coming for him.

The sisters really work for an evil alien called Flower Fox (Betty Pei Ti) and Tai is going to need to transform into a silver-costumed sword-wielding hero if he hopes to break the sisters away and save his people. Then, he fights a rock monster and Richard Kiel, dressed as if he were in a Sinbad movie, which makes this movie so much better as he battles Tai with giant claws.

There’s also an incredible looking phoenix that yes, is a puppet, but who cares? Perhaps fantasy doesn’t need to look perfect to be perfect. When I read negative reviews of this, it upsets me because the people who feel that way have no joy inside them.

21st Century released this as War of the Wizards.

You can watch this on YouTube.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the journey through Cannon continues, this week we’re exploring the films of 21st Century Film Corporation, which would be the company that Menahem Golan would take over after Cannon. Formed by Tom Ward and Art Schweitzer in 1971 (or 1976, there are some disputed expert opinions), 21st Century had a great logo and released some wild stuff.

A young boy rises from a lake, fully clothed, and travels to church where a priest delivers a fire and brimstone speech about the sins of the world, in particular, six people.

Afterward, the other choir members bully the boy, even putting a knife to his throat.

Those six people have been invited to a ten-year class reunion: John, a lawyer who doesn’t care if his clients are guilty. Cindy, a promiscuous party girl. Terry, an overweight ne’er-do-well. Jane, a wealthy and immoral heiress. Roger, a vain actor. And Kirsten, a lesbian.

The event will be at their old high school, where a mysterious man arrives to kill the janitor and make a mask of his face.

None of the six people really knew one another. Yet they enjoy a room appointed with plenty of room and drink. It’s all fun and games until they find the dead body of the janitor filled with maggots and that the school is locked.

Am I really spoiling anything if I tell you that everyone dies? Terry gets his crotch set on fire with a flamethrower. Jane meets a hunter in disguise who recites poetry to her before killing her with a shotgun. Roger is killed by a magician and his deadly trick. Cindy is attacked by a clown and drowned in a sink, an attack that seems to take forever.

John meets the killer face to unmasked face. He reveals that he has lured them to the school to punish them for lives of sin, such as John being a criminal lawyer who helps guilty criminals go free. The killer is a Redeemer, one who has decided to rid the world of the wicked starting with a few sinners. They fight and John shoots the killer in the side, but he recovers and graphically shoots John in the head.

Kirsten is chased through the school and even gets the gun, but a giant puppet stabs her.

The Redeemer is revealed to be the priest, who returns to the church to finish his sermon, claiming that the six sinners will be given redemption. He then meets with the boy, who reveals that he has killed one of the boys who bullied him, as well as a Bible salesman. The boy tells him that all will be right.

The priest goes home to tend to his wounds and we notice he has an extra thumb, which disappears. The boy goes back to the lake, where he walks into the water and disappears.

The movie closes with this: “From out of the darkness the hand of the Redeemer shall appear to punish those who have lived in sin… and return to the watery depths of Hell.”

Shot in July 1976 and also known as Class Reunion Massacre, this movie is way ahead of its time. And it also seems like it wasn’t created by human beings. It’s legitimately unsettling at times and raises plenty of questions. Who is behind everything? The kid or the priest? Why are they really doing it? Why pick these exact people and this exact school? Why the masks and deathtraps?

Why ask why? This film is closer to a surrealist art film than a horror movie. Just watch the scene with the Grim Reaper costume and the Redeemer screaming and yelling, but locked outside the gates. It’s just…off. And I loved it.

21st Century licensed this to Continental Video as Class Reunion Massacre.

You can watch this on Tubi.