Just don’t ask; all you need to know is that the one and only MIAMI CONNECTION is playing at midnight this weekend at the Landmark Sunshine
THE MIAMI CONNECTION (Y. K. Kim & Park Woo-sung, 1987)
Landmark Sunshine Cinema
143 East Houston St. between First & Second Aves.
Friday, November 2, and Saturday, November 3, 12 midnight
212-330-8182
www.landmarktheatres.com
www.drafthousefilms.com
Ever since Bruce Lee became a superstar in America in such action flicks as Fist of Fury, Enter the Dragon, and Game of Death, there has been an unending search for the next martial arts master to become a cinematic superhero in the United States. Over the years, there have been hits and misses with Jackie Chan, Sonny Chiba, Jet Li, Tony Jaa, Stephen Chow, and others, each one showing off his remarkable adeptness at karate, judo, jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai, or other disciplines in movies both good and not-so-good. It has also led to such good and not-so-good Hollywood films as The Karate Kid and the unforgettable Gymkata. One of the lesser-known attempts involved Korean taekwondo grandmaster Y. K. Kim and a little 1987 film that is being resurrected from the near-dead, looking to become a cult classic in a new HD version. Directed by Kim with Park Woo-sung, The Miami Connection stars Kim as a high school student and taekwondo teacher who is also the guitarist in the band Dragon Sound, which gets into a heated, violent battle against a group of men led by a tough-talking dude who looks like G.I. Joe with Kung Fu Grip and is dangerously overprotective of his sister, who sings in the band. With its 1980s hairstyles, insipidly bad music, ridiculous story lines, and absurd taekwondo scenes, The Miami Connection has plenty of potential to become an underground cult classic as it turns twenty-five. [Ed. note: Because of Hurricane Sandy, the November 2-3 screenings of THE MIAMI CONNECTION have been postponed, but it will be back in action for midnight screenings on November 9-10.]