Like any other morning, I made my way to the toilet to check my e-mail, and to my surprise, I had a message from Casper Van Dien as well his latest film, Showdown in Manila, waiting in my inbox. Apparently, Alexander Nevsky had put in a good word for me.
While I had wanted to check out Nevsky's nod to The Expendables, I was more pleased to see Casper's contact information. If you've been following me long enough, you know that I'm a huge mark for Mortal Kombat. While it is cool to get to talk to another Johnny Cage, I was more hyped to talk shop with THE Johnny Rico. Starship Troopers is a ton of fun, and for someone that doesn't particularly love war movies, that says a lot. While it isn't your typical war movie, it still, at the core, is a war movie.
So, what is so great about Paul Verhoeven's space bug classic? Outside of Denise Richards' tits? A few GIANT things. Giant bugs! Giant guns! And, of course, Jake Busey's giant teeth! What isn't there to love? Seriously though, the film has heart, and even as a spry war-hating child, the film struck a chord with me and got me to shout kill 'em all! Loud and proud.
So, yeah, that was fun, and while that conversation was so much more fun than most of Showdown in Manila, if you're a fan of Casper's or Alexander's, for that matter, the film is worth checking out JUST to see them work together.
Casper, oddly enough, has impeccable comedic timing and, had it not been present, I'm not sure I would have made it through the film. Don't get me wrong, Manila is entertaining, but, as a whole, the film doesn't seem to work as well as the films its imitating. Stick to the ACTUAL shit action films from yesterday, and check Manila only if you are a true die hard.
Showdown in Manila stars Alexander Nevsky, Casper Van Dien, Mark Dacascos, Tia Carrere and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa. ITN will release the film in theaters January, with a Digital and On Demand release to follow on January 23, 2018. The film marks the directorial debut of Mark Dacascos and is written by Craig Hamann, with the story by Alexander Nevsky.
One final note, big thanks to Cory Brown. Cory has supported myself and CineDump since day one, and he helped with a large portion of the questions. I appreciated the assistance, and I know Casper did as well. Thanks, friend.
Jessie Hobson