In most of my articles or reviews of film, i search out some intelligent core of a film; perhaps a personal trait to the director, perhaps even the coming of a new auteur. In this review, i will completely disregard that, because there is none of these available. However, we do have Sonny Chiba kicking so much ass, that in order to span this epic series, would take 2 sequels in order to properly dose you with the right amount of bloodshed and action.
Terry Tsurugi is a martial arts mercenary who gets hired by the mafia to kidnap the only heir to an oil tycoon, a pretty lady. The mafia didn't like Terry's price so they did the only imaginable thing, to try and kill him, but oh no no! You can't kill Sonny Chiba! They find this outthe hard way as he takes on the entire mafia to get her back. Just to outline how badass Tsurugi is, i will highlight this one particular scene. Boy can't pay Terry, doesn't have enough money. Terry throws boy out window. Sells sister for prostitution to pay him back. Nuff' Said.
The design of this film is to take the "oh-so-bad" mafia, and show them getting destroyed by a one man army, much like what the Rambo sequels were designed for. It's films like these that make you stand up against innumerable odds for thoughts of a better future. Despite being a film that has no real motivation, the film is also quite racist in a scene. The only black person in the film is a drooling about-to-be rapist, that is before Terry castrates him with his bare hands.
That scene adds to the previous rating of "X" which it received in the USA. Street Fighter is a multi-talented film. It takes some awesome kung-fu scenes, adds Chiba's berserk facial expressions, throws in some flashback footage of his father being murdered, and tries to implement the fact that he is a superhuman due to his half-breeding of Chinese and Japanese.
The Street Fighter is a kung-fu classic that has stood the test of time. Quentin Tarantino actually uses this film as an influence, which is a blasphemy to say the least. I always said to leave the classics alone, but did this stop him from using Hatori Hanzo in Kill Bill or remaking Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!? I think not.
Terry Tsurugi is a martial arts mercenary who gets hired by the mafia to kidnap the only heir to an oil tycoon, a pretty lady. The mafia didn't like Terry's price so they did the only imaginable thing, to try and kill him, but oh no no! You can't kill Sonny Chiba! They find this outthe hard way as he takes on the entire mafia to get her back. Just to outline how badass Tsurugi is, i will highlight this one particular scene. Boy can't pay Terry, doesn't have enough money. Terry throws boy out window. Sells sister for prostitution to pay him back. Nuff' Said.
The design of this film is to take the "oh-so-bad" mafia, and show them getting destroyed by a one man army, much like what the Rambo sequels were designed for. It's films like these that make you stand up against innumerable odds for thoughts of a better future. Despite being a film that has no real motivation, the film is also quite racist in a scene. The only black person in the film is a drooling about-to-be rapist, that is before Terry castrates him with his bare hands.
That scene adds to the previous rating of "X" which it received in the USA. Street Fighter is a multi-talented film. It takes some awesome kung-fu scenes, adds Chiba's berserk facial expressions, throws in some flashback footage of his father being murdered, and tries to implement the fact that he is a superhuman due to his half-breeding of Chinese and Japanese.
The Street Fighter is a kung-fu classic that has stood the test of time. Quentin Tarantino actually uses this film as an influence, which is a blasphemy to say the least. I always said to leave the classics alone, but did this stop him from using Hatori Hanzo in Kill Bill or remaking Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!? I think not.
-Maq
Awesome review and awesome movie. I like Bruce Lee and everything but a the Street Fighter films seem so much more badass.
ReplyDeleteYou don't fuck with sonny Chiba. He'll exhale in a manner I can only describe as bizarre and he'll rip kill you before you can take a breath.
The next VS should be Sonny Chiba vs Chuck Norris. That should have the Wrestlemania V tagline "The Mega Powers Explode!"