5 comments about Black Samurai: Agent For Dragon.

1. I first saw this movie on VHS back in the early 90s. It was so horrible, I remember my buddy and I were almost sick with laughter. Many reviews talk about the bad editing job on the DVD - but I remember the VHS version being just as horrible, which made the movie even more halarious. I'm sort of glad the swearing & nudity are gone so that I can show this sad piece to my son. I can't wait to see the jet-pack scene with his afro-fitted helmet.



2. Black Samurai has everything you could ever want in a movie: Karate, Jim Kelly, midgets, poisonous snakes, shag carpeting, babes, a purple sports car, a gay warlock, the sleaziest Argentinian henchman imaginable, bad Seventies fashion, blue eye shadow, guys in 30's Tarzan movie African outfits, voodoo, samurai swords, snappy dialogue, and an amazing story line.
   
   I only wish that Jim Kelly had made more of this level of screen gem. Jim Kelly is the man!!!!!!!



3. This is an excellent Kung-Fu classic from the 70's that has unfortunately been neutered by the ridiculous (and unexplained) editing of Brentwood Home Video. Look for the VHS copy made by Continental Video in the 80's & 90's. The Continental video has ALL the nudity, cursing and explicit violence that movie goers in the 70's would have seen. Don't buy this jive-turkey by Brentwood unless you are desperate to see the movie. Instead, search around for the Continental copy. You won't be disappointed. On to the review...
   
   First of all, this movie is made for people like me who have always wondered, "what would it be like if the cool black dude from 'Enter the Dragon' survived the movie, went back to the USA and became secret agent?" This movie is a testament to the enduring star power of Jim Kelly II, who churned out a few Blaxploitation Kung-Fu movies after "Enter the Dragon" made him a star. Of all those movies, "Black Samurai" is the most ambitious and a heck of a lot of fun.
   
   Kelly plays Robert Sand, tennis pro, secret agent and Kung-Fu assassin. Sand is reluctantly drawn away from his three-week vacation in Mexico to save his old girlfriend Toki (Essie Lin Chin) who has been kidnapped by agents of the evil Voodoo Witch-Doctor/ Anton LeVay wanna-be Janicott (Bill Roy). Bill Roy is one of the worst actors I have ever seen in any movie, EVER. And let me tell, you I have seen some horrible movies (see my other reviews!). Roy is so bad that he is one of the main factors that makes this movie much worse than it should have been. Regardless, along the way to confront Janicott, Sand drives a souped-up purple sports car, flies around in a one-man jet pack (which is amazing!), beats up several midgets and dwarves, calls lots of dudes "faggot" (?), kills a couple of people that are always in a body of water (weird...), fights a trained vulture named Vultan (major cool points for the name alone) and manages to refuse the seductive powers of the super-hot Synne (Marilyn Joi). The final fight scene is excellent, mainly because so many people that were purportedly killed earlier mysteriously come back to life and show up to fight again. Hey, maybe Janicott brought them back to life with his voodoo! I love the end credits, too. Someone named Ray Wells is credited with "Haitian Voodoo Research." Marilyn Joi worked as her own stylist. Oh, and stunts were performed by the "Jim Kelly Stuntman Association." Still, no one is listed as composing the cool "Black Samurai Theme." A shame. This is a great movie and it's sad more people don't know about it. Watch it; it will change your life. I have to go now, I've got a call in on a jet-pack and a purple sports car.



4. I have to agree with the past reviewer that the scenes they cut out would have made it a watchable movie. All that I was left with was Jim Kelly beating up other grown men AND midgets. The final fight against the strong guy was the most trouble I had paying attention to a movie in a long time. I do have to say that Kelly did have acting ability, just don't expect for it to get showcased in this movie.
   
   So make sure that the version that you get is uncut, and it might help you make it through the movie. The Brentwood version is 81 minutes long.



5. This is a first movie I notice Kelly in, and he performed in Hollywood much prior to other talents of Afro-America, surely.
   
   Relaying on personal physics rather than on contemporary sci-fi tricks, film impresses with the funny presenting of the murdering unstoppable.

No comments about Black Belt Kuro Obi.

No comments about Mastering the Balisong Knife.

4 comments about Shootfighter.

1. Enter the most merciless combat arena ever imagined, as international martial arts wizard BOLO YEUNG stars with WILLIAM ZABKA, MARTIN KOVE, EDWARD ALBERT JR., and MARYAM D'ABO in this bone-crushing, full contact action spectacular! Karate Champions Ruben and Nick are lured by the menacing Mr. Lee across the border to compete as "shootfighters," a forbidden sport so brutal it's banned from the civilized world. But when Ruben and Nick are forced to face each other in the ring, they realize they're only pawns in Lee's deadly masterplan: a final, fight to the death grudge match between Lee and the legendary founding father and unconquered king of shootfighting - Shingo.



2. I am sure that 9 out of 10 reviews you will find about this movie will define it as CRAPPY, TERRIBLY BAD or even worse, but to me it is quite a great product.
   While the editing sucks, that I admit, the action will make you breathlees; the fights are perfectly coreographed, and the blood factor will leave blood-thirsty people more than happy.
   Here's the story:
   Shingo, a great Shootfighter, has reached the finals of the tournament after beating his opponent quite easely. The other semifinal match will confront Mr. Lee and Shingo's buddy.
   Despite threwing a few punches, Shingo's friend finds himself in front of a very powerful fighter, who, after punching him as if he was a PC that has just broken down, rips the poor guy's throat. Mr. Lee is then banned from Shootfighting, and decides to star his own Shootfighting bussiness in Mexico.
   Ruben and Nick, Shingo's karate students,and two great fighters, are tracked by Mr. Lee who, decided to take revenge from Shingo, convinces them of participating in Shootfighting, and of course the excitement for no-ruled fighting, and the need of money (typical!) will make them sign up in a tournament where defeat means DEATH.



3. Shootfighter is just about the best American-made martial arts movie ever. There is a decent story, good characters (2 from the Karate Kid movies), lots of action, and superb cage fighting - with weapons.
   
   The movie begins in Hong Kong, with Shingo (played by Bolo Yeung) and Lee (played by Martin Kove) who are about to fight off in the Shootfighter finals. Before Lee makes it to Shingo, he is banned from Shootfighting for killing his prior opponent. Lee begins his own Shootfighting tournament in Mexico, with weapons in the final round. In order to regain his honor, Lee lures 2 of Shingo's students (William Zakba and Michael Bernardino) to participate in the tournament in hopes that Shingo will follow.
   
   The fighting in the movie is extreme and intense, especially the weapons matches in the final round. There is plenty of blood and some gore, and the fights are lengthy, look real, and are evenly matched. There is also a lot of wonderful choreography. The finals alone last for about the final 30 minutes of the film. The scene for the tournament is in a pretty decent looking locale: an underground caged ring with a screaming dinner audience of betters.
   
   As far as the characters go, the movie has a decent list. Most notable are Martin Kove and William Zakba from the Karate Kid movies. There are also a couple of good fighters from other movies, played by John Barret (American Kickboxer 1) and Thunderwolf (Bloodmatch). Most of the acting isn't too bad, but there are cheesy moments. Unfortunately, if you are a fan of Bolo Yeung, this is not his best role. He doesn't do the good guy much justice, especially with the plenty of dumb one-liners he has. He does get a chance to kick some butt pretty good in the end though.
   
   Overall, Shootfighter is fast paced and above average quality as far as American-made martial art movies go. If you are looking for some of the most intense fights, look no further. This is easily an hour and half of enjoyable movie watching.



4. This movie is pure nostalgia if you remember the first Karate Kid. The Cobra Kai are back in action. This movie also features BOLO as the hero and has a few WMAC camios.
   The one thing I don't get is that BOLO is chinese, but his character "Shingo" has a japanese name. BOLO is well versed in Tai Chi, but his character is a substitute teacher at a karate school.
   Despite the ignorance of the script, there is enough action to make up for these flaws.

1 comments about Book & Sword - The Final Battle (2pc) (Full Sub).

1. This DVD is the conclusion of "Book and Sword," a complicated story of an attempt to convince a Chinese emperor that he is not who he thinks he is. This plot is set against a background love story of two members of the "Red Flower Society" and the emperor's obsession with the female member of the pair. Taken from the long and complicated first novel of Louis Cha, it does a good job of teasing out some of the main themes and stringing them into a (semi)coherent narrative.

No comments about Secrets of Stretching: Exercises for the Lower Body (Instructional Dvd).

No comments about Maximum Risk (+ Digital Copy).

5 comments about Street Fighter/Return of the Street Fighter.

1. Why was this movie so terrible? It started at first glance; the title. A Shogun is Japanese, whereas a Ninja is Chinese. A Shogun would never associate with a ninja, as ninja are without honor. A Shogun would only associate with Samurai.

   Now we can get past this glaring error to the cheesy schlock that was the rest of this movie. From the soundtrack reminiscent of lower quality 70's porno flicks, to the unentertaining, poorly choreographed battles, poor acting, etc... do not waste precious minutes of your life watching this movie. After watching this movie I am honor-bound to commit Seppuku. Goodbye, cruel world.




2. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the story. I've seen it in the cinema in the 80's and I still love it. But the issue why I gave low ratings is because of the DVD. This is the first time I've seen a DVD where the makers of it, puts watermark images of the company in various scene in the movie. Talk about advertising!
   
   Second, on the cover, it was written that the movie has undergone digital transfer. The only thing that I think, where the movie got it "digital transfer" is from a poor quality VHS tape to DVD. This is absurd! Even the soundtracks bear the quality of a bad tape recording.
   
   I've watch other Sonny Chiba's movies from the 80's in DVD format like Ninja Wars and GI Samurai aka Time Slip and both quality is what a DVD should be. This one is clearly an attempt to make a quick money at the fans of the man.
   
   The first 2 reviews, refers to other movies and not the one in question. To Amazon, please remove this item from your listing.



3. Arguably one of the best and most violent martial arts films of its time, 'The Street Fighter" starring Sonny Chiba was the first film to be given a "X" rating because of its violent content. In a time when the majority of martial arts films were pretty much the same, "Street Fighter" featured some of the most violent images ever showcased in martial arts cinema. The movie stars Chiba as a ruthless assassin who as described by Christian Slater in True Romance, "pretty much gets paid to f--k guys up". This double-feature DVD not only includes the original uncut Sonny Chiba classic in its original widescreen format but also includes its first sequel. While it is light on special features, this is one of the best versions of either movie you can find on DVD. Not for the weak of heart.



4. Critiquing the plot of this movie is pointless,likewise the acting,writing,cinematography etc. It's just one great fight scene after another. All the extraneous elements,such as the aforementioned few, are boiled away,leaving the distilled, pure essence of martial arts movies. But a little known fact is that Chiba studied directly under MAS OYAMA, creator of kyokushinkai karate. This is one nasty art. It cultivates the spirit but also emphasizes raw destructive power. The teacher character in the movie is an homage to Oyama, a genuine Master in the world of martial arts. So, at least one of the characters is based on a real person. Pretty cool!



5. I wouldn't recommend paying 12+ dollars for it like i did(stupid major electronic store)..but getting it on here for less than $5 is worth it.There are plenty of ninja in it(if i remember correctly) and sonny chiba is cool as always...go ahead and buy it if you like real Japanese flicks.

5 comments about The Purifiers.

1. Ok, You tend to get films where you watch them and you get so in to the movie that you dont realise where the time went...how I wish this was one of those films. This is one of those absolutely terrible films where you wish you could reclaim the last 2 hours of your life so that you could waste it on something much more productive like watching paint dry.
   
   First of all the script is so predictable that all of us managed to guess what the actors were going to say before they said it. The script is about as complex and thrilling as spitting chewing gum out in the street.
   
   Ok, now that we have established that the film is terrible and the script is a complete waste of paper and ink I shall move on to the fight scenes.
   
   Considering that this film uses martial artist with absolutely amazing abilities Ashley Beck, Shane Steyn, Chris Jones and Silvio Symac to name a few, it just really lets you down when the fight scenes do not involve these skills to be shown. Instead the fight scenes are totally unbelievable with a chubby biker chick in a white pvc outfit back handing a man and woman about a field. If you are lucky enough to be treated to a nice bit of kicking the director decides not keep the shot wide enough or at the right angle so that you may view the grace of the martial artists.
   
   As one fellow reviewer stated this is a B-movie, however I believe that even B-movies would be ashamed of this film. The budget to this film makes Xena Warrior Princess look like it had the budget of Lord of the Rings.
   
   This film fails where Kickboxer 4 somehow managed to get a few things right. If the director and editor were not laughed out of this business then it proves the World is not fair.
   
   There are two reasons why you should buy this film :-
   1. You wish to laugh yourself to death with the bad acting.
   2. You wish to use the DVD as a shiny mug stopper when you realise you just wasted your money.
   
   Overall I would give this film 0 out 5 however I have to select 1. My opinion... dont waste your life and paint that wall that your parents want doing.



2. Excellent version of the contemporary "warriors." Good action sequences, fabulous acting.



3. I think the other reviewers should give it a rest and accept this movie for what it is; a fairly creative and entertaining action flick. I saw it by accident on Starz a couple a night ago and was pleasantly surprised. I've read other reviewers raving about "The Warriors". People, that was a long time ago and it was dumped on by people when it was initially released as promoting gang violence and some racial stereotypes. I think that we've become jaded as movie viewers and expect every movie to grab us. I feel that for the budget it had, it did a pretty good job. Anybody who compares this to the "Kickboxer" movies has got to be kidding. While I'm not saying it's a fantastic movie, I enjoy it in the same vein as I enjoy movies like "Boondock Saints". Let's lighten up people, a lot of the directors we rave about today started out with small flicks like this.



4. What happens when you rip-off the plot of the Warriors and combine it with a future world and cruddy kung-fu action scenes? You get the Purifiers; an even more cruddy allegory about a street gang who performs good moral services that becomes the target of every other street gang under the order of Moses (Kevin McKidd of Trainspotting and HBO's Rome) who is basically this movie's version of Cyrus from the Warriors, only he doesn't die in the beginning. Moses has his sights set on Purifiers leader John (Gordon Alexander, who also did the fight choreography) since the both of them have a past together, or something like that. The saddest part of the Purifiers is that it seemed like there was an actual interesting (somewhat) story to tell here, but it all gets lost in the mix of annoying quick-cut editing, terrible acting, atrocious dialogue, and lame slow motion fight sequences that we've seen thousands of times before, and done much better as well. If the film has one thing going for it, it's that it's a low budget movie, yet it doesn't always look that way. That aside, there's nothing else redeeming about the Purifiers one bit. Lord of the Rings and Lost star Dominic Monaghan appears on the cover of the DVD, and he's in it as well, but he's not the main attraction here (and appears to sleepwalk throughout much of the running time), so even his fans will be disappointed.



5. Can not believe I bought this, watched about half of title, couldn't take it any more, removed it from my DVD player, and right into the trash can.
   Don't waste your money

5 comments about Qigong: Traditional Chinese Exercises for Healing Body, Mind, and Spirit.

1. In Qigong: Traditional Chinese Exercises For Healing Body, Mind, And Spirit, Ken Cohen takes the viewers through a 90 minute, full color, video presentation of the Ancient Chinese system of gentle movements and breathing techniques designed to access and harness the basic energy of the university abiding in the human body and called "qi". Easy-to-follow instruction and dozens of demonstrations hallmark a four-part Qigong workout that is simple to learn and perform. Qigong is strongly recommended viewing for students of applied eastern philosophies, as well as ordinary men and women in search of a peaceful spirit and healthy body.



2. This video was less than wonderful. It had too much chatting,
   and not enough exercises. Then the exercises it did have
   were the ordinary run of the mill kind.Definately not worth the money I paid for it



3. This is a good video. It teaches some mild ChiGung. The real novelty here is the instruction about the healing sounds coupled to the exercises. I respectfully disagree with another reviewer that this video is too wordy. One can learn from the video and then going "inside" and doing the real training.
   The video "the five animal frolics" by the same author is by far the best instructional tool he made public. It's a shame that the author didn't re-record the "frolics" with the same high quality as this one.



4. A wonderful way to learn the essence of healthy breathing. Ken takes his time to give the ultimate details to optimize posture and benefits from the practice. I have viewed the video over 50 times in the past few years and I still learn from viewing it again.



5. A very clear, and comprehensive tool for self sevelopment. Post standing and walking are included as well.
   
   I recommend it highly.