3 comments about Sister Street Fighter.

1. I think the idea of this movie is to mimic Enter The Dragon while
   showcasing the star Etsuko Shiomi, in that respect it was a
   success, It helped that Etsuko Shiomi is a real karate fighter
   in real life, few will remember that she once issued a challenge
   to a chinese actress who also portrayed tough girl roles, It was
   suppose to be full contact, needless to say the chinese girl
   declined, such was the reputation of Shiomi in her heydays,
   I wonder where she is now. If you like Kill Bill or Azumi, you
   won't be disappointed in this movie specially as the star here
   has real fighting talent. I could have rated this 5 stars but
   the transfer to DVD could have been better.



2. Connoisseurs of old-school karate flicks will be hard pressed to find a female action star who is as much fun to watch as Etsuko "Sue" Shiomi. Of course there are others with better abilities in both martial arts and acting, such as the great Michelle Yeoh, but Shiomi certainly combined seriously chopsocky buttkickin' action skills with heart and adorability. Shiomi was just 19 years old or so when this movie was filmed back in the mid-70s, and not only is she a real cutie, but she can also kill you with her bare hands. This movie has a pretty typical karate flick plot, as main character Tina (Shiomi) infiltrates a gang of drug runners who have imprisoned her brother, and leaves big piles of bleeding goons in her wake. Shiomi isn't a very good actress to be sure – her dialogue mostly consists of yelling and you could count all of her facial expressions on one hand, though she at least looks like she feels bad after kicking a guy down the stairs or embedding a spike in another guy's skull.
   
   This movie is also worth tracking down for anyone who loves old karate flicks that are just so bad they're good. We get a heaping helping of fight scenes showcasing a variety of martial arts styles and weapons. And it just keeps getting more fun – with bizarrities like an elite force of fighters who wear baskets on their heads and get beaten by a ballerina, and a troop of Thai kickboxing teenage chicks who for some reason are dressed up like Pebbles Flintstone. (YabbaDabbaDoo!) Not to mention the high-priced gangsters who keep getting whomped by a single young cutie pie. Why doesn't the big boss just fire all these idiots already? And on a historical note, there is evidence that Quentin Tarrantino is hip to this film, and some fans of the genre are speculating that Sue Shiomi was the direct inspiration for Uma Thurman's character in "Kill Bill." You will really like Sue Shiomi as an action star after catching this flick, so track this lost gem down if you can. [~doomsdayer520~]



3. Sue Shiomi tries her best and does a half-decent job, but the screen only really sparks into life when Mr. Streetfighter himself swaggers on and starts some serious buttkicking. Unfortunately, this is all too seldom. To make up for that there are a selection of weapons fights on offer, Sai, Tonfa, Nunchaku, but most of these are wasted - whether my copy was cut, I don't know - with only the nunchaku getting a decent showing.
   
   As one of the other reviews mentioned there does seem to be more than just a polite nod to Enter the Dragon in parts of this movie. Not that that's a bad thing, but don't come to this expecting anything like Bruce Lee's masterpiece.
   
   It's a pleasant way to spend 90 minutes, but really it's nothing that special.

4 comments about Savage Sisters.

1. 2 double sided DVDs

   TNT Jackson is a blaxploitation film about a woman kung-fu expert seeking revenge for her brother, killed while working for a Hong Kong heroin sydicate. Poor quality transfer, and really fake fighting, but great fun. Best fade-to-credits image ever.

   Get Christy Love is network TV's response to the blaxploitation craze. This is the pilot of a series that lasted a single season. Black woman detective tries to make it in a white man's world. It's ok.

   Sister Street Fighter is a film in the great and hyper-violent Steet Fighter series starring Sonny Chiba (although this is not really part of the series, and does not have much Chiba). Great film.

   High Kicks is one of the worst movies ever made by mankind. No, I am not kidding. Starring a white woman that has nothing soul or savage about her. An aerobics instructor gets raped and her new super-mullet karate-expert janitor and his buffed, shirtless and probably gay fellow karate guys beat up the greasy multi-racial gang. Terrible production qualities, awful acting, pathetic, childish script. No nudity, although lots of serious exploitation shots of women in spandex. Listed at 85 minutes, but it feels much much longer.

   And before you think you get no extras with this cheap disk, it includes a Casper the ghost cartoon. Was I ever so young that this boring tripe was enjoyable? No.

   I recommend getting the TNT Jackson and Sister Street Fighter disks seperately instead of this - it ends up costing the same.




2. Whatever you do please use caution when ordering this DVD. It is not the about the female revoltionaries that are released from prison hoping to find a million dollar prize on a deserted island. Instead you'll get 4 movies! The ONE movie is not released on DVD yet with the same name. This is very confusing since the release date is the same, 1974 and has the same exact title and some of the same actress. This is an attempt to confuse and outright deceive and unsuspecting consumer.



3. According to the other reviews here, this is NOT the SAVAGE SISTERS movie starring Gloria Hendry.
   It's a boxed set of 4 other movies, and one of them looks like a made-for-TV movie. Not that the blaxploitation film sets a very high bar as far as production values go, but I can't think of a more useless product than a blaxploitation movie that's been made for TV, let alone edited for TV.
   
   Either way, when SAVAGE SISTERS makes its way onto DVD, I wouldn't get too excited by that either.
   
   Unless you want to see what would happen if you crossed a 1970s Blaxploitation Flick with a 1960s Beach Party Movie.
   If you did, you'd have SAVAGE SISTERS.
   What I mean by that is: John Ashley, who was usually Frankie Avalon's rival in the Beach movies, turns up here as...I'm not sure what. An arms dealer, an ex-pat pimp with chubby harem girls--I'm not sure what he is, but he looks like a puffy, older Max Baer Jr. And his name appears a few times in the credits, which makes sense of the Beach Party comic tones thrown in. (Like the corrupt general S&M scenes and the medals he wears on his T-shirts under his shirt with medals).
   And the lack of nudity--despite scene after scene of flirting and titillation--was definitely reminiscent of the endless skin and cleavage tease of the Beach movies.
   
   The language and violence (and bad acting) are very Blaxploitation. In fact, the lack of nudity felt very weird.
   
   But it would not have shocked me if the lead revolutionary ended up being Erich Von Zipper, or if Deadhead appeared as a heroic CIA agent who swoops in to the save the day. Or if Paul Lynde had appeared as the pirate-like captain of the escape boat at the end.
   
   Now if they'd really carried out the genetic experiment that far, I would give this movie five stars.
   As it is, it's a pretty horrible waste of time.



4. I too got suckered by this DVD having the description, cast list, and DVD details for the film starring Sid Haig and Gloria Hendry. Even with all these reviews notifying them (which I didn't bother reading since the top of the page describes the film I want - and I know what it's about), and the merchandise returns, one would think Amazon might be bothered to do something about THEIR error..............seeing as how they just cost me the return postage to send this item back to them.
   FIX THIS PAGE!!!!!!!!!! >=(
   Most Sincerely,
   Susan L. Oberg
   Publicist for Sid Haig
   (and not the only one disappointed...)

5 comments about The Street Fighter.

1. Sonny Chiba really stretches it across the screen. The faces he makes! The story is that simple/complex gangster/spaghetti western fare, but this film is beautiful to look at. Great closeups, interiors and settings from Tokyo streets to woodsy sun-dappled river banks to oil tankers. Some creepy and outrageous side character/yakuza keep you on your toes as well. All that with a lotta red splatter and a killer soundtrack make this a classic. The DVD has a quiz at the end that is pretty dumb.



2. this movie stars sonny chiba. it is an old movie. not the jean claude van damme version.



3. 'The Street Fighter' isn't one of the classier or more elegant martial arts films, but it's a lotta fun. The fight choreography obviously isn't as complicated or polished as you'd see in more modern films, or even some of the better films of the time, but it's still pretty cool. That, and Chiba's gots real charisma and presence, and is a very solid (...)hero. That's about all you need as far as character is concerned, in this sorta film. This film was infamously violent at it's release, and while this is gonna fade a lot over 30 years, some of the violence here is pretty amusing and impressive. I can imagine people falling out of there chairs while watching the (...) scene 30 years ago. In fact, I could imagine that happening to me now, if I hadn't known about it before hand. The vomit-punch is pretty nasty, too. That, and it just generally has a level of intensity and brutality lacking from most kung-fu films. (Note the scene where Terry breaks one dude's arm three times, right in a row. Painful stuff) The film does take a while to get going, as there is relatively little fighting in the first half of the film, but whaddya expect. It can't all be fighting. (And, some movies try to have too much fighting, which occasionally becomes more tedious and repetitious than just having everyone sit around.) And if avoids the common pitfall of having the neverending 1 on 1 duel. If two characters fight for more than 4 minutes, it's almost guaranteed to get boring. Fortunately, Terrry usually has to fight groups of opponents, which is the real way to go.
   
   Yeah, I'm done. Very entertaining movie.
   
   Grade: B-



4. I agree with the previous reviewer. Terry Tsurugi is one of the most memorable and enjoyable martial arts characters ever. He's an anti-hero, not a smiling do-gooder. He helps break a guy out of jail, and when the man's brother and sister can't pay up, he throws the brother out the window and sells the sister into Hong Kong prostitution! Chiba's fighting style is unique. Whereas Bruce Lee fought with his trademark high pitched battle cry, Chiba does a strange deep breathing as a prelude to the painful punishment he's about unleash. Chiba uses a strange karate technique with some kung fu influences. It's not nearly as fluid and elegant and Bruce's, in fact a lot of his hand motions are kinda weird and awkward, but he gets the job done. And how! Oh, the plot? The Yakuza and the Chinese Mafia have teamed up with Western gangster's in order to force a deceased millionaire magnate's daughter to sign operations over to them. Terry switches sides and there is plenty of pain to be felt. Arm-breakings, eyeball-pokings, sword-snappings, throat-rippings and vomit-inducing punches, etc. The sequel, Street Fighter's Last Revenge, is also recommened. Fans seem to like it less than this one, but I found the action scenes to be superior.



5. If you like Kung Fu movies with the whacky sound effects and over the top facial expressions, this is definately up your alley.
   
   The star of this flick is a "Ninja for Hire" of sorts. In the beginning of the movie he is hired to save a dude from the hangman's noose. He does an ancient technique to slow the heart and and stop the breathing of the inmate. So when the criminal is about to be hung, he appears to have a heart attack. Now get this. The yare about to HANG this guy, but since they think he has a heart attack, they send him to the HOSPITAL!!! To cover this buffonnery, the warden simply says 'It is the code."
   
   Well the brother and sister that hired him to save their brother from the gallows, cannot pay him, so of course a fight breaks out. The sister is pretty hot and I only wish she did more high kicks. Unfortunatly the brother has bad timing. He attempts a leaping cobra front kick, but instead of hitting his target (his opponent's chest), he strikes the window and goes right through. Too bad they were at least 20 stories up.
   
   This movie has a few scenes of people falling to their deaths with a nice, rich, red colored paint oozing from their heads.
   
   This ninja man is bad to the bone and kills about 200 people in this movie. The only person he cannot beat is an overweight Karate teacher. The Ninja decides then that he wants to help a deceased billionaire's daughter. He decides to do this 'because I hate punks'.
   
   So the rest of the movie is fighting, fighting, and a little more fighting. This movie follows the old school rules. If you are the hero and you are surrounded by 30 bad guys, they will only attack one at a time. It is best that way anyway. If you fought everybody at once, the camera could not concentrate on each victim. Who would want to miss a dude getting punched in the stomach so hard that a pint of creamed corn comes out of his mouth?? I thought it was a nice touch.
   
   The ninja man has a sidekick, but he meets his doom on a motorcycle atthe hands of a bling swordsman.
   
   The evil chick who masterminds the kidnapping plot is really hot, and likes to play Russian roulette on other people. She get's killed, but unfortunatly, she dies at the hands of the ninja behind an overturned couch, so we do not get to see her 'Death Howl'.
   
   What I liked best about this flick is the dude's facial expressions. Half the movie is close-ups of his deep breathing and opened mouth scowls. There are also plenty of grunts, howls, and 'aaaauugghhhhssss'. His face is pretty talented and can twist and turn many different ways.

2 comments about Shogun's Shadow: The Sonny Chiba Collection.

1. the film starts out ok, as a saturday-morning action flick which is decent. unfortunately about halfway through the film i guess they said the heck with it and just went full-blown into full-on cheesiness. horrible pop music, horrible special effects, really it goes from an average period/action film to just unwatchable. first half of movie- 2 and a half stars
   second half- 0 stars



2. Originally titled "Geki Totsu: The Insanity of Emperor Iemitsu Gekitosu", "Shogun's Shadow" is a non-stop action film featuring Kyokushinkai master Sonny Chiba. This film is based on the true story of a shogun who sends his army, led by an assassin (played by Chiba), to kill his eldest son and make way for his younger son to be the next shogun.
   
   Ogata Ken is the hero who leads a band of renegade ronin who escort the shogun's son to a meeting at Edo castle. His swordsmanship is a certainly match for Chiba's and the duel between them is very exciting to watch. Both are quick and skillful.
   
   The incorporation of Chinese martial arts in this Japanese film adds another dimension, thanks to Hu Jianqiang, who plays the mute guide. A former all-around national champion of China, Hu also did some of the choreography, performed by members of Chiba's Japan Action Club. Generally, Japanese martial artists don't have much respect for Chinese martial artists, but Hu is an exception and is highly regarded by the Japanese martial arts community because of his strong gongfu.
   
   As in most Asian martial arts films from the 70's and 80's, the cast performed their own stunts; some of them quite death-defying.
   
   This film is probably not good for children as several horses are injured and possible killed during the making of it.

3 comments about Sonny Chiba Double Feature: Fighting Fist & Soul of Chiba.

1. The greatest movie in the history of film.
   Makes Citizen Kane look like a bad 70's martial arts movie.
   Sonny Chiba is god like.
   p.s.
   I am not insane.



2. I borrowed this from a friend and I only watched Soul of Chiba. He warned me that Fighting Fist is a horrible movie, so I passed on it.
   
   Soul of Chiba is a very strange movie. The info on hkmdb says it's from 1973, but that's really hard to believe. I would guess 76. The action is jaw dropping. Sonny Chiba is in his physical prime and has a few great fight scenes. The story is really bad. Chiba is looking for the man who killed his master. The villain is played by Luk Chuen, who is probably more famous for his fight choreography on movies like Killer Constable. Chiba uses this weird electric shock device seen on the cover of the DVD to enhance his fighting skills. He is also a drug addict and stuffs the white stuff in his mouth the whole movie. Bronson Lee, Bolo and Shiomi Etsuko round out the rest of the cast. Bronson and Bolo have a really awesome fight at the end of the movie. I wasn't expecting that. Bronson Lee seems like he could tear people up in real life, but on screen he just doesn't look that good. His movie fighting style reminds me of Dragon Lee. And I don't know for sure, but I think his name is a cross between Charles Bronson and Bruce Lee. Anyways, he has an amazing fight with Bolo, and along with a few other really good fights, that's the only reason why this movie is worth watching. I know a certain someone who enjoyed Sun Dragon, and I liked the fights in Soul of Chiba even more. So get it!
   
   3/5
   
   There is a Japanese and an English version included. The Japanese version is about 5 minutes longer, but the English version has way better picture quality. And in the English version Bolo sounds like he's puking the whole time in his fight scene. Hilarious.



3. Shinichi (Sonny) Chiba fans certainly ought to be singing BCI's praises, as they have released a great many of his films in the last couple of years. The two films in this set are particularly uncommon, and, compared to some others, are mediocre at best. SOUL OF BRUCE LEE is a real Frankenstein job, as it is a German print with a soundtrack that jumps back and forth. The English dialogue track sounds a bit muddy and switches at times to a sharper-sounding track for some of the fight scenes. The film itself is no great shakes, but features some pretty lively fights with Chiba and others. A Japanese-language print is also included. FIGHTING FIST is a Japanese-language print (with no onscreen title) which has some videotape artifacts, but is otherwise OK. This cops-vs-gangsters outing was directed by Chiba, who also plays a small role; most fans will be disappointed that he's not in the film to speak of, but FIGHTING FIST is not too bad. It does contain some graphic violence, and is a better production than SOUL, which generally seems like a typical cheesy kung-fu title with Chiba thrown into the mix. All things considered, I don't regret buying this, but don't expect Chiba classics here. I hope BCI releases a nice box set of the STREET FIGHTER films; although they are very common on budget DVDs, BCI would do it up right.

1 comments about The Executioner.

1. Awesome!! The Executioner reminds me of The Street Fighter trilogy but not as violent but it was almost there and this film was actually made before The Street Fighter Trilogy so you can say this is like a precursor to The Street Fighter Trilogy. This Film is awesome a classic Sonny Chiba film. I especially like it when body parts pop out of people or are ripped out. WATCH IT!!

No comments about The Executioner/The Executioner II: Karate Inferno.

1 comments about Return of the Warriors.

1. This is a good set of old school kung-fu. I ordered this for myself but when I got it I found that I already have all these movies except for about three. I plan to give this away for a present to one of my friends. I just wanted to list the movies for the next person who might want to buy this set. I will not review the movies, just give the titles.
   1. Screaming Tiger. 2. Sister Street Fighter. 3. Street fighter. 4. Return Of The Street Fighter. 5. Street Fighter's Last Revenge. 6. Dragon Princess. 7. Karate Warriors. 8. Rage Of The Dragon. 9. The Crippled Masters. 10. Ninja Turf. 11. Dragon On Fire. 12. Golden Dragon. 13. Return Of The Tiger. 14. 36 Crazy Fists. 15. Blind Fists Of Bruce. 16. Black Dragon. 17. The Deadly Kick. 18. The Fists Of Bruce Lee. 19. Tattoo Connection. 20. Militant Eagle.

5 comments about The Ten Faces of Sonny Chiba 10 Movie Pack.

1. The 10 DVDs in this collection are very uneven in quality. The Streetfighter movies have the best quality of the group. The samurai movies are not so hot (sorry Sonny, Toshiro Mifune you aren't). But at this price, its good fun and worth it just for the Streetfighter movies. My favorite scene in 'Return of the Streetfighter' is when Sonny whacks a bad guy in the head and the baddie's eyes pop out of his head (my teenage sons found this particularly hilarious).



2. At LAST!!The full review of this DVD is here, NOW LET'S GET STARTED!!

   This DVD contains, interactive menus, five DVDs, trivia games, DVD dictionary and Sonny Chiba's bio.

   The Movies:

   1- Street Fighter: Widescreen (in big black boards). The only movie with the optional japanese language track. This is the best film of the ten movies. High quality of the 70's.

   2- Legend of the eight Samurai: Standar. The worst movie ever except for the beautifull chick princess, Sonny Chiba is not the main character and poor special effects and fight choreoghrapics. Low quality of the 80's.

   3- Return of the Street Fighter: Widescreen (in big black boards). A great sequel to Street Fighter. High quality of the 70's.

   4- The Bodyguard: Standar. Not a very good movie. Medium quality of the 70's.

   5- Street Fighter last Revenge: Widescreen (in big black boards). A superb sequel to Street fighter. High quality of the 70's.

   6- Shogun's Ninja: Widescreen (in small black boards). Good movie but Sonny Chiba is not the main character. Medium quality of the 80's.

   7- Sister Street Fighter: Widescreen (in big black boards). Good movie but Sonny Chiba is not the main character. High quality of the 70's.

   8- Dragon Princes: Standar. SO-SO movie and Sonny Chiba is not the main character. Medium quality of the 70's.

   9- Samurai Reincarnation: Standar. Bad movie and terrible cinematoghraphic but Sonny Chiba is the main character. Low quality of the 80's.

   10- Karate Warriors: Standar. Terrible cameras but is the only movie that Sonny Chiba use the slow motion in his fights and he also use the sword witch it make him more cool. Extremly low quality of the 70's.

   MY name is Shingetta and my e-mail is [email address]BR>If thera are any questions then I will be glad to answer them.
   Sayonara, adios, goodbye.




3. For the money spent on this its totally worth it, first off for the price of one dvd you get at least one amazing movie right off the back, The Streetfighter. The Streetfighter is Sonny's best movie and for good reason. The rest of the movies are typical karate/samurai movies, not the greatest, but I sure enjoyed them.



4. STREETFIGHTER - possibly the greatest martial arts film ever conceived, Sonny Chiba is the bad ass to end all bad asses and this film is a perfect example of what makes so many people (including, and most famously, Quentin Tarantino) love him. You'll barely have to sit through ten minutes of exposition before you get to the next fight scene, and, considering their raw, undeniable quality, ten minutes is nothing. Ending almost perfectly with a gorgeous on-the-brink-of-disaster final fight - in the rain no less! - this is practically non-stop greatness. A+

   RETURN OF THE STREETFIGHTER - lacking any kind of real originality or fresh ideas (it's basically a remake of the first) ROTS still is a primo martial arts film with some of the most awesomely visceral fight scenes ever, including a massive fight which pits Chiba against twenty-something hard-as-nails, and armed, gang members. B+

   STREETFIGHTER'S LAST REVENGE / SISTER STREETFIGHTER - where the first two films tried to hold onto some kind of plot (however cliched) and sense of reality (even if that did involve being able to jump off cliffs, into shallow water, and survive) these two films (filmed simultaneously, I believe, which would account for Chiba's only having occasional, but always cool, cameos in SISTER) have no grip on anything. In LR Chiba is suddenly turned into a kind of M:I/007-style agent (when the heck did that happen?) with access to a mini-cupboard full of gadgets, including face masks, while in SSF a random woman, who had now taken over Chiba's position (why?), is charged with foiling a drug scheme involving cocaine-laced wigs (I can't decide whether this is the greatest idea in the world, or the worst). LR gets points knocked off for turning Chiba into a vaguely uncool caricature (but, it still is Chiba) but both feature, again, some class action fight sequences, including one in SSF, where the lead character is killed off, only to have her be brought back a couple of scenes later. "I thought you were dead" "Nope". C+ / B

   ---------------------------------

   PICTURE: although it's not the best in the world, it's fine, you can tell what's going on and the prints haven't aged that badly

   SOUND: only English dubs are available (the Japanese language track for SF has no English subtitles) they're passable and seem to keep the original soundtrack (which is great in the case of SF, which has a kick ass theme). Occasionally bad lip-synching, but that's all part of the fun

   EXTRAS: static text biographies and completely random WB cartoons thrown in for good measure

   CONCLUSION: The STREETFIGHTER series is, for any martial arts fan, completely unmissable and this seems to be the best package - $20 is an absolute bargain - just consider the rest of the films as nice little extras. One to skip, (or watch, if you happen to be a masochist), is Kinji (BATTLE ROYALE) Fukasawa's LEGEND OF THE EIGHT SAMURAI, possibly one of the absolute worst films ever, not even a giant killer centipede can save it. A+

   ---------------------------------

   (warning: these films, unlike bruce lee's flicks, are not for kids as they are ultra-violent, even by today's standards, and rife with sex/nudity)




5. The bad news: like all of these Brentwood cheap DVD releases, the movies here are transfers from videotape so they're not the cleanest prints you could hope for.
   
   The good news: you're getting 10 Sonny Chiba movies for a dirt-cheap price, all the Street Fighter movies are letterboxed, and the most important movie on here (Street Fighter) looks pretty darn good. Anyone familiar with Tarantino films will get a kick out of recognizing some pretty obvious influences, too.
   
   Street Fighter: Definitely one of the best martial arts movies ever. A level of brutality never before seen in action movies rated this one an "X" when it first hit the theatres. Chiba is cold, heartless, and just plain baaaaaad. He's out for the money, so stay out of his way. Moves along at a breakneck pace, if you've never seen it, prepare to be blown away.
   
   Legend of the Eight Samurai: Come on, people! Not even close to the worst movie ever; in fact I rather enjoyed it. The only drawback was Chiba didn't play the main character, but he did have a good supporting part. Basically a Japanese fantasy/adventure/ghost story, lots of fun and it even has a little gore. Lighten up!!
   
   Return of the Street Fighter: Chiba returns as Terry Tsuguri. As you would expect, the sequel can't hold a candle to the original. It takes much longer to get going, and has too many flashback sequences from the first film. Thankfully, there are a couple memorably sick scenes of violence near the end to make it well worth your while.
   
   The Bodyguard: You can tell this was made to cash in on the success of the Street Fighter films and Chiba's short-lived U.S. popularity. His character, actually named "Sonny Chiba," serves as a bodyguard to protect a woman from Mafia vengeance. Chiba is his usual badass, charismatic self. Also, the opening titles use the same quote from Ezekiel 25:17 that Samuel L. Jackson said repeatedly in Pulp Fiction.
   
   Street Fighter's Last Revenge: By this time, the ruthlessness and brutality of the series was taken over by 70's flashiness and comic relief. At one point Chiba poses as a vampire, and one of the main villains dresses like a Mexican mariachi! The plot concerns a formula to manufacture cheap synthetic heroin, and there's enough comic-book action to keep things moving along.
   
   Shogun's Ninja: Kill Bill fans will note the presence of a character named "Hattori Hanzo." Again, a supporting role for Chiba, but there's lots of samurai and ninja-style action, much of it being acrobatics up in the trees. You could do much worse.
   
   Sister Street Fighter: Unfortunately, Chiba only appears in a handful of scenes. Sue Shiomi, who is featured in several of the movies in this set, fights quite well as his female counterpart. His character goes by Sonny Chiba in this film also, rather than Terry Tsuguri, which takes away from the continuity of the series. Some jittery parts also, due to the weak video transfer.
   
   Dragon Princess: The weakest movie in the set, but still worth watching. Chiba has a beautifully bloody scene in the very beginning, but again it's Sue Shiomi, playing his daughter, who's the star of this film. Above average martial arts, but if you read the plot description on the DVD case it's obvious whoever wrote the packaging didn't ever watch the film.
   
   Samurai Reincarnation: More supernatural happenings, you can classify this one under "samurai ghost fantasy/drama." It ended somewhat abruptly, which led me to believe this was part of a larger series maybe?? Kill Bill fans note: after an elderly swordsmaker finishes crafting Chiba's new weapon, he says "if you encounter God, God will be cut."
   
   Karate Warriors: Really bad sound on this one, I had to turn the TV up almost all the way. Chiba gets the lead role here, playing a money-hungry mercenary reminiscent of his Street Fighter character. He plays two rival crime rings against one another, and, unexpectedly, shows his soft side at the end in what was probably the most sentimental moment in his acting career.
   
   To sum it all up, if you're a fan of Sonny Chiba this is a must purchase. If you're not familiar with Chiba but like martial arts movies, do yourself a favor and expose yourself to some top-of-the-line action. Sure the picture could be better, but let's face it, it's cheap and it gets the job done.

No comments about Hunter in the Dark.