User Reviews

This isn't an award winning film. This isn't a well known film. But it has a good premise and is one of my secret pleasures. Two Brothers in a long standing feud over an ancient family sword and an American "dupe" that's been thrown into the fray. We watch his journey and education in a different culture with different values (yet oddly similar to ours, and riddled with similar weaknesses.)

The reason I know I like this one (even with all the flaws) is that it keeps coming to mind from time to time. And after some thought, I think it boils down to basic examinations of how to live one's life. How important is Honor? Is it better to take the quick and easy $ or to work for it? How important are family bonds? Are the modern ways of life any better than the traditional ones? Is it ever too late to turn your life around? And so forth. These are why I like this movie. Sure it can come off as a bit preachy about duty, honor, loyalty and traditional ways, but it has always made me think about what is the best way to live one's life.

A down-and-out American boxer (Scott Glenn) becomes involved in a feud between two Japanese brothers.

This is one of those hidden gems you never hear about. A great blend of American and Japanese cinema, some action and some grit. The film really ought to be a cult classic, and yet I feel like very few people have ever heard of it. Most surprising to me is how the film did not seem to get a bump after the Netflix series "Daredevil" took off. In some ways, Scott Glenn's character on that show is very much a continuation of his character here.

Thanks to Kino, the film is available on Blu-ray though it does not seem to have any features. That is too bad. I am always ready for an audio commentary.

This action film from 1982 is pretty long in running time but the film is interesting and it is skillfully directed. (Sword)fighting scenes are great but not as great as in Hong Kong or Japan films.

Scott Glenn plays an American boxer who is thrown in the middle of a fight for two old swords. Two men who are enemies want the swords and Glenn has to decide on whose side he is..

This is not a classic but definitely not a bad film especially for fans of this kind of films. Action scenes and training scenes are great and Glenn is okay with his strong presence. He is great in Michael Mann's masterpiece The Keep, too.

6 out of ten and recommended to action fans only.

Geez, I kinda like this one. It's an interesting look at Japanese culture from an outsider's viewpoint (compare it to The Hunted, with Christopher Lambert and Joan Chen). It makes good use of the same hotel as the one used for the Tyrell Corporation in Blade Runner, and the office/swordfight at the end is a hoot as Scott Glenn turns mere office equipment into deadly kung fu weaponry! Glenn's always worth seeing, even in this, one of his earlier works.

I've always thought that this movie deserved better than it got. This film, while flawed in many ways, is still a very good one. It's an excellent study on the clash of cultures, both internally and externally, as Japan is forced to decide whether to embrace the culture of those who dropped atomic bombs on them, or cling to their traditional values ... or to try to make a shaky compromise. It's also a study on what constitutes honor and friendship. And not the least, it's a drama ... with an incredible action-packed finale!

As an action film solely, audiences are sure to be disappointed. The action is intense, but it's relatively brief. Renaming this film to the laughable "Sword of the Ninja" only compounds this problem, luring in action fans who had already chose to pass on the picture. Well, this only made them angrier.

It really is quite a good film. Give it half a chance. Glenn and Mifune are terrific in it as always.

Rick Murphy, an amateur American boxer (Scott Glenn) becomes involved in a feud between two Japanese brothers, Yoshida (Toshiro Mifune) and his younger brother Hideo, which concerns the possession of a pair of swords known as The Equals passed down through their family generations. One sword is meant to be kept by each sibling. The feud starts after Yoshida's sword is stolen during World War II. Out of greed and obsession, Hideo claims to have the right to own both.

When the stolen sword is tracked down in present-day California, Murphy is contracted by Yoshida's children Toshio and Akiko, to smuggle it back to Japan. Upon arrival at the airport, Murphy and Toshio are kidnapped by Hideo's men to be taken to their boss. On their way, Toshio is brutally killed but Murphy later manages to escape with the help of Akiko. Murphy who is wounded is taken by Akiko to her father's sword-fighting school, where he eventually learns the truth about the feud.

After being trained the skills of sword-fighting by Yoshida, Murphy decides to join him in his venture to Hideo's industrial complex to rescue Akiko, who has been taken hostage in return for the sword, and settle the feud in a blood fight. These two brothers will stop at nothing to keep possession of the swords - one out of greed and the other for honor!

This is John Frankenheimer's lesser work. For viewers unfamiliar with Japanese culture, the plot may feel absurd: shedding blood for a family heirloom! However, if you like action films about East-meets-West sort of thing, this is worth a look.

Director John Frankenheimer has made some great features; some not quite so and there are those which have fallen down the cracks. "The Challenge" happens to be one those forgotten oddities, but grippingly awesome pulpy martial arts entertainment. Establishing the violently vigorous action with the dramatically thoughtful material (a westerner coming to respect the traditional ways of eastern culture) --- as Glenn's washed-up American boxer Rick finds himself caught up in a family feud when smuggling a sacred samurai sword back to Japan. There he encounters trouble, so he wants out and gets the owed money for doing the job. However there's a change of heart as he wants to learn from Toru Yoshida at his school, but secretly his paid to steal the sword for Toru's brother, Hideo. Who's a businessman more concerned with modern methods, than anything traditional.

It's an outrageously sharp, but meditatively-laced screenplay by Richard Maxwell and John Sayles, which packs plenty of punches (also humour), plot surprises and sets up some memorable set-pieces (bug-munching anyone?) within its Tokyo backdrop. Composer Jerry Goldsmith contributes a flavorers, flighty musical piece. Frankenheimer's lean and mean directorial style, goes down well with the superbly staged action (helping out as a material arts supervisor was Steven Seagal) and his leering camera covers numerous creative angles that don't shy away. What we have to sit through is well worth the wait for an outstandingly honourable climatic samurai battle (swift, blood-gushing and intense confrontations -- even a stapler can be dangerous!) within a futuristic-like building between the likes of Scott Glenn, Toshiro Mifune and Atsuo Nakamura. The characters are well-defined with tremendous performances to make that possible. Glenn's rough, dogged persona simply works, but there's also a compassionate side with the relationship he shares with a young boy. Mifune brings a respectable temperament and Nakamura perfectly pitches a callous edge.

Possibly overlong, but "The Challenge" is cracking entertainment.

The Challenge is one of John Frankenheimer's more tolerable action movies from the 1980s. It was the decade that the formerly great director made a number of duds, such as the embarrassing The Holcroft Covenant, but this one is OK in its simple minded way.

The story concerns American boxer Scott Glenn, who is hired to smuggle a priceless Samurai sword into Japan. He does it easily enough, but then discovers that the sword is responsible for a family feud, with two sides of the same family claiming that it is rightfully theirs.

The film is quite action packed and definitely bloodthirsty. It has a good sense of pace for the opening three quarters of an hour, and builds up an interesting plot. There's a slow bit for the next hour or so, but it comes back to life with a vengeance in the closing minutes with a truly outstanding sequence in which Glenn and his ninja buddy infiltrate a heavily guarded building. The Challenge is definitely no masterpiece (the afore-mentioned dull patch in the middle ruins it chances of that) but it's an enjoyable enough way to pass a couple of hours.

Struggling boxer Rick Murphy (Scott Glenn) is hired by Toshio Yoshida (Sab Shimono) to deliver a Katana to Japan for $500 a day. With no other financial prospects, Murphy accepts the job, only to find upon arrival in Japan that he is now tangled in a decades long feud between brothers Toru (Toshiro Mifune) and Hideo Yoshida (Atsuo Nakamura) regarding ownership of the sword and its counterpart known collectively as The Equals.

The Challenge was one of a number of martial arts films made by western studios in the 80s after Canon Films had popularized such films with the sleeper hit Enter the Ninja. Unlike a lot of these films starring the likes of Chuck Norris or Franco Nero, The Challenge had a relatively respected cast and crew with legendary Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune starring alongside Scott Glenn, and John Frankenheimer of The Manchurian Candidate and Seconds directing. One of a number of films made by short lived venture CBS Theatrical Films, the movie was released by Embassy Pictures to audience indifference and mixed reviews with critics comparing the film to films such as A Force of One or The Octagon but giving some praise to Mifune's performance and Frankenheimer's direction. The movie isn't perfect, but it is a solid step above most of the similar films from around the same time.

The action on display is pretty impressive even if the thematic take on "old Japan" vs. "new Japan" is used to ridiculous extremes with waves of nameless armed henchman being able to be taken down by only two men wielding ancient weapons. Pretty much any movie where Mifune gets to wield a sword will earn some goodwill on that fact alone and to the movie's credit it is put to good use. The major sticking point with the movie is Scott Glenn's character Rick and while Glenn is a good actor, the way his character fits into the story feels like he's shoehorned here rather than a natural fit. When you compare The Challenge to something like The Yakuza from 10 years prior which not only delivered on hard edged action scenes, but also great performances and character moments you never get the same emotional resonance with this story of feuding brothers you got from The Yakuza because with The Challenge it often feels like we're held at arms' length from the character resonance of this story. The Challenge tries to elevate itself beyond the utilitarian approach 80s action filmmaking was distinguished by, but it's not trashy or exploitative enough to be on the level of a Chuck Norris film, nor is it insightful or particularly well-written like The Yakuza and it falls sort of halfway between.

There's some solid craft on display in The Challenge, but it never goes too far above the contemporary utilitarian action trends of the decade and is more or less your standard martial arts film with a few moments that hint at deeper resonance. It's worth a watch for fans of the genre and Mifune as always is great, but you're better off seeking out The Yakuza for this kind of movie.

I must confess to a particular fondness for thetwo films of John Frankenheimer's that he himself didn't seem to have much affection for: Prophecy(about mutant bears in the woods of Maine) and his one, The Challenge. I remember seeing this in theaters back in '82 and really digging it. The script by John Sayles moves along at a nice clip and Scott Glenn is well cast and well used ( for once) as the down on his luck American boxer who finds himself involved in an age old blood feud between two opposing ways of life in Japan; there is an interesting tension between the good guys and the bad guys: East/West as well as Modern/Traditional. (Clever fellow, that Mr Sayles.)The major character arc for Scott Glenn's American pug is not at all dissimilar to that later adopted by Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai. Not only does this film have one of the last major performances in a western film from that towering figure of Japanese cinema, Toshiro Mifune, but it boasts what remains one of the all-time classic modern sword fights in the climactic showdown in a giant gleaming glass and steel Japanese office building. Scott Glenn and Atsuo Nakamura slash each other to ribbons with samurai swords then resort to stapling each other's faces and shocking each other with severed computer cables during the final battle and it is choreographed, shot and edited, with a snappy sense of kineticism. Bravo to all involved.

Scott Glenn is an American boxer, recruited into a Japanese feud over ancient swords. Initially he tries playing the feuding brothers for financial gain, similar to Clint Eastwood in "A Fistful of Dollars". Soon however the movie morphs into a martial arts training film like "Enter the Dragon". The climax is a free for all sword fight, with Glenn taking on the evil brother, and taking quite an impressive beating to boot. There are a few chuckles, especially relating to Glenn's attempt to understand Japanese culture. Head lopping and torso slicing aside, the story is pretty good, the acting by Scott Glenn and Toshiro Mifune competent, and the entertainment value delivered. Can't ask for more than that. Recommended of it's type. - MERK

There are certain movies on IMDB that are enigmas. The ratings are low, but the reviews are GOOD. Such is The Challenge. Frankenheimer, who had a string of masterworks in the early 60s with Seconds, Manchurian Candidate, The Train, and at least the race parts of Gran Prix stumbled badly on several films thereafter. This, and French Connection II, helped get him back on his feet.

So which is right, the low ratings or the high comments! Duh. Always go with the latter in this case. The Challenge will make you feel like you were in Scott Glen's shoes, immersed in an alien culture that you come to respect and even fight for. And any film with a Goldsmith action score is already a plus.

The only reason to watch this movie is to see one of the greatest Japanese actors ever born (Mifune) in one of the dumbest "spaghetti-jidai-geki" ever made. The poor man must have got the script only after signing the contract. The story is truly imbecile, the direction and camera - very mediocre, and the movie looks like it's somebody's first try in cinema montage. How could anything like this ever get on the screen?

I saw this under the title "Sword of the Ninja" back in the 80's and not being a huge fan of martial arts movies, found it very enjoyable. I didn't expect the movie to be so deep...it really has a great story of two Japanese brothers, one traditional and one a powerful businessman, fighting over a set of ancient family swords. The American is brought in as a courrier(and planted thief)and becomes embroiled in the battle.

The amount of action and gore in this movie is unbelievable, and the story even has room for a young boy training to become a warrior and a great scene where the American is introduced to fine Japanese food thats still alive.Moving at a brisk pace, this movie flows well from beginning to end..and what an ending it has!

My rating....7 out of 10

No one should except to see an Oscar worthy film here, but this movie simply ran with the standard "white man learns to love Asian culture" script, and it doesn't even pull that off well. Everything Scott Glen/"Rick" learns to love about Japan is just a cliché. Instead of showing the American audience what there is to love about Japanese culture (which could fill 16 hours, easy), we're reduced to stereotyped figures and situations.

I love Toshiro Mifune, and it pained me to see him have to dull his acting and swordplay in this film to suit the rest of the cast. Scott Glen is about as good of an action hero here as Ben Aflect is in "Dare Devil"... and that's bad. I normally like Mifune and Glen, even in his bad movies, but this time it was just painful.

"The Last Samurai" was successful where this turkey flopped- it explored the differences between two cultures that were clashing. It did this by refusing to boil everything down to simple stereotypes, as "Sword of the Ninja"/"The Challenge" did.

By the way, where was the ninja? I counted a few Bushido warriors (samurai), but no ninja. Hmmmmm... "Crap Storm" is a nice title...

Scott Glenn gives an excellent performance as a waistral, down-on-his luck, out-of-work boxer who becomes a fallguy for a heirloom (Samurai sword) smuggling plot. Scott, like others in only a handful of movies (e.g. The Yakuza (Robert Mitchum) and Black Rain (Michael Douglas)) gives a rare performance that contrasts the Japanese/American cultures of honor, discipline and duty. John Sayles and John Frankenheimer explore these values with a shoot-em-up verve that attempts to merge business, home, family, warrior and personal values. Tall order! Glenn is the Kevlar-perfect warrior who somehow survives James-Bondian onslaughts .. . and Samurai-disciplines to emerge a winner. Toshiro Mifune needs no introduction .. . and is, as always, a delight. One could only have hoped that better definitions of the term "Ninja" (fogged in myth as assassins and even as a race of women assassins) and "Samurai Sword" (through an expert such as Kenji Mishina) could have been added to the movie. A unique movie dealing with topics that fifty years after a major military and cultural conflict between two diverse cultures, go largely unexplored ...

The Challenge is one of those genre movies that is so good that it not only breaks the genre mold but gets lost in the shuffle, hidden by lots of other movies not nearly as good.

Scott Glenn and Toshiro Mifune give excellent and their usual intense performances as a budding samurai cum boxer and his instructor, bonding as the instructor is caught up in a clan feud with his brother.

This movie is good for three reasons. One reason is the normal steadfast performances of its stars. The second is the keen, insightful direction of John Frankenheimer, a grossly underrated director who helmed such classics as The Train, Ronin, and The Manchurian Candidate. And the third is the able kenjutsu (swordfighting)and aikido of a then unknown American martial arts instructor based in Japan who at the time was going by Steve Seagal. I guess I don't have to tell you who he grew up to be.

An american boxer converting to japanese samurai. The decoration and environment about the japanese culture stands to the topics but is fine: food, clothing, tradition, honor. But the story is extremely poor and without any content. The american boxer converts to a winner fighting with sword. It's ridiculous whatching the main character having an assalt weapon and handling a japanese sword.

This is a very under rated movie. I remember when it first came out "Siskel and Ebert" TV show was THE movie review program and at that time they had a big called "the dog of the week" where they would show a couple clips from some grade Z film and trash it. Siskel said they had picked "The Challenge" based on the fact it was advertized as a cheap Bruce Lee knock off. Instead Siskel turned the segment around and instead of trashing it talked about how fun it was and what the heck was the studio thinking to just dump it like that. As for the movie, good cast, has all the elements for a "movie that men want to watch" namely humor, sex, and plenty of action. Very well made and considering Frankenheimer I would have thought people would give it more of a chance. If you like Hugh Grant movies skip it, if you prefer Tarentino then by all means check it out. Wait until you see Scott Glenn being served food that is still crawling!

While not expecting much from this movie and mainly watching it to see the Kyoto International Conference Center, it was in fact a whole lot worse than expected: An embarrassing 80s' American fantasy version of Japan full of the worst cliches and stereotypes in the manner of Karate Kid, etc. Two stars for the architectural setting though.

This is a fascinating & kick-ass movie for anyone interested in Japanese swordplay, & especially great for us stupid Americans (gaijin) who don't know our butts from a brick about the subject, because it's a film ABOUT a gaijin who gets caught up in the middle of a generations-old violent family dispute over a mysterious pair of very important & impressive swords. Scott Glenn (Silence of the Lambs) is an American boxer recruited to smuggle an ancient sword into Japan. Upon arrival he is taken by thugs who explain that the sword he was hired to smuggle is one of a pair of swords known as "The Equals"-- swords passed down from generation to generation in a powerful Japanese bloodline. During the last passing-down ceremony, one of two brothers bloodily ambushed the ceremony, wanting The Equals for his own. Banished, he has become a ruthless & powerful modern business warrior. The other brother has stayed true to his ancient heritage & now trains others in tradition & a myriad of ancient fighting arts, including mastery of the sword. Glenn is forced to choose between the brothers to reunite The Equals & bring an end to this long and bloody feud, one way or another. Along his journey, he(& thus vicariously the viewer)is taught a wealth of knowledge about the ways of both ancient & modern Japanese power and lifestyle. It's a fascinating education that never leaves your intelligence insulted. On top of all this, the action scenes are at once brutal, graceful, thrilling, inventive, never escaping the realm of realism, & just damn astonishing. An outstanding film, The Challenge is one of my all-time favorites.