User Reviews

Anthony Scott (Stuart) is an American teen who goes to the Philippines to visit his father, Paul (Martin) (credited, in classic 'lost in translation' style, as "Anthony father"), a journalist currently living there. After a lot of bonding time with Anthony father, Anthony runs afoul of local gangster Quino (Enrico Torralba), who also happens to be a Karate master. Quino and his thugs are even involved in a protection racket with the store owned by the father of Anthony's love interest, Maria (Jannelle Barretto). Eventually, Quino beats up Anthony and leaves him in the forest. He is then found, and nursed back to health, by reclusive monk Kimura (Watanabe). Master Kimura also goes through great pains to teach Anthony Martial Arts (mainly because Anthony complains and resists most of the time) - but will he learn the "Dragon Blow" in time for the big tournament - the face-off with Quino? Find out, at some point...

Karate Warrior is a very earnest and straight-ahead film that seems like it's simultaneously trying to be like the Karate Kid movies and at the same time trying NOT to be like them. One of the main problems is that our hero (?), Anthony, is very whiny and not too likable. Only the gaffes provided by the unintentionally funny dubbing give him any likability. He does have a classic 80's "Cool" look, but that's about it. (Maybe it was the "hair stilist", another misspelled credit, who helped him look so cool).

When Anthony arrives in Manila, after getting a ride from the time-honored Wacky Taxi Driver, a bunch of punks beat him up and steal his Walkman. Not a good start. He was only asking around trying to find where his dad lives, a town apparently called Los Banos (if my high school Spanish is correct, doesn't that mean "The Bathrooms"?), but he quickly runs into arch-baddie Quino, not to be confused with Kimo or Beano. Why his dad didn't pick him up at the airport, like he did when his mom Julia (Agren) arrived, we don't know. Maybe that's why they were estranged from each other.

After a motorbike chase and Anthony gets beat up by Quino, we go into the extensive forest training sequence we've seen many, many times before. Master Kimura yells at Anthony to RELAX NOW! That seems kind of counterintuitive, but maybe it's all part of Kimura's plan to deal with this whiny brat. There is no pounding, inspirational song during the training, which would have helped a lot, but the Simon Boswell music overall is catchy and stands out as being good. Also, we should mention that at this point Anthony hasn't been wearing a shirt for a decent chunk of the movie's running time. How can you have a protracted, shirtless training program and no song? That being said, the "Ha-do-ken"-type move, the Dragon Blow, is very cool and the movie should have gone more in that direction. Presumably the audience hopes Anthony will figure out how to use said blow at The Battle of the Karate Champions, the big tournament in town, which does look very well-attended. They also have fireworks after people get beat to a pulp.

Director Fabrizio De Angelis, AKA our good old pal Larry Ludman, turns in a kind of workmanlike product here. It could have used more action and less whining - the whole thing is so darn slow. Sidestepping some of the clichés might have been nice too, but we can't ask for a miracle. Released on Imperial Video back in the VHS days, this does seem to fit with a lot of their other output. But they did not release Karate Warrior 2, or any of the many other Karate Warrior sequels...we wonder why

Also known as Fist of Power or Il Ragazzo Dal Kimono D'oro ( The Boy in the Golden Kimono), Karate Warrior was directed by Larry Ludman, who is really Fabrizio De Angelis. He also wrote this along with Dardano Sacchetti, using The Karate Kid as the obvious playbook but taking the Italian exploitation way of going harder and weirder.

Anthony Scott (Kim Rossi Stuart, who was in Lamberto Bava's Fantaghiro series of made for TV movies) is in the Philippines visiting his estranged father Paul (Jared Martin, Steve Farlow from Dallas) against the wishes of his mother Juliet (Janet Agren, who got so much work in the 80s and 90s). While there, he falls for Maria (Jannelle Barretto), a girl whose father is being shaken down by a gang led by Quino (Enrico Torralba). Quino was once the student of Miyagi figure Master Kimura (Ken Watanabe), who may as well be Yoda the way the locals speak of him in hushed tones, but now he loves to hurt people. He's won the local karate tournament five times in a row, a fact that Anthony gets to see for himself.

He can't keep his mouth shut and the white savior flashbulbs the karate master with his camera and then spin kicks him, leading to a chase all across the Manilla scenery, ending with Anthony getting the beating of his life. Or death, just about. Luckily, he's nursed back to health by Kimura.

When Anthony recovers, Kimura teaches him how to defend himself in Drunken Master training style, ending with giving him the Stroke of the Dragon, a special martial arts strike that should only be used when he has to defend his life.

This training involves punching cows with karate magic and finding a jungle cat and staring it directly in the eyes. This is way more intense than painting a fence or waxing a car, as Daniel-San will not be able to tell you.

Also in true Italian style, we are asked to believe that Anthony is a true blue American citizen who loves the American football. Except that he's always wearing a Jacksonville Bulls jersey from the USFL, a team that played their last game two years before this movie was made. And yes, Kim Rossi Stuart is from Rome.

It takes decades to learn martial arts and a lifetime to master them, much less be able to fight blindfolded and throw magic fireballs. Somehow, Karate Warrior does it in ten days and is able to defeat the outfight a killing machine. Cool story, dude.

That said, I totally love that every time Anthony gets beat up, it's the most violent beatdown you've ever seen. I never feared for Daniel's life in The Karate Kid but in this, I am sure every time that Karate Warrior is about to die. And how about the ending, where his dad tells his ex-wife that yes, their son is going to an expensive Ivy League school, but now he has to prove himself as a man and in the very next scene he gets beaten so badly that he bleeds out of his eyeballs and needs to go into the last round blindfolded.

This was so successful that there are six of these movies, which is way more than The Karate Kid got before Cobra Kai started. I am probably the only person demanding a new Karate Warrior series.

A KARATE KID rip-off so pathetic that it isn't really surprising that the producers of that classic never bothered suing, this is another dull-as-dishwater effort from cheap Italian director Fabrizio De Angelis, who later went on to make the cheesier and more entertaining KILLER CROCODILE films. This time around we're stuck in US rip-off hell, however, with half a budget and zero talent. Transporting his weary cast and crew to the Philippines, a dreaded place notorious in the minds of cult films fans as being the location for the cheapest, dullest and most poorly-made cinema out there (with few exceptions), KARATE WARRIOR is another film to add to the list of Filipino-shot movies that never should have been made in the first place.

The by-the-numbers plot is so mind-numbingly predictable that I can't really be bothered to try and describe it. For the whole first hour nothing much in the way of action happens apart from a motorbike chase with some of the slowest stunts ever filmed, then finally the martial arts stuff kicks in and the film begins to become entertaining with the introduction of a wise Japanese monk named Master Kimura (played by wise-looking ancient guy Ken Watanabe). Our hero is played by Kim Rossi-Stuart (son of Giacomo I presume); but instead of a young boy as in THE KARATE KID he instead turns out to be an unlikeable, sulky eighteen year-old teenager who spends the screen time preening around and acting badly. Oh, and nobody in the film can really fight, either.

Things reek of desperation when some cheesy blue lightning-bolt computer effects appear to demonstrate the power of the "dragon blow" then there's a conclusion which is the most routine karate bout ever, finished off with fireworks for whatever reason. Along with Rossi-Stuart and Watanabe, we get two Italian film regulars in Jared Martin and Janet Agren, but sadly both are past their prime and only get to stand around in the sidelines looking concerned in any case. Snarling bad guy Quino gets to smack Rossi-Stuart's whiny backside in one of the most hilariously badly acted beat-downs ever put on screen, then later a scene repeats itself and it seems nobody noticed. Add to this one of the poorest English dubs I've yet to hear - those '70s chop-socky flicks sound fantastic in comparison - and another rubbishy score from Simon Boswell and you have one major sub-par experience. A minimum of action, no script and only some cheesy mystic stuff to recommend it, KARATE WARRIOR is a bad film for those ultimate die-hards only.

So, this got a bluray release! Cool. This film is more interesting, perhaps, in its meta-plot than it's plot.

First, the bluray is beautiful. If you've seen this before, almost certainly on a US video, you will be surprised at the well shot clearly film footage.

Second, the "International" cast. U. S. Hunk Jared Martin is the Americal journalist father to his somewhat spoiled American son, played by beautiful Italian actor Kim Stuart Rossi, long before he developed muscles or chest hair and became a heartthrob in Italy. Martin speaks English throughout and Rossi speaks Italian. They do share blue eyes.

Third, this is a non-schlocky drama made by decidedly schlock Italian director, Fabrizio De Angelis. His other projects include Zombies, killer crocs, and the Thunder trilogy. This is a decidedly Italian production, made in the Phillipines, with just 1 Italian actor, and 2 American ones.

Fourth, the pacing. There are exactly FOUR named characters in all of the first 48 minutes. Dad __, son Anthony, girl he picks up at the market, Maria, and local villain, Quino. Those are the only speaking parts with more that 10 words up to then either. A mystical forest monk appears about 49 min in, though his name and role remain a mystery for a bit. He and Anthony have the first non procedural dialog, and we learn that Anthony, having spent about 1/3 the film so far shirtless, is almost 17. Mother Kim arrives, and we learn the monk is Master Kimura.

Now, we are an 59 min in to a 1h28min movie. Anthony got beat up badly by Quino, was healed by the monk, and that's it. No other plot developments really, or plans. But then, the monk promises to train Anthony, and say that "you words say know, but I can see you mean yes." 5 long minutes later, training begins. A training montage of 5 minutes ensues, with a Golden Kimono (see) presented, but not worn, till the end. Mary appears in the grass and Anthony runs out. So, not to belabor the point, Anthony remains shirtless from going to bed at, 33m, through his kidnapping, beating, rescue, training, and reuniting with Mary, at 1h05m. In the next 10 min, Mary's store is burned down, Quino fights with some guys, and Anthony raises his hand and challenges Quino, finally putting on the Golden Kimono, with another shirtless flash.

The fight proceeds quickly. Quino plays some dirty tricks. The monk appears out of nowhere and tells Anthony to use the force and fight blindfolded. Anthony wins...the crowd goes wild. Anthony must return to Venice California. His parents give some money to Maria for a new store. The End.