American Hunter (1989)

American Hunter (1989)- * * * *

Directed by: Arizal

Starring: Chris Mitchum, Peter O'Brian, Ida Iasha, and Bill "Superfoot" Wallace











The brilliance of Arizal shines once again with this wildly fun and entertaining outing. All of Arizal’s films are absolutely great, even priceless; it’s our contention that it’s only because none of his films got U.S. distribution during the golden age of the video store that he isn’t a household name like so many other directors. Because their movies could be found in video stores, so-called “cult” directors like Russ Meyer, David Lynch, and John Waters, as well as the horror contingent big names like Romero/Carpenter/Craven, are just some of the directors that are in the public consciousness. Or at least they are among film and video freaks. 

Fact: Arizal deserves to be among them in the pantheon of great cult directors. Maybe with time, that will occur. We’ll do our small part to shine a light on his highly impressive body of work.

Now we’ll get off our soapbox. The plot, which is quite simple to provide plenty of space for action, concerns rival factions vying for a much sought-after piece of microfilm. At least it’s not the time-honored “disc” so many people in these movies are looking for, but we can’t remember a time when anyone ever wanted a microfiche. 

But we digress. Jake Carver (Mitchum) wants the microfilm, so he travels to Indonesia. But Adam (Superfoot) and his henchman Frank (Abbott) also want it. A man named Hope Seleck (O’Brian, The Stabilizer himself) also wants it and he feels the wrath of Jake. So the baddies kidnap Jake’s girlfriend Janet (Iasha, like O’Brian a veteran of another Arizal movie, in her case Final Score) and all hell breaks loose. Shooting, stunts, fights, helicopter chases, cars flipping over and blow-ups galore ensue. Will one of the baddies be an American hunter, or will Chris Mitchum be an American Hunter? Definitely find out today! Right now!

Much like Arizal’s ability to create impressive action on a rock-bottom budget, our love for him knows no limits. The movie just STARTS - we’re thrown in the pool and left to swim right from the first second, almost Godfrey Ho style (Abbott was a Ho mainstay). But would you want it any other way?  But you can tell it’s Arizal bein’ Arizal right from the jump. The amusement of the audience never lets up (isn’t that what cinematic entertainment is all about?), and you never have to wait long for action. At the very least, there will be a silly punch-up or two just to remind you who’s boss.

Chris Mitchum is once again at his best, taking down hordes of Asians with his Martial Arts ability, all while in a leisure suit. Well, when he’s not in a stonewashed jean jacket, that is. Who else but Mitchum could master the art of the “nonchalant backflip”? 

Naturally, there’s the Prerequisite Torture of the hero, but this time it’s better than usual.  His nemesis, Superfoot, is also at his best here. His acting is almost John Miller-esque, though, to be fair, no one could really scale the heights of Mr. Miller. Clearly Mitchum vs. Superfoot is the true clash of the titans, and if you want to see what happens, just watch this fast-paced, enjoyable and fun outing. There’s no excuse to miss it.

Arizal should be counted as one of the preeminent action filmmakers of his day, and American Hunter is just more proof that his talent is not a one-film accident. American Hunter seals the fact that his star should be in the moviemaking firmament with the greats.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty 

The Intruder (1986)

The Intruder  (1986)- * * *1\2

AKA Rambu

Directed by: Jopi Burnama

Starring: Peter O'Brian, Craig Gavin and Lia Warokka 








When criminals and baddies of every kind stalk the streets of Indonesia, only one man can stop them in their tracks: Rambu (O’Brian), of course. The man his enemies call Rambu is actually an unemployed dude with a wicked fashion sense named Alex Terambuan. But to criminal mastermind John White (Gavin, who is credited as “John Smith” in the end credits) and his hordes of goons, he is an “Intruder” into their evil business. So they kidnap, rape and murder his wife Ella (Warokka, credited as “Angela” in the end credits). 

At one point he even gets Rambushed by the bad guys (hence the Prerequisite Torture Sequence). Luckily Ella gave him a red scarf to remember her by before she was abducted. After he wraps it tightly around his forehead, Rambu goes out for revenge. Can anything stop a Rambu on the rampage? Find out today!

The great and mighty Peter O’Brian returns in his second film after the awesome The Stabilizer (1986) - and The Intruder has the same kind of utterly winning, infectious, nutty charm. The entertainment value of this movie is off the chart, as it delivers the goods and then some starting with the great opening scene and not really ever letting up. 

The whole outing has energy (sped-up fights will do that), exotic flavor, and general insanity that viewers just have to love. Why he has a cricket ball (?) that returns to him like a boomerang is just one of the many brain-teasing questions this movie will confront you with.

As we will learn from Rambu, only suckers don’t undo the first 4 to 5 buttons on a shirt. Actor Craig Gavin has only ever appeared in two movies in his career - and both of them were playing villains to Peter O’Brian’s heroes. Who could forget him as Greg Rainmaker in The Stabilizer? Seeing as how both movies were made in 1986, we suspect he uses the same white suit here as he did there. It’s a shame he wasn’t in more movies, he could have had a career. 

But as for The Intruder in general, even the dubbing is enjoyable on its own. You could watch this movie with your eyes closed and still have a great time. But if you did that, you’d miss all the great hair, clothes, high-quality explosions, and references to a certain Stallone movie that shall remain...well, not nameless, but let’s just say one vowel different.

It’s always great when filmmakers are so proud of a name they came up with, they say it excessively throughout the movie. A classic example is Best of the Best 2 (1993), where the name “Brakus” is said countless times. Here, it’s the same thing, the name “Rambu” is uttered endlessly throughout the movie by just about every character. And the more they say it, the funnier it gets. 

While American audiences may only know director Jopi Burnama because Troma took one of his movies and re-dubbed it into the unfunny Ferocious Female Freedom Fighters (1982), that’s a shame, because he may just have an Arizal-level of talent but no DVD distributors want to take a chance on his output. Where’s Mondo Macabro on this?

Rambu remains a sparkling gem in the rare 80’s international action canon. Don’t be afraid to draw ‘second blood’ and seek it out soon.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

The Stabilizer (1986)

The Stabilizer (1986)-* * * *

Directed by: Arizal

Starring: Peter O'Brian, Craig Gavin, Kaharudin Syah, Gillie Beanz, Dana Christina, Harry Capri, and Mark Sungkar









It’s always a joy when we come across movies like this. A true gem, finds like this are what make this site worth doing.

The Stabilizer is one Peter Goldson (O’Brian), a man who “stabilizes” the line between good and evil. He travels to Indonesia to bring to justice a truly sinister baddie: Greg Rainmaker (Gavin) is a gangster, rapist, murderer and drug dealer, and he and his second-in-command Victor (Sungkar) operate in the Golden Triangle. They kidnap a scientist, Professor Provost (Syah), because one of his inventions is a narcotics detector that would seriously impede the bad guys’ plans for world domination. After Rainmaker assaults Goldson’s wife, now things are personal. Goldson teams up with Johnny (Capri), Sylvia (Beanz), and Provost’s daughter Christina (Christina), among other helpers, to take down Rainmaker’s evil empire. Will this team of heroes be successful?

Man is this movie great. The opening theme song, sung by “AJ”, the Indonesian scenery and culture, the clothes, the dubbing, the wildly entertaining stunts, action and blow-ups, the music, the plot, the abandoned warehouse fights, EVERYTHING about The Stabilizer is just so fun, funny and enjoyable, you’ll be smiling the whole time. This is truly what purely entertaining cinema is all about.

Both Peter O’Brian (now a personal hero) and the Indonesian Mr. T guy can be seen in the Cynthia Rothrock vehicle Angel of Fury (1991). Now they, along with their great outfits, are back. Speaking of Rothrock, Gillie Beanz could have been the next one. Whatever happened to her? Gavin as Rainmaker has an evil beard, evil white suits, and evil spiked cleats that he uses to torture and kill people, when he’s not pouring little bits of beer on soapy women that just got out of the bath. His minions even have golden triangle earrings to show they’re with him. Never before has such an evil man met his match with such an utterly ridiculous hero. It truly is a great showdown.

For all the talk of “DIY Filmmaking”, the film-school snobs never mention the true, resourceful masters that that term implies, such as the great director Arizal. He deserves much more acclaim and recognition. His movies deliver the goods on many levels. Not afraid of seeming silly, he goes for broke with the action, stunts and exploitation elements. God bless him.

While we don’t normally support Troma, we have to give them props for releasing this, to date the only Arizal film on DVD in the U.S. We hope they release more of his work. This DVD will provide hours of enjoyment for you and your friends.  We couldn’t possibly list all the standout moments. You just have to see it for yourself.

If you don’t already own this, just go on Amazon and buy it right now. You’ll be glad you did.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Angel Of Fury (1991)

Angel Of Fury (1991)-* * *1\2

Directed by: Ackyl Anwari

Starring: Cynthia Rothrock, Peter O'Brian, and Tanaka











In this highly entertaining and fast-paced Rothrock outing, Cynthia plays Nancy Bolan, the head of security at HTI. She is a courier and must deliver a top-secret computer. To cover her tracks, there are also two decoy computers. All three are in silver suitcases. While in Indonesia, Nancy develops a relationship with a little girl named Sarah and her mother.

There is only one problem: BOLT (O'Brian), "The terrorist who strikes like lightning" also wants the computer. He is a ruthless and evil man with a lot of goons. 80 minutes of fight scenes ensue.

Bolt closely resembles Sly Stallone and there are even references to two Stallone movies: In one scene Nancy calls him "Rambo" and in another scene he is inexplicably arm-wrestling another goon a la Over The Top (1987). Exactly why Bolt is supposed to be like Stallone and he is most evil baddie on the planet is not known. Bolt is also a master of disguise as will be revealed in a laugh-out-loud moment. Bolt employs a henchman named "Ty" and he looks like an Indonesian Mr. T., Complete with gold-chainses and mohawk. Both this man and Peter O'Brian can be seen in the excellent The Stabilizer (1986). Maybe they are buddies.

"Angel Of Fury" is filled to the brim with action. Rothrock has some wicked and fun martial arts moves and there are a lot of high-kicking, high-jumping feats. Rothrock is utilized well and gets to showcase her skills in many different ways. The whole movie is Rothrock fighting in different settings. One in particular that stands out is in a mall and it brings to mind the scene in Jackie Chan's Police Story (1985).



A movie highlight is when Nancy takes Sarah to an amusement park. After Sarah proclaims her love for "Mickey Mouse", she then proceeds to kick a guy in an oversized rat costume in the butt repeatedly. With all that kicking, she might be able to become the next Rothrock. Too bad for the ratman.

Funny, silly dialogue, Rothrock at her best, tons of action, and a little girl kicking a ratman in the butt...what more could you want?

Released on the Imperial label on VHS, Angel Of Fury is a definite winner!


Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty