Shadow Fury (2001)

 

Shadow Fury (2001)- * * 1\2

Directed by: Makato Yokoyama

Starring: Fred Williamson, Sam Bottoms, Gregory Vahanian, Bas Rutten, Cassandra Grae, Pat Morita, Alexndra Kamp, Allen Kolman, Masakasu Funaki, Jeanette McCurdy, and Taylor Lautner

When Dolly the Sheep was cloned in July of 1996, it was a very inspirational time for us all. Now everyone on earth knew we were open to a world of sheep-cloning possibilities. It was only a matter of time until we got cloned ninjas. Clearly, "clone fever" is what inspired Dr. Oh (Morita) to create Takeru (Funaki), a nigh-on unkillable super-ninja with amazing fighting and murdering capabilities. After cloning is banned, Dr. Oh sics Takeru on his former associates Dr. Forster (Kamp), Dr. Markov (Vahanian), and Dr. Hiller (Kolman), in some sort of act of revenge. So Nova Corp, the original clonemakers (which should be their slogan) hires a bounty hunter named Mitchell Madsen (Bottoms) to stop Takeru. Because Madsen has a failing liver, he thinks he can kill two ninjas with one stone and take Takeru's after he smites him down.



In order to achieve his goal, Madsen goes to see Sam (The Hammer), a sort of Machine Gun Joe character. Meanwhile, Nova Corp is developing a sort of super-teen with Martial Arts abilities named Kismet (the original tot is played by Taylor Lautner, but he grows up fast and two other people - including MMA man Bas Rutten - take on the role as well). As if all that wasn't enough, your classic Hooker With a Heart of Gold named Sasha (Grae) somehow manages to fall in love with the emotionless Takeru. But can Takeru learn to...love? And will friends become enemies and enemies become friends? Who has the ultimate SHADOW FURY?



While it opens with a bang, and the idea of cloned ninjas is a fairly cool one, we suspect that this is the type of production that really, really hoped it would become a cult movie but never did. As we've seen countless times before, you cannot intentionally manufacture a cult movie. It just has to happen on its own. That aside, Shadow Fury seems to fall into the category of the Scanner Cop series, the Cyborg Cop series, Steel and Lace (1991), The Demolitionist (1995), or even perhaps I Come In Peace (1990). We're not even going to mention the similarities to The Terminator (1984). It's all served up with a strong Japanese twist, thanks to director Makoto Yokoyama, who worked a lot with stunts, including with the Power Rangers. That style just may come across here in the wackier side of the unrealistic, wire-type fighting.


Pat Morita's hair in the film is almost worth the price of admission alone. Maybe it was inspired by Anime characters, but who can really say? It's as over the top as some of the fight scenes. Alexandra Kamp looks a lot like Sarah Palin, at least in her role here as Dr. Forster. Fan favorite Fred Williamson doesn't do a lot. It's a glorified cameo, but we were still happy to see him. The character of Madsen (characters named Madsen and Forster? Could the writers have been deliberately referencing Tarantino-associated actors here?) was ably done by Bottoms. It seems they were going for a They Live-era Piper vibe with this character. What with the other references on show, that's probably the case.


There really are some cool ideas here, and the silliness, action and silly action will carry you relatively easily to the 90-minute mark. But something still feels missing that would make it a more satisfying viewing experience. It's hard to say what that is, exactly, but by 2001, DTV was in the doldrums. Perhaps it's that, plus the references to other things, and synthetic fight scenes - in place of a more substantial heart and soul - that would cause viewers not to totally warm to Shadow Fury.


All that being said, if you find the VHS tape at Goodwill, as we did, it's certainly worth a purchase for a dollar or two. But probably not more than that.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out a write up from our buddy, DTVC!

Ragin' Cajun (1991)

Ragin' Cajun (1991)-* *1\2

Directed by: William Byron Hillman

Starring: David Heavener, Charlene Tilton, Allan Rich, Sam Bottoms, Samantha Eggar, Jesse Borja, and Benny "The Jet" Urquidez













Cage Damante (Heavener) is a Vietnam vet who became a kickboxer. He signed a contract with the evil gangster Regetti (Rich), but fled from New York City to California to escape him and start a new life. His dream is to be a singer/songwriter on the country music circuit. With the help of girlfriend Ali Webster (Tilton), the troubled Cage may have a future. He also has a strong bond with Legs (Bottoms), a fellow vet and agoraphobic who refuses to leave the VA hospital. Both Cage and Legs are seeing psychiatrist Dr. May (Eggar) for further psychological help. Cage suffers from debilitating flashbacks. Just when things are looking better, Regetti insists that Cage “fulfill his contract” and engage in a “fight to the death” with none other than a dude named Dr. Death (Borja). Regetti even sends his goons after both Cage and Ali in order to force him to fight. Will Cage succumb to Regetti’s demands? Or does he have some tricks up his sleeve?

Even though this movie wasn’t written or directed by David Heavener, as many of his later projects were, it seems he’s in the driver’s seat here as the main star and singer of the many songs this movie has to offer. Heavener seems to have plenty of heart here, and Ragin’ Cajun, despite the tagline of “More Blood Than Bloodsport! More Kick Than Kickboxer!” is primarily a drama. Yes, there is some fighting and a smidgen of action, but this could firmly fit in the “Drama” section of your local video store, as opposed to the “Action” section. But Van Damme was huge at the time, so, even though Heavener couldn’t be more different, the marketing people saw an opening during the action boom of the day.

Benny “The Jet” Urquidez is on board in a small role as a fighter that takes on “The Cajun”, but interestingly he is billed as “Introducing” Benny The Jet, even though he had been in a bunch of movies before this. Charlene Tilton seems to be giving her all as the devoted girlfriend/singer/guitar player that refuses to give up on Cage. Didn’t she play a similar role in Deadly Bet (1992)? Samantha Eggar is a quality actress and it’s surely a coup that she agreed to be in this. But it truly is a cavalcade of music stars - Tommy Roe, Cristy Lane, Rex Allen Jr., Billy Vera and a few others perform songs, as do Tilton and Heavener, making this almost a quasi-musical. Of course, it’s always funny when Heavener is sitting on a park bench with an acoustic guitar, and begins singin’ and playin’, and mic’d vocals and guitar with effects come strumming out.

But truly the star of the musical show is one Atanas Ilitch, using the stage name “Atanas”. His “Let’s Live Together” destroys the competition. Why an 80’s-disco synthpop song is even in the same universe as all the country pickin’ has yet to be determined. But like fellow Heavener vehicle Outlaw Force (1988), before the movie begins, there is an advertisement for the soundtrack. This commercial is a movie highlight. (yes, we know that doesn’t make logical sense, but you know what we mean). Not available in stores! 12 original songs from the original artists! ONLY available on stereo cassette! Call now! I wonder if operators are still standing by...

Seeing as how visions of exploding huts dance in his head, there are plenty of chances for odd editing. But the choppiness in the editing room comes out in other, more unexpected places as well. We see what Heavener and writer/director Hillman were trying to do, but this drama/love story/almost-Punchfighter/action/gangster/musical comes out as you might expect - something like a not entirely digested meal. Not that this movie is BAD, but it’s a bit on the haphazard side, and some of the fat could have been trimmed from it as well.

Once again, AIP delivers to video stores what others only can dream of. And once again, we applaud them for it. But this Heavener outing is a mixed bag at best.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Mercenary II: Thick and Thin (1999)

Mercenary II: Thick and Thin (1999)-*

Directed by: Phillipe Mora

Starring: Olivier Gruner, Robert Townsend, Nicolas Turturro, Sam Bottoms, and Claudia Christian




“If stupidity was a cereal, we’d be on the box.” - Pizza Man








Carl “Hawk” May (Gruner) is a mercenary. Nicholas Turturro and Sam Bottoms (brothers of John and Timothy, respectively), play his two comrades-in-arms. It appears this time, a very rich woman, Patricia Van Lier (Christian) has paid the gang to retrieve her accountant, Charlie Love (Townsend), who has been taken hostage by rebels in the jungles of South America. Hawk goes deep into the foliage to find him, while the others stay behind and contact him via radio. Hawk does indeed find Charlie, and the two are the original odd couple: Hawk is serious and straight-faced, while Charlie is a joker. They must navigate all manner of traps, pitfalls and killer bad guys as they attempt to exit the jungle alive. But will Hawk snap at having to be subjected to Charlie’s antics the whole time?

Unfortunately, Mercenary II is just not very good. Even though it has reasonably high production values, and a decent cast, those two positives are smothered by a paint-by-numbers script which is nothing more than your standard jungle slog we’ve seen so many times before. Nicholas Turturro plays the “comedy irritant”, the Joe Pesci-like Italian guy (with the code name “Pizza Man”) who never shuts up and has an annoying nasal voice. How did he get into the Mercenary business anyway? Robert Townsend tries to liven up the proceedings with wacky dances, faces, and one-liners, but it’s not enough to make the movie as a whole very interesting or engaging. Gruner is decent as the stone-faced Hawk, but the sheer stupidity of the whole venture is overwhelming.

The movie doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be. One moment it’s a military-style shoot ‘em up, the next it’s a goofy comedy with Townsend mugging it up for the camera. This mix of serious and goofy can best be described as “goofius”. The Rush Hour (1998)  franchise brought this into the mainstream with seemingly big financial benefit...but instead of Jackie Chan, imagine Daniel Bernhardt, Van Damme, or Olivier Gruner as the straight man. Can anyone conclusively confirm that Bernhardt and Gruner are two different people? Have you ever seen them in the same place at the same time? Because if the aforementioned three men are indeed separate people, they should all star in a movie together. A confusing, confusing movie.

The movie is probably TRYING to be good (and we should say that Claudia Christian is good in it, especially as the cover model for “Multi Billionaire” magazine), but a bunch of unnecessary pop-cultural references mixed in with some gun-shooting just isn’t enough to get a movie off the ground. Mercenary II is in the vein of Perfect Target (1997), Decoy (1995) and Overkill (1996). If we’re comparing your movie, in any way, shape or form to Overkill, RUN. Like Overkill, this movie was shot in Mexico and has an unbelievably lame ending.

The writers behind Mercenary II must be thick, because the plot is thin. Avoid.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Hunter's Blood (1986)

Hunter's Blood (1986)-* * *

Directed by: Robert C. Hughes

Starring: Sam Bottoms, Kim Delaney, Ken Swofford, Mayf Nutter, Lee De Broux, Joey Travolta, Clu Gulager, Billy Drago, Mickey Jones, and Billy Bob Thornton











Five men decide to go on a hunting trip in the backwoods of Arkansas: David (Bottoms), his father Mason (Gulager), Uncle Al (Swofford), their buddy Ralph (Nutter) and die-hard “city boy” and hunting newbie Marty (Travolta). Things seem to be going well, until they run afoul of some murderous “rednecks” who feel these city folk have intruded upon not just their land, but their illegal meat processing operation. So now it’s a deadly game of hide and go seek with David, Mason, Al, Marty and Ralph versus their rural counterparts Snake (Drago) Wash Pot (Jones), Red Beard (De Broux), and Billy Bob (Thornton of all people). When the baddies kidnap David’s girlfriend Melanie (Delaney), it’s an all-out war for survival. Who will come out on top?

In the 80’s, Deliverance (1972) knockoffs and Wilderness Horror movies were huge in video stores. So it would be the most natural thing in the world to combine them. Hence, Hunter’s Blood was born. It was co-written by the writer/director of 9 Deaths of the Ninja (1985), Emmett Alston, and released in a very bright, clean-looking VHS by Embassy. It would make a nice double feature with Rituals (1977), if you can get a hold of both.

When the movie opens, the music on the soundtrack is a guy playing/bending ONE NOTE on the guitar, over and over again. Could this be a sign that the movie itself is a one-note? But then we get to know the protagonists of the piece, the only really likable one being David, portrayed by Sam Bottoms of Ragin’ Cajun (1991) fame. He does a decent enough job, but there are so many characters he doesn’t get enough time to shine. Then the “male bonding” occurs, and it seems like a 90-minute Jack Links commercial, and the fact that all the men sit around a fire and eat a pepperoni stick only reinforces that. There’s a ton of inane potty humor/dialogue, a lot of which underlines the Deliverance-style homosexual nature of the proceedings. In fact, at times Hunter’s Blood seems to aim to out-gay Deliverance. It was the 80’s after all, they probably figured they had to ramp up the gay from the way it was in the 70’s.

But once the plot kicks into high gear, there are a lot of nice surprises and worthwhile moments to raise Hunter’s Blood above the pack. And let’s not forget Joey Travolta is on board. A great moment comes when he guilelessly blurts out the line “I love TV!” Not any one particular show, just TV. There are plenty of country tunes that continually appear throughout the film, and the first credit after the movie ends shows this (seemingly a rarity), but the credit only lasts on-screen for about a fraction of a second. But we were able to determine the songs on the soundtrack are by Hamilton, Joe Frank and Weber. We can only assume this is the same group that sang the great song “Don’t Pull Your Love”, but that was Hamilton, Joe Frank and Reynolds. Either Reynolds was replaced by Weber, or, mirroring the “Deliverance knockoff” scenario, there’s a “band knockoff” going on. Either way, no song herein is as good as “Don’t Pull Your Love”.

In the end, Hunter’s Blood is solid entertainment, especially if you are a fan of survival-type movies.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett