The Challenge R

He has trained every thought, every muscle, every nerve, for the moment of truth!
3K ratings
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Format:  DVD
item number:  6A542
on most orders of $75+
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DVD Details

  • Rated: R
  • Run Time: 1 hours, 48 minutes
  • Video: Color
  • Encoding: Region 1 (USA & Canada)
  • Released: February 16, 2016
  • Originally Released: 1982
  • Label: KL Studios Classics

Performers, Cast and Crew:

Starring &
Performer: , , , &
Directed by
Edited by
Screenwriting by &
Composition by
Cinematography by

Entertainment Reviews:

Rotten50%

TOMATOMETER
Total Count: 6

Upright69%

AUDIENCE SCORE
User Ratings: 319
Rating: 4/5 -- Nifty little culture-clash action flick from John Frankenheimer
Lawrence Journal-World
Mar 19, 2004
Rating: C+ -- Hard-boiled, revolting, kung-fu friendly and ridiculous. Full Review
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Dec 31, 2014
...A hard-boiled action film with great hopes of becoming more...
New York Times
Jul 23, 1982
The knowing feel of the photography is best expressed in an early chase scene where Frankenheimer repeatedly flash cuts to fish heads as Glenn grimaces as he runs. It's grimy, off-putting, and just right for the moment. Full Review
Examiner.com
May 18, 2011
...Mifune carries himself with eye-twinkling dignity...
Variety
Jan 27, 1982
The movie pays little attention to the coherence of its scenes or the meaning of its images. [Full Review in Spanish] Full Review
El Pais (Spain)
Aug 29, 2019

Product Description:

John Frankenheimer draws on the screenwriting talents of John Sayles in a martial arts thriller starring Scott Glenn as American boxer Rick Murphy. In Kyoto, 35 years earlier, the elderly Takeshi hands down two sacred samurai swords, or katanas, to his oldest son, Yoshida (Toshirô Mifune), but they are stolen by his other son, Hideo (Atsuo Nakamura), who has his father killed and subsequently loses one of the swords during World War II. Thirty-five years later the sword is found in Los Angeles, and Rick, a burned-out boxer, is hired to go to Japan to deliver the sword to Yoshida, a highly revered master samurai. But he's kidnapped in Osaka by Hideo's henchmen; Hideo has now become an evil and immensely wealthy businessman. After Toshio (Sab Shimono), Yoshida's son, is murdered by Hideo's goons, Yoshida manages to free Rick from his brother's compound. Despite the boxer's crude arrogance and contempt for Asian mores, he agrees to submit to martial arts instruction from Yoshida. As his training progresses, he's filled with a sense of self-respect long absent from his life, and the new allies look toward the final battle with Hideo. Sayles adds depth to the martial arts genre, exploring themes of honor, the corruption of wealth, and the end of the samurai tradition. The director keeps things moving along briskly, with a solid Glenn, a typically magnificent Mifune, and martial arts choreography by Steven Seagal.

Product Info

  • UPC: 738329177126
  • Shipping Weight: 0.25/lbs (approx)
  • International Shipping: 1 item

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