Director: Gordon Hessler
Notable Cast: Sho Kosugi, Lewis Van Bergen, Robin Evans, Richard Wiley, Ulises Dumont, Gerry Gibson
Every time I watch a Sho Kosugi movie, I’m saddened that his
career as a leading man in action films wasn’t a longer one. Take Rage of Honor as a prime example, which
is getting the deluxe re-release Blu Ray treatment from Arrow Video. Rage of Honor is not a great film, nor
is Mr. Kosugi a phenomenal actor that can carry it. Far from it. However, this
film is so completely, utterly, and undeniably entertaining that there almost
had to be a bet somewhere in how much ridiculous action they were trying to fit
into it. It’s non-stop. The action never ends and Sho Kosugi carries it with
his stabbing stare and outrageous fight work. It’s amazing to think that in the
grander spectrum of silly 80s action movies that Rage of Honor isn’t a top contender for “Most Action Set Pieces
Forced Into One Movie” award. Needless to say, I was hooked and loved every
minute of it.
Shiro (Kosugi) is a top notch detective working on a big
drug smuggling case that connects Pheonix to Buenos Aires. When his partner is
killed by a vicious killer in the drug mob (Van Bergen), Shiro must head down to
South America to bring his brand of outrageous ninja ass kicking to those who
betrayed his partner.
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| The man, the legend...the myth? |
There is no plot to Rage
of Honor. Okay, so maybe there is a little bit of plot to get the movie
rolling. Think of it as a sort of loosely tossed together rejected Miami Vice script. Sho Kosugi plays a
cop who doesn’t play by the rules (so 80s!) and he seemingly has magical ninja
skills that are never explained. His partner gets killed (action movie clichés will
do that to them) and he has to go to some exotic locale to find his killer and
keep his honor…or something. There is, of course, some crooked cops involved,
ninjas, and big explosions. This wouldn’t be a late 80s action movie without
those. Really, there isn’t much of a script here. Hell, there’s barely any
characters outside of the caricatures that some actors play to get the film
from one action scene to the next. Kosugi’s Shiro has almost no personality,
his romantic relationship (which gets her kidnapped – also so 80s!) is about a
thin as deli meat, and the various connections of baddies n’ cops simply exist
to keep the plot moving…what little there is. Truthfully, for those who want a well-developed
story and characters, you should probably look elsewhere because Rage of Honor does not have time for
things that are not getting it from one action sequence to the next.
But, boy oh boy, this film is a lot of action. About half
way through the film, I kept wondering to myself if this film was trying to
break some kind of record to get as many action set pieces in it as possible.
By the time the sudden credits roll (without any kind of wrap up, mind you), I
was positive that director Gordon Hessler, Sho Kosugi, and the writers must
have some sort of bet on how many set pieces they could stuff into it. Rage of Honor has it all. Boat chases,
explosions, ninja fights, sword fights, fist fights, James Bond inspired
espionage that has Kosugi in a tux flipping around and blasting guys, fist
fights in a river, a jungle tribe trying to kill our hero with spears and
arrows, more explosions, exploding grenade throwing star weapons, jail breaks,
and ninjas in camo gear with rocket launchers, flame throwers, and giant claws
that fly around in a helicopter. The film even keeps the setting varied: empty
warehouses, full warehouses, jails, a ship graveyard, jungles, villages, a
boat, and a hotel room. It’s like the makers of Rage of Honor saw every action film in the previous 5 years and
tried to pull elements out of each one for this. It’s fuckin’ jam packed.
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| Oh my, those camo ninjas. Where do they come from? Helicopters, of course. |
Unfortunately, Rage of
Honor has to sacrifice plot and characters to fit so much awesome action
in, but after watching the movie I think the sacrifice was worth it. The film
may not be "good," but it sure is really, really entertaining for B-action movie
fans. This release is the new sharp looking high definition transfer from MGM and includes new interviews on the release with one with Sho Kosugi about
his career and a little history lesson about the rise of ninjas in cinema
during the late 70s and 80s. The film, however, is so
entertaining that if this release didn’t have any special features it would be
worth the purchase. The rest is icing on the cake. Rage of Honor is a film for those who
like the cheesy, action oriented focus of the 80s and while it won’t appeal to
everyone, it gets a huge recommendation from me. Nothing is as awesome as non-stop action powered by Sho Kosugi.
ARROW VIDEO FEATURES:
Written By Matt Reifschneider
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