Released: July 2017
Director: Toby Russell
Not Rated
Run Time: 88 Minutes
Distributor: Vision Films
Genre: Action/Martial Arts
Cast:
Don “The Dragon” Wilson: Bobby Pau
Matt Mullins: Michael Turner
Cynthia Rothrock: Valerie
Chiranan Manochaem: Yui
Joe Lewis: Conrad
Jawed Al Berni: Peter
Gigi Velicitat: Draco
Prasit Suanphaka: Otto
Movies take quite some to finish. It usually takes about a year and a half to two years from conception, pre-production, production, and post-production. It’s not a short process. Even when it’s all finished, there’s no guarantee that it’ll ever be released. There have been movies that were completely finished but were never released. At least, not to the general public. Roger Corman’s Fantastic Four is a prime example, even though you can check it out on YouTube(not that I would advise such a thing, it’s a terrible film by all accounts). So, why does a film not get released after being finished? There a lot of reasons. Sometimes a regime change for a movie company can have an effect because the new regime doesn’t care for the film, so they shelve it. Sometimes, a film-maker feels that it shouldn’t be released due to interference from the studio or certain societal issues that would make the film seem…insensitive. Sometimes, it’s just having issues with getting the film distributed. Death Fighter is one such movie.
Opening in a warehouse somewhere in Thailand, we see two undercover cops, Mike Turner and Conrad as they try to track and take down a Russian warlord named Draco. Conrad is shot and killed by Draco and Mike is left seeking revenge. Mike learns of someone who is familiar with the local jungle, Bobby Pau, and together they head out to take down the bad guys. On the way, they meet a local doctor who can more than hold her own in a fight. This is about as straight-forward a story as you can get. There are no twists, no hidden bad guys, just the two guys and the girl as they track down Draco. While it’s not particularly original, it serves its purpose, which is to give our heroes people to fight.
Let’s face it, the real reason you watch this movie is for Don “The Dragon” Wilson, Cynthia Rothrock, Matt Mullins, and Joe Lewis. Joe Lewis, in his final acting role, is only in the film for a short while, but he’s still pretty memorable. He could still take people down. It was definitely interesting to see him here. Don Wilson, who is now one of my favorite martial arts actors, plays Bobby Pau, a hard-drinking former special forces operative. While Mr. Wilson isn’t the greatest actor in the world, and he doesn’t need to be, he still comes across as somebody that you really like. Physically, he still kicks ass. What can I say? I love watching this guy work. Matt Mullins is someone I’ve been aware of for quite a while now. The first movie I saw him in was Blood and Bone, with Michael Jai White. Again, not the greatest actor, but he can still toe-to-toe with anybody in the industry today. This guy can really move. It’s always a pleasure to see Cynthia Rothrock in…well….ANYTHING. It’s certainly interesting to see her playing a villain, I feel that she’s more suited to playing a good guy…or girl. That being said, she can still bring it and she brings it pretty hard. The girl that plays the doctor is more than just a pretty face, she can definitely kick some serious ass, while looking good while doing it. The main villain? I’m sorry….he’s just too way over the top to take seriously as a threat. When a subordinate fails to kill someone, Draco doesn’t chew him out or beat the hell out of him, but just lets him go do his thing. The scariest villains will kill you outright if you fail them just once. The second in command, Peter, who is played by Jawed Al Berni, makes for a better villain, because he can fight and is not a nice guy.
With all these big-budget action films, I have to say, few can deliver on the thrills that a smaller independent film can. Why? Because indie film makers aren’t necessarily beholden to the “standards” that these big movie companies claim to have. Death Fighter features some of the best fight scenes this side of the Pacific. I’ll explain why: Looking for the fight choreographer at the end credits, I came across a name that I found extremely familiar: Kazu Patrick Tang. This is a stuntman/actor/fight choreographer that I am familiar with, and it explains why the fight scenes in Death Fighter are so damn good. This guy knows who to use his actors and he plays to their strengths. Best of all? No wires. It certainly helps keep the film grounded in a certain reality. Don Wilson moves better than a lot of actors his age, and so does Cynthia Rothrock. Seeing those two in a fight scene together is really cool. Matt Mullins and Jawed don’t need stunt doubles for their fights. These guys are very good at what they do and their scenes together are absolutely amazing.
Death Fighter was a film that was supposed to be release back in 2014 under the name White Tiger, but the film was shelved until it could find a distributor. As I said above, this was Joe Lewis’ last role before he passed away. If you don’t know who Joe Lewis was, he was a martial artist who won various karate tournaments and was named as one of the greatest fighters of his time. Bruce Lee himself considered Mr. Lewis “the greatest Karate fighter of all time.” He was also one of 5 men who managed to beat Chuck Norris. If that’s not a ringing endorsement of the man, I don’t know what is. Sadly, Joe Lewis passed away in 2012 as a result of a brain tumor. He’s left behind an incredible legacy. He had his own system of martial arts that focused on full contact fighting and is considered by many to be the “father of kickboxing.” I don’t know if he ever got a chance to see the final cut of this film, but I think he would have been very proud of it.
Overall, my impression of Death Fighter is a very good one. While it may be slow in places, it does allow for some real character development, especially for Don Wilson’s character. While there are certain issues with camera-work, this is still a very good movie, despite the fact that it took 3 years to get released. Don Wilson and Cynthia Rothrock still have what it takes to be action stars, and Death Fighter is definitely one that should be seen by any fan of martial arts films.
Final Recommendation: 8.5/10.