Writer: Kurando Mitsutake (Screenplay)
Starring: Hayate, Mana Sakura, Katarina Leigh Waters, Rene Wiesner, Asami, David Sakurai, Kirk Geiger
Plot: When a mysterious loner and Karate master Kenji’s little sister goes missing in Los Angeles, whoever stands in his way of finding her will face the wrath of a lethal KARATE KILL!
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Blood Soaked Action Horror Delight
Story: Karate Kill starts when Kenji (Hayate) travels to America in search his sister Mayumi (Sakura) who he hasn’t heard from for weeks. Arriving in America Kenji learns that she had been doing well but has been abducted by a crazed cult known as Captain Messiah, an internet group that produce snuff, torture videos on the black market.
Kenji must travel to Hooper, Texas, the base for the cult to use his karate to eliminate the Captain Messiah group led by Vendenski (Geiger). Kenji teams up with a former victim of the cult Keiko (Asami) as they prepare to eliminate Vendenski and his best soldiers Simona (Waters) and Benning (Voss) ending their reign of terror.
Thoughts on Karate Kill
Characters/Performance – Kenji is one man on a mission, to save his sister, he is an expert in his own form of karate, one that can kill, he has trained to defend himself from all threats and now he puts his own life on the line to save Mayumi. Keiko was once going to be a victim of the cult but escaped with only serious injury, now she has waited for someone to help her fight back. Mayumi is the sister looking for a life in America first as a student but that dream is taken away when she is taken by the cult. Vendenski is the psychotic leader of the Captain Messiah cult, he is preforming the torture and murder on film to make money on the black market, this is a great villain and one that isn’t just a man in a suit, he will get you to follow him or kill for him.
Performance wise, Hayate is great for the fighting scenes but with this character we don’t get enough time for the emotional moments. Asami is good for the partner in this battle showing the strength in fight scenes. Kirk Geiger is the star of the show here because this villain is easily one of the most entertaining this year.
Story – The story is an easy one to follow, whittled down it is one man searching for his sister against a cult of enemies that outnumber him. We know how it will go and sure we have a couple of twists along the way but this story is everything it tries to be, fun.
Action/Horror – We have wonderfully gory fight sequences that take martial arts in a direction of violence over to kicking someone’s ass which is enjoyable to watch.
Settings – The settings start by following what you would say are by the books, starting in clubs but when it turns into the cults arena we see a different side to the settings showing the down and dirty battles Kenji will face off in.
Special Effects – The effects used fit the budget this movie had, it also shows us you can pull of the crazy over the top style needed with everything you need it too.
Final Thoughts – This will only be for the select audience, there is no lying about that, this will be for the fans of the violent action movies that never wanted to hold back with what we see, with a great villain that works to perfection in the genre.
Overall: Enjoy the action carnage.
Rating