Heatseeker

I have often found myself defending Albert Pyun for some of his films that few other people like (like "Nemesis"), but "Heatseeker", a pretentious mix of pseudo-sci-fi and martial arts action, really is one of his worst films. Keith Cooke (whom I first spotted in "China O'Brien 2", where he stole the show from Cynthia Rothrock and Richard Norton), is an impressive kicker; Gary Daniels is an excellent opponent; and the cast is obviously full of real fighters. If Pyun had cut out all the crap about cyber enhancement and rival bio-engineering companies, we would probably have about 30 minutes of straight fighting. In other words, the movie is watchable, but only if you know how to use your fast-forward button. (*)

I have enjoyed some of the directors previous efforts. Nemesis 1 and Cyborg are great films. This is not.

Gary Daniel's looks great but the script is tired and unoriginal. The cybernetics are practically none existent except a couple of cheap make up appliances.

The ending seemed so rushed it leaves you thinking! Wtf just happened!? That's it!?

A wasted opportunity to have cyborgs fighting each other in a Bloodsport style competition. But the cyberpunk aspect is none existent. Just a martial art, computer game style back n goth with cheesey sound effects. Cheapest sets ever and some of the campiest baddies ever.

Not even good in a retro camp way.

Avoid.

After spending a long time searching for this movie, I finally found a store that had it on VHS for less than $1, and I immediately popped it in my VCR when I got home.

After reading about the plot I was hooked right away: In the future, kick-boxing has been overtaken by cryogenically enhanced fighters, only one man is still 100% human, but when he refuses to fight in the ultimate lethal tournament, the arrangers kidnap his girlfriend/manager and force him to compete!

The movie did not disappoint me at all, but that might be because I saw so many familiar faces in it, being an avid Albert Pyun-fan, he used the same set of actors he always does: Jahi J. J. Zuri is making his film-debut as one of the fighters, and Thom Mathews is also playing a sympathetic fighter in the tournament, being forced to fight in the competition by the evil mastermind Tung. Tung is played by Pyun's most frequent collaborator, the flamboyant Norbert Weisser, who is aided by always entertaining Tim Thomerson, who here plays the synthetic red-headed leader of corporate scumbags. Earl White and Chad Stahelski are also two guys Pyun uses often, and they're in the movie as Budokam fighters, of which there are plenty.

Although the star of the movie is not one of his regulars, Keith H. Cooke, known from "China O'Brien", here plays the last 100% human kick boxer in the world, Chance O'Brien (co-incidence? I think not), and he actually does quite a good job. The martial arts-superstar Gary Daniels (from "Fist of the North Star") is a great bad guy, with his icy-blue eyes and nonchalant attitude, and the woman both men love is also a Pyun-regular, Tina Coté, who hasn't done many movies yet, but always gives her best performances in Pyun's movies (like "Nemesis 2", "Mean Guns", and "Omega Doom"). This was actually the first movie I've seen where she did not play an obnoxious b*tch, so that was a new experience.

The fight-sequences in the movie are interesting, but after a while it does tend to be a bit tedious to watch, and at times fast-forwarding is probably a good idea to keep interest. If you like both cyborgs and kick-boxing this is definitely a movie you should watch, but if either turns you off, you should probably stay away, as that is pretty much all there is going on in this movie.

Highlight: Keith Cooke running around naked in the Phillipines. The abundance of man-ass is hilarious, but if you're homophobic, this might at first turn you off, but later we get to see Tina Coté's nipples, so there's something for both men and women in this movie, cyborgs or not.

No budget, no actors, and a plot that has been used so many times that it is threadbare. Red-and-blue oozing neons tries to hide the fact that this is all done in cheap sets, as most video fodders. Avoir this.

Keith Cooke plays the last human kickboxer who competes in a tournament where men with cybernetic replacements, (Or are they cyborgs, whatever the case my braincells were lost during the transition) of course he is forced to fight because his girlfriend (Tina Cote) has been abducted and is being forced to train Xao (Gary Daniels) who is a cyborg. Also aboard is Thom Mathews who looks to redeem himself and his father. The only good thing I can say about Heatseeker is that I didn't have to pay to see it, since I caught it on the Sci-Fi channel. Unfortunately that is all it has going for it. Heatseeker also ranks as one of the dullest features from Albert Pyun. His best efforts being the Kickboxer series (So far what I have seen) have been works of mediocrity but Heatseeker comes from a curse that no good movie has ever been made by Pyun, that involves cyborgs, robots or machines.) His best to date was the confusing and sub par Nemesis. However with Heatseeker, Pyun is desperately out of ideas and imagination, so he simply turns this into a robot jox of the fighting circuit. Also of note is that none of the fight sequences evoke excitement and overall we are left to watch a movie that is hideously dull in it's uninspired tone.

* out of 4-(Bad)