Strike of the Panther

Jason Blade is back! As is the rest of the cast, crew, music and backdrop to the opening credits, as this and Day Of The Panther (1988) were shot back to back. In true "45% New Footage" style, Fists Of Blood opens with a recap of the events from the previous film, with some handy narration by Anderson. However, it seems to me that if you watch this one first, you would still be confused by this unnecessary and time-killing, money-saving exercise.

Continuing exactly where its predecessor left off, Jason and Gemma have gotten serious in their relationship - so serious in fact that they are now working together on an anti-crime task force in their hometown of Perth. Despite some rockiness in their relationship, Gemma is still dancing up a storm and Jason is still foiling the bad guys with his martial arts skill. When the nefarious Baxter escapes from Fremantle prison, he kidnaps Gemma and hides her away in an abandoned "steam factory", the type of abandoned warehouse action movie fans know well. Jason must fight through an army of ninjas in multi-colored hockey masks to get to the final room to save the girl, just like in a video game. However, two new elements are introduced into this mix - while only touched upon in the first film, the idea of the psychic relationship between Anderson and Jason is fleshed out more. From his hospital bed, Anderson is able to telepathically communicate with Jason and warn him of dangers Jason can't necessarily see, but Anderson can. We thought this was a fascinating and original concept that brought the level of the movie up. Additionally, there is the character of Sgt. Lucy Andrews (Wallace), who is working on dismantling the time bomb Baxter set. Oh yeah - if Jason doesn't save the Gemma on time, a bomb will blow them all to smithereens. Can Jason Blade tangle with Baxter once more? This time around, director Brian Trenchard-Smith delivers a bit more offbeat humor. The brothel scene is wacky, and the aforementioned "Jason Ninjas" add to that. Wouldn't you be scared if you were all alone in a steam factory with a time bomb about to blow, and a ninja with a multi-colored hockey mask starts moonwalking with a baseball bat? Jason Blade faces his toughest challenge yet as he tirelessly faces off with these and many other punks until the final confrontation with Baxter.

Jason gets to do yet more training in his gym, Baxter takes a lot more punishment, and elements of the hostage drama are introduced in this installment. The idea of a bunch of special ops officers going into a booby-trapped warehouse while a mastermind picks them off one by one was later used in Jackie Chan's New Police Story (2004). But like a lot of things in life, Jason Blade did it first.

There are a lot of funny sounds in the movie, and I don't know who won the Oscar for best sound editing that year, but it should have gone to the sound effects department of Fists of Blood. The original title of the movie was Strike of the Panther, which makes a lot of sense, but it was changed (there is a video-superimposed title) to Fists of Blood by Celebrity Video in the U.S. In other nonsensical box art news, it appears the British DVD tried to market the film as some kind of slasher horror, but that's just misleading.

The directly continued storyline means the two films make a great double feature, which is perhaps what was intended. This would be the last we would ever see of Jason Blade, and, just as mysteriously as he arrived in all our lives, he now departs.

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I couldn't believe it when i saw it, an Australian martial arts movie. Playing just past 3am I expected a low budget movie, but i didn't expect it to be an Australian martial arts movie. Another gem of a film which I came across staying up yet another night.

Jason Blade is back in Perth, Australia, to form a crime task force to assist in the capture of the lethal Jim Baxter, a criminal martial arts master. Baxter has just made a daring escape from jail to renew his vendetta against Blade. When Baxter kidnaps Blade's girlfriend Gemma, a martial arts confrontation ensures from which there can emerge only one victor, Blade.

The final sequence in an abandoned electricity plant is thrilling, with great fight sequences. Along with an old woman psychiatrist, who thinks she's a commando, and a veteran martial arts instructor, Strike of the Panther is great. I just never thought I would see an Australian martial Arts film, because they just didn't exist. I just recently discovered there is a first film "Day of the Panther", and "Strike of the Panther" is its sequal. I'll probably never find a copy, but i have high hopes for it to play in the middle of the night, just like all the low budget movies I love to watch.

I recommend you also see Cobra Force, which is the greatest low budget movie.

Great Movie, Terrible acting, fake sound effects, predictable plot, at times unbelievable, martial arts, and Australian, 10 out of 10, what can I say, I gave Titanic a 1

This film has some of the most priceless quotations I have ever heard. The other review gives a rounded appraisal of this film's charms, bar quoting some of the fine examples of the English language that this film boasts.

Par example:

(Start of film - that is *prologue* and shows scenes from "Day of the Panther" in attempt to pad out running time by showing best bits from the prequel)

(Good guy has bad guy lying there, begging for his life)

Bad Guy: I have money!

Good Guy: So have I.

(Another great one - Jason Blade, The film's protagonist and all round good egg, is on a bloodthirsty rampage around a brothel striking a blow for moral decency and bad fashion)

(Jason Blade kicks down a door. Inside the room is a naked woman and a guy in a chicken suit)

Jason Blade: You're ssssssick!

This film is incredible. There is this one scene where Jason Blade and his girlfriend Gemma (She should be called Jade - "Jade Blade") are dancing with each other. Jason is the world's worst dancer, and this display is just so cringeworthy that you actually can't watch.

Jason Blade - working class hero, secret policeman and kung-fu instructor.

My review was written in March 1989 after watching the film on Celebrity video cassette.

This sequel to "Day of the Panther" is an uninteresting Aussie adventure pic. The two films were shot back to back in 1987, but one would have been plenty.

Opening ten minutes of "Fists of Blood" are devoted to recapitulating the events in "Day" by reusing the old footage. Sequel has stalwart martial arts hero Jaon Blade (Edward John Stazak, his acting still wooden) trying to rescue his girlfriend (pretty redhead Paris Jefferson) from the clutches of heavy Jim Richards, who has ecaped from his jail since Part One.

Other than for the appearance of tough cop Rowena Wallace, a striking platinum blonde, nonstory exists as an undiverting series of comic book climaxes. Any hope of making the Blade character into a long-running phenomenon is dashed by the absence of suitable challenges with which to prove his mettle.

Helming is under par for the usually reliable Brian Trenchard-Smith. Repetitive music score is another minus.

Strike of the Panther was shot back to back with its prequel - Day of the Panther. The film is a straight continuation of the story and pickes up exactly where the previous move left off.

The film is more of the same, although it feels a bit more cobbled together. However the fights are still quite good, and that's all that matters.

If I'm honest, there was no need for two films. Both movies could have been edited down to one 2-Hour feature by removing superfluous footage like the gym nonsense, love making scenes, and the 10 minute callback at the start of the sequel.

This would have made the excellent fight action far more regular without having to wade through the excessive cheese. Just have the first Baxter fight in the middle of the film, and make the second half about his revenge. Then have it end in the really cool factory battle against the ninjas. The two films are so similar in style and execution that they would seamlessly blend together.

Strike of the Panther feels a little like one massive setpiece padded out with unused material from the first film. The factory battle is really cool, but it takes up half the movie, and the film feels like it's struggling to get to its 90 minute runtime by padding the first half.

Still, it has some good high-kicking action, and the cheddar is all part of the charm.

Go in to this knowing what it is, and you'll have a blast!