Dans les griffes du dragon rouge

Surely the rating should be higher? This is one of the better Dolph Lundgren-takes-on-all-comers movies, and its got Brandon Lee godamnit!

Ok, so it gets predictable, but isnt that why action movies are so well loved? Its got enough of a storyline not to resemble Red Scorpion in any way, but only just little enough to make it a totally enjoyable flick. I mean, for 1991, what were you expecting? Considering that this was the director who brought us Commando, this is the ultimate in bloke films. If you want to clear the women away, put either one of these films on and enjoy a mens night in!

So its not Minority Report, its not The Shawshank Redemption but its redemption at its best, feet first!

Oh, and Tia Carrare in a hot tub. Gets it at least one point. ;)

Chaos, action, explosions and fun bad guys who look like they came out of a cartoon are what make this movie so much fun.

Dolph Lundgren and Brandon Lee are a fun duo that contributes to the atmosphere of the film and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa is super fun as an evil villain. The plot is simple, the good guys clash with the bad ones and try to save the girl and clean up the city from crime along the way.

The action scenes are excellent, deliberately exaggerated and with a great deal of humor. The film has that unique spirit of that time and that's what makes it so much fun.

The bad guys are great, hilarious and outrageous. Yes, the characters are total caricatures and it works perfectly here, even giving the film an extra layer of humor.

From the very beginning, it is clear to us what kind of film this is, a film that does not take itself seriously and wants to fulfill the primary task of every film, and that is to entertain the viewer. And this is a film that certainly succeeds in that, no matter how many times you watch it, it's more and more fun every time. Guns, swords, vicious villains, constant action and plenty of humor.

Action scenes and violence are brutal and bloody, just the way they should be. When the shooting and swinging of swords starts, blood and body parts fly in all directions. An excellent combination of brutal action and humor.

Surprisingly entertaining action film with a dose of humor.

I give this movie a 5 for entertainment value.. This is the worst acting i have ever seen in a movie.. It contained humorous script and bad directing..

The main female character Minako is raped/"irredeemably betrayed" by her 'owner' and feels it necessary to commit suicide.. yet in the following scenes she strips down nude and jumps in a hot tub with a guy she has only just met.. yes, he WAS her knight in shining armour, but come on! THEN she pursues a sexual relationship with him, and the camera displays her as the 'dominate' one. The 'betrayal' doesn't appear to be affecting her in the slightest.

I feel sorry for the Johnny character, he appears to be second best or third wheel throughout the movie. The main villain has a scar in his left cheek.. of which looks better every time it is seen throughout the film. Continuity seems to be an issue.

As much as this film has bad taste bad acting and bad script, it was quite entertaining for myself, as a viewer, due to the above facts. The unintentional humour is what made me watch through to the end, and possibly even again on a day i need some cheering up.

All in all it was not bad for the era it was filmed in. Cheers.

Reading some of these comments, it occurred to me no one seems to know how to have fun anymore. This movie is not meant to be a great movie. I don't think any of the actors had intention of trying for an oscar. It's simply a fun movie. The action sequences are pretty cool and the one liners are hysterical. Dolph Lundgren and Brandon Lee are a great action pair. The chemistry between them is amazing. If you just want to watch a movie that's going to make you laugh, and get some good action with it, I highly recommend Showdown.

This is one of the action-movies i grew up with. Seeing it again on TV just brings back a lot of memories. And actually the movie itself is not all crap either! Kenner (Lundgren) and Murata (Lee) both have trouble keeping their partners. Now they team up together to fight the Yakuza in Los Angeles.

Buddy cop pictures are not the most uncommon movies to say the least. But this is a movie that has it all. Campy acting, the worst one-liners ever, nicely choreographed fighting, evil Asians and heroes that are always on each others case. Not to mention the super-evil villain played here by the legendary Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa who should be quite used to these kinds of roles by now.

So, this is not exactly quality and it's not exactly good. But still it contains all the elements that made it an instant classic when i saw it for the first time. Half-naked women, cool heroes and loads of action. So the rating is based more on the memories than the actual movie. But for me this will always be a 7/10.