Bloodfist

It's a shame that young action stars like Don Wilson get stuck with bad films like "Bloodfist" while the likes of Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme were already being handed blockbuster material at the same stage in their careers. Don't get me wrong: I like Don Wilson and believe that he still has a lot of potential, but his Hollywood debut here plainly sucks. I'm sure that had he been given a stronger vehicle to introduce himself to the world with, more people would know his name nowadays.The story: Wilson plays Jake Raye, a retired boxer who travels to the Philippines to uncover the murderer of his brother. Taken under the wing of the elderly trainer Kwong (Joe Mari Avellana,  Behind Enemy Lines ), Raye must learn the art of kickboxing to enter a deadly tournament in which he's sure to meet the killer one-on-one.The film's plot immediately reminded me of titles like  Bloodsport  and  Kickboxer , but the movie retains none of their style or flair. Essentially, "Bloodfist" is a martial arts B-movie produced in the late '80s that looks as though it had been made in the '70s: everything about it seems dated and screams mediocrity, from a cast that can't act (inexperienced Don is only the tip of the iceberg - wait until  Michael Shaner  and  Marilyn Bautista  go to work on your ears) to poor production values (the picture has a washed-out look to it and the audio can get pretty fuzzy) and lackluster fight choreography.Even though the movie boasts real-life kickboxing and karate champions Rob Kaman ( Maximum Risk ), Billy Blanks ( The King of the Kickboxers ), and Kris Aguilar ( Bloodfist II ), the action is largely disappointing. With the exception of the Wilson/Blanks encounter, neither the fighters nor the choreographer seem they knew what they were doing: the fights have neither ebb nor flow to them, beginning and ending erratically and unevenly while the performers play it safe to the point that it's clear that they're not actually hitting eachother. Cheesy sound effects try to convince you otherwise.This largely killed the film for me, but "Bloodfist" does have some redeeming qualities: Joe Avellana makes the most of his role as Jake's teacher, displaying a confidence among the corniness that's soothing to watch after seeing the other actors stumble around. Also, even though the fight scenes stink, the training scenes are more like it: all the fighters get to show off their legitimate abilities amidst a nice mountainside environment.Alas, this was nowhere near enough to save the movie, which made $13 million in 1989 but wouldn't earn ten bucks nowadays. If you're wanting to introduce yourself or a friend to "the Dragon", find another title; this one won't do the trick.

Going into to this film knowing it was a Roger Corman production, I really didn't expect much in the realm of really high quality film making. I expected a no brain action flick with a cheesy plot and and some good fights. That is exactly what I got. Bloodfist actually turned out even a better than I expected. We get Don "The Dragon" Wilson, who obviously can't act, entering a tournament to find his brothers killer. The fights are good and entertaining and Wilson shows off his kickboxing skills. If you like cheesy action films such as the American Ninja, Kickboxer, and Bloodsport series, then give Bloodfist a whirl as you will probably like it. I am still working on watching its 7 sequels!

Don the dragon Wilson's first starting role is kind of cheesy guys don't come close to hitting each other but for a first role he does kick butt followed by 7 more bloodfists which were all better still enjoyable in a b movie kind of way

Excellent

I am satisfied with this movie

There is nothing special about Bloodfist, other than the fact that Don "The Dragon" Wilson likes to use real-life martial art champions in his movies. It makes little impact though, since most of the fight scenes are filled with punches and kicks that don't even make contact with the opponent. The story to Bloodfist is the typical avenge, this time, somone killed Don Wilson's character's (Jake Raye) brother. Jake sets out on a quest to find the killer, with the help of a man named Kwan. Kwan leads Jake to a gambling tournament in Manilla, where the killer is supposedly one of the fighters. The tournament is where most of the action takes place, but most of the fights are short and not too impressive. The ending of the movie has a nice little twist, when Jake does discover who the killer is. I don't want to give it away, but this has been done before in many movies before I'm sure. Overall, Bloodfist is just average. The biggest plus is that Don Wilson is actually one of the more decent martial art movie actors. Check out Bloodfist II, it has a simple story too, but a lot of action and a lot of much better fighting.

This movie had me laughing so hard that my side, head, stomach, and cheeks hurt. If you are looking for a cheesy good time or just love watching B movies with some buddies, Bloodfist is made for you. But if you are looking for a credible action flick, don't even go there with this movie. Don "The Dragon" Wilson stars in this "action packed" movie, with absolutely nil acting ability whatsoever. It is really pretty comical to watch. Not to mention that this movie has "legendary" Billy Blanks in it. What more could you ask for?? (For all you lame brains out there, Billy Blanks created the Tai Bo work out system.) The plot to this movie doens't really make any sense at all, but that is part of what makes it so awesome! Like for example: In the beginning it explains that Don's brother only had one kidney and therefor couldn't fight. So Don gave him one of his kidneys so that he could fight again. However, that would only give Don one kidney, and therefor he wouldn't be able to fight either, and yet he does anyway. There are a crap load of plot holes in this movie like that. But overall, it is just a fun B movie.What I learned from Bloodfist: You do NOT have to be even remotely attractive to play the main "seductress" in low budget movies.If you liked Bloodfist, I recommend: Go watch the American Ninja series, Blood Sport, and Street Fighter...talk about a bad movie.

I've wanted to see this film since I read about it in Combat magazine when it was first released. I followed Don the Dragon Wilson' career with awe and was so disappointed on the quality and content of this film. I guess I expected spectacular martial art scenes, but they are run of the mill and predictably drab, the acting is appalling too!

This could almost be called, AWOL meets the Karate Kid. The plot combines elements from both films but both films do it better. Jean-Claude Van Damme did the same sort of plot in AWOL and, if I am not mistaken, did the same plot in another film in which he had to take up kick-boxing. Ralph Macchio had his mentor and guide in karate Kid. This film features some real experts at kick-boxing but the poor quality of acting and some of the fight scenes left a lot to be desired. If you want a properly rounded performance, then I am afraid you will have to give this one a miss.