My Samurai

Summary

“So much for the police. What now?”

MVD Rewind is a great label that focuses on nostalgic releases from the hey-day of VHS. I have really enjoyed the films that MVD Rewind has focused their attentions on thus far. I monitor their postings on Facebook to stay abreast of what releases are coming soon and when I saw that they were releasing the film My  Samurai I was excited to check it out despite having no prior knowledge of the film. One of the most delightful aspects of MVD Rewind is their ability to celebrate overlooked films. When my copy arrived, I round house kicked the film into the Blu-ray player and readied myself for the film.

The plot of the film is pretty thin. When a young Tae Kwon Do student named Peter witnesses some bad guys disposing of a body, he runs to his teacher Young Park (Julian Lee) for help. When Young defends himself, he kills a dirty cop in the scuffle. Peter’s nanny, Deborah (Lynne Hart) is thrown into their lot by proximity. The three mismatched allies navigate the dangerous underworld of the city while the police and the evil drug lord Mr. Tzing (Mako) try to track them down. Meanwhile, James McCrae (Terry O’ Quinn) just wants to find his son Johnny.

I am an unabashed fan of this type of over-the-top nonsensical Nineties action film. The early Nineties was a time that reveled in acceptance of non-traditional action stars with heavy accents. Keep in mind that this was the age of Schwarzenegger, Jackie Chan, and Van Damme. Low budget studios were looking for their Van Damme and finding Olivier Gruner. They looked for Jackie Chan and hired Julian Lee or Sho Kosugi. 

In the case of Julian Lee, it should have been readily apparent that this man could never reach the heights of those other actors. First off – his command of English was atrocious. Second – despite being very skilled at Tae Kwon Do, his fighting skills had little showmanship or theatricality. Third – he has almost no charisma. Casting him as a leading man was a leap of faith that made little sense. As a fan of these types of missteps, this adds to the enjoyment of the film rather than to its detriment, but I can just as easily imagine somebody watching ten minutes, saying “nope,” and turning the film off. It is obvious that Julian tries his best in the film, but the task of carrying a film becomes Herculean and out of reach for the actor.

So… what exactly is the pull towards this film? Fans of the sublimely bad will find a lot to enjoy here. There is a nonsensical sequence where the main characters are forced to face off against a Warriors style gang that owns the streets. They are all wearing brightly colored wigs and are dubbed “the Birds of Paradise.” There is a preacher character named Reverend George played by Bubba Smith that commands respect from the streets for some unknown reason never explained. The fighting sequences are unenthusiastically performed and the lead actor can hardly say his dialogue. Basically – to like this movie you must have a sense of humor and enjoy a good misfire.

I appreciate MVD bringing this film to my attention. It brought a dumb grin to my face. That said – on this release it is important to read my notes regarding the sound quality before considering a purchase.

Video

MVD Rewind have provided transfer of the film in 1080p using an MPEG-4 AVC codec. The film is presented in the aspect ratio of 1.78:1 aspect ratio. This is not the best looking transfer that MVD has put out, but it is certainly a huge improvement over the VHS. The film has a decent amount of scratches that pop up, but I thought the fine detail was pretty good. While it is not as cleaned up as prior MVD releases, I think fans of the film will be happy to see the film in high definition.

Audio

MVD Rewind has provided an English LPCM 2.0 track. I was monitoring the Facebook page of MVD as they gave updates on this film. They tried their best to warn that the sound on this release is not up to their usual standards. Unfortunately – the sound on this release is as rough as they warned. I turned my receiver up and it was very hard to hear the dialogue in the film. There is persistent hiss. Honestly, this is not up to the high standards that MVD has set with prior releases. 

Supplements:

• Interview with Stars Julian Lee and Mark Steven Grove – the lead actor and the stunt coordinator for the film give a lengthy and fun interview about working together on the film.
• ‘Watching My Scenes’ with Actor Jim Turner- as you might expect, the actor who played the leader of the Birds of Paradise watches and comments on his scenes (which are a highlight of the film.)
• Interview with Actor Christophe – the actor who played one of the more interesting bad guys in the film discusses working on the film and the very funny death sequence for his character.
• Photo Gallery
• Julian Lee Personal Photo Gallery
• Alternate Original VHS Cut – this VHS cut is a pretty fun inclusion. I honestly found the sound on the VHS version a little easier to hear, but that might just be me.
• Trailers includes My Samurai (480i; 1:24), along with trailers for other MVD releases.

Overall scores

Video – 3.5/5

Audio – 1.5/5

Supplements – 3.5/5

Overall – 3/5

My Samurai is a fun and ridiculous film from the VHS era. The plot is pretty idiotic and the lead actor in the film has almost no charisma or command of the English language. It reminded me of the hilariously bad film Miami Connection. I mean that as high praise. This release by MVD Rewind would have earned a high recommendation from me, but the audio quality is not up to the high standards they have set on prior releases. It’s really a shame, because my enjoyment of this release was impeded from the sound. If you can handle the sound on this release, the film itself is a wacky and wonderfully inept affair.