Eh... this one tries hard but doesn't get anywhere. It's famous for all the wrong reasons - they lied and said Tom Savini did the effects (he didn't), the distributor went to jail for 18 months for refusing to edit one second of footage, it was banned in the UK, etc. etc.
But under all the press, there's nothing there. The movie is crap. Escaped mental patient goes to kill his ex-wife and child. Yawn. Ineptly written and directed, there's nothing to redeem this one. Avoid, hard avoid.
This was much more pleasant. I love all kinds of Sherlock Holmes, and this was a good spin on it. Directed by Christopher Columbus and produced by Spielberg! Although non-canon, it's pretty well written and vetted: Watson and Holmes meet at boarding school, and we see how Holmes obtained his signature idiosyncrasies, which is fairly fun.
There are some great sequences (the stained glass knight!), and it's filled with atmosphere. Unfortunately it also deviates a little too far into Goonies territory with Egyptian temples right under the streets of London (!!) and flying machines, etc., and lost me around the middle of the film - it's obvious Chris Columbus has never read a single Holmes story. Shame. They shouldn't have strayed from Victorian London; maybe I'm a purist. Whatever Holmes scholar they had read this script must have been horrified. Still, kids should really enjoy this. Adults will likely roll their eyes.
The perfect antidote to the silliness above? More silliness! This movie is the answer to "what if Sergio Leone directed a western with Chuck Norris." McQuade is a loner, a rebel, a fighter... who takes down criminals no matter if they're in Texas or Mexico, always justly, usually in revenge. They lead bad guy is David Carradine! And what sweet revenge it is. He's a martial artist, a gun expert, a car expert... you get the idea. It's cheesy fun and nothing more. Fun fact: this film was the inspiration for Walker, Texas Ranger.
This is the first of *8* Bloodfist movies. Kickboxing legend Don Wilson (look him up, he's amazing) avenges the death of his brother in the ring. If this sounds familiar, it's also the basic plot of Kickboxer, made the same year. Hard to say which is a better execution of the formula, but I think this movie more heart and less polish. I liked this, but it's definitely a cult classic: loved by a few, ignored by many.
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