Imserba Webstore - The Perfect Weapon [VHS]

	List Price: $14.95 Our Price: $48.85 Your Save: $ ( % ) Availability: N/A Manufacturer: Paramount Starring: Jeff Speakman, John Dye, Mariska Hargitay, James Hong, John Koyama
Average Customer Rating:
Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 9786302130140 Format: Color ISBN: 630213014X Label: Paramount Manufacturer: Paramount Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Paramount Release Date: 1996-07-16 Running Time: 85 Studio: Paramount Theatrical Release Date: 1991-03-15
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Editorial Reviews:
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: One of the best Comment: This is probably the most underrated martial arts movie of all times. The fight sequences are one of the best. Spreakmen is great. Too bad he didnt continue down this path. Needs a DVD remastered release ASAP. Customer Rating: Summary: DVD or Blu-Ray Comment: I own this movie and been waiting forever to buy this on dvd. You would think with all the crappy movies they put on dvd they would put this and a few other like Ninja 3 - The Domination, Scavenger Hunt, Tough & Deadly ect. on Dvd, Maybe they should think of putting these on Blu-Ray! These Movies Rock!!!! Customer Rating: Summary: Lethal but not Perfect... Comment: This movie came at a time when Seagal had run out of novel ways to show the breaking of bones and the public had grown tired of Van Damme's 'splits-between-______?______' routine. Hollywood was looking for a new Schwartzeneggar-type action hero with a new skill set... Jeff Speakman answered the call in this little 'revenge/martial arts film that could'. Speakman, a student of the Great Ed Parker, Jr., had the looks, a certain mid-western appeal, and hand techniques to rival Seagal's in cinematic flare (and kicks pretty close to Van Damme's level!). He even proved to be pretty deft at delivering one-liners which is a trademark of the Schwartzeneggar-era action flicks of the 1990's. Great martial arts..Good production value...American Kenpo vs. Korean Taekwondo!!..Good acting--especially for this sub-genre... *The scene in the martial arts school where Speakman fights the awsome kicker, James Lew, was amazing... When are we going to get a DVD release?? 20 Year Anniversary release??! Customer Rating: Summary: "The Perfect Weapon" - Hardly An Exaggeration Comment: Hollywood's action scene was left poorer by letting Jeff Speakman go: the kenpo master had the looks, the moves, the charisma, and would've been on his way to becoming the next Van Damme or Seagal had Street Knight [VHS] not come along. Still, we can't change the past, and instead of imagining of what could have been, let's look at the obvious: "The Perfect Weapon" is a very good action movie - possibly within the top twenty western martial arts films of its time. I'd even go as far as to call it a model of the action scene at the time: if you dig the likes of Rapid Fire, Above the Law, or Showdown in Little Tokyo, then this little opus of is definitely for you. The story follows Jeff (Speakman) - a young delinquent who grows into an amazing martial artist with the help of his mentor, Kim (Mako, Conan the Barbarian); when Kim is assassinated by the Korean mafia for not submitting to their whims, Jeff sets out to find the killer and avenge his old friend. Granted, the plot deviates minimally from the standard tale of revenge explored by dozens of action heroes who came before Speakman, but both he and director Mark DiSalle (Kickboxer) make it his own: Speakman has a light load to carry when it comes to acting, but in this case, actions truly speak louder than words. The martial arts are shown more respect in here than in your typical beat-`em-up flick, beginning with Speakman delivering a flawless kata and later delving into the history and intricacies of kenpo; you certainly end up knowing more about the fighting style at the end of the movie than you did at the end of, say, Bloodsport. Of course, this wouldn't be nearly as impressive if the film didn't serve up some cool fight scenes, and these it has: Speakman battles a variety of well-matched opponents in several nicely-choreographed encounters, from a three-on-one competition against tae kwon do practitioners (among them the great James Lew) to a speed-against-strength bout with the tank-like Toru Tanaka (The Running Man). His real-life proficiency in kenpo shines through and has been expertly translated to Hollywood cinefighting, easily putting him up there with the best movie martial artists when it comes to making it look both real and exciting. As said before, Speakman doesn't give a performance to rave about, but the rest of the acting instills no grief: John Dye ("Touched by an Angel"), James Hong ("Blade Runner"), Mariska Hargitay ("Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"), and the indispensable Mako all leave a worthwhile print on the movie, playing their roles solidly. Even Tanaka is convincing in his role as an unstoppable human bulldozer. The only definitively weak player of the crew is young Dante Basco (Hook), whom nobody told was trying so hard to act the defiant young rogue that he started to get very, very annoying. Like all action movies, however, "Weapon" has its weaknesses, although these are of a bit less common variety than you'd expect: at times, the film attempts to be something it's not, doing so with a handful of lengthy conversations and monologues that both explain too much of the plot at once and try to prove that the actors actually can act. The cast's efficiency has already been vouched for, but the aforementioned scenes are simply too long and slow the movie down at times when this should not be afforded. However, do we begrudge the movie these things? - of course not! It's an action movie, and at the end of the day, it's one of the most entertaining ones I have seen in a long time. If you just came upon this review by accident, don't let the fact that you don't know who Jeff Speakman is deter you from giving it a chance: Speakman is twice the action hero of many of the old codgers still hanging around today. Fans...will already have this movie, since Jeff was never given a chance to top himself. Customer Rating: Summary: Because it's only available on used VHS Comment: I'm 100% with all of you who say it should be released on DVD!!! I am rating this only one star not because it is a bad movie - the movie is excellent. It's because this item is VHS and it's a dead format. I haven't had a VHS player for years and have no intention of getting another one... I saw this movie several years ago and have wanted to get it on DVD for years; which is why I found myself on this page. I want it and can't understand what reasoning the studio might have for releasing material that their customers want. Actually, the word idiot comes to mind! I notice that someone is selling their VHS copy for $129. That's just insane! I wonder if someone will actually pay that for it.