Heatseeker (1995)

A kickboxing champion is forced to fight cyborgs in a tournament when the company kidnaps his fiancee.

Director:

Albert Pyun

Writers:

Albert Pyun (story), Albert Pyun (screenplay),

Stars:

Keith Cooke, Tina Cote, Norbert Weisser

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Keith Cooke	...	Chance O'Brien (as Keith H. Cooke)
Tina Cote	...	Jo (as Tina Coté)
Norbert Weisser	...	Tsui Tung
Gary Daniels	...	Xao
Thom Mathews	...	Bradford
Selena Khoo	...	Liu (as Selena Mangh)
Tony Mabesa	...	Elder
Augusto Victa	...	Older Elder
Tim Thomerson	...	Oldest Elder
Burton Richardson	...	Raul Lono
Jahi J.J. Zuri	...	Tal Aziz
Kelly Montgomery	...	1st Bio Man
Cris Aguilar	...	2nd Bio Man
Mary Courtney	...	Catwoman / Referee
Richard Olney	...	Official

Storyline

A kickboxer declines an invitation to participate in a kickboxing championship where a company plans to plant cyborg-enhanced fighters. When he declines, the company kidnaps his fiancée forcing his participation.

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Plot Keywords:

kickboxing | cyborg | men in underwear | female nudity | speedo | 

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Taglines:

Meet the Ultimate Warrior in Cyber-Technology

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 June 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fonikos mahitis

Filming Locations:

Metro Manila, Luzon, Philippines

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmwerks, Trimark Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Connections

References The Terminator (1984)

User Reviews

Classic Pyunesque Cyborg Kickboxing!

After spending a long time searching for this movie, I finally found a store that had it on VHS for less than $1, and I immediately popped it in my VCR when I got home.

After reading about the plot I was hooked right away: In the future, kick-boxing has been overtaken by cryogenically enhanced fighters, only one man is still 100% human, but when he refuses to fight in the ultimate lethal tournament, the arrangers kidnap his girlfriend/manager and force him to compete!

The movie did not disappoint me at all, but that might be because I saw so many familiar faces in it, being an avid Albert Pyun-fan, he used the same set of actors he always does: Jahi J. J. Zuri is making his film-debut as one of the fighters, and Thom Mathews is also playing a sympathetic fighter in the tournament, being forced to fight in the competition by the evil mastermind Tung. Tung is played by Pyun's most frequent collaborator, the flamboyant Norbert Weisser, who is aided by always entertaining Tim Thomerson, who here plays the synthetic red-headed leader of corporate scumbags. Earl White and Chad Stahelski are also two guys Pyun uses often, and they're in the movie as Budokam fighters, of which there are plenty.

Although the star of the movie is not one of his regulars, Keith H. Cooke, known from "China O'Brien", here plays the last 100% human kick boxer in the world, Chance O'Brien (co-incidence? I think not), and he actually does quite a good job. The martial arts-superstar Gary Daniels (from "Fist of the North Star") is a great bad guy, with his icy-blue eyes and nonchalant attitude, and the woman both men love is also a Pyun-regular, Tina Coté, who hasn't done many movies yet, but always gives her best performances in Pyun's movies (like "Nemesis 2", "Mean Guns", and "Omega Doom"). This was actually the first movie I've seen where she did not play an obnoxious b*tch, so that was a new experience.

The fight-sequences in the movie are interesting, but after a while it does tend to be a bit tedious to watch, and at times fast-forwarding is probably a good idea to keep interest. If you like both cyborgs and kick-boxing this is definitely a movie you should watch, but if either turns you off, you should probably stay away, as that is pretty much all there is going on in this movie.

Highlight: Keith Cooke running around naked in the Phillipines. The abundance of man-ass is hilarious, but if you're homophobic, this might at first turn you off, but later we get to see Tina Coté's nipples, so there's something for both men and women in this movie, cyborgs or not.