An Eye for an Eye

An Eye for an Eye (1981)

*** (out of 4)

After witnessing his partner murdered, Detective Sean Kane (Chuck Norris) flips out and goes after the men who did it. He resigns from his job but after his partner's fiance is also murdered he sets out to bring down the bad guys, which leads him to a drug operation.

AN EYE FOR AN EYE is a pretty good Norris movie and I'd argue that it's at the very top of the ones that he has made. The story itself is pretty much your standard revenge tale but where the film really succeeds is with its non-stop action and a pretty stellar cast. The film certainly has some flaws here and there but if you're a fan of 80's action movies then it's a must see for its entertainment value.

As I said, the best thing going for the picture was the very good cast. You've got Norris playing the type of role that suits him well. He's certainly believable in the role of a cop and his martial arts skills add most of the fun. You've got Mako in a supporting part and he adds some nice comic touch. Richard Roundtree was a bad muthafuc*er long before Samuel L. Jackson and he's fun here. Then you've got Christopher Lee is a somewhat thankless role but he's still fun to watch. Matt Clark and Rosalind Chao are good in their small roles as well. Then there's Professor Toru Tanaka who plays one of the bad guys and nearly steals the show every time he's on screen.

The San Francisco location certainly help the film and we're also given a nice score as well as some good cinematography. Of course, people are coming to a film liek this for the action and there's plenty of that. Countless shoot outs and various other forms of violence certainly make the film quite memorable. Add the cast into all of this and you've got a very entertaining revenge picture.