Rage of Honor (1987)

Tanaka, a DEA agent, and his partner Ray are after a bunch of drug dealers. But they are betrayed by an insider and Ray is killed. Tanaka follows the culprit, a sadistic drug lord, down to Argentina.

Director:

Gordon Hessler

Writers:

Robert Short (screenplay), Wallace C. Bennett (screenplay) (as Wallace Bennett)

Stars:

Shô Kosugi, Lewis Van Bergen, Robin Evans

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shô Kosugi	...	Shiro Tanaka
Lewis Van Bergen	...	Havlock
Robin Evans	...	Jennifer Lane
Gerry Gibson
Charles Lucia	...	Dick (as Chip Lucia)
Richard Wiley	...	Ray Jones
Carlos Estrada
Ulises Dumont
Theodore McNabney	...	(as Ted McNabney)
Alan Amiel
Armando Capo	...	Juan (as Armando Caro)
Marlee Jepson	...	Girl in Convertible
Alejo Apsega	...	Killer in Hotel
Ezequiel Ezquenazi	...	Killer in Hotel (as Ezequiel Ezkenazi)
Eric Seward	...	Desk Clerk

Storyline

Tanaka, a DEA agent, and his partner Ray are after a bunch of drug dealers. But they are betrayed by an insider and Ray is killed. Tanaka follows the culprit, a sadistic drug lord, down to Argentina.

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Plot Keywords:

drugs | drug lord | singapore | ninja | cult film | 

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Taglines:

When just getting even is not enough!

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Genres:

Action | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Argentina USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

February 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Way of the Ninja

Filming Locations:

Argentina

Company Credits

Production Co:

Trans World Entertainment (TWE),Negocios Cinematográficos S.A.

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Shiro Tanaka lost his crossbow to the natives when his rope breaks crossing the waterfall gorge. They pick it up and shake it at him as though taunting him. Immediately afterward, he is shown once again with the crossbow slung on his back.

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Connections

Featured in Sunset Park (1996)

User Reviews

The VHS Days are Back!

A Japanese cop, Shiro (Sho Kosugi), and his partner Ray are after a bunch of drug dealers. But they are betrayed by an insider and Ray is killed. Shiro follows the murderer, a sadistic drug lord, up to Singapore.

This is director Gordon Hessler's follow-up to "Pray for Death" (1985), also starring Sho Kosugi. The general consensus seems to be that the best Hessler-Kosugi team-up was "Pray for Death", but I respectfully disagree. I feel they stepped it up a notch or two for "Rage of Honor", and I really appreciate the James Bond-as-a-ninja theme.

Some people may take issue with Hessler's direction. Cool A** Cinema notes, "Unfortunately, the action sequences suffer the same fate as most American martial arts pictures of the day. There's very few master shots and far too many close ups." That point is well taken, but for those looking for an action film rather than a martial arts film, this may not be easily noticeable. No one should be expecting Bruce Lee.

The Arrow Video blu-ray is not packed with extras, but is far from bare bones and does include a brand new interview with star Sho Kosugi on "Rage of Honor" and the later stages of his film career. We also have an interview with Stelvio Cipriani, the film's composer. The first pressing includes a collector s booklet featuring new writing on the film and an extract from Kosugi's upcoming book. And, of course, you are getting the film in high definition, looking far crisper and cleaner than we ever got in the glory days of VHS -- you can actually see the individual drops of splashing water.