Nayan Gough
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
Nicole
I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.
Michael Ledo
The scene opens with Linda (Linda Megier) and Jason Blade (Edward John Stazak) being initiated into the ancient and secret Order of the Panthers, a crime fighting martial arts thing. Blonde Linda does undercover surveillance in Hong Kong...then off to Australia. On of the two don't make it past 20 minutes (the one that has a stunt double which looks like a man in a blonde wig) and Jason has to avenge her death. We know who kill Linda...at least we think we do as we see a guy throw a knife in her general direction. Guns are rarely used...hey! It's a martial arts film. Jason works carrying suitcases filled with flour and blank paper for the guy who tossed the knife. Bad guys get to wear cool Halloween masks. No sense letting someone you are trying to kill, see your face.It was pretty boring stuff. I watched it on a 50 film unit and it could have used restoration. Cliché, formula, and poorly acted.Guide: Brief sex. No swearing or nudity.
Comeuppance Reviews
Jason Blade (Stazak), William Anderson (Stanton) and his daughter Linda (Megier) are members of a secret warrior clan known as Panthers. Anderson is a member of the Hong Kong Special Branch of Australian law enforcement. While in HK, he, his daughter, and his protégé Blade found the time to go through the rigorous martial arts training of the secretive Panther clan. Back in Perth, Western Australia, it seems there is a new bad guy causing all sorts of trouble - the dastardly Damien Zukor (Carman). He's into racketeering, drugs and any number of nefarious activities, and the ultra-wealthy Zukor has cops and politicians in his back pocket, allowing him to continuously expand his criminal empire, with the help of an army of rubber pig-masked goons brandishing machetes. But he didn't count on one thing: JASON BLADE. After the murder of Linda by the super-evil number two man to Zukor, Baxter (Richards), Blade decides to go undercover as a thug and infiltrate Zukor's organization from the inside. Gaining access to Zukor's world proves complicated, especially when a team of law enforcement officials that disapprove of his rogue ways is constantly tailing him, and he manages a romantic relationship with Anderson's niece Gemma (Jefferson). Will Jason Blade be the new action hero of the 80's? Fan-favorite director, Brian Trenchard-Smith here delivers the fun and the silly martial arts/stunt filled goods. Edward John Stazak sadly falls into the camp with Jay Roberts, Jr. and Matt Hannon and never made any other movies (unless you count the made-at-the-same-time sequel, Fists Of Blood (1988). Obviously the filmmakers hope you like the name "Jason Blade" because you hear it many, many times throughout the course of the film. Sinister, Peter Cushing-like bad guy Zukor even gets off a witty, perhaps unintentional one-liner when, impressed with Blade's intelligence (?), he tells him, "You're sharp, Blade".Blade is a stylish man of the 80's, but in the slick department, it's hard to beat Baxter, a man who looks like a cross between David Hasselhoff and Ricky Gervais dipped in a rich, thick coating of eighties. And let's not forget that this movie came out around the time of the then-current exercise/aerobics boom. There are plenty of scenes in Blade's gym, including a show-stopping moment involving Gemma. Let's just say that woman was born to dance.80's fashions aside, what's also good about movies of this time were that you could actually see all the stunts and all the martial arts moves. It might not be the best kung-fu movie ever committed to celluloid but at least there's no CGI garbage or annoying, eye-irritating "quick cuts". Actual effort was put forth to make it all come together and the result is quite entertaining.Naturally, there's an extended, knock-down drag-out fight at the end between Blade and Baxter. Baxter's main strength as a fighter seems to be his ability to withstand seemingly-endless kicks and punches to the face (although what you see here pales in comparison to what he endures in the follow-up). Harking back to the good old days of cinema good and evil, Blade wears white pants and Baxter black as they gleefully punch away the running time.Featuring the memorable song "Take me Back" by Colin Setches, and released on Celebrity Video in the U.S. (as was its sequel), dare you enter the glorious world of Jason Blade? For more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com
sabrelad
The title of'Best martial art epic made in Perth,Western Australia in 1988'is not one taken lightly and with the awe-inspiring visionary Brian Trenchard-Smith at the helm this film was always destined for great things like finishing at the end. Featuring Australian male-icon Edward John Stazak as the perennially high-panted hero Jason Blade in his career-defining role along with a galaxy of stars of the silver screen including Jim Richards star of this film,wheezy super-villain and thief of Hulk Hogans dressing gown Michael Carman and the voice of Forty Winks(and its body)John Stanton.'Day of the Panther'also introduces the exciting new talent Paris Jefferson best known previously as a world champion jazzerciser now steaming up the movie world with her stunning sultry looks and confusing dance-routines.Sadly though the film was also the very last for the great Ow Mun Hong in a deeply moving portrayal of Triad Boss as he ceased living after he stopped breathing. Though controversially censored upon release for the scene where an innocent Hush Puppy loafer gets cruelly kicked against a wall the films critics were satisfied when it was pointed out to them that the shoe was a professional stunt slipper and was not hurt.The snare drum used for the punching noises was also content with its role though probably deserved higher billing than Denis Broad who played'Boat Salesman'. Featuring the smash-hit'Take me Back'by the vastly talented Frank Howson and his musical collaborator Allan Zavod the films soundtrack'Takes'us'Back'(?)to the Perth we all remember of the late 80's apparently a time of ugly women,bald men and woolen-net tank tops. A little known fact about the film was the presentation of a humanitarian award to cameraman Carlo Buralli who ignored personal safety and the instructions of the director in an effort to help stunt veteran Lindsay'The Holy Sock'Bijoux from falling onto barbed wire in one of the films many action sequences. A rare treat for fans of the genre is the added bonus of the trailer for the sequel'Strike of the Panther'being screened before the start of the feature which astounded those who had eyes and could remember'Sons and Daughters'. Watch it with loved ones and discover the magic of a simpler time when pink shirts and slacks could happily be made an ensemble and please enjoy'Day of the Panther'...............yes.
edwithmj
I picked up this movie on DVD as it was 99p in 99p stores in Norwich. I watched it with my brother and it truly is crap. The acting is bad by everyone. The lead is played by an "actor" who looks like Stephen Hendry. (He's a Snooker World Champion for all the Americans). Any film that is cheap and Australian is bad. The woman looks like some cheap hooker they picked up off the street and the bad guy is definitely a pimp! I loved those men in masks! Damn I would not be scared if they were after me! Seriously though they do belong in a circus. The martial arts are OKish but you know "Jason Blade" (sorry that name makes me laugh) is going to win the fights. I keep this movie as it is a reminder that TV can be bad... sometimes. Watch this movie just to laugh. The clichéd baddies and the poorly delivered lines cheer me up every time I'm down. Bad.
