The Last Dragon [Blu-ray] [1985]

Classic movie. Looks and sound great on blu-ray. A Must buy

The Last Dragon is a cult kung fu flick from the raging 80's. High intensity action scenes with humor, quotable lines, and outrageous characters. Those wanting some Shaw Brothers action need not apply. Add in some of the best Motown music and The Last Dragon is something different that you'll never forget.

I wish I could give this 10 stars! I've been looking for this movie since...forever! Picked it up for a super low price as well.

I grew up watching this movie and it's awesome! It made me want to do karate in the garage.

The Last Dragon's Blu-ray release impresses. It offers a good all-around image that retains a fine and consistent grain structure and showcases an impressive film-quality veneer. The image rarely appears flat, instead offering a nicely defined surface that's home to a myriad of solid detailing, particularly evident on elements like a complexly woven straw hat, general attire, and close-up facial features, including creases, pores, pimples, hair, and other skin details. Rough urban environments are also beautifully complex and well defined; city exteriors really impress. The image never pushes excessively soft but instead appears consistently, and naturally, sharp. Colors can be a bit warm, particularly in lower-light conditions, but primaries pop in well-lit scenes, including bold yellow jumpsuits, Sho'nuff's red costume, and Angela's multicolored hair. Black levels are suitably deep and flesh tones largely accurate save for a mild push to red at times. The image appears free of any serious bouts of banding, blocking, print wear, and other eyesores. This is an impressive effort from Sony, particularly for a thirty year old title that's more a cult favorite and less a mainstream sensation.

Leroy Green "Bruce-Leroy" (Taimak) is on a quest to find The Master and obtain the elusive Glow. During his search he saves a beautiful singer and host of a dance show (hey, it was the 80's, they were all the rage) Laura Charles (Vanity) from some thugs sent by a record producer bent on getting his flavor-of-the-month on her show. Of course, things only get more complicated when the "Shogun of Harlem" Sho'nuff (Julius J. Carry III) sets his eyes on fighting and destroying Leroy. What follows in pure 80's gold with decent fights sequences - Carry III knew no martial arts whatsoever during filming, so it's interesting how he's "The Master" of kung-fu when he clearly knows none. There is also some singing and dance numbers, though nowadays they're more tongue-in-cheek, though at the time they were meant to give more high-quality to the picture, setting it apart from standard martial arts movies. You'll also find yourself laughing quite a bit, both intentionally and not as the amusement that was the 1980's unfolds before your eyes. The 30th Anniversary Blu-Ray sports an impressive picture and, of course, sound quality. You'll hear every punch, crack and synthetic drumbeat throughout with crystal clarity. On the Special Features front, there's not a whole lot. We get "Return of the Dragon" which is a retrospect on the film from Barry Gordy, director Michael Shultz, writer Louis Venosta and Leroy himself, Taimak. You also get the theatrical trailer and a commentary from the director. All in all, not a bad little package for a cult favorite.

"The Last Dragon" can be best described as a heartfelt homage to the great Bruce Lee with a distinctly early 80's urban flavor that only the great Berry Gordy could have delivered. While Taimak and Vanity are the main focus characters in this film the real standouts are the villainous "Shogun of Harlem" aka Sho'Nuff played to hammy perfection by the severely underrated and sadly deceased Julius J. Cary III and the horrendously nasty and vicious avatar of the music industry Eddie Arkadian played by Christopher Murney. This film's soundtrack is a collection of 80's Motown tunes featuring tracks from Stevie Wonder and The Temptations plus DeBarge's "Rhythm of the Night". My personal favorite track is "The Glow" by Willie Hutch.

Motown only produced a few films but all of them were excellent. Diana Ross & Billy Dee Williams in "Lady Sings The Blues", Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor and James Earl Jones in "Bingo Long and the Traveling All Stars", Diana Ross, Anthony Perkins and Billy Dee Williams in "Mahogany" and "The Last Dragon". I liked "The Last Dragon" because it was kind of nerdy and campy but it had a good enough storyline and likable lead character, Taimak and his love interest Vanity of Prince fame. The villain was played Julius J. Carry III whom I never saw in another film but he did a great job in this one as Sho'nuff, the "Shogun of Harlem". If you want a film that was clean and free of explicit violence and profanity, this is a classic worth seeing.