peefyn I admit: I looked up this movie due to the biblical(ish) monologue that was borrowed by Tarantino in Pulp Fiction. It starts off the movie, and is by far the most interesting thing with it. I can understand Tarantino deciding to use it himself.I have no experience with old martial art movies, but I do appreciate it as a genre, and the mark it has left on popular culture. After seeing this movie, I realize I should probably start with some of the more higher rated movies. Also, I'm not sure if watching the dubbed American releases is the best idea. Sure, it has a campy quality, and maybe it's a nostalgic feeling for those who saw these movies as they came out (or went as reruns) - but honoring the original intent of the director is probably a good idea. Still, even though I have only seen the American release of this movie, the director's intent here probably isn't that interesting.As many have already pointed out, the plot is confusing and, well, boring. I love the premise: A master of martial arts publicly stating that he will serve as a body guard to anyone who will go against the drug mafia. That's a good set up for an interesting movie. But here it is followed up with bad fight scenes, silly decisions, horrid acting and boring dialog. Worst of all is maybe how the camera is operated. At times, it seems like the camera man thinks he is wielding a steady cam when he is not - leading to a very shaky image. Almost like when you see kids making movies, or home movies.I could go on, but basically: Start somewhere else if you want to get into kung-fu movies.

MartinHafer Before I begin, you need to know that I am a huge fan of many of Sonny Chiba's films. His biographical series of the life of his master, Mas Oyama, were amazing and among the best martial arts films ever made, as were most of his Street Fighter films. The action was practically non-stop and with the possible exception of Bruce Lee (depending on who you ask), he was the greatest martial arts practitioner on film during the 1970s. Because they are so good, I've seen at least 15 of his films and recently bought some more (which I am in the process of watching).Unfortunately, despite my love of these films, I am NOT a mind-numbed zombie who worships the man to such a degree that I rate EVERY film a 10. There are a few reviews like this here on IMDb and I truly think that anyone giving this film a 10 should be ignored because this is such a bad film from a technical standpoint and isn't even close to the being Chiba's best work. A score of 10 isn't a real rating--it's some zombie fan trying to make a statement about Chiba, not this film! As I said, technically this film is awful. Some of this was the result of my seeing the American dubbed version, with its irrelevant prologue and bad dubbing. But most of the problem would still exist with the original Japanese print. The camera-work is simply atrocious--like it was done by chimps (smart chimps, but still chimps nonetheless). Often, much of the fast martial arts action is missed because the camera is so slow or the tops of the actors heads are clipped off due to the shoddiness of production. And, again and again, the camera pans in and out like it is a new toy being used by an idiot plus the editing is beyond wretched--with cuts being done haphazardly and confusingly.I don't know whether the musical score is original or not--but it was also very, very bad. Sort of like acid rock of 1970 blended poorly with Ennio Morricone's "Spaghetti Western" music--it was annoying, distracting and just plain silly.As for the martial arts action, I think that having chimps do the choreography would have improved things a bit. Instead of the great fight scenes you'd look forward to in a Chiba film, the fights are too brief and often missed by the camera!! So what you are left with is the story...and this MIGHT just be the worst part of the film! It's supposed to be an anti-drug film starring Sonny Chiba as....Sonny Chiba! And when the film begins, he vows to destroy the drug trade in Japan. But, the Mafia (complete with not a single member who looks Italian, but who are ALL Japanese) vows to stop Chiba. And, when a lady comes to Chiba with promises to give him information about how to destroy the drug trade, he agrees to help her and risk his life with no conditions--even though she's NEVER forthright about telling him what she knows! In fact, later it turns out she is just trying to use Chiba to protect her while she herself sells a huge briefcase full of cocaine--and he CONTINUES trying to protect her!! This makes no sense at all and throughout much of the film it looks as if they just shot the film without a script--such as when they went into the bars and brothels and had Chiba walking about as if he was drunk.So if it was THAT bad, why still does it merit a 3? Well, first, there are many more horrid marital arts films (such as many of those from Hong Kong in the 1970s)--including one with guys dressed up in gorilla suits doing kung fu and their handlers with 3 foot long tongues they used for fighting (now THAT'S bad). Second, while the action is very bad compared to other Sonny Chiba films, compared to its contemporaries, it's not that bad. Still, you could easily do a lot better than this horrid little film.By the way, if you are wondering if this is the worst Sonny Chiba film, it certainly is not! In one of his first films, INVASION OF THE NEPTUNE MEN, Chiba plays a leotard-wearing super-hero who battles pointy-headed invaders from the planet Neptune. It's so bad that it rivals PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE and THEY SAVED HITLER'S BRAIN for awfulness.A final note to parents--Like most of Sonny Chiba's films, this one is very violent and has its share of boobies. DON'T let little kids watch this no matter how much they beg! Make them wait until they are older before you let them watch wretched rated-R martial arts films!

kingismyworld I got a question. Is there any widescreen versions of This awesome flick? Any help would be great. I know that there are full screen copies out there but i want it in the original 2.35:1 widescreen ratio. This film rocks. Sonny Chiba has never been better.The film rocks and it's interesting to see Chiba essentially playing himself. Surprislingly, this is one violent film. All of the butt-kicking of the Streetfighter with the action of 5 martial arts films rolled into one.Karate Kiba (1976) Karate master and anti-drug vigilante Chiba returns to his home in Japan, where he holds a press conference announcing his intention to wipe out the nation's drug industry. He also offers his services as a bodyguard to anyone who is willing to come forward and provide information about the drug lords' activities. He is soon approached by a mysterious woman claiming to have important information and asking for Chiba's protection. She seems to be legitimate, but is she really what she appears to be?

drgonzo91 Ya this movie is kind of cheesy at times but I don't think it should be ripped apart like some of the other reviews. The plot is a bit thin but Sonny makes up for it as usual. As for the artsy camera work, I rather enjoyed it. The camera is shakey during running/fighting scenes but I enjoyed this. It gives the sense of a real chaotic situation instead of just situated camera work.I do agree the dubbing is poor as hell but overall the movie worked for me and just reaffirmed Sonny Chiba as the Clint Eastwood of Japanese films.