The Last Kumite

I still remember back in 1990 when my school friend Björn invited me home to check out the VHS release of the Jean-Claude Van Damme film Kickboxer that he bought in a store. I already knew at that time he was a big fan of the martial arts film Bloodsport, so i was curious about this latest film from Van Damme. It turned out we had a great time watching Kickboxer and we especially loved the evil character known as Tong Po played by actor Michel Qissi. There were so many fun fight scenes in Kickboxer and especially the final fight. At that time Björn was actually practising doing Van Damme kicks in his parents garage where they got him a kicking bag. He did go to karate class and i remember he would tell his teacher how much he loved Jean-Claude Van Damme. The reason why i watched him train was because i used to go to Judo class in the same building where they teached karate. I didn´t last very long in Judo but Björn actually continued training karate for a longer time. Eventually he dropped out as well to focus on a career in snowboarding instead where he travelled to Canada to compete. Our love for Jean-Claude Van Damme movies continued over the years and when Björn came home from Canada we would rent Van Damme films and watch in his parents living room. Not only did we watch Van Damme movies but we also rented a lot of other VHS martial art films with action stars such as Billy Blanks, Don "The Dragon" Wilson, Lorenzo Lamas, Steven Seagal, Daniel Bernhardt, Jeff Speakman, Matthias Hues, Cyntha Rothrock and many more. I remember one of my personal favourite films at that time was TC 2000 with Billy Blanks, Matthias Hues and legendary actor Bolo Yeung. When the 90´s ended it seemed that the martial arts action films were no longer a priority for film studios, times have changed. But that actually changed in recent years with very popular martial arts TV series Cobra Kai and it seemed to bring back martial arts for a new generation. Not only that we were also seeing martial arts film getting a second chance, just look at this film called The Last Kumite. A film that brings back 80´s martial arts with legendary action actors. I bought my physical copy of The Last Kumite from the UK because i just had to check this film out. Is this a true throwback to martial arts action films of the 80´s or is The Last Kumite a film that will most likely dust on a DVD shelf?

Michael Rivers ( Mathis Landwehr ), a skilled martial artist, is forced to fight in an illegal fighting tournament in order to save his daughter. Along his dangerous journey, he discovers that other martial artists have been forced to fight to saved their loved ones.

The fact that the team behind The Last Kumite actually managed to make this film become reality is very impressive. You have some of the most classic 80´s and 90´s martial art action stars gathered into the same film and this is something you don´t see everyday. So does this film bring out more than just nostalgia and actually deliver something more than that? I would say if you go into this film with the right mentality knowing this is a film made for fans of 80´s martial arts you are definetely going to have a good time. This film have the kind of martial art fights that we remember from the VHS rental stores where it didn´t matter that the plot is easy and the acting is not perfect. I would definetely say the best part of The Last Kumite is the fighting scenes and especially when the Kumite tournament is going in full force. Some of the martial art scenes look better than i expected and i think every fighter bring some nostalgic 80´s and 90´s feelings with the fight coreography. One man who definetely surprised me on screen is the actor and martial artist David Kurzhal ( known on YouTube as Viking Samurai ) where he definetely proves in this film that he can be a future martial art movie star if he keep working in action films such as The Last Kumite. I have to say i really enjoy the performance of 90´s legend Matthias Hues as the evil character Ron Hall. Not only does he deliver some of the best dialogue in this film but i also feel that he also deliver his charming screen presence that he always had over 30 years on the big screen. Actress Monia Moula is really cool as the character Lea Martin, always ready to kick ass and not afraid to take on anyone. The evil character Dracko played by actor Mike Derudder turns out to be a great villain. I will say that lead actor Mathis Ladwehr is in physical great shape but could have given a stronger lead performance. The kumite competition itself feels like a throwback to the Van Damme classic Bloodsport without copying the film and just tries to be respectful towards the martial art community and i love seeing several martial art action legends in this film as well. The Last Kumite feels like a love letter that you would want to be read by Fabio while hearing a saxophone playing in the background, except here they use special kicks instead. The title song of this film called No Surrender is a perfect match from artist Stand Bush. A film made for martial art fans that´s a fun throwback to the good days and i appreciate the effort director Ross W. Clarksson put into making this film. Everyone should be getting a physical copy of The Last Kumite this summer, so we can get a sequel in the future and continue the legacy of martial art films for a new genration.

Rating: DDD