Comeuppance Reviews
The brilliance of Arizal shines once again with this wildly fun and entertaining outing. All of Arizal's films are absolutely great, even priceless; it's our contention that it's only because none of his films got U.S. distribution during the golden age of the video store that he isn't a household name like so many other directors. Because their movies could be found in video stores, so-called "cult" directors like Russ Meyer, David Lynch, and John Waters, as well as the horror contingent big names like Romero/Carpenter/Craven, are just some of the directors that are in the public consciousness. Or at least they are among film and video freaks. Fact: Arizal deserves to be among them in the pantheon of great cult directors. Maybe with time, that will occur. We'll do our small part to shine a light on his highly impressive body of work.Now we'll get off our soapbox. The plot, which is quite simple to provide plenty of space for action, concerns rival factions vying for a much sought-after piece of microfilm. At least it's not the time-honored "disc" so many people in these movies are looking for, but we can't remember a time when anyone ever wanted a microfiche. But we digress. Jake Carver (Mitchum) wants the microfilm, so he travels to Indonesia. But Adam (Superfoot) and his henchman Frank (Abbott) also want it. A man named Hope Seleck (O'Brian, The Stabilizer himself) also wants it and he feels the wrath of Jake. So the baddies kidnap Jake's girlfriend Janet (Iasha, like O'Brian a veteran of another Arizal movie, in her case Final Score) and all hell breaks loose. Shooting, stunts, fights, helicopter chases, cars flipping over and blow-ups galore ensue. Will one of the baddies be an American hunter, or will Chris Mitchum be an American Hunter? Definitely find out today! Right now! Much like Arizal's ability to create impressive action on a rock-bottom budget, our love for him knows no limits. The movie just STARTS - we're thrown in the pool and left to swim right from the first second, almost Godfrey Ho style (Abbott was a Ho mainstay). But would you want it any other way? But you can tell it's Arizal bein' Arizal right from the jump. The amusement of the audience never lets up (isn't that what cinematic entertainment is all about?) , and you never have to wait long for action. At the very least, there will be a silly punch-up or two just to remind you who's boss.Chris Mitchum is once again at his best, taking down hordes of Asians with his Martial Arts ability, all while in a leisure suit. Well, when he's not in a stonewashed jean jacket, that is. Who else but Mitchum could master the art of the "nonchalant backflip"? Naturally, there's the Prerequisite Torture of the hero, but this time it's better than usual. His nemesis, Superfoot, is also at his best here. His acting is almost John Miller-esque, though, to be fair, no one could really scale the heights of Mr. Miller. Clearly Mitchum vs. Superfoot is the true clash of the titans, and if you want to see what happens, just watch this fast-paced, enjoyable and fun outing. There's no excuse to miss it.Arizal should be counted as one of the preeminent action filmmakers of his day, and American Hunter is just more proof that his talent is not a one-film accident. American Hunter seals the fact that his star should be in the movie-making firmament with the greats.
a-east
A shirtless Robert Mitchum felt the sting of a lash across his bare back in the 1951 "His Kind of Woman." Now son Chris feels the sting of at least seven lashes across his bare back in this sloppy but lively made-in-Indonesia actioner. Thus the Mitchums qualify as one of filmdom's father-son victims-of-whipping combinations on the silver screen. (John Wayne was whipped in "The Conqueror" and son Ethan felt the lash in "Man Hunt." Errol Flynn was whipped in "Against All Flags" and son Sean received similar treatment in "Son of Captain Blood.") After his whipping, the shirtless Chris Mitchum then suffers electric shocks administered through a metal collar around his neck, but Chuck Norris underwent a similar torture in "Braddock: Missing in Action 3" some two years previously and Norris's torture scene was much superior. The rest of "American Hunter" is the usual mish-mash of action scenes which divert for the moment but which, like the lashes given to Chris Mitchum's back, don't leave any mark.
HaemovoreRex
Chris Mitchum returns once more in another Indonesian action outing here.This time the plot concerns our man's tenacious hunt for a secret microfilm which is initially in the possession of none other than our old friend Peter 'The Stabilizer' O'Brian (here playing a bit of a greedy no gooder!) However, another rather sinister group headed by kickboxing legend Bill 'Superfoot' Wallace and IFD films favourite Mike Abbott are also desperate to lay their evil paws on said microfilm.Well, you can probably guess and needless to say; plenty of action ensues including a plethora of shoot outs, car chases, big explosions, some cool martial arts (Wallace getting to show off his lightning fast foot skills!) and stunts aplenty (it's especially great to see the ever durable Mitchum performing a great many of his own stunts - A true performer indeed!)Yes, this is typically entertaining stuff from the ever dependable Arizal. Well worth checking out!
udar55
Okay, so I watched this last night and I think I may have found my film of the year for 2006. Seriously, I can't think of anything else that will be more entertaining than this. Lots of people run around to try and secure some microfilm, which we are never told what it contains! It is literally shoot out after shoot out, chase after chase, huge explosion after huge explosion. The amazing thing is seeing Chris Mitchum do quite a bit of his own stunt work. Plus you have incredible support from guys like Bill "Super Foot" Wallace, Mike Abbott (looking like a cute Robert Z'Dar) and RAMBU himself Peter O'Brian as a wimp (!) named Tom Selick (say it out loud). This should come as no shock to anyone who has seen Azrial's earlier films like THE STABILIZER and FEROCIOUS FEMALE FREEDOM FIGHTERS.
