Gutsycurene Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Sarita Rafferty There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Patryk Czekaj Watching Fist of the North Star proves to be an anime experience like no other. Surprising, as it may seem, the perspicuous rough-and-tumble attitude made this film an instant classic in its genre. Being mostly an expressive testosterone-infused bloodbath, Fist of the North Star presents its own thought-provoking nature with utterly graphic scenes of animated violence. And still, it's able to draw one's attention with the engaging and fast-paced storyline about a post-apocalyptic universe, where people have given up their faith in humanity and exterminate each other in a grizzly fashion. Note: this is a review of the version released in the United States, with English dubbing, and with the original ending from the first official release.After the opening credits fade away the movie attacks with a heavy thump. Literally in the blink of an eye, even before we get acquainted with the main characters, bones start to crack and blood starts to spill all over the screen. As it's soon revealed, those two men fighting in the middle of a vast dessert are former friends, who are now deadly enemies both seriously in love with one beautiful girl. The only problem is that Julia (voiced by Melodee Spivack) is engaged to Ken (John Vickery), who, after this short combat, is very close to death. In order to save her fiancé she agrees to go with the evil Shin (Michael McConnohie), leaving semiconscious Ken in the lurch. And if this wasn't enough, a few minutes later two mysterious strangers grab his lifeless body and throw it into a deep hole. A year passes and all the previous events gradually begin to connect, just to unravel the actual meaning behind the whole blood-soaked intrigue. While saving two youngsters from the vicious hands of slow-witted bullies Ken shows his – this time bearded – face once again. Chock-full of revenge thoughts, he embarks on a dangerous journey not only to save his woman, but also to discover the sense of his existence in this chaotic, stolid world full of thugs. Paradoxically, apart from Shin, the people who stand on his way to happiness are his two brothers Jagi (Dan Woren) and Raoh (Wally Burr). Following various traces Ken slowly claims his vengeance through the indelicate art of kick-and-punch, which – for the viewers' sick amusement – always results in spectacular head explosions.Those people who've read the manga or watched the anime series of the same name won't be surprised by anything that happens throughout the whole film. The only shock might come from the extensive brutality that beams from the screen. As for those who don't know the story – at first, it might be hard to follow the events without being a little confused. Fortunately, due to the film's well-balanced plot everything begins to make sense after a short period of time, giving the viewer a great amount of proper fun.The picture's rather simple, even obscure, animation leaves a lot to be desired. In comparison with the TV series, the theatrical version doesn't really upgrade the raw visual style. Also, when it comes to character development the movie fails miserably. Every individual is mindlessly implanted into the storyline, leading to a contest of poor one-dimensional encounters. What's more, the cheesy English dubbing gives the characters a nerve-racking attitude, only worsening the final effect. That's why it's better to restrain from evaluating their personalities and focus on many thrilling, gore-ific action sequences instead. Surely, this aspect of Fist of the North Star won't disappoint anyone.

xxxredsunrisesxxx I would have given it a 10 based on the Characters alone, however as much as I Love this Movie I had to slide it down to an 8 only because the 1986 version is not so great when it comes down to artwork, I know this was drawn by hand frame by frame, so it does not spoil the film. Here comes the spoil, which isn't much of a spoiler: One of the First scenes has Ken rising up from the grave, The scene I'm referring to is a solid shot of Ken Walking toward the, (mad max) type of guys is the only way to describe them, scavengers. Ken is walking, he's encased in some sort of cocoon/mummy type of dressing which slowly breaks away revealing, his Human form, but as he walks the decrepit, abandoned, buildings begin to topple over, you would think they would crush any person, however Ken walks straight through them as if walking through a stream of water, The buildings crumble and snap in two over ken's body, He walks slow as the building are destroyed upon contact with him, This is my favorite scene in the film, and of coarse the final battle with Raoh is tremendous, fantastic sequence, you can almost feel there fight against one another. Epic...Epic, hope you found this informative and fun, I write Movie reviews all the time, this is just a scene being described because I love this movie.

Jesus Mendieta I had like 16 years old when i found a copy of Hokuto No Ken in one of my favorite Videoclubs,i really didn't care so much but one cousin and his friend decided to rent it and that we should see it at my house,when we arrived and saw the film we were astonished it was an anime film (because i firstly thought it was a Van Damme Film),it had a lot of death but it had a spark that made it a true jewel to me,i was so excited until my mom arrived and saw one scene where a person had his head bursting out,to my surprise she wasn't angry,she liked the film,she thought it was violent but it remembered her the Mad Max film,it was sad when we had to return the VHS,but now that 1 year has passed one friend gave me a VCD containing the film,i highly recommend it,but only if you have a lot of tolerance.

Rudbeck 'Way over-rated! This movie and series is just cheap and mediocre. The animation is stiff, the violence gratuitous, and the script non-existent. A lot of the action is old-school consisting of camera pans across a static drawing - please! The story-line (if there is one) is impossible to follow and the dialog is just plain silly! Anime is limitless in its possibilities; so it is a shame to see it wasted on something like this pap.Don't squander your time on this when there is so much better anime to choose from.If you want action and/or violence as well as an excellent story and powerful animation, check out "Hellsing" or "AD Police" or particularly "Now and Then, Here and There."