Beystiman
It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.
Ketrivie
It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.
merklekranz
Scott Glenn is an American boxer, recruited into a Japanese feud over ancient swords. Initially he tries playing the feuding brothers for financial gain, similar to Clint Eastwood in "A Fistful of Dollars". Soon however the movie morphs into a martial arts training film like "Enter the Dragon". The climax is a free for all sword fight, with Glenn taking on the evil brother, and taking quite an impressive beating to boot. There are a few chuckles, especially relating to Glenn's attempt to understand Japanese culture. Head lopping and torso slicing aside, the story is pretty good, the acting by Scott Glenn and Toshiro Mifune competent, and the entertainment value delivered. Can't ask for more than that. Recommended of it's type. - MERK
FlashCallahan
Rick, a down-and-out boxer, is hired to transport a sword to Japan, unaware that the whole thing is a set up in a bitter feud between two brothers, one who follows the traditional path of the samurai and the other a businessman. Rick undertakes samurai training from the other brother, and joins his cause. He also becomes romantically involved with the samurai's daughter.When you watch this, for some reason you cannot help but think about The Last Samurai. A 'foreigner' joins a group, shut out from the world, and learns and gradually respects their ways.Other than that, its a fairly brutal movie, but unfortunately, due to Glenn being miscast, the film fails on many levels. Glenn is a great actor, but an action star he is not, and when you see him running during set pieces, its laughable.Mifune is their because he adds a little gravitas, and the other brother wears a suit because hey! It's a sign of the times.Many have stated that this is a fantastic movie, and it appears to have a cult following, it a decapitation cannot justify this status.And the supposedly powerful death with the chap in the wheelchair, is sadly hilarious.Watch Enter The Ninja instead, at least its a little tongue in cheek.
lost-in-limbo
Director John Frankenheimer has made some great features; some not quite so and there are those which have fallen down the cracks. "The Challenge" happens to be one those forgotten oddities, but grippingly awesome pulpy martial arts entertainment. Establishing the violently vigorous action with the dramatically thoughtful material (a westerner coming to respect the traditional ways of eastern culture) --- as Glenn's washed-up American boxer Rick finds himself caught up in a family feud when smuggling a sacred samurai sword back to Japan. There he encounters trouble, so he wants out and gets the owed money for doing the job. However there's a change of heart as he wants to learn from Toru Yoshida at his school, but secretly his paid to steal the sword for Toru's brother, Hideo. Who's a businessman more concerned with modern methods, than anything traditional.It's an outrageously sharp, but meditatively-laced screenplay by Richard Maxwell and John Sayles, which packs plenty of punches (also humour), plot surprises and sets up some memorable set-pieces (bug-munching anyone?) within its Tokyo backdrop. Composer Jerry Goldsmith contributes a flavorers, flighty musical piece. Frankenheimer's lean and mean directorial style, goes down well with the superbly staged action (helping out as a material arts supervisor was Steven Seagal) and his leering camera covers numerous creative angles that don't shy away. What we have to sit through is well worth the wait for an outstandingly honourable climatic samurai battle (swift, blood-gushing and intense confrontations -- even a stapler can be dangerous!) within a futuristic-like building between the likes of Scott Glenn, Toshiro Mifune and Atsuo Nakamura. The characters are well-defined with tremendous performances to make that possible. Glenn's rough, dogged persona simply works, but there's also a compassionate side with the relationship he shares with a young boy. Mifune brings a respectable temperament and Nakamura perfectly pitches a callous edge.Possibly overlong, but "The Challenge" is cracking entertainment.
balrahg
This is by far one of my favorite Toshiro movies. It was one of the defining movies of my whole movie watching experience. Toshiro Mifune is at his best, better than "Red Sun"! Scott Glenn, also at his best!! The fights are great. The choreography is also at its best. The story is gripping and holds the movie-goer until the end. Drama! Seeing T. Mifune as the teacher is inspiring. He is a fascinating character and is probably one of the best there was. As the story goes it is a classic dramatic struggle between the elements of the warrior. Seeing Scott Glenn make the transition from a simple man to the Warrior he becomes is gripping and holds you until the action packed ending.
