Movie Reviews: Fist of the North Star

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Title:
Fist of the North Star

Cast:

Akira Kamiya as Kenshiro
Yuriko Yamamoto as Yuria
Kenji Utsumi as Raoh
Chikao Ostuka as Jagi
Toshio Furukawa as Shin
Kaneto Shiozawa as Rei
Tomiko Suzuki as Lin
Mie Suzuki as Bart
Arisa Ando as Airi
Junji Chiba as Master Ryuken
Taro Ishida as the Narrator

Directed by: Toyo Ashida

Country: Japan

Distributed by: Streamline Pictures and Toei Company LTD.

Genre: Post Apocalyptic/Action/Adventure/Fantasy Martial Arts/Anime

Year of Release: 1986

Synopsis: In the near future, planet Earth is devastated by a nuclear war that destroyed entire cities, vaporized the water, and reduced the world to a barren desert wasteland. Somehow, mankind managed to survive this disaster in spite of the many lives lost in the war. But as fate would have it, mankind lived only to face a new nightmare. In this dark and bleak age, motorcycle gangs prey on helpless groups of nomads for their food and valuables. The radiation levels from the nuclear holocaust have created hideous mutated savages with strength far surpassing that of normal men. And the rulers of the world control their territories by making slaves of the remaining survivors and striking fear into the hearts of many with brute force. But in this age where mankind has become a helpless creature, there is hope. A man named Kenshiro is the practitioner of a mystical martial art style known as "Hokuto Shinken" (Northern Dipper God Fist), and is the 65th heir of the art. It is said that Hokuto Shinken is an ancient style that has been practiced and preserved for over 2000 years, and that it is so powerful and so destructive, that only one person can master it at a given time. Another such art is "Nanto Seiken" (Southern Dipper Holy Fist), which has many different styles and schools. Nanto Seiken is said to be the opposite of Hokuto Shinken. Because of this, masters of Nanto Seiken often rival with the practitioners of the opposite art.

While walking through the deserted barren wasteland, Kenshiro and his girlfriend Yuria are confronted by Shin and his gang of marauders. Shin tells Ken that their friendship is over, and tries to take Yuria by force, which results in a heated clash between the two fighters. However, the fight is short lived as Shin seems to have gained the upper hand; large gash wounds suddenly appear on Kenshiro's arms and legs, and his blood sprays from his body. But even with Kenshiro mortally injured, Yuria refuses to leave him for Shin. But Shin forces her to make up her mind by having his henchmen restrain Kenshiro while Shin punctures his chest seven times with his fingers. Yuria could stand no more of the brutality being bestowed upon her boyfriend, and so she begs Shin to stop and hesitantly tells him that she'll go with him. Shin leaves Kenshiro to die a slow and agonizing death while he takes Yuria with him to his castle. Unknown to them, Raoh and Jagi are seen witnessing the events while standing on the top of a cliff from afar. Believing him dead, Jagi drags the unconscious body of Kenshiro and tosses him off a cliff, sending him falling into a dark pit below. Meanwhile, Raoh goes off to the temple to confront Master Ryuken. He informs his master of Kenshiro's demise and that Raoh himself is now the heir of Hokuto Shinken. However, Ryuken denies this, and tells Raoh that physical strength is useless without perception. Raoh scolds Ryuken for this, and demonstrates his power by destroying two statues and crushing them with his bare hands. He declares that any form of power is useful if one knows how to use it. But Ryuken remains unconvinced and unimpressed, and tells Raoh to leave his temple. But even with that being said, the ambitious Raoh leaves to form a powerful empire to control the world.

Meanwhile, two young orphans named Bart and Lin are being chased by a motorcycle gang through the desert and through the desolated city streets. Eventually after a long pursuit, the gang steals their car, food, and valuables, and threaten to kill the two children. But just before they could harm them, a mysterious cloaked figure appears out of nowhere, gruesomely kills the gang, and saves the two children. It is then revealed that the figure is Kenshiro, who somehow survived his fall, and has returned to exact personal revenge on his past friend Shin. Kenshiro befriends Bart and Lin, and as this unlikely trio wander through the desolate wasteland, they come across various friends and foes alike.

Personal Comments: My experiences with Fist of the North Star (Hokuto no Ken in Japan) dates all the way back to the mid to late 1980s when I was a kid. Of course, I did not see this movie back when it first came out. In fact, I didn't see this movie until the year 2000 when I rented it from my local video store on this particular day. Anyway, Fist of the North Star is an anime and manga series that began back in the early 1980s. The manga was written and illustrated by Tetsuo Hara and was published in Japan back in 1983. The manga was then adapted into an anime TV series a year later in 1984, which I have since familiarized myself with back in between the late 90s and the early 2000s. The series was so popular and successful in Japan, that it had spawned numerous media including movies, video games, and even a whole merchandise. In fact, Fist of the North Star was a huge hit in Japan, and remains among some of the most well-known and recognized anime franchises of all time. Not only is it big in its native country, but it's also big in the US as well.

Before I review this movie, I want to thoroughly go over how I first came to know this particular franchise. It all started when I first learned about this old side-scrolling video game that was released for the Famicom, which was the Japanese equivalent of the NES. I didn't know what the title of the game was because it was written in Japanese. And back then, I couldn't read any Japanese. But now that I know at least some of it, the title reads as "Hokuto no Ken" (北斗の拳) which as I've already mentioned is the Japanese title for "Fist of the North Star". The original title roughly translates as "Fist of the Big Dipper". In this game, you play as the main character Kenshiro as you walk your way through various stages killing any on-screen enemies and stage bosses that come your way. Like in most side scrolling games at the time, you are rewarded with a simple yet meaningful ending after you defeat the final boss at the end. The graphics in this game are okay for an old NES game, though the special effects like the exploding enemies didn't look believable to me. That is, it was rather pixilated. I'm guessing it was supposed to be graphic. But since this is from an old video game from the NES era, the gore was not as detailed or as graphic as depicted in the manga or the anime from which the game is based on. But what the hell; it was an old game for an old gaming system. Anyway, that one video game was how I first came to know Fist of the North Star.

The concept of Fist of the North Star was most likely influenced by a large variety of different film genres, martial arts, fantasy, and celebrity references. Probably one of the most noticeable influences this anime has is from the Mad Max series starring Mel Gibson. Like in the Mad Max series, Fist of the North Star takes place in a post-apocalyptic setting where the Earth is dying and mankind struggles to survive against enemies who prey on the weak. However, that's where the similarities end as most of the concept itself is entirely unique. One of the main themes Fist of the North Star revolves around is the concept of super-human martial arts masters who are practitioners of fictional fighting styles that give them great wondrous powers. However, these martial art styles can only be mastered by those who are descended from the bloodlines of the arts. Those who master such mystical fighting styles are literally transformed into superhuman fighting machines who are nearly unstoppable. It's very similar to Dragon Ball Z in the sense that the characters possess numerous superpowers that no ordinary man can master. Kenshiro is the 65th heir to the art of Hokuto Shinken, an ancient martial art style that deals with the pressing of various vital points on the human body. Depending on which vital points the practitioner presses, the opponent will either be paralyzed, have their memories wiped away, or they will die a gruesome and horrible death. One of the most commonly known themes of Fist of the North Star is that Kenshiro can easily destroy his enemies by making their bodies explode in graphic detail with a single hit. In fact, I don't want to forget that Fist of the North Star is well-known by audiences everywhere for its violence and gore. And if you thought Mortal Kombat was bloody and gruesome, just wait until you see Fist of the North Star. This movie is Mortal Kombat x 10 in violence and gore. I'm warning you; if you are sensitive and easily nauseated by intense bloody violence, then this anime will probably make you puke and give you nightmares. In fact, I would not recommend this movie to sensitive viewers or children under the age of 18. But then again, who am I to talk? I saw this movie when I was 17. So what the hell.  

Kenshiro, the main character, was most likely inspired by a combination of influences ranging from Bruce Lee, Sylvester Stallone, and the Mad Max fashion. He sports a similar attire to the main protagonist from Mad Max, which consists of a sort of motorcycle outfit complete with the black leather jacket, jeans, boots, shoulder pads, and arm gauntlets. In my point of view, Kenshiro closely resembles Bruce Lee and Sylvester Stallone in both facial features, and in being a hardcore badass. In fact, I always thought that Kenshiro looks a lot like Sylvester Stallone as he did in the Rocky and Rambo films during his popularity in between late 70s and the early 80s. And as I mentioned in my review of "Enter the Dragon" one of the most noticeable traits that Kenshiro shares with Bruce Lee is the animalistic battle cries that he utters when in combat. When angry, Kenshiro can increase his power to a maximum level, which causes him to grow large muscles, and tears his shirt and jacket to shreds. When in this form, Kenshiro is near unstoppable, and his enemies have no chance of surviving. In other words, they're as good as dead. Kenshiro's catch phrase is "Omae wa mou, shindeiru" which in Japanese means "You're already dead". He usually says this to his enemies after delivering a finishing blow before they explode into a gory mess.

It's worth mentioning that this movie, simply titled "Fist of the North Star", is basically a retelling of the original story from the manga and the anime of the same name. If you have seen the TV show, you'll instantly notice some strikingly similar events which happen in both the manga and the 1984 TV series. Some of the most notable events being Shin's betrayal and the abduction of Ken's girlfriend Yuria, followed by Rei's introduction scene where he makes short work of a gang of thugs who mistake him for a woman before he removes his pink cloak, followed by Jagi's attempt to frame Kenshiro with his own self inflicted chest scars. Some of the other notable scenes include the scene where Kenshiro gruesomely takes out a giant named Zeedo with one of his signature moves; "Hokuto-Hyakuretsu-Ken", which is basically a "rapid punch" move in which the character throws a hundred to a thousand punches per second. Kenshiro can also do a "rapid kick" move as well, although both moves are referred to by the same name for some odd reason. It is believed by many that these ideas might have inspired some of the special attacks for two of the most popular characters from the Street Fighter universe. Namely E. Honda and Chun-Li. But in fact, due to all the similar looking characters and special attacks, Fist of the North Star in general seems to have been one of the main inspirations for Street Fighter, minus the intense violence and gore.

There are other characters in this movie who also appear in the manga and the TV show. One of the most notable characters is Shin, who in the manga and the anime is one of Kenshiro's rivals. As I stated earlier, Shin was at first Ken's best friend. And they've known each other since their childhood years. However, Shin was secretly jealous of Ken for being one step ahead of him, and also had a crush on Yuria, Ken's girlfriend. And so, sometime after the nuclear war devastated the world, things took a drastic turn for the worse. Jagi, who is one of Kenshiro's adoptive brothers, corrupted Shin and persuaded him to act on his dark desires, which results in the events that took place at the movie's opening. This incident has left Ken with his signature chest scars, which were placed on him in the shape of the big dipper, earning him his nickname "The Man with Seven Scars". And then there's Jagi, who is another one of Ken's rivals. Like Ken, Jagi was raised by the great martial arts master Ryuken, and was trained hard to master the art of Hokuto Shinken. However, since only one person can master the art at a given time, Ryuken had chosen Kenshiro to be the 65th heir to the art, which drove Jagi mad with rage and jealousy. Armed with a pistol, Jagi attempted to murder Kenshiro to claim the title of heir, which he believed was rightfully his to own. But Kenshiro defeats Jagi in self-defense and mutilates his face, which he then kept hidden away from sight by wearing an iron mask that covers his entire face. Driven insane by his humiliation, Jagi is fueled by his own vanity and his hatred for Kenshiro, and vows to take personal revenge on him by any means necessary. This event inevitably led to Shin's betrayal at the beginning of the story.

And then there's Raoh, the main antagonist of the movie, and one of the main villains in the manga and the anime. Like Jagi, Raoh is another one of Kenshiro's adoptive brothers who was raised and trained by Ryuken to master Hokuto Shinken. However, unlike Jagi, who relies mostly on dirty tricks and cheating tactics to win battles, Raoh relies mostly on brute force and brute strength to destroy his enemies. Like Kenshiro, Raoh has mastered the inner most secrets of the art, and can execute a number of killing techniques as well as being able to increase his power level to a maximum capacity. Raoh is arguably one of the most powerful villains in the franchise, and is a formidable foe worthy of mention. He's what I'd like to call the perfect villain; a worthy challenger for the main protagonist. In all of his appearances, Raoh is depicted as a tall muscular man standing around 8 to 9 feet in height, wears an imperial headdress and cape, and often rides around on a giant black horse named "Kokuo". Defying all the rules of his adoptive father and master, Raoh's deepest desire is to have complete power and domination over all nations of the world. Cruel and ruthless, Raoh does not hesitate to kill whoever opposes him.

There are a few allies who Kenshiro comes across in the anime and the manga. But in this movie, only one of his allies is present. And that one ally is a guy named Rei, who like Shin, is also a master of Nanto Seiken. Rei is often depicted as one of Kenshiro's closest friends and allies in most continuities of the story. It's worth pointing out however, that since Nanto Seiken has many different styles, Shin and Rei have their own unique fighting styles which lie within the same category. Although not mentioned in the anime or the movie, Shin's style is "Nanto Koshu Ken" (Southern Dipper Lone Eagle Fist). Rei's style is "Nanto Suicho Ken" (Southern Dipper Water Bird Fist). Although different styles of Nanto Seiken, both styles share similar characteristics such as giving the practitioner the ability to slice through solid matter. Nanto Koshu Ken deals mainly with stabbing, gashing, and impaling enemies simply with the thrust of the user's movements. Shin for instance can easily drive his hands through his opponent's body in a violent and needless to say gruesome manner, while Rei's style allows him to slice enemies by emitting streams of concentrated energy from the tips of his fingers. With the mere stroke of his hands, Rei can easily slice his opponents to pieces with the greatest of ease. Rei's story is basically him embarking on a quest to find his younger sister Airi, who was abducted by Jagi claiming to be Kenshiro himself. Rei tells Kenshiro that he did not see the face of Airi's kidnapper, but was told that the man had seven scars on his chest and wore an iron mask. In the movie and the TV series, Kenshiro keeps to himself the secret of his scars and beats Rei to the punch by taking out Jagi single handedly. But in the manga and the TV series, Kenshiro eventually reveals his scars to Rei, which shocks him. Surprisingly, rather than engaging in a fight to the death with Ken, Rei immediately gets convinced by Lin and Airi that the man who abducted his sister was Jagi and not Ken.

Although this movie is a retelling of the story from the manga and the TV show, it's worth pointing out that there are certain characters who don't appear in the movie. Some of the few characters from the manga who actually "do" appear in the movie include Mr. Heart, an obese giant who originally served as one of Shin's minions. In this movie however, he is a servant of Jagi, and specializes in using his own body weight as his fighting style. In all continuities, Mr. Heart meets a gruesome demise at the hands of Kenshiro. Another character from the manga who appears in the movie is "Kiba Daioh" (Japanese for Great Fang Lord) who is the leader of a tribe of savages known as the "Kiba Clan". Like Zeedo and Mr. Heart, Kiba Daioh is a giant who greatly towers over other characters in size. Being the leader of the clan, he is very powerful, and like Colossus from X-Men, he has the ability to turn his body to solid steel, rendering him almost invulnerable to physical harm. And lastly, there are the characters known as the Colonel and Jackal, who in the manga were their own stand-alone villains. In the movie however, they were minions who served Jagi and Shin, and were also killed by Jagi and Shin respectively.

As for the characters from the manga and the TV show who did not appear in the movie, there are at least several. One such character who does not appear anywhere in the movie is Toki, who is yet another one of Kenshiro's adoptive brothers raised by the great Ryuken. Unlike Raoh and Jagi, Toki is not an amoral villain who sought the title of heir for his own personal gain. But rather, he is the exact opposite; he is a good man who is kind and well-meaning. Also unlike Raoh and Jagi, Toki was never jealous of Kenshiro inheriting the title of successor to the art of Hokuto Shinken. But rather, he was deeply proud of him, and although he was forbidden to use Hokuto Shinken as a fighting style, Toki instead used it as a means to heal the sick and injured. Toki is what is considered a Christ-like figure in being pure, benevolent, and totally devoted to the side of good. Another character who does not appear in the movie is "Souther" who in the manga and the anime is one of Kenshiro's toughest challengers right next to Raoh. Like Shin and Rei, Souther is also a master of Nanto Seiken. His style is "Nanto Ho-O Ken" which translates as "Southern Dipper Phoenix Fist". Like Raoh, Souther is also an ambitious villain who owns a powerful empire with legions of minions and soldiers at his command. Souther represents the "Star of Leadership" which rules over the other Nanto stars. In his youth, Souther was orphaned and was raised by the previous Ho-O Ken successor, Ohgai, who trained him during childhood, and had him practice with Raoh as a sparring partner. During his final training lesson, Souther unwillingly killed his sensei, who intentionally allowed himself to be killed by Souther. Traumatized by the event, Souther disavowed all feelings of love and compassion. After the nuclear war, he takes on the title of "Holy Emperor", and enslaves children with his army in order to construct a monument called the "Holy Cross Mausoleum", a shrine dedicated to his deceased sensei. And then there's Yuda, who kind of resembles Frank 'N' Furter from the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Like Furter, Yuda is a cross-dresser with a questionable sexual orientation. In the manga and the TV show, he is Rei's rival, and has his own style of Nanto Seiken called "Nanto Kokaku Ken" meaning "Southern Dipper Crimson Crane Fist". There are other characters who I have not even mentioned. But I won't flood this review detailing every character from the manga. In fact, I think I've said enough.

Moving on, I'd like to also point out that there are notable differences between the Japanese version and the English version of this movie. Although for the most part, the only thing that's really so different is the language that is spoken in both versions, there is one notable difference between the two such as the ending. I don't mean to spoil the ending for those of you who have not seen this movie. But if you "have" seen this movie along with the TV show and the manga, then you're probably familiar with it by now. Anyway, "Fist of the North Star" was released theatrically in Japan on March 8, 1986, followed by a VHS release in 1988, on Laserdisc in 1995, and on Region 2 DVD on November 21, 2008. The Japanese home video versions of the movie featured a revised ending from the original theatrical version. In the theatrical version, Kenshiro falls unconscious during the final battle, giving Raoh the perfect opportunity to finish him off until he is interrupted by Lin. In the revised ending, both warriors are still conscious and are still brutally beating each other to death. But just when they're about to deliver their finishing blows, they're both interrupted by Lin. The revised ending was produced since the film's director, Toyo Ashida, felt that the theatrical ending was unnatural due to the way Raoh abruptly decides to spare Kenshiro's life. Only the first-print editions of the VHS and DVD featured the theatrical ending. An English-dubbed version was produced by Streamline Pictures, which was first released on home video in 1991 in North America, and in 1994 in the United Kingdom and Australia by Manga Entertainment. The DVD release of Streamline's English dub was released by Image Entertainment. Discotek released a re-mastered DVD version of the film in May 2009, which, unlike the Japanese re-release, features only the original ending from the theatrical release.

The franchise has seen a huge legacy following from the late 1980s onwards. Shortly after the release of the 1986 film, it was soon followed by a sequel series called "Hokuto no Ken 2", which was only released in Japan, and aired from March 13, 1987 to February 18, 1988, lasting for 43 additional episodes. As a whole, the series lasted a total of 152 episodes. In 2004, a three episode OVA titled "Shin Hokuto no Ken" was produced by OB Planning, and was based on a 1996 Hokuto no Ken novel "Jubaku no Machi". An English dub version of the OVA was produced by ADV Films in later in 2004. The OVA takes place several years after the original series ended, and circles around Kenshiro's battle against a cruel empire ruled by the ruthless dictator Sanga. After finishing with him, Kenshiro must then deal with Sanga's equally vicious son Seiji. In 2005, North Stars Pictures and TMS Entertainment announced the development of a five-part film series titled "Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior". The series is composed of three theatrical films and two OVAs, which were released during a three-year period between 2006 throughout 2008, culminating with the 25th anniversary of the franchise. There are also the OVAs titled "Raoh Gaiden" and "Kenshiro Gaiden".

The last thing I want to talk about are the video games. As of recent years, there was a 2D fighting arcade game simply titled "Hokuto no Ken" which was produced by Sega and Arc System Works in 2005. The game features stunning visuals, impressive backgrounds and well-animated sprites, and features a variety of playable characters ranging from Kenshiro, Shin, Rei, Yuda, Souther, Raoh, Toki, Jagi, Mamia, and Mr. Heart. The game was only released in Japan, but can be downloaded on an emulator. A gaming company called "Koei" produced a Dynasty Warriors style spinoff based on the franchise titled "Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage", which was released in Japan on March 25, 2010, in North America on November 2, 2010, and in Europe on November 5, 2010.

Overall: Since I first watched this movie back in the year 2000, I have become a huge fan of the franchise ever since. Fist of the North Star is certainly worth checking out if you're a fan of the manga, the TV show, or both. However, if you have not seen either, you'll probably be lost in the story, and you'll have no idea what's going on. So I suggest you see the TV show or read the manga before you watch the movie. But whichever direction you choose is entirely up to you. Otherwise, this movie is certainly worth a good watch. If you're not entirely sure you'd like to own your own copy of it, rent it first to see if you like it or not. Besides, if you enjoy movies (especially anime movies) for their intense levels of blood, violence, and killing, than this is your title. And trust me when I say there's plenty of that here. Oh yeah; this movie is one huge gore fest. And I'm actually glad I didn't see this movie until I was a teenager cuz' I don't think I would have been able to handle it had I seen it back when I was 3 or 4 years old. But anyway, Fist of the North Star is a solid anime. It is without a doubt one of the bloodiest and most violent anime cartoons right next to Genocyber and MD Geist. But like I said, it all depends on whether or not you can handle it. But of course I would strongly recommend this movie mostly for gore fans and fans of the franchise in general. If you're a hardcore anime fan and are new to the franchise, then this is a good way to start. Ultimately, Fist of the North Star deserves a solid 5 stars.

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Cambion-Hunter's avatar
I need to get into this franchise. Seeing this makes me more interested. :)