Picture it, Kyoto, 1949. A ratty hermit enters a renowned Karate tournament held by Japan’s Karate masters and absolutely sweeps the event due to his mastery of “real” Karate, as opposed to the showier style of his peers.
That man, Masutatsu Oyama (played by action master Sonny Chiba, 1974’s Street Fighter series of films from Toei, who also produced this picture) was a real-life, Korean born Karate master that not only had a true passion for murdering bulls with his bare-hands, but also was Chiba’s sensei… but this film is based more on Karate Baka Ichidai, the manga-version of Oyama’s life (created by Ikki Kajiwara, Jirô Tsunoda, and Jôya Kagemaru, here adapted by screenwriter Norifumi Suzuki) than the actual events, which thankfully means less bull deaths are involved… but I’m getting ahead of myself…
Oyama’s victory means jack shit to him (because it was against inferior Karate remember) and after a show of strength and ability against a gaggle of Coca-Cola swiggin’ American G.I.s (he slaps a woman across the ol’ kisser in that section as well… still no bulls though), Oyama accepts a student to begin teaching his style… to expand the brand and all that.
Soon after however a bull does go apeshit proving to be areal menace to anyone that gets in his way, so our hero decides that Karate is the only solution to this problem and through the use of clever editing, a fake bull, a kinda sleepy real bull that Chiba really tries to sell as being completely out of control (but credit where credit is due, I personally would not have gone anywhere near that thing, but Chiba gives zero fucks), and a spraying geyser of blood we get what we were promised… and it’s simultaneously completely bananas and completely incredible.
After his student goes rogue, Oyama begins to rethink his violent path in life… but that Karate organization he bested earlier will do their damnedest to keep him on that raucous, rough n’ tumble road!
Director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi (known for his Street Fighter adjacent series, 1974’s Sister Street Fighter and it’s sequels), Karate Bullfighter from 1975 is exactly what it promises either way you look at it; there’s Karate, there’s bullfighting… there’s also Karate bullfighting, but there is so much more to make this a wild n’ wooly, fist (ands feet) to face fight flick!
Chiba is of course the main draw here, and he brings all of his normal machismo… plus, as always, he’s off-the-charts violent for a large percentage of the scenes. And when speaking of said bone-breaking action, the majority of it seems very plausible (notice I did not say realistic) and absolutely brutal… though the tightness of the shots in said sequences was a bit puzzling considering the filmmakers are trying to showcase vivid movements utilizing multiple opponents… but the frenzied cinematography of Yoshio Nakajima (also of the Sister Street Fighter series, as well as 1974’s (busy-ass year… holy hell!) Zero Woman: Red Handcuffs) keeps the images electrifying in their rawness.
This is contrasted by the moody set pieces that are filled with plenty of rain drenched (and at times gloriously stagey) sets that often set a near-surreal, arty vibe among all of the ass beatings… and the film’s influence on future fighting based video games becomes more apparent as the film progresses (that aforementioned G.I. battle is like a game stage come to life (something Guile might appear in for instance), and the bull bonus game in Data East’s Karate Champ had to be influenced by Oyama’s adventures).
To enhance Karate Bullfighter‘s said beatings of ass, Eureka! has assembled some choice bonus material here including an audio commentary by action cinema experts Mike Leeder & Arne Venema that provides a lively, info and anecdote-packed conversation on the film from a knowledgeable fan’s perspective, a video essay comparing Chiba’s Oyama flicks to real-life events and traditions, alternate opening credoits (utilizing one of the film’s alternate titles, Champion of Death), a theatrical trailer, and a TV spot.
Moving on to Disc 2 we have Karate Bearfighter, also from 1975…
It’s now ’51 and Mas (a returning Chiba) is back on the attack, Jack… showing up at other people’s dojos to kick their asses just as brazen as you please… and when people get (justifiably) pissed off about it, Mas kicks their asses in a second time as well.
He soon becomes an alcoholic (he downs some booze soup at one point before nearly drowning himself in sake shortly thereafter… there’s a fight in the middle somewhere), then becomes the muscle for a local gangster/army buddy… but given that Mas is a grim mother fucker through and through, things go South there.
Soon he becomes a wandering righter of wrongs (through violence… lots of it… and all of it brutal and awesome in equal measure) while still finding time to stay one step ahead of assassins sent after him by a karate school he disgraced, run afoul of a bizarre pole-fighting master (with additional “threatening aura”… and so threatening is said aura that upon encountering it Mas appears to have a total psychedelic freak-out resulting in Chiba jumping directly over that madcap mother fucker like a bouncing ball… it’s as impressive as it is insane), and play matchmaker to a hostess and a former Mas impersonator.
There’s also revenge, family melodrama (a surprising amount of it in a movie about a man karate fighting wildlife), and Karate fishing… but not a single dribble of bear fighting…
That is not until a lil’ past the hour mark… that’s when a The Most Dangerous Game-style plot twist (with a twist) results in a gentleman’s wager to have the famous bull fighter try his hand at besting a bear in mortal combat in order to pay some medical bills for an injured logger.
Let me just say that this shit is a showstopper well worth the wait as unlike his groggy bovine nemesis, this creature is all man-in-a-suit goodness… a suit that misses being convincing by that much… but is a tremendous amount of fun… and that’s all anyone should need, baby!
Director Kazuhiko Yamaguchi returns, but is now joined by screenwriters Masahiro Kakefuda and Nobuaki Nakajima (but still firmly based on the aforementioned manga version of Mas’ real-life legacy) and the result is a franticly off-kilter, often surreal bit of filmmaking that is every bit as visually vibrant as you’d expect given the narrative’s manga origins.
The film also features a truly epic feel as in just under an hour and a half we follow our hero from roguish ass, to Oliver Reed-level drunkard, to honorable thug, to wandering ultra-violent do-gooder existing in a world of crazy, often anachronistic martial arts killers, 1920’s style, cartoony gangsters (at least some of them are, others look like they’re straight out of the ’70s), and of course, and that eponymous ursine wonder, this film is the fever-dream gem of this double-feature!
Additionally the bonkers cinematography here (once again courtesy of Yoshio Nakajima) accents the more over-the-top, comic book-style action sequences prevalent here (including a rather incredible looking silhouetted brawl inside of a tunnel) and complement the break-neck pace of the film perfectly.
As for special features to enhance the main event, the offerings include another fantastic commentary from Mike Leeder and Arne Venema, and the film’s theatrical trailer.
It also has to be said that both pictures look gorgeous here and the transfers (new restorations of the original film elements by Toei) feature rich colors and sharp detail to such an extent that often the film looks as if it was shot decades later than it actually was.
Featuring bone-breaking action, dubious representations of the natural world, and macho-attitude for days, the Beast Fighter double feature is an irresistible journey into the wild side of martial arts madness!
