This is the final movie in the absurd but thoroughly entertaining ZA KARATE trilogy starring Tadashi Yamashita as Tadashi Yamashita. At some point between parts two and three, Yamashita underwent surgery to restore his eyesight and is now working as a truck driver to earn money to buy his own dojo. Meanwhile, assholes from all over the globe keep showing up in town to challenge his World Karate Champ title, with the current crop including Crazy Ron from Taiwan, Muhammad Basura (Arab Karate Champion), the Dracula Habu Brothers (Okanawa Midani Style), and the Devil Cross, fighters dressed like Catholic priests who throw razor-lined saturnos and swing crucifixes with retractable blades ("Vatican Cross Style"). And then there's the Black Wolf, played by a totally out of control Donnie Williams, whose reaction to the villain's recap of the first two films is one of the funniest cut-back-to shots I've seen in a long time. The story, such as it is, centers around a new Ryushu Budoukan and the attempts by its corrupt board members to thwart the appointment of Tai Chi Master Chin as the chairman. As with the previous installments, Yamashita's comic relief sidekick Sanpei is annoying as hell, but the fights are still the main attraction and this entry delivers the goods. All in all, ZA KARATE 3 is a satisfying conclusion to a consistently enjoyable series. Oh, and despite what most other movie websites claim, this is not the movie that New Line Cinema released in the U.S. as BRONSON LEE, CHAMPION. That's ZA KARATE, which I reviewed two days ago. This one was called PERILS OF KARATE when it played in Hawaii in 1977.
SURE KILL aka SISTER STREET FIGHTER: FIFTH LEVEL FIST
KARATE LADY'S REVENGE aka SONNY CHIBA'S DRAGON PRINCESS
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