Fist Of Honor [1993] [DVD]

Ol' Sam Jones more or less stayed out of the mainstream's eye following Flash Gordon, but while milling around the direct-to-video circuit, he still managed to make the occasional strong showing. "Fist of Honor" is one of these, and one of the all-around stronger vehicles from the PM Entertainment library - combining PM's usual penchant for solid action with some strong dramatic performances and fun characters. It's worth a watch for general fight fans and upwards.

The story: A Mafia collector (Jones) is unwittingly made a pawn in the deadly scheme of a local boss (Harry Guardino, Dirty Harry) to eliminate his competition and control the city.

PM's fight flicks tend to be karate-oriented, but while this one leans towards boxing and brawling, fans of spin kicks oughtn't feel excluded, thanks to a diverse selection of opponents for Sam. Mr. Jones isn't the most exciting onscreen fighter the company regularly featured, but he's big and nimble and able to sell a match reasonably well. There are ten fights - along with a couple of explosions and a bit of gunfire - and they're fairly tit-for-tat between average and entertaining ones. Watch early on for a particularly neat little slugfest wherein Sam's attacked with a baseball bat.

The one thing wherein Sam excels beyond most of his PM cohorts is likability. It's very easy to cheer for this guy, even without the presence of his shadier costars...although they are a very good thing by themselves. Simply, the film's got a really good cast. Harry Guardino (in his final film role) is fantastic as the evil don, as is his counterpart Abe Vigoda (The Godfather series). Fellow Coppola alumnus Frank Sivero plays a pretty cruel hitman, and Bubba Smith (Police Academy series) is the crooked detective on the take. Usually, I don't like films about organized crime, but this impressive cast - along with the strong screenplay - wins it over for me and should remind anyone that low-budget does not necessarily equate to low talent.

There are some things I didn't like: the constant racism is expected but still unpalatable, (SPOILER) and the film goes overboard by showcasing a woman (Joey House, Diary of a Sex Addict) beaten to death with brass knuckles. This one's clearly an exploitation flick, though considered as a whole, it's a pretty darn good one. Regular fans of the production company should pick it up without trepidation, action devotees in general will probably have a good time, and lovers of Sam Jones will probably like it, too.

Even more so that Sam J. Jones is in it! Thanks for sending it in a timely fashion and it was packed very well. Thanks again. :o)

gave as gift

EXCELLENT

rhis move starrs sam jones (the flash). the act is not that good and the action is not that good. this is a mob movie where to familys make peace with each other until backstabbers destroy the pledge.

dont rent it, it will peobably air on tv. sometime. wait until then. be patient