the leading man is my tpye

Stylish but barely mediocre overall

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

My rating of 8 is strictly for the English dubbed version of this Sonny Chiba film. That's because like many martial arts films dubbed in the 1970s and 80s, the dubbing was very poor--with words like "kempo" mistranslated as "shao lin" and the title of the movie being "The Killing Machine"--a concept in direct opposition to the teachings of Doshin So (and about whom this movie is based). With subtitles, it probably rates a 9.Considering that Sonny Chiba's films about Masutatsu Oyama were great (though not exactly literal) martial arts biographies, I made it a point to see his film about Doshin So--the founder of another style of martial arts (both in which, by the way, Chiba earned black belts). And, like these other films, this one is very exciting and features exceptional martial arts techniques. In fact, as the philosophies of the two masters were similar in some ways and they lived during the same period, the films have many, many similarities--especially the main character's reliance on justice for "the little guy". However, unlike the Oyama character, So seemed a bit more purposeful in his life--not wandering about during many of the post-war years looking for trouble. In fact, considering that much of THE KILLING MACHINE was spent beating up mobsters, the film is almost like the merging of the Oyama films with the Zatoichi films (where master Ichi enters a town full of Yakuza and leaves after having killed them all because of their abuse of the common people).About the only trouble with this film is its high level of violence. It was about on par with Chiba's Street Fighter films (which received X ratings for violence when they were released in the US in the 70s). Compared to modern films, the scenes aren't that bad and fortunately the rape scene was cut short before it became too brutal to watch. But, when the rapists then have their "nether-regions" cut off by So with a pair of scissors, it's a bit tough to see--especially with all the blood and watching a dog pick up the penis and run away with it! These punks DID have it coming, but this is certainly NOT a film for kids!!Overall, it's yet another fantastic martial arts film for Sonny Chiba--an amazing martial artist who probably comes the closest to the legendary Bruce Lee in style. His martial artistry is less elegant but far more brutal than modern actors like Jackie Chan and Jet Li. These newcomers are great fun to watch, but Chiba's characters are just concerned with killing blows instead of style--yikes! FYI--One reviewer seemed to feel that this film was overly sympathetic to the Japanese and their role in starting WWII. While I agree that the Japanese film industry has largely ignored their country's responsibility in the war, I don't think this film is trying to paint the Japanese as victims. Yes, some of the fight scenes involve Chiba fighting against American G.I.s, but he also fights with many Japanese Yakuza AND stops Japanese soldiers from raping a woman when the film begins. Additionally, the average poor Japanese citizen did feel rather disenfranchised and lost after the war because their way of life ended so abruptly.Also FYI--Throughout the film, So and his followers wear a dobok (a martial arts uniform) with a swastika on them. This is an ancient Asian symbol commonly used in India, China and Japan (among other places). It denotes luck or well being and is NOT an endorsement of Nazis--so relax and just enjoy the film!!!!

One of the nice things is that this movie opens with some introduction to the history of martial arts in China. The movie is put together well and is far from the typical kung fu movie, much closer to the standard samurai flick. There are a wide number of fight scenes in many different locations. This has a bit more of a political message buried in it then most, but lots of things in it that don't make a lot of sense. But the bottom line is that there is an underlying theme of the Samurai to it.Interesting thing to note is that the American Flag that is prominently shown in one place as being of the American conquerors shows 50 stars instead of the 48 that would have flown there after WWII. Not too much of the ugly foreigners in it, but strong Japanese nationalism. I'll watch this again, particularly for the action scenes.

Sonny Chiba as Doshin So,Originator of Shorinji Kempo. This was Chiba's first of two portrayals of a real life martial arts masters ( His portrayal of his Sensei Mas Oyama in "The Champion of Death" being his second). Incredible fight scene choreography featuring authentic shorinji kenpo techniques, though of course it wouldn't be a Sonny Chiba film without his removal of body parts of several opponents. The plot involves life in postwar Japan in which Doshin So comes to the aid of numerous war orphans as well as a young girl who is forced to become a prostitute to survive. The film also features Sue "Sister Streetfighter" Shiomi, a mainstay in many Chiba Films as well as a talented martial artist herself. Sonny Chiba shows much love and respect for the history of his chosen arts as well as his former Senseis (he has a black belt in shorinji kempo as well as Mas Oyamas kyokushikai karate). I rank this film as #3 in Chiba's top 5 films, a must see for Chiba fans and martial arts enthusiasts alike.

In one scene he helps orphans, the next he rips off someones penis and feeds it to a dog. He cries the loss of his love, the prostitute he helped get off the street...then his friend gets his arm cut off with a sword and blood spurts from the stump. All of this with Japanese Nationalist beliefs and hatred against Chinese & Americans. This does star Sonny Chiba and it isn't bad, though the drama seems a little cheesy with the orphans and everybody's fake tears. Not one of his top three films for sure.