Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		2.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

No Retreat, No Surrender Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf February 23, 2017

1986’s “No Retreat, No Surrender” was supposed to be a calling card for director Corey Yuen, helping him break into the international marketplace with an Americanized martial arts extravaganza boasting a bright, handsome leading man in Kurt McKinney. Instead of making a name for himself, audiences and investors were drawn to a supporting turn from Jean-Claude Van Damme, who finally found a place to showcase his brute force, famed grimace, and amazing flexibility (two year prior, he was an extra in “Breakin’”). It was the start of something major for Van Damme, and while he’s not the focus of the endeavor, he’s the highlight of it, delivering Yuen’s impressively non-stop choreography with real fury, also embodying the feature’s cartoon antics with style and stone-faced menace. This certainly isn’t a strong effort, frequently crippled by cornball antics, but “No Retreat, No Surrender” has scenes of cartoon hostility that keep it rolling along, peppered with engaging displays of physical strength.

After his karate school is marked for harassment by a criminal organization who wants the property, Tom (Timothy D. Baker) receives a broken leg for his defiance, quickly leaving Los Angeles for Seattle to protect his son, Jason (Kurt McKinney). A student of Bruce Lee’s Jeet Kune Do defense technique, Jason is ready to resume his martial arts training, but he’s targeted for bullying by Scott (Kent Lipham), an obese creep, and Dean (Dale Jacoby), a local karate competitor. Making a friend in neighbor R.J. (J.W. Fails) and rekindling a romance with his L.A. pal, Kelly (Kathie Sileno), Jason attempts to build a life for himself, even receiving training from the spirit of Bruce Lee, who helps the teen with his anger issues and fight abilities. However, when criminal interests return to view, Jason is thrust into the middle of a bad situation, faced with the fury of top Russian enforcer, Ivan (Jean-Claude Van Damme).

The production isn’t investing in a whole lot of grit with “No Retreat, No Surrender.” The picture plays like an episode of “Saved by the Bell,” only with less seasoned actors and more concentration on individual martial arts technique. It’s a silly film, but Yuen and screenwriter Keith W. Strandberg don’t seem to recognize the absurdity of the writing and performances, charging ahead with an unnervingly sincere take on adolescent bullying and frustration, basically reheating elements from 1984’s “The Karate Kid,” only instead of Mr. Myiagi, there’s the spirit of Bruce Lee, played by a dubbed actor who doesn’t look like the iconic star.

Lee fandom is powerful in “No Retreat, No Surrender,” following Jason to the star’s actual grave, which becomes a confessional for the teenager, who calls on heavenly monitoring to help him work through difficult times. There’s trouble at home with his cautious father, who doesn’t want his son caught in the line of fire. And there’s mischief from Scott, the neighborhood ghoul who’s overweight, and we know this because Yuen keeps the character eating at all times. His introduction involves hurling streetside insults while nursing a sheet cake, making it clear that subtlety is not on the menu in this restaurant. There’s Dean as well, who makes sure Jason understands what Seattle karate feels like, later showing signs of distress when the new kid in town makes time with Kelly, his dream girl. Kelly is a major question mark in “No Retreat, No Surrender,” lacking a proper introduction, arc, or dismissal. She’s just here, sometimes a vague love interest for our hero, who, frankly, shows more sexual interest in the ghost of Bruce Lee, animatedly reacting to the education the spirit provides in the boy’s garage dojo.

There’s so much stupidity in “No Retreat, No Surrender,” it’s difficult to pick a single defining example of the production’s inability to throttle absurdity. Yuen goes broad with performances, giving the movie the feel of a community theater production, with actors yelling their lines, always playing to the back row with emphatic body language. However, this isn’t cynical work, earnestly trying to conjure “Karate Kid”-flavored energy with big sweeps of villainy and friendship, finding it perfectly normal for R.J. to sit on Jason’s crotch and lick an ice cream cone while his buddy works out in one of the picture’s many training montages. Because that’s what pals do. I wish this homoerotic imagery was intentional, but it’s merely a byproduct of Yuen’s sincere read of companionship and eye-of-the-tiger focus, working hard to keep “No Retreat, No Surrender” lively before the big finale.

“No Retreat, No Surrender” arrives on Blu-ray in two versions: The U.S. Cut (84:01) and the International Cut (98:55), which delivers essentially the same story, but uses different music, offers more character moments, and it’s held together with stronger connective tissue, though it doesn’t solve the mind-bending mystery of Kelly and her reason to be in this picture.

No Retreat, No Surrender Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation offers a fairly rough source that displays considerable wear and tear. Thick green emulsion scratches are evident from the main titles, which eventually settle down as the runtime expires, but damage remains, including speckling and chemical burns, and mild judder is also detected. Get past print quality (which takes a slight dip in color and resolution during brief scenes created for the U.S. Cut), and there's a healthy amount of detail to enjoy, surveying the action with attention to distances and textures, including the goopy foodstuffs Scott shoves in his mouth, and costuming retains fibrous qualities. Close-ups are defined, feeling out cinematographic limitations. Colors are bold, with bright primaries to explore era-specific fashion choices, while greenery and urban signage showcase a range of lively hues. Skintones are natural. Delineation is acceptable, but night sequences expose slight pixelation in frame corners.

No Retreat, No Surrender Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix doesn't enjoy the same freshness as the visuals, offering a muddier quality that dilutes the freewheeling fun of the picture. Dialogue exchanges are intelligible, but they lack snap and urgency, disappointingly dulled by age. Scoring and soundtrack selections offer a little more sonic power, but precision isn't there, delivering numbed support to onscreen action, diminishing instrumentation. Sound effects are loud enough to pass, and while crowd dynamic is blunt, it registers as intended.

No Retreat, No Surrender Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary (on the U.S. Cut) features screenwriter Keith W. Strandberg.

• Interview (17:12, HD) with star Kurt McKinney offers interesting perspective on "No Retreat, No Surrender." While the actor details his martial arts history and interest in acting, it's his recollections about the speedy audition process that are most intriguing, along with the confession that more time was spent on the fight scenes than the rest of the picture. McKinney also shares stories about his journey as an actor, and reveals the somewhat hilarious reason why he and Jean-Claude Van Damme weren't involved with "No Retreat, No Surrender 2."

• And an International Trailer (3:20, SD) is included.

No Retreat, No Surrender Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The thunder is finally called down in the third act, where Van Damme is finally unleashed as a crazed Russian fighter who's not above cheating to achieve desired results in the ring. The tournament conclusion mercifully cuts short storytelling ambition, returning attention to action choreography, which, for a low-budget movie, is quite strong, adding some needed power and speed to the grand finale. "No Retreat, No Surrender" gives itself over to the might of Van Damme, and he's hungry, showing off spinning kicks and pained reactions, trying to make himself the center of attention. It works, as Yuen loses interest in McKinney in the big showdown, clearly more enamored with Van Damme's special cinematic stance and true power. It's disappointing to waste young Van Damme on such goofy antics, but at least Yuen knows to get out of his way, with "No Retreat, No Surrender" genuinely leaving the best for last.