Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.0

Samurai Cop Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf December 3, 2014

There has to be a story behind “Samurai Cop.” There are always stories when movies are this insanely bad. B-cinema welcomes a new contender with this 1991 endeavor, which attempts to marry martial arts cinema with buddy cop clichés, hoping to give birth to a new action hero in star Matt Hannon. With glam rock hair and a gym rat body, Hannon is a force of one in “Samurai Cop,” doing his best to generate screen mayhem while writer/director Amir Shervan botches every possible technical challenge of the movie. The result is no-budget, brain-dead thriller that doesn’t contain a single scene of filmmaking competence. To some, it’s bad movie heaven, huffing the fumes of a botched effort that doesn’t even bother to make sense. For everyone else, the feature is merely acceptable as a curiosity, permitted a rare chance to view futility in motion as Shervan labors to hold the whole wacko thing together.

I’m sure there’s a plot to “Samurai Cop,” but it’s never as clear as it needs to be. There’s something about a ruthless Asian gang run by the nefarious Fujiyama (Cranston Komuro), with henchman Yamashita (Robert Z’Dar) out to clear away any possible challenges to his boss’s authority. Here to save the day is Joe (Matt Hannon), a San Diego cop with an extensive martial arts background brought in clean up the streets with help from partner Frank (Mar Frazer). Joe loves danger and sex with random women, determined to take Fujiyama down.

I’m sure Shervan cooked up a compelling story to fill his “Samurai Cop” screenplay, but the finished (?) film doesn’t pay close attention to the details of the case. There’s a vague interest in Eastern honor, with most characters brandishing samurai swords and demoing their training in sluggish fight sequences. The picture is primarily about moments, with the production building the movie brick by brick, highlighting Fujiyama’s threat and Yamashita’s fury, while Joe is explored one flaccid punchline at a time, embracing the character’s lecherous qualities (to be fair, women throw themselves at the guy, using pick-up lines typically found in Vivid Video efforts) and quick flashes of racism. He’s a bodybuilder with a badge, a take-no-prisoners champion of justice who has little time for criminals and condoms. And the hair? Forget it. Everyone is powerless around the hair, giving the hero a mythical appearance to match his cinematic hustle.

“Samurai Cop” is certainly earnest work, backed by a Nintendo-esque score by Alan DeMarderosian and truly reckless stunt work, including a fire gag that almost resembles the beginning of a snuff film. It’s actually two pictures mashed together, with an extended production time forcing Shervan to stitch different shots from different years, generating a feature that has no singular sense of style or rhythm, while the editor appears to have completed his work blindfolded, failing to cover considerable moviemaking seams (Hannon’s hair is a big continuity problem, with some scenes spotlighting his natural locks, while others display the actor wearing a Disney princess wig). Nothing truly flows in “Samurai Cop,” which always appears incomplete, utilizing production sound for some of the shoot-outs (creating the illusion that everyone is armed with cap guns), while Joe’s conquests look as though Shervan just picked a lady off the street when the time came for romance, inadvertently making the character look heartless as he burns through partners, engaging in banter concerning his penis size with one hilariously forward nurse. If California’s safety didn’t depend on the guy, I’m sure he’d come off a lot worse to viewers.

Samurai Cop Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation doesn't offer an exhaustive restoration that perhaps some fans were hoping for. Preserving the picture's mangled appearance, the viewing experience consists of shifting levels of brightness and darkness, sudden changes in color and age, and plenty of scratches, speckling, banding, and judder. It's not pretty, but it's certainly crisp and periodically clean, showing off some encouraging detail for this low-budget action fest. Grain has been dialed down, adding a mild smoothness, but textures remain on close-ups and gore zone visits, delivering revealing particulars that showcase the production's limitations in full. Blacks are rarely challenged but retain moderate frame information. Perhaps the overall junky quality here is exactly what's necessary to enjoy "Samurai Cop," but to those with more sensitivity, the surprising inconsistency will be difficult to endure.

Samurai Cop Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 Dolby Digital track doesn't carry much heft, shadowed by hiss issues and crackly extremes, but the core experience is preserved. Dialogue exchanges are adequate, managing the feature's extensive use of ADR to satisfaction. Scoring is supportive, with heavy synth sounds identifiable, never intruding on the action. Violence is thin, but inherently so, with explosions and a wide array of gunshot audio choices lacking punch.

Samurai Cop Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary #1 features star Matt Hannon.

• Commentary #2 features star Mark Frazer.

• Commentary #3 features 80's Picture House.

• Interview (7:32, HD) with Hannon and Frazer sits down with the screen cops, allowing the pair to free-flow thoughts about the movie's cult endurance and share a few anecdotes about its fractured production.

• Interview (18:29, HD) with Hannon is conducted by website Red Letter Media, who simply adore "Samurai Cop," showering its star with praise and questions concerning a few of the more peculiar passages of the movie. If you know Red Letter Media, their brand of anti-comedy remains strong here, with mischief scattered throughout.

• Interview (13:47, HD) with Hannon returns to the actor, who offers a more intimate reflection on the "Samurai Cop" phenomenon, sharing additional BTS insights.

• Interview (7:00, HD) with Rob Schrab and Edwin A. Santos comes without an introduction. I'm not sure who these gentlemen are or what they have to do with "Samurai Cop."

• Music Score Excerpts (11:15) provides synth highlights from the movie, though quality is surprisingly mediocre.

• "'Samurai Cop 2' Photo Shoot" (HD) observes Hannon and Frazer conjuring blue steel as they prepare to return to the screen. Although the run time is listed as 5:24, the clip actually fades to black at 1:54.

• Still Gallery provides 11 images.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (1:28, HD) is included.

Samurai Cop Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Samurai Cop" is serious with its chases and masculinity, also submitting film history's angriest police captain. In 2014, it's all a big goof that plays into the bad movie idolatry trend, but in 1991, Shervan probably thought he was making the next "Lethal Weapon." There is goofball appeal in spotting all the mistakes, including a helicopter sequence where the vehicle is clearly parked, Joe's losing battle with the opening of a sliding glass door, and the befuddling marriage of shots that are years apart. It's fine to mock the movie, but rarely does such a dismissive reaction manage to boost the picture's appeal. "Samurai Cop" is still poorly made, with tone-deaf performances, dreadful writing, and a tenuous understanding of action mechanics (or spatial relationships and women). To keep up ironic laughter seems exhausting, especially with a wannabe blockbuster that imagines itself as a next big thing in action cinema. I hate to break it to the cast and crew, but they made a turkey, not a hidden gem.