Flic ou ninja

Back when stars like Sylvester Stallone or Arnold Schwarzenegger were blowing the entire world to smithereens in big-budget productions, Richard Harrison was trying to find his place on the other end of the spectrum. I mean, just compare the names. Schwarzenegger versus Richard Harrison, that's an uneven battle even if you've never heard of either actor. Harrison was actually quite a respected character actor back in the 60s and appeared in various prestigious Italian productions, he was even briefly considered for the lead in Sergio Leone's "A Fistful Of Dollars" (the breakthrough role for Clint Eastwood). Sadly the 80s were harsh on him and he got stuck doing Z-grade action flicks shot in the director's back yard. He was particularly popular in The Philippines, where production companies liked to use him as an off-brand Charles Bronson.

Unsurprisingly, the movie looks a lot like something Bronson could have made if he lowered his (financial) standards. Harrison is clearly a master in the ancient martial art of punching guys in the face and falling on conveniently placed beds, but the plot is so repetitive that it's hard to keep your attention. The bad guy keeps sending guys to kill him, one by one, and they all die in some location that's cheap and easy to shoot (a motel room, for example). Thankfully they get sick of that before the final act so in the end you at least get a pretty entertaining "Rambo" knock-off. The hilariously bad dubbing, awkward action scenes and desperate attempts to be typically American also certainly work in the favor of "Fireback", but I'd say 1985's "Blood Debts" is actually a better pick. It has the exact same cast, crew and plot, but has a bit more "so bad it's good"-moments. "Fireback" is a fun blast from the past though, somehow I'm glad movies like these are still around.