Story of movie The Challenge 1982 Film : The Challenge is a 1982 American action thriller film directed by John Frankenheimer and written by John Sayles, Richard Maxwell, and Marc Norman. The film stars Scott Glenn and Toshir? Mifune, and features several aikido-based action scenes choreographed by Steven Seagal, prior to the start of his own film career.
| The Challenge | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | John Frankenheimer |
| Produced by | Ron Beckman Robert L. Rosen |
| Written by | Richard Maxwell Marc Norman John Sayles |
| Starring |
|
| Music by | Jerry Goldsmith |
| Cinematography | Kozo Okazaki |
| Edited by | Jack Wheeler John W. Wheeler |
Production company | CBS Theatrical Films |
| Distributed by | Embassy Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 112 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English Japanese |
| Box office | $3.6 million |
Screenplay
A katana, one of a pair known as "The Equals", was a heirloom of the Yoshida family, passed down through the generations before being lost during World War II. It was finally tracked down and recovered in California by the youngest son Toshio. Hoping to return its rightful owner, his father Toru, Toshio hires down-on-his luck prize fighter Rick Murphy to smuggle the sword back to Japan.
Upon his arrival, Murphy learns that the sword is a fake and himself a decoy, intended to ward off potential thieves. Aggravated that he has been used as a decoy, he is faced with the prospect of being killed by Toru's brother, a well-connected kuromaku named Hideo. Instead, he is advised to infiltrate Yoshida's martial arts school and obtain the sword. He does so, yet finds himself being drawn into the ways of Japanese etiquette and tradition to the point where he returns the sword to Toru himself after having the perfect opportunity to escape with it. Murphy then humbly asks Toru if he can be forgiven and taken back in because he wants to learn the ways of Bushido. Toru agrees, but only if Murphy follows Toru's conditions.
Murphy continues to bumble his way through life at Toru's school until, after a treacherous and almost fatal attempt by one of the higher members of the school to steal the sword, he leaves and is found in a hotel in Kyoto by Akiko, Toru's only daughter. Finding romance, they go out to see the sights and sounds of the city, including watching a Shinto ceremony. During the hub-bub of the crowded parade, Murphy and Akiko get separated and Hideo's henchmen kidnap her and deliver her to her uncle. Toru, laden with ancient weaponry, ventures out to Hideo's industrial complex where he is shot and wounded by Hideo's bodyguard Ando. Ando is slain by Hideo for this, and Murphy – who has joined him in his quest – opts to fight Hideo to defend his sensei. Murphy manages to defeat Hideo and win the day.
- Scott Glenn as Rick Murphy
- Toshiro Mifune as Satoru "Toru" Yoshida
- Atsuo Nakamura as Hideo Yoshida
- Donna Kei Benz as Akiko Yoshida
- Calvin Jung as Ando
- Clyde Kusatsu as Go
- Sab Shimono as Toshio Yoshida
- Ryuji Yamashita as young Toshio
- Kiyoaki Nagai as Kubo
- Kenta Fukasaku as Jiro
- Sh?go Shimada as Shin'ichi Yoshida
- Yoshio Inaba as Kenzo the Instructor
- Seiji Miyaguchi as Old Man
- Miiko Taka as Machiko Yoshida
The film was shot entirely in Japan. The Kyoto International Conference Center was used as the location of Hideo's headquarters.
A re-edited version of the film entitled Sword of the Ninja was created for television. In this version, about ten minutes of footage are cut, some of the graphic violence of the original version is removed, and "fades" are added to make room for commercial breaks.
Critic Dennis Schwartz gave the film a C+ grade, calling it a "pointless", "low-level Chuck Norris flick". He enjoyed Frankenheimer's directing and Mifune's performance, questioning why they chose to make such a film. Time Out wrote that the "elaborate combat will please fans", but that The Yakuza was a much better film in the genre. Janet Maslin for The New York Times was unimpressed with the film's "regrettably vicious streak" and wrote that the film had unused potential. However, she praised Toshir? Mifune's performance as adding weight to the film. Adam Lippe, writing for Examiner.com, had a better opinion of the film, calling it "grimy, off-putting, and just right for the moment."
