Leroy Green’s (Taimak) search for the “glow” which will complete his martial arts training leads him into defending a famous dance club host (Vanity) from a crooked arcade owner with dreams of glory.
Mixing fantasy, martial arts, music, and comedy into one film is what The Last Dragon is all about. It’s full of eighties kitsch from break dancing to the sounds of DeBarge’s Rhythm of the Night. Surprisingly, this Motown co-production has aged well thanks to enjoyable performances, most notably Taimak’s role as a naive, yet likable hero who gets his “glow” on.
Leroy Green (Taimak) is a talented young martial arts student who has learned all he can from his master, including how to deflect arrows. The only problem is that he hasn’t found his inner master yet which would result in a visible glow. He’s given a phony talisman and sent on a mission of enlightenment that turns out to be his master’s rather cruel attempt at getting Leroy to search within for his answers. While walking the streets of New York in his traditional “kung fu” uniform, Leroy fends off thugs sent to kidnap Laura Charles (Vanity), a popular dance club host. A local video arcade mogul hopes to get his girlfriend’s video played on Laura’s televised show, but Laura’s not impressed by his tactless charms. She’s eventually taken hostage by the crazed arcade owner. Having feigned violence in the past, the somewhat shy hero comes to her aid. But a gaggle of thugs stand in the way, including Sho’nuff, the Shogun of Harlem and Leroy’s arch-nemesis. Luckily, Leroy’s martial arts students, including one butt-kicking kid crash the villain’s party. In the end, not even a bullet can stop Leroy from getting his girl back.
Having spent my formative years growing up in the eighties, it’s a pleasure to see that The Last Dragon has managed to survive the decade of excess with its own charming excesses undiminished. That’s no small feat considering that the majority of music found here, which features prominently is dated to say the least. Fans of ’80′s pop including DeBarge and Vanity will be in bliss. The filmmakers also tapped into other various musical talents of the era for several mostly frivolous dance club scenes. For everyone else, it’s no torture to endure such fare as the film has much more to offer.
As an action film, The Last Dragon is an unabashed salute to Bruce Lee. It could almost be labeled exploitive with numerous images taken directly from Lee’s films, Leroy’s yellow jumpsuit, and dozens of impersonations. However, this potential stigma is easily sidestepped by a polished script that veers towards light-hearted fun. The action scenes are far and few between by Hong Kong standards, but fit into the story nicely with an all out brawl staged at the end. Taimak is a competent lead who shows real skill, although its not highlighted well by the direction. Ron Van Clief, one of his real life instructors provided some fight direction for the film. Taimak’s off screen modesty compliments the role perfectly. What is especially nice to see is more subtle subtle nods to racial stereotypes that Jeff Nathanson’s script for Rush Hour 2 (2001) jarringly paraded like an elephant stampede. The point where several white thugs complain about being beaten by dozens of blacks (actually just Leroy) is nicely punctuated when they stop to stare at their sole black colleague, who after a perfectly timed pause, chimes in about the size of the bats these fictional attackers were swinging. Julius Carry as Sho’nuff is a highlight as he struts about in painted football shoulder pads spouting dialogue you’d expect from any classic kung fu villain.
The film rides a fine line between reality and fantasy that works quite well. While no one is bounding over rooftops, we do get to see some ’80′s era special effects with glowing hands and of course the infamous bullet caught in teeth trick. If anything is wrong with the film, its the mildness of the direction. Aside from casting an unknown lead, the filmmakers didn’t take any chances. It results in a semi-successful action film that relies more on the charisma of its two leads. To their credit, Taimak and Vanity make a plausible romantic pair. Considering how few successful, mainstream martial arts films have been made in Hollywood, The Last Dragon is remarkable for its restrained homage to classic kung fu and timeless appeal. This one is definitely worth seeing again or for the first time.
by Mark Pollard- anonymous
