Sister Street Fighter

Sister Street Fighter (Onna Hissatsu Ken) (1974)

Runtime: 86 minutes

Directed by: Kazuhiko Yamaguchi

Starring: Etsuko Shihomi, Asao Uchida, Sanae Ohori, Bin Amatsu, Sonny Chiba

From: Toei

Quite simply, I wanted to see some Dudes Get Wrecked ™ last night, and that itch was scratched. In the past I’ve checked out the first two Streetfighter movies starring Sonny Chiba, and both were good times, full of over the top moments and 1970's panache. Via Arrow’s streaming site I finally checked out its companion set of movies, where a quartet were made and at least in this one, Chiba returned… albeit, as a different character, supporting in nature but naturally still a badass.

The titular sister is Koryu, the “Hong Kong Martial Arts Champion”, who is half-Japanese and goes to Japan to investigate the whereabouts of her brother, who was undercover investigating a drug ring. That’s the basics; of course there are friends, “friends” who are actually enemies, all sorts of bad guys-some incredibly over the top… and various locations in Japan, including some rather scenic out by the ocean. For those sensitive to sleazy moments, some are present here; that includes topless women and (unfortunately) a sexual assault.

Quite simply, it was easy to root for Koryu and the dojo she’s a part of against a rival dojo and the evil SOB villain. That villain is a rich bastard who has a unique method of smuggling heroin and despite his dapper dress and swank mansion, is someone who injects drugs into captives just for s---- and giggles. To reflect the tone of this picture, not only do we finally get the graphic gore I was expecting in the final act, there is a septutle of “Amazons”, which are women dressed in loincloths as if they stepped off a live-action adaptation of The Flintstones.

Silly exploitation trash this may be… but there was gore, groovy 70’s fashion, an even groovier funky 70’s soundtrack, and Sonny F’ing Chiba—I was satisfied, in other words.