[80s] The Last Dragon

Movies
1

Wow.

While stuck at the sister’s house, I found myself watching her copy of the 1985 movie The Last Dragon. I can’t count how many times we saw that movie replayed over and over on HBO in the late 80s, but watching it again brought back so many good and bad memories.

I mean, you have the post-Prince-girlfriend Vanity decked out in her best 80s hairstyles. You’ve got the post-blaxploitation, soft-spoken, ass-kicking, kungfu master Lee-roy. You’ve got a very young Ernie Reyes Jr., before he went on to star in that series “Sidekicks” with Gil Gerard, and well before he ended up doing small gigs in bigger films like Rush Hour 2.

And of course there’s Sho’Nuff, the Shogun of Harlem.

And “The Glow” … who could forget that?

2

I think the correct title is Barry Gordy’s The Last Dragon. Either way, it’s one of my favorite bad 80’s movies of all time - right up there with Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins.

3

And Gymkata!

4

I once traded a DVD of this to a friend for some Philip K. Dick books.

5

You got hosed, duders.

This movie rocks the house. There is no other way to look at it.

6

7

Such a great movie. SUCH a great movie.

8

“Hey…my man. What it look like?”

9

Catches bullets with his teeth? Nigga please.

10

AM I THE MEANEST?

11

SHO’NUFF!

12

Ha! Another movie I caught entirely too much of on HBO. The people in the crazy town. The poorly fitted ninja outfits.

Between Last Dragon, Gymkata, Brain Games, Super Fuzz and that animated “animal olympics” movie, you could describe several years of 80s HBO.

13

AM I THE PRETTIEST?

14

Don’t forget the conveniently placed stone pommel-horse in the town square of Crazy Town. Or the pre-chalked high bar in the back alley of another town in the movie.

15

SHO’NUFF!!

16

And The Adventures of Briscoe County, Jr.

17

First person to make a fighting game with Joel Grey gets my $50. Chiun is the MAN.

18

Did someone mention bad 80’s martial arts?

19

Revenge of the Ninja is the best bad 80s martial arts movie, by far. Who can resist the timeless appeal of a hobo with a shuriken in his eye?

20

Let’s not forget Ninja 3: The Domination, with the possessed 80s-white-girl-ninja against eyepatch Sho Kosugi.