Fist of the North Star

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source: Fist of the North Star

Hokuto no Ken

This is THE best anime film series ever. Heads exploding in a blade runner, mad max era, kung fu, betrayal, and other elements are in this exotically brilliant series. Contains lots of gore though. Would be rated R

Like Clint Eastwood in FOR A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS or Yul Brynner in THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR- and dressed like Mel Gibson in THE ROAD WARRIOR-, Kenshiro comes walking out of the desert ready to take on all comers. He wanders a post-apocalyptic wasteland, doing good wherever and whenever he can. (And, in fact, FIST OF THE NORTH STAR inspired my own post-apocalyptic comic story, WASTELAND.) Hara and Buronson eschew subtlety: when Kenshiro unloads his devastating combinations, the results are invariably explosive- literally. Heads and bodies alike erupt in founts of blood and bone and brains that shower the battlefield. Not for the weak of heart. Or gorge. Ultra violence has been a mainstay of anime for as long as I've been a fan, so it doesn't faze me, but I can see how kids weened on Americanimation might blanch.

Not much plot, not much character development, but much fighting and gore. Having these "Fists" guys with ridiculous powers and fighting styles is fun to watch. My favorites scenes include the first re-appearance of the bearded hero when the huge building falls on his head. The final fight scene with the ground rising in the air is a classic. And how about the great scenes with the evil brother ? Fun stuff !

As a fan of Manga films i have seen a fair few and if i was to have a top 10, Fist of the North Star would come a close second. It is not Uncommon for the Manga industry to make ultra violent films. In fact, most Manga films will have a dark theme or two somewhere in it. I find that there is a certain proportion of Manga that is gory, sadistic or just plain wrong for the sake of it. Eg, Urotsokodoji 1, 2 & 3. Fist of the north star could easily have become one of these had it not been executed with such style and class. This is definitely a defining moment for the anime generation. If you like that style and haven't seen this film yet then you need to stop what you are doing, get some cash and buy it right now. A Billion out of ten