David Bradley

Streaming Sleepers: Sam Firstenburg’s AMERICAN SAMURAI Revamps A Niche Classic

Sam Firstenberg’s 1992 action thriller, American Samurai was another one of those commercial TV finds for me growing up. The film stars David Bradley in the role of Drew, a journalist whose investigation into a drug-smuggling lands him in the crosshairs of a criminal organization, and its deadly fighting tournament where he’ll be forced to square off with long lost stepbrother-turned-yakuza, Kenjiro, played by Mark Dacascos. Firstenberg comes from a crop of filmmakers who laid the groundwork for a raft of hit titles out of the Cannon label in the 1980s and onward. American Samurai was no different, save for more persnickety critics who lambasted the film, and even the director who spent a year in recent history collaborating with filmmaker Lyle Goodwin to retouch and refurbish his tourno martial arts adventure into something more closer to his vision than that of what he deemed was studio interference. The new […]

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Channel Blast: THAT PHAT SAMURAI GUY Takes On The AMERICAN NINJA Franchise In 40+ Hilarious Minutes

Lee B. Golden III

American Ninja – The Ultimate Collection The eclectic time capsule of memorable action cinema that is Cannon will always be regarded as one of the biggest and beloved staples of movie history for years to come, no matter how legendarily great or campy the product. The late 80’s served us well on the matter with the ninja craze in full effect as the American Ninja franchise took hold with actors Michael Dudikoff, David Bradly and the late Steve James front and center and for what it’s worth, it’s still a series of films that continue to pay off to this day for its worthwhile moments of entertaining fun, excitement, and unapologetic cheese. Enter Preston Downey and Candice Lord a la YouTube channel, That Phat Samurai Guy and their latest review/reaction offering to the first four films with a fifth viewable in a seperate video. I’ve only recently subscribed to this […]

Olive Films Announces DVD/Blu-Ray Specs For AMERICAN NINJA 1-4

Lee B. Golden III

As the years pass, film classics continue to reign supreme for cinephiles fond of a bygone era of film. Olive Films is one company among many that are living up to the task and keeping these gems refurbished and available for those interested, and their latest press release includes a multitude of titles for Blu-Ray and DVD, including Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (1970), the first four classic American Ninja films with Michael Dudikoff, Steve Harris and David Bradley, and The Pride and the Passion (1957). Of course, given the readership we have here at Film Combat Syndicate, I’ve highlit exactly the title(s) you may well be interested in when they release on August 16. Moreover, if we’re fortunate enough, we will be able to provided a slate of product and film reviews for this amazing and memorable line-up harkening back to a time where Ninja movies […]