Golgo 13: Assignment Kowloon

I recently watched Golgo 13: Assignment Kowloon (1977) on Tubi. The storyline follows an assassin hired by drug cartels, while a determined detective tries to track him down as the bodies begin to pile up. But catching this assassin won't be easy.

The film is directed by Yukio Noda (Gangster Cop) and stars Sonny Chiba (The Street Fighter), Chia Lun (Killer Rose), Shihomi Etsuko (Sister Street Fighter), and Yao Lin Chen (The Man with the Golden Gun).

This is a fun espionage-style action film that reflects the flair and energy of its era. The attire, décor, and overall atmosphere are spot-on, giving it a vintage spy-thriller feel. There are some stylish assassination scenes that keep things engaging, along with decent choreography and a few fun Chiba fight moments-even if they fall short of his Street Fighter peak. Still, the action is well-paced, and the kills help drive momentum all the way through to the climactic finale.

In conclusion, Golgo 13: Assignment Kowloon is a solid entry in the action genre and a worthy watch for fans of Sonny Chiba, though it's not top-tier. I'd give it a solid 6-6.5/10.

Ever watch a movie that wasn't in your native tongue to start but has been so badly dubbed you can't tell if the movie bites or the dubbing? This is one of those movies. Sure I've seen plenty of bad sword and sandal films and martial arts flicks but this films dubbing so so hideous that I'm wondering what planet the dubbing director was on. Its all the bad 70's dub voices but in this film they are put to particularly bad use...

The horror, the horror...

I honestly can't rate the film because the dub is so bad its not fair to even try....

Going into Assignment Kowloon, I was half expecting to see a campy 70s chop-socky interpretation which capitalised more on the success and fame of Sonny Chiba to earn a quick buck. But as it turns out, this is not only a damn fine representation of its source material but a damn fine movie in its own right. Golgo 13 seemingly had two of the best pieces of castings regarding live-action because Sonny Chiba is as much a dead-ringer as Ken Takakura was just for different reasons. Chiba's Golgo is much less human than Takakura's with a stone-faced expression that never leaves his face but makes exceptional use of his skills as a martial artist and stunt performer in some very grounded fight sequences and impressively daring stunt work. Director Yukio Noda makes excellent use of the film's variety of locations, from Hong Kong to Miami back to Japan, and although the film does stutter at first (most notably with some poor editing) it quickly finds its feet and maintains a very stylish atmosphere that simply oozes coolness throughout.

Being a fan of Sonny Chiba and the Golgo 13 comics, I found this at the video store I work at, and rented it one saturday night. I laughed, I cried, I made fun of the atrocious dubbing. This "film" is absolutely ridiculous, but shouldn't be taken seriously anyway. If you are looking for a really goofy martial arts/ assassin flick, this is for you. I suggest inventing a drinking game for this movie, because being plastered is a must for this one.

I haven't seen any of the original anime films of Golgo 13 but I am planning on it in the near future. I had heard how gory they are so I thought this version might be pretty gory but unfortunately, it isn't. I had to watch the English dubbed version because the transfer with the subtitles was absolutely awful but it didn't take away from the experience as much as I thought it would. This is a fun movie for anyone who is into hit-man films.

Sonny Chiba does a great job as usual. I loved the grindhouse feel to this film. The action was great and so was the story, for the most part. There are some really great kung fu sequences as well. I think everyone should give this movie a shot. View it for what it is, a fun little 70's action film. Just don't expect some sort of masterpiece and you'll be just fine.