RATING:B+

Capelight presents a Lowe Films production in association with Quest Media Films. Directed by Taim M. Adams. Produced by Wayne Graves. Written by Keith W. Strandberg and Sean David Lowe. Cinematography by Konstantin Freyer. Edited by Oliver Harper.

Stars Mathis Landwehr, Yanlong Li, Julin Täubner, Kurt McKinney, Gary Daniels, Keith Cooke, Finja Martens, Lionel Lowe, with David Yeung, and Brice Akuesson.

From the producers of The Last Kumite and the writer of No Retreat, No Surrender comes another throwback to 1980s and 1990s martial arts action films that holds up thanks to the impressive cast. 

After serving a four-year prison sentence for taking the rap for his ex-girlfriend’s drug possession, Joe is finally out and finds a job at the local steel mill. Struggling to get by, he sees an old man accosted by some thugs, and while he rescues him, the old man is ungrateful, telling Joe he doesn’t need to fight if he doesn’t have to. When he runs into his ex, Kate, she tells him that their son, Wyatt, has a brain tumor and needs $50,000 to pay for the operation. Kate says if Joe gets the money, she will let him see his son.

When Joe learns the old man he rescued is Wu, a martial arts master who emigrated from Hong Kong, Joe instantly bonds with his daughter Mei. At first, Wu sees Joe as a cocky fighter but sees potential in Joe. When a tournament is being held for $100,000, Joe decides to enter. Wu decides to train Joe, and one night, Joe and Mei witness a drug deal between Kang, a drug lord, and Butch, Kate’s new boyfriend who has issues with Joe. When they go to the cops, Detectives Parker and Williams decide to find a way to bust the two, but Butch is also entering the tournament. With an old friend from prison, Joe intends not just to win the tournament but to end the drug deal for the sake of his son.

The sheer excitement of 2024’s The Last Kumite as a throwback to the old-school 1980s martial arts tournament film was just the tip of the iceberg for producer Sean David Lowe. When he follows it up with the help of Keith Strandberg, the writer of Seasonal Films’ American crossovers, including No Retreat, No Surrender and its sequels, then we’re going to be in for something special, and, once again, it delivers. This feels like a meshing of Kickboxer and Lionheart.

Mathis Landwehr shines in the role of Joe, our hero who knows how to fight as seen in the first five minutes on the day before his release. He takes on a fellow prisoner, Smoke, played by a bald-headed Keith Cooke (his hair grows back out in his reappearance later). As the two duke it out and are stopped by the guards, Smoke clearly has respect for Joe for being a “good guy and protector of the little people”. Of course, this becomes his problem. We learn Joe took the fall for his ex Kate, played by Finja Mertens, and upon his release, Joe learns the hard way how ungrateful people can be. Kate has to be one of the most hated supporting characters because not only is she ungrateful for Joe taking the rap, but demands the money for their son’s operation before he can see him. 

Much of the film takes the Kickboxer route as Joe trains with Master Wu, played by Yanlong Li, and has a friendship blossom to a romance with his daughter Mei, played by Julin Täubner. Joe instantly likes her, but she becomes more coy and yet is willing to help him connect with her father to become his teacher. She knows a thing or two herself as well and becomes Joe’s other trainer. They also make a good team when they decide to help the cops in a potential drug bust. 

The detectives who at first are skeptical, but ultimately help the duo out are played by No Retreat, No Surrender’s Kurt McKinney (who made a comeback in The Last Kumite) and the one and only Gary Daniels, who is back to sporting the short hair after the pandemic led him to grow his hair back out. Those worrying that the two will not get a fight scene of their own will not have to worry because you will get to briefly see these two in a fight. And for two guys in their 60s, they look pretty damn good courtesy of fight choreographers Mike Möller and Pascal Siffert. 

Now, of course, with the tournament genre, there has to be a big bad. And that big bad here comes in the form of bodybuilding/MMA fighter Brice Akuesson. As Butch, he gives off a menacing vibe the second you see him. He is Kate’s new boyfriend and informs Joe that Wyatt is staying with him, and Joe isn’t going to do anything about it. Akuesson is a literal beast in the cage because when we see him fight, he brings the monstrous side and has some good kicks for a man of his stature. 

Lion Fist is a fun throwback to the 1980s tournament circuit film with a twist. Mathis Landwehr once again delivers in the lead, Brice Akuesson definitely needs to do more big bad roles like this, and it is great to see veterans Keith Cooke, Gary Daniels, and Kurt McKinney showing they haven’t lost a step since their action star days.