PRAY FOR DEATH REVIEWED
“Pray for Death” is the best of the Kosugi/Hessler team-ups. While some might care for “Rage of Honor”, this film attempted a ton of stuff. The grindhouse levels of violence, the push for a better life and the Shredder like body armor worn by our hero ninja. Stalking the many random warehouses of mid 80s Houston, we get a guy that just wants to restore balance. He does all of this with the same facial expressions as Stanley from “The Office”.
Sho Kosugi never got the respect he deserved back in the 1980s. While he did everything right in terms of TV and film penetration, you’d be hard pressed to find younger martial arts fans that mention his name. I think a lot of that comes down to the lack of emotion. While Kosugi’s real life children plays his kids in the movie, he doesn’t seem that worried when they really get hurt on film. It’s just an ass kicking checklist for him that keeps growing longer.
The uncut version of the film is quite the big deal. While too many people have gone out of their way to hunt down the VHS from Greece, this is by far an easier option. After finally seeing the uncut version, the only major difference I can see is the assault on Kosugi’s wife goes much longer. Plus, the bit with the crowbar gets played a bit gorier. I think about all of that and I shake my head at memories of people buying that Greek VHS for upwards of 250-300 dollars on eBay.
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Sho and Tell Part 1: Birth of a Ninja interview
- Archive interviews
- Trailer Gallery
- Both cuts of the movie
A/V QUALITY STATS
- 2.35:1 1080p transfer
- LPCM 2.0
RELEASE DATE: 2/16/2016
