THE SWORD AND THE CLAW REVIEWED
“The Sword and the Claw” and its companion film “Brawl Busters” were an international brawl double feature back in the day. Originally arriving in America on PAL converted VHS tapes, both films found the smallest of audiences. Brawl Busters was a historic revenge movie using actors that came up in the wake of Jackie Chan’s first superstar era. Then, there was “Sword and the Claw”. That film borrows heavily from Mario Bava’s non-horror work and a great deal from duck pressing cultural influence.
Trying to tell a story about the Turks oppressing the Christians isn’t that impressive. But, throw in a bastard son and some brutal clawed gloves and you’ve got quite the feature. The fights are hardcore, but the film also sports some of that unintentional comedy you’d expect from Turkish cinema. Some have compared it to “The Vikings” and I can see some of that shine. However, I wonder how big of an impact did a lesser Fleischer film make on the international market.
What was it about middlin’ Kirk Douglas movies that left America cold? I saw “Greedy” and most directors didn’t try to remake it.
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Bonus movie
A/V STATS
- 1.85:1 1080p transfer
- DTS-HD 2.0 MONO