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VHS classic ‘Final Score’ finally gets a new release…

Final Score

When it comes to 80s action-outings, Mike Leeder knows the score… in this case it’s the Chris Mitchum / Mike Abbott outing ‘Final Score’ and about to get a new release…


Long before a certain Welshman named Gareth brought Indonesian action cinema to most people’s attention (with Merantau, The Raid and The Raid 2) the son of a Hollywood legend and a former Cornish Ninja were showcasing the bravery (and sometimes insanity) of Indonesian stuntmen with such projects as Final Score and Lethal Hunter. Directed by the late great Arizal, these films delivered the high impact / high octane action that made 80’s action cinema. But while they were a staple of the VHS format, so many of these movies have vanished. Now, thanks to www.omg-entertainment.nl the film has just hit DVD and Impact’s 80s VHS enthusiast Mike Leeder gives the the following review…

FINAL SCORE

Chris Mitchum is Richard Brown, a decorated Vietnam War veteran who has turned his back on the violence of his past and settled down to lead the quiet life with his wife and son in Indonesia. But when a motley gang of thugs working for the evil Hawk (Mike Abbott), rape and murder his wife and kill his son, Richard vows to walk the road of Vengeance, tracking down his enemies and using his own very special set of skills to kill them.

Richard Brown: I’ll find whoever did this and, so help me God, they’ll pay.

annnnnd…that’s pretty much the plot. It’s a Taken-esque story taken to the next level… and even Liam Neeson would have trouble keeping up with Mitchum (who in the course of the movie unleashes Pyjama-fu, pretending to be a Ninja-fu, epic Knife throwing, all manner of weapons skills and incredible automotive efforts such as endless Dukes of Hazzard styled car jumps to mounting machine guns and rocket launchers on a motorbike and jumping said  motorbike through a helicopter style vengeance). That being said, we’re not sure if Neeson would have gone for the ‘Hey my wife was recently brutally murdered but your a hot gun slinging chick lets get together!” moment.

Hawk: I want that bastard caught – alive! I want to provide him with a slow and painful death.

The ‘Ultimate Cornish Ninja’ and IFD legend Mike Abbott plays Hawk the villain of the piece, who has that nasty bad-guy habit of shooting anyone who brings him bad news… be it at the office, his hidden base or, indeed, anywhere. Abbott is in fine form, although sadly dubbed with a lesser accent. Part of Mike’s appeal is his wild-eyed look, his hulking physique and, yes, his Cornish accent. Abbott of course has appeared in everything from A Better Tomorrow 2 with Chow Yun-fatt, City Hunter with Jackie Chan through various Ninja cut-and-pastings with Richard Harrison and  – of course – the infamous batshit crazy hanging a small girl from a speeding car sequence in Fatal Termination (we suggest you youtube it!). Abbott may not have been a classically trained actor or highly skilled martial artist but he throws himself into the action and the drama with enthusiasm. He and Mitchum would team again for Lethal Hunter and keep in contact today.

Final ScoreI have watched this movie various times, and I’m still not exactly sure why Mike Abbott’s men ‘murderise‘ Mitchum’s family… if its over a business deal or just for the hell of it… and that sets off the domino effect, maybe I’m missing something. The film is packed with plenty of action, from brawling fight scenes where Mitchum throws some punches, kicks and even the occasional WWE-styled move, to gun fights with squibs and explosions a plenty… and some utterly insane car stunts and car hits where you do seriously wonder if stuntmen were seriously hurt or worse. I’ve had the opportunity to work with various Indonesian stuntmen in both Hong Kong and Indonesia and these guys are just as brave as Hong Kong’s finest, but some of the stunts in this movie do have you wincing yourself at what’s going down on screen.

If you’re looking for a 1080P 4 K restoration of the film, you may be out of luck: by the look of things it has been authored from  a one-inch video master, but it’s a hell of a lot better than the various VHS rips including the widely circulated Japanese VHS rip that are the source of various bootlegs of the movie. Its mono English but very clear and comes with optional Dutch subtitles and the following special features…

There’s an audio commentary by William Smith and Rick Peach from The Movie Podcast: The Gentlemen’s Guide to Midnight Cinema which is entertaining (but do not expect it to be the most informative in-depth one!) It’s very entertaining and at times the back and forth between the two hosts almost brings to mind the classic John Carpenter / Kurt Russell commentary tracks from their movies together in that its two old friends sharing their thoughts on a film as opposed to a lets dissect every aspect of the movie. The moment when they compare Mitchum’s oversized motorcycle helmet to the legendary Dark Helmet in Mel Brooks Spaceballs did make me laugh… and I doubt I will ever be able to watch that sequence again without that coming to mind.

Cult movie writer Zachary Kelly provides some liner notes, for a booklet with a very cool bit of artwork. There’s a trailer, but instead of being the official trailer for the movie, it’s the trailer for the indiegogo campaign that funded the release… which is a little confusing and it would have been nice to see the original trailer and perhaps some additional Arizel trailers such as the one for the film’s companion piece Lethal Hunter (which saw Mitchum and Mike Abbott returning to battle one more time in Jakarta, but with the addition of legendary kickboxing champion Bill Superfoot Wallace). Again, it would have also been nice to see an interview with Mitchum talking about his experiences in Indonesia or with Mike Abbott as he has great memories of his film career and makes a great interviewee.

Final Score gets the thumbs up from us: the producers Rapi Films were responsible for everything the Barry Prima Warrior movies, through various early to mid 90’s actioners starring Cynthia Rothrock, Richard Norton, David Bradley, Frank Zagarino and more. No, it’s not a thought provoking period drama, but if you’re in the mood for some no holds barred no CGIi action and excitement, then you can’t go wrong with this!

As mentioned, the film was released because of an succesful indie-gogo campaign to raise money for the release, and copies of the film can be ordered at http://www.omg-entertainment.nl/shop/ and as I type this review, they’ve just announced another campaign to release the follow up to this movie, Lethal Hunter! It’s just as mad and even more action and mayhem!Its great to see Martin K and his team releasing these movies in the best way possible so show your support…

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