Joe Marshall confronts The Katana Gang - Samurai Cop (1991) directed by Amir Shervan - The film known for its awkward dialogue was released direct to video eventually becoming a highly celebrated cult classic

[u/systemstheorist]

[u/After_Lead2795]

Is there any actual editing going on here? It just seems like they filmed each shot individually

[u/Heavy_Arm_7060 → u/After_Lead2795]

They allegedly reshot like half of the movie, which is one reason why Joe's hair is a wig in quite a few shots.

[u/systemstheorist → u/Heavy_Arm_7060]

Reshot makes it sound way more planned than reality.

They stopped shooting for several months and the main actor assumed they were done when they probably just had cash flow issues. They came back to him almost a year later to finish the film and flipped out on him for cutting his hair. The wig was only way to save the film.

[u/PiesRLife → u/systemstheorist]

> The wig was only way to save the film.

I'm sorry to tell you that it did not work.

[u/PickaxeJunky → u/After_Lead2795]

Often with these sorts of films, its the editing that let's it down.

However, for this film, I'm going to go out on a limb and say the person who wrote the script didn't speak English fluently - and then insisted that the actors stuck to the script word for word?

[u/ridicalis → u/After_Lead2795]

Thank you for articulating what was bothering me about this. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but it felt off.

The framing, the timing for each cut, it feels so disjointed.

[u/StopMeBeforeIDream → u/After_Lead2795]

No, that's literally true. I remember hearing in an interview that in another infamous scene, the Black cop was just told by the director to do a bunch of reaction shots. But he had no idea what he was supposed to be reacting against aside from a vague description of the scene. So his reactions are super exaggerated and out of kilter with the scene.

[u/MikeGalactic]

"I'm a cop."

DA-DA-DA-DWUeeenWNEnnnaahnn

[u/WorthPlease]

I love how the one girl he addresses just does the same reaction like four times in the scene, I'm guessing she just did it once and they went "fuck thats gold keep using it".

Also this guys skull needs to be studied. The distance from his chin to the top of his head is biblical.

[u/Awkward_Bison_267 → u/WorthPlease]

Robert Z’Dar had a genetic disease called cherubism which caused his jaw to grow like that

[u/third_man85 → u/Awkward_Bison_267]

Thought was him! Shame he would ever cover that jaw line with beard.

[u/Awkward_Bison_267 → u/third_man85]

He would’ve looked like a giant baby if he didn’t.

[u/Spiritual-Strike481 → u/WorthPlease]

God said to Noah… the distance from his chin to his head is to be 33 cubits in length..

[u/Larson_McMurphy → u/WorthPlease]

I have a feeling all the actors were terrible and it was hard to get a good take of anything. Notice how all the shots are close ups of the actors giving their lines in isolation? They probably couldn't get more than one in a shot at the same time to successfully execute.

[u/PhilosopherFLX → u/Larson_McMurphy]

Oh the problems run biblically deeper than acting. Check out Red Letter Media's coverage https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8830UXkTzY

[u/Destroyer_7274 → u/Larson_McMurphy]

They only had one take because it was shot on a very low budget

[u/funkyb → u/WorthPlease]

Honestly I was waiting for the reveal that she was born and raised in Japan and unable to speak English. It would explain the "smile and nod" approach.

[u/ReacherNMN]

Is this the movie with the nurse scene?

[u/systemstheorist → u/ReacherNMN]

Yes

[u/a11_hail_seitan → u/systemstheorist]

Jeepers... That's some really good writing! My friends a nurse and she wont stop asking every guy if he wants to fuck her. It's annoying at times, but that's just how nurses are.

[u/systemstheorist → u/a11_hail_seitan]

https://imgur.com/a/hVvwybO

[u/VarHagen → u/a11_hail_seitan]

I'm suddenly feeling unwell. Could you please give me the address of the clinic where your friend works?

[u/blofeldfinger → u/VarHagen]

Are you circumcised?

[u/a11_hail_seitan → u/VarHagen]

Just wander into any clinic. If they don't ask if you want to fuck them, they're just playing coy. Tell them straight up, guaranteed they'll be thrilled to meet such a straight shooter and definitely wont have you escorted off the premises by security.

[u/unholyswordsman]

I love this movie. Probably my favorite of the so bad it's good trope. Not even Black Dynamite could parody some of the more hilarious aspects of these types of movies.

[u/forfriedrice → u/unholyswordsman]

This movie is better than Black Dynamite? I might have to check it out. BD is such a funny movie.

[u/unholyswordsman → u/forfriedrice]

It's not that it's better. Black Dynamite is making fun of bad film making by parodying it. This movie is just funny because it's so badly made that it's hard to be able to intentionally capture that feeling.

[u/ZyronZA → u/unholyswordsman]

I too enjoy myself a "so bad it's good" movie every now and then when I have braincells to spare. 

Hard Ticket to Hawaii is memorable. Deadly Prey, but do watch the trailer and compare what the trailer presents to what you see in the movie.

And finally, a movie so bad it become good and somehow flips over and goes back to being just bad... Fatal Deviation 

[u/d0odk → u/unholyswordsman]

I feel like it’s more absurd than bad. The acting is cheesy, stilted and over the top. But the actors project enough charisma to sell it. It’s almost comparable to a wrestling promo. Not going to win any academy awards but also not “bad.” Maybe I’m splitting hairs here.

[u/andersonb47 → u/unholyswordsman]

The wig is truly inimitable

[u/polloloco81]

Check out the Rifftrax of this movie, it’s well worth the run time.

[u/Biffdickburg → u/polloloco81]

I went to RiffTrax website. What exactly is this, just a rental site?

[u/systemstheorist → u/Biffdickburg]

RiffTrax: Samurai Cop

[u/Biffdickburg → u/systemstheorist]

Ahhh YouTube. Gotcha, good looking out!

[u/NecroJoe → u/Biffdickburg]

Do you know Mystery Science Theater 3000? It's former (and current again) cast members of that show, continuing the tradition of "riffing" bad movies since the 90s

[u/djseifer → u/NecroJoe]

They brought them back for the latest season of MST3K!

[u/drfraglittle → u/polloloco81]

Oh Z'no!

[u/solidddd → u/polloloco81]

Why listen to Rifftrax when your own friends' jokes at a watch party are probably much funnier?

[u/NecroJoe → u/solidddd]

https://i.imgur.com/eBpBvm1.gif

[u/djseifer → u/solidddd]

They really aren't.

[u/zkrat01]

AI will never make a masterpiece like this. Humans 1 - Clankers 0.

[u/SilentStevedore]

I have never seen such a concentration of bad acting before.

[u/idle19]

Is that guy with the beard from Tango and Cash ?

[u/systemstheorist → u/idle19]

Yup, Robert Z'Dar and his glorious chin...

[u/andersonb47 → u/systemstheorist]

Most outrageous cheekbones I’ve ever seen

[u/ArkhamTight606 → u/idle19]

He’s also the Maniac Cop.

[u/Creasy007]

“I’ll see you in court.”

“You motherfucker, I’ll see you in hell!”

What a classic.

[u/Gardimus]

I wish I had a black partner doing reaction faces to things I say in my life.

[u/Troma330]

Rober Z’Dar looking handsome as hell in this movie.

[u/RaelImperial31]

God, I fucking love this movie

[u/FourFyres]

Anyone seen “Manos, Hands of Fate”?

Lost my VHS copy in the 90’s but seeing this inspired me to find “Manos…”, “Samurai Cop” and the others mentioned in this thread.

Thank you.

[u/zooalbert]

Riggs and murtaugh wish they could be this cool

[u/Kingthaddius]

Isn't this the movie where they spend several awkward scenes just....talking about their dicks?

[u/WorkmanMarty]

So this is where Tarantino got the idea for Pulp Fiction

[u/weefees]

through schools lol
Also the black cop has serious Joker mouth at the end

[u/JaredGAINZberg]

Peak cinema right here boys

[u/One-Earth9294]

I didn't know that Maniac Cop was in Samurai Cop.

[u/mydeadface]

Is this movie the main actor got a haircut during a filming hiatus and had to wear a wig as a result?

[u/starkvonhammer]

The main actor was sick of the director calling him back in, months later, to shoot more scenes, and you can tell ha.

[u/Disc81]

This is amazing!

[u/arp0925]

A podcast based in Austin, Tx called Double Toasted does a great movie roast of this movie.

https://youtu.be/CmsDh5F8VUw?is=3viXGKWSn7hGW169

[u/rmarkmatthews → u/arp0925]

It Was a Sh*t Show did a great episode on it as well

[u/IMayBeIronMan → u/rmarkmatthews]

RedLetterMedia interviewed the main star and did a review of it as well.

[u/The_Abjectator]

I'm not sure "celebrated" is the correct verb.

[u/RadVarken]

It looks and sounds like it was dubbed from Chinese. I sure hope that was an artistic decision

[u/lazyfacejerk]

I love the fact that he cut his hair when done filming but they had to do a few reshoots so they just gave him a women's wig. In a fighting scene it was falling off and looked hilarious. 

[u/Extension-Rabbit3654]

Lmao, dialogue on the same level as debbie does dallas

[u/HellAwaitsTheFunny]

"You can't act, you can't flow, you can't naturalize, your blocking movements are robotic, you have the face of a middle-school kid's attempt at a clay bust... but god damnit I need that hair in this movie so bad that if you cut it before reshoot, I'm putting a wig on you."

[u/DarkrootGarden]

“I will bring you his head and place it on your piano.”

[u/Atlas-Rising]

"Huh! Oh yes we have!"

[u/El_McKell]

"these son of a bitches" phenomenal

[u/Sethmeisterg]

This is the movie that Dave Matthews can't get enough of lol

[u/WellSpokenAsianBoy]

The sequel has Tommy Wiseau.

[u/Cicer]

When are 90’s bangs gonna come back?

[u/thx1138-]

Oh hi Mark

[u/SeriousGains]

AI slop before AI slop.

[u/SilentStevedore]

Somehow it sounds like it was written and performed by AI.