Day of the Panther (1988)

"All this kung-fu crap!" - Det. Lambert

A martial arts expert goes against a criminal gang.
Starring: Edward John Stazak, Michael Carman, James Richards, Paris Jefferson

Link to IMDB

Jason Blade

The Panthers are a secret organization of ninjas in Hong Kong who act as vigilantes to take down criminals that the police are unable to. Jason Blade and his partner Linda are the newest agents that have been trained at the Panther school, and they are eager to see some action.

Now back home in Australia, Jason and Linda work on their first case to stop drug smugglers, but Linda gets into trouble during some solo reconnaissance and is killed by a vicious thug named Baxter!

Eager for revenge but unsure of what to do next, Jason goes to his karate mentor, William. Together they plan to get closer to the man that Linda was investigating, a respected businessman named Damien Zukor that is secretly a drug kingpin.
In attempt to infiltrate Damien's organization, Jason beats up all his bodyguards to prove his skill, and just as expected he gets offered a job to work alongside Damien's right hand man, who is none other than Baxter.


The police are also involved in the plot; they realize that Jason is trying to stop bad guys but since he's working outside of the law they're keeping an eye on him. Detectives Lambert and Colin are assigned to follow Jason, but these two are basically just here for comedic relief as they stumble their way in and out of danger.

"Don't appeal to my better nature... I have no better nature." - Damien

William                                                        Baxter                                              Damien

This is pure kung-fu action cheese with a bit of Miami Vice thrown in, so the plot is pretty much exactly what you expect. Jason starts learning about Damien's operations and uncovering secrets, all while trying to prevent the suspicious Baxter from discovering his true motives. Our hero still finds time for a love interest though, when he starts dating William's niece, Gemma.
The climax comes with a big brawl, of course, as Jason and William realize that Damien has the upper hand in this game!

Colin  &  Lambert
Goof Cop patrol

Although Edward John Stazak makes for a rather bland and expressionless lead, the rest of the cast are pretty good. The villains are appropriately sleazy and violent, and even the goofy cops keep the story moving. The movie has a good sense of humour about itself, but the focus is on low budget karate madness and sloppy extended fight scenes that I can't deny are very entertaining.

It does nothing that I haven't seen before, but it does it with charming 80's style and has some creative fun with the genre.

Be sure not to miss:
- What the skull masked goon has painted on his face under the mask.
- If the opening credits don't get you pumped for 80s cheese, than nothing will.
- Gemma's aerobic seduction scene. 9/10

Internet review:
"Beautifully stupid, this is just tremendous fun to watch." - CSalt

Should I watch it?
It's worth seeing when you crave some cheese.

Where can I find it?
Here on YouTube.

Day of the Panther gets...