Ikare doku hebi – Moku geki sha wo kese (1976)

movie

(30)

Country: Hong Kong, Japan
Genres: Action, Crime
Release: 1976-02-16
Director: Umetsugu Inoue
Writers: Umetsugu Inoue
Language: Japanese
Stars: Jirō Tamiya , Yōko Yamamoto , Fujiko Nara , Tadao Nakamaru , Ping Wang (III) , Szu-Cheng Mu , Fumio Watanabe , Kôji Nakata , Jun Kajima , Michiko Tsukasa
Runtime: 88 min
Awards: N/A
AKA: 怒れ毒蛇・目撃者を消せ (Japan) , Cobra (United States of America) , Angry Cobra-Kill the Witness , Angry Cobra: Kill the Witness (United Kingdom) , Cobra - Tod eines Mannequins , Angry Cobra: Kill the Witness (United States of America) , Angry Cobra: Kill the Witness , Cobra , Ikare Cobra: Mokugekisha o kese (Hong Kong) , Angry Cobra: Kill the Witness (Hong Kong) , Kobra - Smrt manekýnky , Ikare Cobra: Mokugekisha o kese , Cobra (United Kingdom) , A karatézó Kobra (Hungary) , Cobra Returns , Cobra se întoarce (Romania)
Plot: The title character seems to be an amalgam of Dirty Harry and James Bond. He growls at any superior who tries to keep him from his very straight path, and women throw themselves at him with abandon, while he just as actively flicks them off, like annoying insects.The print I saw had a strong colour degrade, which made the primary colours stand out and shades rather faded. And it's the only dubbed film I've seen where the original subtitles sometimes intruded ! They were in Japanese (of course), and appeared only when Lee Ping, lady assassin, was speaking. I'm assuming this was because she was speaking Chinese....Pretty much everything here is unexceptional. The story is a load of cliches, the acting and tone is of melodrama, and the direction is nothing great. The sex alluded to on the cover is tame and very discreet. One thing I really enjoyed, though, were the location shots in and around Tokyo in the early 1970s. A nice little travelogue. And the lead actor, who reminded me strongly of Bulldog Drummond, was easy to watch. And the host of support actors, some odd-looking, but all with distinct looks and personalities, helped hold the "mean streets" ambience.Not great, but not too bad either.
IMDB:tt0165176