BERRY GORDY'S
THE LAST DRAGON (1985)
4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
Limited Edition SteelBook
Label: Tristar
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: PG-13
Duration: 108 Minutes 17 Seconds
Audio: English Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Compatible), English DTS-HD MA 5.1, English DTS-HD MA 2.0 Stereo with Optional English Subtitles
Video: Dolby Vision HDR10 2160p Ultra HD Widecteen (1.85:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Michael Schultz
Cast: Taimak, Julius J. Carry III, Chris Murney, Leo O’Brien, Faith Prince, Glen Eaton, Vanity, Thomas Ikeda
In the Motown-infused martial-arts comedy The Last Dragon (1985) martial arts student Leroy Green (Taimak) aka Bruce Leroy, is on a personal quest to obtain the next level of his training, something unexplainable force his master (Thomas Ikeda, Memoirs of a Geisha) calls “The Glow”, which he will get once he seeks out a new master who will take him tot he next level, someone called "Master Sum Dum Goy". Leroy sets out to find this elusive master, but along the way, he must contend with not only his younger, derisive streetwise brother Richie (Leo O'Brien, Rappin'), but the self-proclaimed 'Shogun of Harlem' - Sho’nuff (Julius J. Carry III, The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.) and his The Warriors-esque clan of urban miscreants, and also rescue the beautiful singer/video jockey star Laura Charles (former Prince protégée Vanity) from evil video-arcade mogul Eddie Arkadian (Christopher Murney, Maximum Overdrive) who is hell-bent on making his Cyndie Lauper knock-off singer-girlfriend Angela Viracco (Broadway star Faith Prince) famous by coercing Charles into playing her music video at the taste-making 7th Heaven Studio nightclub.
Leroy ends up rescuing the stunning VJ from Arkadian's thugs several times, falling in love with one another, and he finds himself relentlessly pursued by Sho'nuff and his gang, believing that Leroy is the only real challenge to his title of 'Shogun of Harlem', eventually trashing Leroy's parent's place of business and joining forces with Arkadian to kidnap VJ Charles and finally get the young martial arts master to commit to finally challenging him for martial arts supremacy.
It's a fun and fairly comic take on martial arts flicks about a kid completely obsessed with Bruce Lee, but who is also quite a skilled martial artist himself. The scene-stealer here is badass Julius J. Carry III as Sho'nuff, a comically exaggerated baddie that steals every scene he's in - his introduction is awesome - he and his gang enter a movie theatre showing a Bruce Lee film, and he challenges everyone in the damn theatre to try to take him on! I thought Taimak's character was a bit too naive and innocent at times, especially coming from a family who seem pretty normal, his little brother is a sex-obsessed pre-teen, and his parents (Esther Marrow, Dynamite Brothers & Kim Moody, Fighting Back) the proprietors of a black-owned pizza parlor. The film has a bunch of cross-cultural gags, we have a martial arts loving black kid who dresses Asian and eats popcorn with chopsticks, rapping Asians, and a black-owned pizza parlor; some of it is played for laughs but it falls in line with the themes of the film, cultures cross-pollinating each other in the melting pot that is NYC. There's nothing egregiously offensive here with the culture mixing and humor, it's coming from a good place and the film, morally cliched though it might be, is good-hearted. This probably played slightly better for me as a 12 year-old watching it on cable TV, but it's still plenty entertaining with some solid enough martial arts action, goofy 80's humor and a pretty boisterous 80's Motown soundtrack that made me feel like a kid again. Of course, the multi-colored "Glow" is finally attained by Leroy during the big boss battle during the finale, which I remember delighting me when I was a kid, and it still brought a smile to my face, silly as it is.
The film also notable for featuring early roles from Mike Starr (Miller's Crossing) as Arkadian's henchman Rock, Chazz Palminteri (Innocent Blood), and William H. Macy (Fargo). I also don't think it can be understated just how much the camera loves Vanity (Terror Train), she has her own non-martial arts related ethereal glow throughout the film that really draws you in, and her introductory musical number at 7th Heaven Studio is otherworldly, I can see why Leroy falls for her.
Audio/Video: The Last Dragon (1985) arrives on 4K Ultra HD in 2160p UHD widescreen (1.85:1) scanned from the original camera negative with Dolby Vision HDR, approved by director Michael Schultz. The flick looks fantastic, grain is organic and tight, fine detail looks terrific with he 4K resolution, and colors are enriched by the Dolby Vision HDR color-grade, deepening blacks and giving the colors a nice pop, especially reds which are dominants throughout, and adding some nice vibrancy to the "glow" effects during the final showdown with Sho'nuff. The black are much more nuanced on the UHD with superior shadow detail, contrast looks healthy, and depth and clarity also benefit from the 4K resolution.
Special Features:
Audio/Video: The Last Dragon (1985) arrives on 4K Ultra HD in 2160p UHD widescreen (1.85:1) scanned from the original camera negative with Dolby Vision HDR, approved by director Michael Schultz. The flick looks fantastic, grain is organic and tight, fine detail looks terrific with he 4K resolution, and colors are enriched by the Dolby Vision HDR color-grade, deepening blacks and giving the colors a nice pop, especially reds which are dominants throughout, and adding some nice vibrancy to the "glow" effects during the final showdown with Sho'nuff. The black are much more nuanced on the UHD with superior shadow detail, contrast looks healthy, and depth and clarity also benefit from the 4K resolution.
Audio comes by way of English Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 compatible), English DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround, English DTS-HD MA 2.0 stereo with optional English subtitles. The Atmos remix is solid, it's a fairly actives and immersive track, with plenty of oomph to it. Dialogue is delivered precisely, action scenes are boisterous, and the impressive soundtrack featuring Motown acts DeBarge, Smokey Robinson & Syreeta, Stevie Wonder, Vanity and more really packs a wallop. I personally still prefer to watch the film in DTS-HD 2.0 stereo, it sounds more appropriate to me but I do applaud the inclusion of the Atmos track.
The only extras on the 4K UHD is a new Fan Audio Commentary with Comedian Amber Ruffin and Author Lacey Lamar. I love me some Amber Ruffin and this track is fun, boisterous and quite humorous. I wouldn't go into this expecting a deep examination of the film with facts and such, but as a pair of women discussing seeing this film for the first time as kids and having a blast reminiscing about their love of it, it's quite entertaining.
The only extras on the 4K UHD is a new Fan Audio Commentary with Comedian Amber Ruffin and Author Lacey Lamar. I love me some Amber Ruffin and this track is fun, boisterous and quite humorous. I wouldn't go into this expecting a deep examination of the film with facts and such, but as a pair of women discussing seeing this film for the first time as kids and having a blast reminiscing about their love of it, it's quite entertaining.
On the Blu-ray we get the archival extras from the 2019 Blu-ray, these include the terrific Audio Commentary with Director Michael Schultz, the 24-min Return of the Dragon Featurette with Executive Producer Barry Gordy, Director, Screenwriter Louis Veonsta, and Soundtrack Producer Kerry Gordy; plus the 86-sec Theatrical Trailer.
The 2-disc release arrives in a handsome looking Limited Edition SteelBook design featuring the original movie poster on the front, housing the BD/UHD discs inside. The inside cover art featuring a image from the film. Inside there's a redemption code for a digital copy of the film in UHD.
Special Features:
Disc 1: 4K UHD
- NEW! Fan Audio Commentary with Comedian Amber Ruffin and Author Lacey Lamar
Disc 2: Blu-ray
- Audio Commentary with Director Michael Schultz
- NEW! Fan Audio Commentary with Comedian Amber Ruffin and Author Lacey Lamar
Disc 2: Blu-ray
- Audio Commentary with Director Michael Schultz
- Return of the Dragon Featurette (24:08)
- Theatrical Trailer (1:26)
- Theatrical Trailer (1:26)
Screenshots from the Sony Pictures Blu-ray:
Extras:
