The first time I learned about Kenpo was when the movie Perfect Weapon was released sometime in the 90's. Being fund of the Martial arts since God knows when, Jeff Speakman really facinated me. Just one question though, Do your "Masters" really give you that "tiger-dragon" ring? or is it just in the movies? I'm from JKA Philippines and I really know nothing about Kenpo.
I thought Perfect Weapon was a great movie. The thing I liked about Jeff Speakman is that he did Holywood the hard way. He took acting lessons, he did 'normal' movies and THEN he did a MA movie. They even asked him if he needed a double for some of the scenes! But then he did that 'Atlantis' movie, and I haven't seen him in anything since. PS - I think the ring thing is just for the movies.
Here are some more Speakman movies, some of them are worth watching, but some are the 'same old same old' Hot Boyz (99) Street Knight (93) Scorpio One (97) Platos Run (96) Timelock (96) Deadly Outbreak (96) Land of the Free (98) Lionheart (with Van Damme) (91) Running Red (98) The Expert (95) Gang Law Escape from Atlantis (97) Memorial Day (98) In the eighties, I beleive he was in a tv cop show called Hunter and I did see him in one episode of VIP (the Pamela Anderson thing) Les
Personally, I liked the concept of Perfect Weapon as a vehicle to promote Kenpo. As to the rest, I'll stick with DragonballZ thanks Les
Alas! When was the last time I saw a good movie with a Good Martialartist and actor at the same time? Jackie Chan Movies anyone?
can that fat korean guy really kill someone with one hit to the head? and is he really a kenpo master, or did they just hire some fat guy to look threatening
There was a ring I've recently found out that there was a ring. A friend asked me this question when the movie came out. He saw it first. I had no idea what he was talking about. Mr. Parker reputedly gave out a few rings, but they did not look like the ones in the movie. They were copies of one he was given by a friend. I can check into this more if you like. Feel free to email me with a question, especially if I don't reply. I just today stumbled onto this site and saw that I had an account. Ha, ha. Haven't been here since August. 6mos ago just about.
timelock - horrible horrible movie - no martial arts! WTF??? (not a tkd reference) deadly outbreak - a watchable film, with some pretty good fight scenes. hot boyz - speakman makes a short appearance as the lead's MA instructor, but the kid turns his back on ma and all teh good things in his life and ends up dead. almost no martial arts in the entire movie.
The Expert- not too bad, but I had trouble accepting Red West as a lawyer and Jim Varney as a merc. Running Red- some MA, but some real plot problems. He's a Russian Spec Ops who speaks without an accent, he wears a Kenpo T-shirt, but no one in his family knows he does martial arts, etc. The Perfect Weapon was by far his best, IMHO. Have not seen his latest (A Promise Kept, aka The Gunmen).
Perfect Weapon was a great kenpo movie (Ed Parker assisted with the movie and they used it as a promo film). As for the rest - disapponting. I think Hollywood wants people like "the Muscles from Brussels - Van Dam, not some of the truely talented people - like Speakman :woo: . Street Knight was OK - but none of the other shows really had a great deal of kenpo technique.
The Perfect Weapon I liked the Perfect Weapon when I originally saw it. It's kinda weird watching it now-a-days though. I guess I'm just getting old. I wish someone would do another movie that featured Kenpo. I can say that I wouldn't be too disappointed if they used someone other than Speakman. It would just suck to never see Kenpo on the big screen again. :cry:
The kenpo guys I've known get very irate when you suggest that Speakman is doing arnis in that movie. Apparently kenpo has long included a double stick component. *shrug* Long story short, it ain't arnis. Stuart
Did'nt Bruce Lee do something with double clubs in one of his movies, that was'nt Arnis either, Perfect weapon was a vehicle to promote Kenpo, so Arnis should have a movie to promote Arnis! ....or has there already been one
To hear Dan Inosanto tell it, you're right. It wasn't arnis. It was just something that Bruce Lee came up with based on his experience at long fist. Even though he had one of the greatest resources for double stick right there next to him. *shrug* There have been arnis movies. But there hasn't really been a Hollywood big screen movie promoting arnis the way Perfect Weapon promoted kenpo or Only the Strong promoted capoeira. Stuart
Thanks Stuart, I think with the huge interest in the FMAs at the moment, the time could be right for a Arnis/Escrima/ Kali etc. movie. Dan Inosanto would be a great technical advisor for such a project what do you think.
Hell, I'd line up to see it. No question. FMA have put in plenty of guest appearances in movies. They've even been the center of the fight choreography for several movies (The Bourne Identity, The Hunted, etc.) But they haven't been pimped by name the way that kenpo and capoeira were in those other examples. Not in Hollywood anyway. Yeah man. I'd definitely see that. Stuart
