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Fantastic!

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

This immediate sequel to the cult and violent classic from the same year doesn't bother changing the formula in any way, shape or form. Instead director Shigehiro Ozawa gives us exactly the same kind of movie as before in mood, look and plot. The plot itself is the weakest aspect of the film, and seems like a weak rerun of the original movie's storyline. Indeed many of the same things happen to the characters. Another annoyance is the inclusion of some unwanted long flashback scenes, made to pad out the already short running time. Ignore these grievances and you'll find yourself watching another good old ultra-violent tale of action, revenge and much ass-kicking. Another welcome return is the funky score, complete with a highly memorable theme tune which grows on you every time you hear it.Sonny Chiba is back as Terry Tsurugi, once again on top form and seemingly enjoying himself in the multiple action stakes. Once the action begins properly (after the first half hour or so) it doesn't let up, as Chiba takes on assassin after assassin before finally deciding to attack the bad guys himself, with the film culminating in an exciting massacre that very nearly equals the legendary finale of the first movie. There are some nicely varied locations – the fight on the ski slopes is great, and the attack in the bedroom is a fun touch. The script and dubbing are sub-par but the effects are negligible. As well as the returning Chiba, chief villain Junjo (the sickly-looking guy) also comes back, minus vocal chords but with a brand spanking new electronic voice box, leading to a couple of cool showdowns between the two larger-than-life characters.What of the old ultra-violence you may ask? Well, it has been toned down here, but only slightly. Plenty of bones are broken, a guy has his throat destroyed by two fingers alone and in the gory – but slightly cheesy highlight – a guy's eyeballs burst out of his skull after a powerful crack from Chiba's tough hand. Also expect to see lots of bloody shootings, impalements, and a touch of pathos here and there as minor characters are killed and Chiba is forced to emote a little before getting back to his job, killing many villains. Don't let the lapses in logic and interest dissuade you – this is still a fantastic action film at a comic book level, highly watchable and 95% engaging. Lovers of the first film check it out.

Sonny Chiba returns as bad-ass mercenary Takuma 'Terry' Tsurugi, cracking skulls, breaking bones and causing untold internal injuries as he takes on the mafia, who want him dead for refusing to kill an old karate colleague. With virtually the whole movie consisting of one brutal fight scene after another, martial arts fans should be more than satisfied with this sequel, despite the plot being a virtual rehash of the first film.As expected, there's lots of impressive kicking and punching from karate champ Chiba, as well as some extremely over the top action that sees our anti-hero performing superhuman feats, including leaping off a motorbike to somersault over a gate, and kicking a hole through a brick wall to leap to safety. Terry Tsurugi's impressive fighting skills also result in plenty of graphic violence, with blood spurting and gushing from his enemies' wounds, and, in the film's most outrageous moment, a punch to the back of a man's head causes both eyeballs to pop out of their sockets.Other guaranteed crowd-pleasing moments include Terry slipping under the sheets with a naked woman who turns out to be yet another assassin, the return of bad guy Tateki Shikenbaru (Masashi Ishibashi) from The Streetfighter (now equipped with an electronic voice-box, his vocal chords having been ripped out by Terry in the first film), Terry pouring a bottle of whisky over his head (I found that hilarious), and an action packed finale that sees Chiba taking on numerous henchmen, blinding a Mafia baddie with a throwing knife and stabbing some poor bloke in the stomach with the barrel of a gun!7.5/10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb (although Yôko Ichiji as Terry's irritating sidekick Pin Boke tempted me to round the score down).

Sonny Chiba returns as Tsurugi, slightly more well-mannered here as befits a film that is neither as gory or as good as the original. The plot is straightforward - Tsurugi upsets the mafia, they send hordes of goons to kill him, he kicks their asses. The film has plenty of fight scenes that are still intense and brutal, but tones down the level of animal rawness... it does offer us a bit of nudity in exchange, but frankly it's no substitute for a guy getting his genitalia ripped off in a fight.Still, it is pretty entertaining and the fight scenes are still impressive.

Director Shigehiro Ozawa and Sonny Chiba did this sequel immediately after their first Street Fighter (1974) in 1974-5. The plot is almost identical (what there is) as Sonny is again Terry who does dirty jobs for the mob and never has any morality in his mind bothering him. He just kills and kicks people's asses if the job requires that. Well so much for any "deeper" elements this film would have had; these are just ultra violent action films which are there only to offer the audience more savage action than those of HK film makers' of the same period.Return of the Street Fighter has many flashbacks from the first film and never seems too original or interesting, but still it is never boring or hard to watch without falling asleep. The action is plentiful and Sonny tries again to be ultra cool and tough guy with some misogynistic habits, too. The violence is laughably over the top but still shocking and extreme enough to secure the highest X rating (or NC-17) for this kind of film, and so a film this savage would never come from Hollywood nowadays.If one likes mindless action and memorable music score with strong imagery of gratuitous violence, then Return of the Street Fighter is worth a watch, but still I prefer the original first Fighter film (not that it is any remarkable masterpiece either). These films are Japan's answer to Hong Kong's Bruce Lee and Jimmy Wang Yu, but ten times more vicious, mindless and cinematically not so ambitious. 4/10