Champion Of Death (けんか空手 極真拳, Kenka karate kyokushinken, literal translation: Fighting Karate Kyokushin Fist), also known as Karate Bullfighter, is a Japanese martial arts film made by the Toei Company in 1975.[1][2] It was the first in a trilogy of films based on the manga Karate Baka Ichidai (literal translation: A Karate-Crazy Life), a manga based on Masutatsu Oyama's life by Ikki Kajiwara, Jiro Tsunoda and Jōya Kagemaru. Sonny Chiba stars as his former master Oyama who was the founder of Kyokushin karate. Chiba would reprise this role in two more films Karate Bearfighter (1975), and Karate for Life (1977).
| Kenka karate kyokushinken Champion of Death | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster to the U.S. release of Champion of Death | |
| Directed by | Kazuhiko Yamaguchi |
| Written by | Norifumi Suzuki |
| Starring | Sonny Chiba Yumi Takigawa Mikio Narita Jirô Chiba Katsumasa Uchida |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Plot
editKorean-descent Japanese karate master who tries to prove that his karate is better than the modern "dance" karate. Based on Mas Oyama portrayed by student and actor Sonny Chiba.[3]
Cast
edit- Sonny Chiba as Mas Oyama
- Yumi Takigawa as Chiako
- Mikio Narita as Nakasone
- Katsumasa Uchida
- Kenji Imai
- Nenji Kobayashi
- Jirō Chiba as Shogo Ariake
References
edit- ^ JJサニー千葉『千葉流 サムライへの道』ぶんか社、2010 p.11 p.51 ISBN 4821142694
- ^ "けんか空手 極真拳" (in Japanese). ザテレビジョン. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "けんか空手 極真拳" (in Japanese). tvapple. 8 August 1975. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
External links
edit
 | This article about a martial arts film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article related to a Japanese film of the 1970s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |