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Sister Streetfighter (1978)


Cast:

Sonny Chiba is Terry Tsuguri
Sue Shiomi is Tina


Read the review of the original Streetfighter
Read the review of Return of the Streetfighter
Read the review of Streetfighter's Last Revenge




What the box says:

In this exciting martial arts film, a drug investigator encounters nothing but dead ends in her search for her missing brother. In desperation, she ends up asking a martial arts expert to help her.


Plot:

Some of the names I couldn't seem to pick up on in the movie.

A woman is doing a kata. Sonny Chiba isn't given top billing, either.

In Hong Kong, a newspaper discusses the disappearance of a famous martial artist, Lee Long. His sister, Tina, goes to the police for help. The police tell her that her brother was an undercover agent infiltrating a drug ring. Lee's partner has also vanished. If they can find the partner, they'll find Lee. The police ask her to help find Lee. Tina agrees and is told to meet with Lee's partner, Fanny the singer.

In Yokohama, some guys hit on Tina. She manages to catch flies with toothpicks. She does a pretty good job of mopping the floor with them. Sue Shiomi seems to be dressed like Bruce Lee's little sister. The martial arts uniform, etc...

In a club where Fanny is an exotic dancer, Tina is waiting to meet her. Drug guys grab Fanny because they know she's working for the cops. Take her outside. Fanny manages to run away before being grabbed again, gets smacked around for her trouble. Tina strikes Drug guys get Fanny again. Tina has goons to fight. Drug guys get to the car. But, Sonny stops them and drives away with Fanny.

Drug Guys are at the company they use as a front, complain about losing Fanny. Samurai guy, Hammerhead, and his entourage enter. Hammerhead wants to destroy the Surinji martial arts school, which is the form Lee and Teri use.


Do you like hooded henchmen?

At the Surinji School, they are discussing philosophy. Tina asks for their help. Everyone is happy to help her. Tina finds the guy who got Fanny, Sonny Chiba. He has Fanny in a safe place.

In a Japanese Ballet school, Tina talks with Fanny about the last time she saw Lee. Flashback time. Fanny is rolling in the hay with a Drug Guy, if by roll in hay is on a bed with naked people and no hay. Drug Guy spots Lee snooping around on the surveillance monitors. An alarm sounds Lee has to fight a lot of goons, but is overpowered.

Fanny is going through withdrawal pains. Creepy masked guys storm the Ballet studio. The Ballet teacher commences to unload Ballet Kung Fu vengeance upon the masked men. Tina jumps in the fight to help. Fanny needs the heroin. Teacher continues beating the masked guys. I never realized how cool Ballet was. Ballet dancers fighting Creepy masked men.

A bare-chested guy with a shield blow guns Fanny. Tina checks back on Fanny who is dead. The Blow gunner is trying to get Tina now. Misses and he runs away.

Tina is down by the docks. The Ballet teacher wants to help find her brother. Lee taught her martial arts. They spar. Female bonding...

At the mansion of the Drug Guys, men are training around the pool. Hammerhead reports to BOSS. They need to kill Tina. BOSS insults Hammerhead. Starts to be a fight. Groups of guys swarm to Hammerhead and BOSS. They stand down when they see each other's group assemble so fast.

BOSS watches Lee who has been injected with a variety of drugs. Another camera spots Tina outside the fence.

She jumps the fence. Goons surround her. Hammerhead is out there to fight her himself. They fight on a rocky coastline. On a suspension bridge, Hammerhead tells Tina about her brother. Tina keeps fighting. Hammerhead knocks her off the bridge and, she falls into the sea below.

BOSS congratulates Hammerhead. The big plan for these Drug Guys is smuggling wigs that are soaked in heroin. Does that sound really off the wall? The previous StreetFighter movie concerned a synthetic formula for heroin. Just seeing a bald guy wearing a wig soaked in heroin is funny. Tina's uncle shows up with some cookies for Lee. Drug Guys find the message hidden in the cookies that Tina will save you.

At the docks, a woman attacks some guards. It's the Ballet teacher driving off in a truck with wigs. The heroin soaked wigs...Her truck is blocked. The Drug Guys are rewarded with an ass-kicking from the baddest ballet teacher around. She dodges the bullets they shoot at her. The truck explodes. Eventually, she is overpowered. Tina swings in to help her. Like Tarzan on a rope. They get away.

BOSS learns that Tina is alive, informs Hammerhead. Hammerhead wants more chance to get rid of her. This is his big chance to wipe out the Surinji School and Tina once and for all. Hammerhead and his masked goons go to the Surinji School. They mock the Surinji clan. Hide behind women, etc...All the typical insults. Sonny shows up and insults the Hammerhead. The fight starts...

Sonny versus Hammerhead. In short order, Sonny has managed to break Hammerhead's arm. It sure looked like he did. The goons attack Sonny. For some reason, they aren't very effective against the Chiba. He lets them leave to deliver a message to BOSS. The typical "try to attack us and fail" message, we're gonna get Old Testament on you.

BOSS has the brilliant idea to use Tina's uncle to kill Tina. Call her. Uncle refuses. Well, BOSS has managed to kidnap Uncle's daughter. There are ways to make Uncle cooperate. Boss sics a greasy goon on Uncle's daughter. Uncle pleads with BOSS. Uncle finally relents and agrees to call Tina about the setup.

Tina gets the call from her Uncle. Lee has been released and is at a factory. Tina heads there as fast as she can.

At the old abandoned factory, Guy with a stick strikes. They fight and Tina finishes him off.

The next guy is mustache guy who is easily eliminated.

Nun chuck guy/girl strikes. Wait it is a guy, no androgyny like first thought. Fight with nun chucks. Tina falls off a fire escape.

Ballet teacher and Uncle's son are worried about Tina. Uncle and daughter stagger in. Uncle is questioned about if he knows where Tina is. Uncle is mad and refuses to answer. Daughter reveals that BOSS killed Tina. Blow gunner connects a blow dart into Uncle.

Strangely masked Flintstone ninjas attack. If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many is this worth?


YAbba DAbba DOOM!!!
Ballet teacher and son strike at them. Tina shows up to finish them off for good.

Everyone gathers around the dying Uncle. Uncle confesses he was involved with BOSS's dealing. He reveals that Lee is in the cellar of the mansion of BOSS. Uncle dies. His daughter and son are understandably upset by this.

Again at the docks, unloading crates to a truck. Tina is sneaking around. As the truck drives away, Tina gets in the back.

BOSS is getting a pedicure. It seems hard to be intimidated by a guy getting his toenails done. A new man has arrived to kill Tina. This guy is a former preacher. He demonstrates his ability with his modified spear gun. I guess the vow not to kill forced him to renounce his vows. Vow of poverty, chastity, celibacy. But, he never had a vow against killing.

Tina gets out of the crates and quickly takes care of the guards. Heading for the basement, she spots the cell where Lee is being held. Guards are going to move Lee. Tina strikes and grabs her brother. She has the other guards to contend with, too. Get a touching reunion. Lee wants Tina to eliminate BOSS once and for all. I think Lee has outlived his usefulness.

Former preacher with spear gun gets a spear or two into Lee who wants Tina to escape. Tina fights with former preacher. Only appropriate for former preacher to see the effectiveness of his own weapon as Tina uses it to shoot him. A trapdoor opens under Tina's feet.

Tina awakens tied upside hanging by her feet over a bed of nails. BOSS shows up to gloat. Why? Because, that's what evil overlord types do... Tina is whipped by Dragon Lady, BOSS's girlfriend and pedicurist, BOSS decides they should get rid of her once and for all. Dragon Lady uses a candle's flame on the road holding Tina over the nails. As the rope is burns apart, Tina manages a midair back flip to land her safely away from the bed of nails.

Tina uses Dragon Lady as a shield then throws her on the bed of nails. In the confusion, Tina gets out of the room as the alarms sound.

Tina has to fight a bunch of BOSS's goons. Sai-man attacks. He actually wounds her, which is a first in the movie. Tina manages to impale a sai directly on the top of his head.


I have a terrible headache...

Tina is surrounded by goons. Throwing-guy throws things really hard. Tina is cornered. Things don't look good for our spunky heroine. Until, Sonny, Ballet teacher and daughter show up on the scene. The big fight of the movie. Tina fights Nun chuck guy again. Ballet teacher and daughter are doing pretty good, too.

BOSS runs away, because all evil people are inherently cowards. Sonny is fighting Hammerhead whose arm is no longer in a sling. Tina goes after BOSS. Hammerhead is finished finally by Sonny.

Tina is in a dark hallway where bats on strings live. She fights BOSS, who is wearing a Shredder claw. Boss keeps trying to run away every chance he gets. On a rocky cliff, the final battle will be fought. It's a mid-air fight. BOSS is killed.

Sonny finds Tina. He gives her Lee's watch. Ballet teacher and daughter catch up to them. Tina walks off; she stares at the sunset as tears roll down her face.


What I say:

Can this legitimately be called a StreetFighter movie? Sonny Chiba isn't anti-heroic. He's noble. His name might not even be Terry Tsurugi. I didn't catch what it was. Sue Shiomi does pretty well with what she has. Granted Sue Shiomi can do some pretty impressive stunts. But, this was a StreetFighter movie, without the StreetFighter. But, I was wanting Sonny Chiba sounding like a cat got stuck in his throat punching eyes out of the heads' of his enemies. Part of the fun was watching someone so repellent just unload on the mob. Sonny should have been more of the focus or not been in it at all.

A karate Ballet teacher, karate masked men, and strangely masked Flintstone ninjas can do a lot to improve a movie. But, you need more than that. A movie where a girl rescuing her brother from an evil drug lord just can't live up to the mantle of StreetFighter. I think they just flat out made Sue too powerful. She was injured once. There never seemed to be anyone with a comparable martial arts skill for her to fight. A hero can only be as good as the villains they oppose. Who was opposing Sue? Who was the Joker to her Batman?

This would be thought of in a better light except you can tell this movie was made to milk the cash cow one last time. It doesn't have anything to do with the other movies. Call this the Halloween 3 of the StreetFighter movies. It just was tired. There wasn't any creativity to it. I have to give them some credit for not forcing a love story between Sue and Sonny.



2 1/2 NINJAS

Quotable Dialogue

"We both know your brother would never take dope."
"I don't like racehorses so I keep killers."
"It's as much fun as a carload of gorillas."


Morals of the Story

Don't anger women who dress like Bruce Lee's little sister.
Don't anger Ballet teachers.
Former preachers who live by the speargun will die by it.