Bullet Points: An Eye for an Eye
Watching 1981’s An Eye for an Eye was a real blast from the past for me. I remember picking it out at the video rental store about four decades ago when I was getting deeper and deeper into my love of martial arts movie mayhem. And then for whatever reason, I had not watched the movie since. So while I did have some vague memories of the movie, in may ways it felt like a first time watch for me…
- Into the Fire: Sean Kane (Chuck Norris, A Force of One) and Dave Pierce (Terry Kiser, Forest Warrior) are two undercover narcotics cops with the San Francisco Police Department. As they movie begins they are hanging out in their car on a rainy night, waiting to meet their informant Tony Montoya (Mel Novak, Expert Weapon) at a cheap hotel. When Sean spots Tony, the two make their way inside the hotel. Dave can’t help but admire his news reporter girlfriend, Linda Chan (Rosalind Chao, Battle Creek Brawl), on the TV in the hotel lobby, while Sean talks to Tony… who says they can’t talk there and to follow him out to the alley… but the whole thing turns out to be a setup, Dave ends up on fire, hit by a car and dead. Sean ends up with a bullet in his shoulder and out of work, after his boss, Captain Stevens (Richard Roundtree, Crack House) gives Sean grief for the bungled operation and Sean hands Stevens his badge and his gun.
- Another One Bites the Dust: After Dave’s funeral, Sean talks to Linda. Linda is determined to find out who killed Dave and will use her investigative journalist powers to find out… Linda’s investigation leads her to a train station and that is where she realizes she is being followed by a motley crew led by The Professor (Professor Toru Tanaka, The Running Man)… Linda frantically calls Sean, but has to boogie before she can give Sean any details. Linda narrowly escapes the station and manages to make it back home. There she gives Sean a follow up call, Sean tells her he’ll be right over. That would be the last conversation Sean and Linda ever have. Before Sean could get there, The Professor shows up and literally chokes the life out of Linda. By the time Sean does arrive it is a crime scene. Sean’s cop buddy, McCoy (Matt Clark, Tuff Turf) allows the now civilian Sean Kane into the crime scene… and it is there that Sean meets Linda’s friend/co-worker/neighbor, Heather and does his best to console her. When Captain Stevens arrives, he kicks Sean out. As Sean leaves, we see Linda’s boss/mentor, Morgan Canfield (played by the legendary Christopher Lee) show up and address the press outside of Linda’s apartment building.
- Ain’t No Mountain High Enough: Sean visits Linda’s father (and his sensei), James Chan (Mako, P.O.W. the Escape) at Chan’s mountain top home. But Sean isn’t the only “visitor” at Chan’s place. A bunch of bad guys infiltrate the home, and there’s even some bad guys in a helicopter shooting at Sean… Sean’s next stop is a much less violent one, as he pops in at the TV station to talk to Heather. Heather takes Sean into one of the edit rooms, where he watches all of Linda’s reports on drug trafficking… it is there he can’t help but notice Tony Montoya in the background of one of Linda’s reports from the docks. Sean asks Heather if she can find out exactly where that report was shot and Heather is happy to help, but their time is interrupted by Linda’s boss, Mr. Canfield, who invites Sean up to his office where he expresses how special Linda was to him… it’s not possible that Christopher Lee is the bad guy in this movie is it?!?! Sean then turns his attention to tracking down Tony Montoya (with some help from James), but the slippery Montoya ends up getting away again and that’s when Sean gets his first look at The Professor… it’s not possible that we will get a Sean Kane vs. The Professor fight before the movie ends is it?!
- Sitting on the Dock of the Bay: Heather comes through for Sean and finds out the name of the boat that was in the background (along with Tony Montoya) during Linda’s report. Unfortunately being friendly with Sean Kane seems to lead to trouble for her too as her apartment is ransacked. Sean comes over and tells her to pack up some things and stay at his place for a while. You can probably figure out what that leads to. The next night Sean decides to check out the ship and while he tells Heather it would be best if she stayed at his place with the security system on, she can’t help but go to the train station after Sean’s dog finds a key in a pair of shoes that Heather had lent to Linda. It’s the same key that Linda had when she was at the train station! Linda finds a tape that will incriminate Canfield as the drug kingpin of San Francisco.
- The Party’s Over: Heather is captured, Sean is tricked into coming down to the TV station. It is there Canfield orders the death of Sean Kane. But in classic villain fashion, does not wait around to see it happen. At least Canfield had a good excuse, after Sean’s antics the night before on his ship, Canfield knows he needs to get his product to his very interested buyers, so he invites them all over to his swanky pad and has the drugs moved from the ship to his home. Meanwhile, James has shown up at the TV station to save Sean’s ass… the two then head to Canfield’s place and as luck would have it so is Captain Stevens and a whole army of cops, looking to bust Canfield once and for all! And yes… there is a Sean Kane vs. The Professor fight!
After re-watching An Eye for an Eye for the first time in four decades, I have to say I was thoroughly entertained. Chuck delivers what is expected from him, plus there’s a great supporting cast. I was so entertained that I really started to to wonder why this was not one I went back to until 2024? Perhaps it was the clean shaven Chuck Norris? Or more likely, it was Chuck’s Cannon content that was starting to come out around the time I first saw An Eye for and Eye. As much as I enjoyed my An Eye for an Eye re-watch as an adult, I would still have rather watched one of Chuck’s over the top Cannon films. So I am damn sure that me as a kid would rather watch Chuck Norris (with a beard) save the United States from a terrorist invasion, than watch a fresh faced Chuck take down a drug kingpin.
One of my reviews without some Bonus Bullet Points, is like Chuck Norris without any facial hair, it’s just not right…
- If You Ever: …wanted to see Chuck Norris, prevent his car from being towed, then An Eye for an Eye is the movie for you.
- The Name Game: Not to be confused with 1996’s Eye for an Eye starring Sally Field and Kiefer Sutherland.
- If You Ever: …wanted to see Professor Toru Tanaka take on Volkswagen Beetle, then An Eye for an Eye is the movie for you.
