''Collision Course'' is a 1989 action comedy film starring

Jay Leno James Douglas Muir Leno (; born April 28, 1950) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and actor. After doing stand-up comedy for years, he became the host of NBC's ''The Tonight Show'' from 1992 to 2009. Beginning in September 2009 ...

as a Detroit police officer and Pat Morita as a Japanese officer forced to work together to recover a Japanese turbocharger stolen by a thief played by Chris Sarandon. It was directed by

Lewis Teague Lewis Teague (born March 8, 1938) is an American film director, whose work includes ''Alligator'', '' Cat's Eye'', ''Cujo'', ''The Jewel of the Nile'', '' The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!'', ''Navy SEALs'' and '' Wedlock''. Biography Teague was b ...

and unreleased in the U.S. until 1992, when it debuted on home video. The story plays upon the culture clash between Detroit - whose economy is largely built on automobile manufacturing - and Japan - whose trade policies and export of cars were blamed for Detroit job losses in the 1980s.

Plot

The film opens with Oshima ( Danny Kamekona) attempting to sell a revolutionary turbo charger to an auto maker headed by Derek Jarryd (

Dennis Holahan Dennis Holahan (born November 7, 1942 in Stamford, Connecticut) is an American attorney and former actor. He is a partner in the San Francisco office of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, California’s largest law firm, where he specializes in e ...

). However, the deal is being brokered by two goons, Scully ( Tom Noonan) and Kosnic ( Randall "Tex" Cobb). When Oshima backs out at the last second, explaining he has hidden the turbo charger, he is tortured and hung upside down, where he has a fatal heart attack, dying before he can disclose the location of the turbo charger. The manager at the junkyard stumbles upon what is going on, and is shot with a rocket gun by Scully, killing him. Detective Tony Costas (

) is called in to investigate, but is removed by his captain when they realize the junkyard manager is a former partner of Costas. Despite being told to back off the case, Costas enlist the help of his new partner, Shortcut ( Ernie Hudson). Arriving in America at this time is Fujitsuka Natsuo ( Pat Morita), assigned by his boss, Kitao ( Soon-Tek Oh). Soon, Natsuo and Costas begin their own investigation after Natsuo finally admits the real reason he is in America. After Natsuo poses as a reporter asking Jarryd about the new Turbo Charger, Jarryd is escorted away by Scully, tasked with watching over Jarryd by a corrupt crime boss named Madras ( Chris Sarandon). Jarryd had taken a loan from Madras, who now controls Jarryd in order to make sure he gets a solid return on his "investment". After seeing Scully being rough with Jarryd, both Natsuo and Costas deem Scully as worth following. Thanks to police work by Shorty, they learn of Scully's address and Natsuo and Costas go to his home. They break in and find that Scully's home is an armed fortress. Scully arrives and notices Costas and Natsuo. After a quick phone call to Madras, it is determined both men are to be killed. As they are searching Scully's home, Natsuo notices Scully aiming a rocket launcher at his own home. Both men escape just before the house blows up. They engage Scully in a gun fight that ends when Natsuo, who had accidentally stolen a grenade from Scully's home, gives the grenade to Costas, who tosses it out of the train car in which the men are hiding. Scully, being told it was directions to the Turbo Charger's location wrapped around a rock, is killed when the grenade goes off. An angered Costas confronts Madras, and he is suspended from the force and Natsuo is requested to return home, in disgrace. However, both Costas and Natsuo outwit Dingman, ( Al Waxman), who had been assigned to see that Natsuo got on his plane back to Japan. Both men continue their investigation which leads them to an auto shop where Oshima placed it in the car he had rented. After a brief gun battle with Kosnic and some goons, Costas and Natsuo make their way the rental company and locate Oshima's car. This time, they are chased by Madras and his goons, briefly interrupting an auto race taking place on Detroit's streets. After they crash the car, Costas and Natsuo steal a motorcycle, which they later crash as well. With his goons stripping the car, Madras drives off in pursuit. After locating Costas and Natsuo, he shoots Costas and attempts to run down Natsuo, who despite Costas' plea has begun to run towards the car. Natsuo delivers a kamikaze attack on Madras, kicking through the windshield and hitting Madras so hard the force of the strike decapitates him. With the car going out of control, Costas rolls out of the way. He recovers in time to rescue Natsuo from the hood of the car, which has now crashed, right before the car explodes. The next scene takes place in an airport, with Natsuo going home to Japan, with Oshima's body but no turbo charger. However, Costas has arranged for a police woman to deliver the part to him so he could in turn, help his partner save face with his boss in Japan. The film ends with both newfound friends saying their good-byes.

Production

Much of the principal photography for the film was shot on location in Detroit, Michigan. Numerous local landmarks are shown in various scenes, including the now-defunct Trapper's Alley in the city's

Greektown Historic District Greektown is a historic commercial and entertainment district in Detroit, Michigan, located just northeast of the heart of downtown, along Monroe Avenue between Brush and St. Antoine streets. It has a station by that name on the city's elevated ...

neighborhood and the

Garden Bowl The Garden Bowl is a bowling alley located at 4104–4120 Woodward Avenue in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest continuously operating bowling alley in the country.

within the Majestic Theatre Centre—the United States' oldest continuously operating bowling alley. Other parts of the movie were filmed in Wilmington, North Carolina. When Morita guest-starred on '' The Tonight Show'' in 1989, with Leno serving as guest host, they recalled that the movie had run out of money on the last day of filming, with key scenes yet to be shot and no budget left for editing and post-production.

Cast

* Pat Morita as Inspector Fujitsuka Natsuo *

as Detective Tony Costas * Chris Sarandon as Madras * Tom Noonan as Scully *

as Derrick Jarryd * Ernie Hudson as "Shortcut" * John Hancock as Lieutenant Ryerson * Al Waxman as Dingman * Soon-Tek Oh as Chief Inspector Kitao * Randall "Tex" Cobb as Kosnic * Danny Kamekona as Oshima *

Angela Leslie It emerged in late 2014 that Bill Cosby, an American media personality, sexually assaulted dozens of women throughout his career. Cosby made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United State ...

as Girl At Photo Shop * Ron Taylor as Autoworker #2 * Claudia Abel as Model At Auto Show

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Collision Course (Film) 1989 films 1989 action comedy films 1980s buddy comedy films 1980s crime comedy films American action comedy films American buddy comedy films American buddy cop films American crime comedy films Interscope Communications films Fictional portrayals of the Detroit Police Department Films directed by Lewis Teague Films scored by Ira Newborn 1980s buddy cop films 1980s police comedy films 1980s English-language films Films shot in Michigan Films shot in North Carolina 1980s American films English-language action comedy films