Talons of the Eagle is a 1992 American

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

starring

Billy Blanks William Wayne Blanks (born September 1, 1955) is an American fitness personality, martial artist, actor, and the creator of the Tae Bo exercise program. Early life and education Blanks was born in Erie, Pennsylvania. He began his study of t ...

Jalal Merhi Jalal Merhi is a Brazilian-born Canadian action film producer and martial artist. He was born in Brazil to Lebanese immigrant parents. Career He started his film career by selling his jewellery business to start a film production company. He ...

Matthias Hues Matthias Hues (born 14 February 1959) is a German-born, naturalized American actor and martial artist. He was born in Waltrop, Germany, to Dr. Josef Hues and Maria Humperdinck Hues who still reside in Germany. Maria is the niece of Engelbert ...

and

James Hong James Hong (; born February 22, 1929) is an American actor, producer and director. He has worked in numerous productions in American media since the 1950s, portraying a variety of roles. With more than 650 film and television credits as of 20 ...

and directed by Michael Kennedy. It received a limited release on November 6, 1992, and was released on video on December 23, 1992.

Plot summary

After three DEA agents are killed by crime boss Mr. Li (Hong), the DEA reluctantly calls in New York cop and martial arts expert Tyler Wilson (Blanks) and sends him to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, on undercover assignment, to team up with Canadian vice cop Michael Reed (Merhi). Because Tyler and Michael must infiltrate Li's gang, they enter a martial arts tournament that Li is known to attend to recruit talent. Preparing for the tournament, they train with legendary Master Pan Qingfu, who teaches them the art of 'eagle claw'. Pan's son was killed by Li, so he seeks revenge and agrees to teach them. At the tournament, Tyler and Michael impress Li and end up saving him from being killed by a rival crime boss. Li invites the two to join his staff, therefore granting them access to his operation. While undercover, working as security at Li's illegal gambling facility, they discover that another undercover agent, Cassandra (Priscilla Barnes), has already infiltrated Li's organization. They must, then, verify if she has defected, as she hasn't reported to her commanding officer in three weeks. Michael determines Cassandra hasn't switched sides and the three uncover Li's plot to blackmail a local politician into waiving extradition for one of Li's criminal associates, Fong Wai Hut. During a drug deal, Michael is arrested, then bailed by Li and brought to interrogation, as Li's right-hand man Khan (Hues) learns Michael is a cop. In the final showdown, Michael escapes and helps Tyler and Pan battle Li, Khan and their army of henchmen, before destroying the entire Li empire. In the end, the duo are congratulated by their captain and make the sign of the eagle claw.

Cast

as Michael Reed *

as Tyler Wilson *

as Mr. Li *

Priscilla Barnes Priscilla Anne Barnes (born December 7, 1952) is an American actress."Priscilla Barnes"
AllMovie.com; retr ...

as Cassandra * Pan Qingfu as Master Pan *

as Khan * Harry Mok as Niko * Gary "Si-Jo" Foo as Fong Wai Hut

Production

The movie was shot in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between April 23, 1992 and May 21, 1992, and was made by production companies Film One Productions and

Shapiro-Glickenhaus Entertainment Shapiro-Glickenhaus Entertainment was a company formed at the height of the home video industry in 1982 by producer Leonard Shapiro and director James Glickenhaus to produce and distribute low-budget horror and action films. History The company k ...

Release

It received a short theatrical release in Canada by

Cineplex Odeon Films Cineplex Odeon Films (later known as Odeon Films) was the film distribution unit of the Canadian cinema chain Cineplex Odeon Corporation. The company was originally named Pan-Canadian Film Distributors. In 1998, the company was sold off to Allianc ...

Home media

The film was distributed on VHS in 1992 by MCA/Universal Home Video (USA) and that same year by Cineplex-Odeon Home Video and

MCA Home Video Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (formerly Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Video, MCA/Universal Home Video, MCA Home Video, MCA Videodisc and MCA Videocassette, Inc.) is the home video distribution division of Am ...

. Since then it has been distributed by numerous companies on VHS and DVD including a 1999 Home Video release from Alliance Atlantis in Canada and receiving 2 DVD releases. The first DVD was released in the United States by 20th Century Fox in 2004 and in 2005 in Canada by Legacy Entertainment.

Soundtrack

* "Talons of the Eagle" — Written and performed by Jonas J. Patricko * "Don't Make Me Mad Son" — Written by Ryan Lord and Darren Hill, performed by Top Secret, Dee Rhythm Music * "Lay Your Money Down" — Written and performed by Britton, lyrics by Murray Plichta

References

{{Reflist

Trivia

The film was heavily edited by

MTV Brasil MTV Brasil was a Brazilian over-the-air television network owned by Grupo Abril focused on the youth. The network was launched on 20 October 1990, as the first specialty television network to broadcast over-the-air, becoming the local version ...

in 2007 for the comedic group Hermes & Renato show Tela Class, in which they redubbed and changed the plot from various movies for comedic purposes. Tales of the Eagle became 'Garras de Baitola' (Talons of the Queer), in which the two main characters were implied to be a couple who worked as

bouncers A bouncer (also known as a doorman or door supervisor) is a type of security guard, employed at venues such as bars, nightclubs, cabaret clubs, stripclubs, casinos, hotels, billiard halls, restaurants, sporting events, schools, concerts, ...

in a chinese-owned club. It is implied that Billy Blanks character was

Pelé Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; born 23 October 1940), known as Pelé (), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and labelled "the greatest" by FIFA, ...

External links

*
Talons Of The Eagle
' at

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

American martial arts films Films directed by Jalal Merhi Martial arts tournament films