‘Showdown In Little Tokyo’ Blu-Ray Review – Lundgren & Lee Partner Up In Action-Packed Crime Flick

This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie being covered here wouldn’t exist.

A warrior and a wise guy. They’re Los Angeles who mix punches with punchlines in a knock-down, gun-down Showdown in Little Tokyo. Dolph Lundgren is the muscle, an American samurai steeped in Eastern traditions. Brandon Lee is a “Valley dude” quipster with a lot of fight in him. Together they hang tough in a war with a lurid L.A. underworld of Japanese drug lords. As directed by Mark L. Lester (Commando), that combat is a frenzied comic book come to explosive life. How this dynamic duo takes on and flattens all comers makes for “smart, fast-moving martial arts action adventure. A class act” (Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times).

For thoughts on Showdown in Little Tokyo, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic: 

[youtube https://youtu.be/_oNSi9QIWEE?si=IDSpVmCjc1yeDPE3&t=1060]

Video Quality

Showdown in Little Tokyo comes to Blu-Ray courtesy of Warner Archive early on in the label’s life cycle in 2015 with a 1080p master sourced from a 2K scan of the interpositive. Even at this early stage, the company was putting out quality work, and this transfer holds up really well with the lovely natural film grain intact and resolved well. You will thankfully not spot much in the way of any compression artifacts or other such digital anomalies. This disc deftly showcases the urban settings and distinct interiors with great care. There are elements in the makeup and production design that are clearly visible for the first time ever on home entertainment. There are some deep, natural colors that saturate the picture well. Skin tones look natural, and the presentation offers up firm highlights and deep black levels. Warner Archive has done some good work with this one. 

Audio Quality

Warner Archive delivers a Blu-Ray with a terrific DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix that more than gets the job done at every step. This is a film with some powerful kicks and punches, and each blow makes the impression that it deserves. Dialogue flows through clearly when the two leads are bantering with one another. There are some active environmental effects that give the experience a bit of a kick when our heroes clash with their foes. The score comes through faithfully as it complements the narrative. There are no age defects to the track such as pops, hissing or audio dropouts. This is a fabulous track that gets the job done without any issues. Optional English (SDH) subtitles are provided on this disc.

Special Features

• Theatrical Trailer: The minute-and-a-half long trailer is provided here. 

Final Thoughts

Showdown in Little Tokyo delivers on its promise of pairing Dolph Lundgren with Brandon Lee to deliver quippy banter between action-packed moments. The chemistry between the two is believable, and there are even a handful of moments when there are genuine stabs at emotion which do not completely fall flat. Tia Carrere is a bit underutilized for our tastes, but Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa delivers his typical villainous performance with ease. The action is pretty exciting and the pacing of the experience is incredibly spry. You get what you expect and not much more. Warner Archive has released a Blu-Ray featuring a really good A/V presentation but almost no special features. If you are an action movie fanatic, you should have a good time. Recommended 

Showdown in Little Tokyo can be purchased directly through MovieZyng or through various other online retailers.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Warner Archive has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.