Japan Synopsis
“He has trained every thought, every muscle, every nerve, for the moment of truth!”
Rick, a down-and-out American boxer, is hired to transport a sword to Japan, unaware that the whole thing is a set up in a bitter blood-feud between two brothers, one who follows the traditional path of the samurai and the other a businessman. At the behest of the businessman, Rick undertakes samurai training from the other brother, but joins his cause. He also becomes romantically involved with the samurai's daughter.
The 1981–1983 Japan Window
68 Japan films released in this three-year window, ranked here by audience rating. The Challenge sits at position #51.
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with The Challenge. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.
The 1980s Japan Landscape
Catalog density by release year in the 1980s. Highlighted year (yellow) is when The Challenge premiered. 280 total titles in this decade from Japan.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #3,922 of 4,579 Japan films indexed here (14th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is -1.0 points below the Japan average of 6.9/10.
Among Japan Action productions specifically: #1,516 of 1,714 (top 88%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| All Production Countries | Japan, United States of America |
| Original Language | En |
| Spoken Languages | English, Japanese |
| Production Companies | Poncher-Rosen-Beckman Productions, CBS Theatrical Films |
| Runtime | 1h 49m |
| Release Date | July 23, 1982 |
| IMDb | tt0083726 |