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The Sonny Chiba Collection, Volume 2 on Blu-ray

Four-disc set includes: The Defensive Power Of Akido (1975)Jiro Yabuki, Sonny Chiba's kid brother, takes center stage in this explosive if fanciful biopic of Morihei Ueshiba, the early 20th century martial arts master who developed akido. Sonny's on hand as one of the toughs that the young Ueshiba foolishly falls in with and must ultimately square off against; Etsuko Shihomi, Masafumi Suzuki also star. 82 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. C/Rtg: NR 13 Steps Of Maki (1975)Etsuko Shihomi takes the spotlight as Maki, the dynamic leader of a gang of female street toughs that the whole town knows not to mess with. Will her skills be enough to keep her alive when a local crime boss frames her and she's sent to the slammer? Martial arts mayhem meets pinku meets WIP in this cult fave with Sonny Chiba, Tatsuya Nanjo, Misa Ohara. 78 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. C/Rtg: NR Karate Warriors (1976)Considered by some to be part of the "Street Fighter" series, this violence-packed Sonny Chiba actioner is really more of an updating of Akira Kurosawa's "Yojimbo." Chiba stars as a tough, no-nonsense karate master who hatches a plan to use a stash of heroin to keep two warring gangs of thugs fighting each other instead of terrorizing the city. Akane Kawasaki, Akiko Koyama, Hideo Murota also star. 89 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. C/Rtg: R The Great Okinawa Yakuza War (1976)In 1971, Okinawa ganglord Seigou Kunigami (Sonny Chiba) thought he had an understanding with the mainland bosses that no one messed with his turf. With the island's return to Japan, however, all bets were off-and he braced for a bloody battle to keep what was his. Sadao Nakajima's gritty opus also stars Hiroki Matsukata, EMI Shindo. 95 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. C/Rtg: NR Karate For Life (1978)This bone-busting biopic offers Sonny Chiba in his third go-round portraying his very mentor in the martial arts-Masutatsu Oyama, the ethnic Korean who developed the full-contact karate style known as Kyokushin. Here, Oyama must return to the pro wrestling job he bolted from to aid a tubercular friend. Kôjirô Hongô, Yoko Natsuki co-star. 90 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. C/Rtg: NR Golgo 13: Assignment Kowloon (1977)Sonny Chiba is perfectly cast as Golgo 13, the lethal killer-for-hire with his own code of honor and the star of a long-running Japanese comic book series. In this action-packed thriller, Golgo is hired to eliminate a drug-dealing Hong Kong businessman, only to find himself challenged by another hit man. 93 min. In Japanese and Mandarin with English subtitles. C/Rtg: NR The Okinawa War Of Ten Years (1978)Sonny Chiba and Hiroki Matsukata team for another gangster flick rooted in Okinawa's return to Japan, this time as friends who shared an orphaned boyhood, but whose bond will be sorely tested by their membership in rival yakuza factions dealing with the encroachment of the mainland mob. Yumiko Nogawa, Makoto Satô also star. 101 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. C/Rtg: NR Widescreen; Soundtrack: Japanese; Subtitles: English.