This is the third of seven essays that will focus on the “Seasonal 7”, seven films released and made for international audiences from 1985 to 1997 with martial arts the focus. All images courtesy of Seasonal Films Corporation and Imperial Entertainment unless noted.

When No Retreat, No Surrender II had a very limited theatrical release but found its following via home video and cable, Seasonal Films decided to continue with their thematic sequels and make an official third film to the franchise. Where the first film was about honor, the second film was war, this time, it would be about family.

Made in 1989 with exteriors shot in both Washington D.C. and Tampa, Florida, a new director would take over in the form of Lucas Lowe. Not much is really known about Lowe, who is credited in this film as “Lucas Lo”. After having issues with his original script for No Retreat, No Surrender II, Ng See-Yuen eventually let Keith W. Strandberg go solo on the script for what would be known as Blood Brothers.

The idea can be said be loosely based on Ng’s 1976 hit film for Seasonal, The Secret Rivals, in which two heroes of different backgrounds would team up to face a common enemy. However, in this case, they would be two brothers who in a political climate, are estranged until their father’s death brings them together eventually.

With signing a 3-picture deal with Seasonal, Loren Avedon was cast in the role of Will Alexander, a martial arts instructor who comes from a family working for the Central Intelligence Agency but has no interest in their methods and political views. His brother, Casey, has followed in their father’s footsteps as a CIA agent and is a known showboat and playboy at times. That role would go to karate champion turned actor Keith Vitali, who had Hong Kong action experience when he appeared in Sammo Hung’s Wheels on Meals in 1984.

Veteran character actors Joseph Campanella and Luke Askew would join the cast. Campanella, one of the original stars of the soap opera Guiding Light and had appeared in numerous TV series in guest roles, would play retired CIA agent John Alexander. Askew, who appeared in classics like Cool Hand Luke, Easy Rider, and The Green Berets, would play CIA agent Atteron, the current department head of the CIA.

Wanda Acuna, a Puerto Rican actress, was cast as Maria, a woman who turns out was an ex of Casey’s and offers to help him while rekindling their relationship in the process. Rion Hunter, a kung fu expert, was cast as Antonio “Franco” Franconi, the main antagonist of the film. Tampa-based martial artist Mark Russo would make his film debut as Franco’s number one enforcer. David Michael Sterling rounded out the main cast as Angel, Franco’s recruiter.

Along with a new director, there would be a new action choreographer joining the production as original franchise helmer Corey Yuen would return to Hong Kong to work on local productions. Ng hired Tony Leung Siu-Hung, a renowned kung fu star and stunt coordinator whose brother is Bruce Leung, a Bruceploitation star who also happened to be Tony’s martial arts teacher. Leung resorted to using a more frenetic kickboxing style akin to the mid-80s Hong Kong fight action choreography. It was here where the first of a few problems would emerge before and during production.

Before shooting began, Leung wanted to see the skills of Avedon and Vitali, who were both renowned martial artists. When Avedon, a taekwondo black belt, performed a double jump spinning back kick, Leung asked Vitali if he could do the same move. Vitali’s attempt ended up bad where he ended up breaking his wrist. This led to Strandberg re-writing the opening of the script, where it will be revealed Casey is shot in the arm during an attempt to stop a bank heist from terrorists. Vitali spends all of the film with his hand and forearm in a cast.

The story begins with undercover CIA agent Casey Alexander successfully stopping a bank heist from terrorists. Meanwhile, Will Alexander, a martial arts instructor, teaches a self-defense course to his students when his father, John calls him. John is celebrating his retirement and 65^th birthday and wants to make sure Will will attend the event. He also hopes he can stay a few days to spend time as a family, but Will has reservations as he tends to clash with Casey. Will eventually promises to try.

At the party, Will is seen wearing a jacket with both the U.S. and Soviet Union flags (a clear reference to the original film) and when Casey shows off giving their father a ticket around the world from both him and Will, Will gets upset. Will finally tells Casey how he feels about him showboating and acting like a super spy. The two become estranged again and Will leaves in a huff only to have to turn around to bring his dad’s birthday present. Meanwhile, Casey brings a female guest to her home.

John finds himself ambushed at the hands of Colombian terrorist Franco, who blames John for the death of his son and was hoping Casey would be there to retaliate. However, Franco kills John with a dart to the throat. Will returns to find his father dead and berates Casey when he returns as well. At the funeral, Will demands the CIA do something about it and Casey even begins to have reservations but cannot because he is banned from the case due to it being his dad.

Casey convinces a friend who works in the IT department to give him the complete file on his father. Casey learns Franco is operating out of Florida and may have something major planned. Will shows up at Casey’s apartment building and saves him from an ambush by more terrorists. Will eventually reads the file himself and heads off. Casey, learning Will has read the file, decides to go to follow him. Will decides the only way to get to Franco is to infiltrate by going undercover as a potential member, Jesse. Casey, meanwhile, finds an ex-girlfriend, Maria, who has ties to Franco and offers to help him as long as they rekindle their relationship. Soon enough, a series of events will have the brothers overcome their differences to stop Franco.

The film would also mark the film debuts of two future actors who would go on to make A-list films mainly as supporting cast. One is Marc Macaulay, a veteran actor and stuntman. Playing the role of one of Franco’s men, Macaulay can be seen briefly as part of Will’s infiltration “test” who tries and fails to defeat Will. Macauley would later be known for his roles in action films like Passenger 57, Bad Boys, Shootfighter II, and Transporter 2 among others.

The other is Aasif Mandvi, who was credited under his full name, Aasif Mandviwala, as a terrorist. Mandvi would go on to become a versatile actor with perhaps one of his best-known roles being the unscrupulous co-worker who tries to prove the impending marriage between Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds is a sham in The Proposal. He has appeared in films like Spider-Man 2, American Chai, Premium Rush, and The Internship among others.

The film’s US release, in 1991 from Imperial Entertainment, trims down some dialogue between Will and his father and all references to U.S. President Bush are omitted. The international release, in some markets releasing the film as simply Blood Brothers, keeps all of the references to Bush in the print. Sadly, the only DVDs available of the title are on Region 2 (Europe) and Region 4 (Australia), which contain the full uncut international prints. The US version is officially out of print.

However, that doesn’t take away the fact that No Retreat, No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers is a bad film in any way. If anything, compared to the war-like structure of its predecessor and the fast-paced action of the original, the action is definitely a step above with Tony Leung Siu-Hung’s choreography. The plot will remind hardcore fans perhaps of The Secret Rivals, but the chemistry between leads Loren Avedon and Keith Vitali, along with a smooth-like performance by villain actor Rion Hunter makes this one definitely worth seeing.

In the next installment of this essay series, I will delve into the 1990 martial arts opus The King of the Kickboxers, the story of a cop’s attempt to take down a snuff film ring only to learn the man behind them is the same man who killed his brother a decade ago.