Here is a link to the full article from the Hollywood Reporter and below I have included an excerpt from the Leslie Simmons article:

Having most recently played a dirty cop in Lakeview Terrace, Samuel L. Jackson is set to star as a bad guy again in Columbia Pictures' remake of Berry Gordy's 1985 cult classic The Last Dragon.

Jackson will play Sho'nuff, the Shogun of Harlem, a role played in the original by the late Julius Carry, whose spiel included asking ego-driven questions like "Am I the baddest mofo lowdown around this town?" Each time his gang of thugs answered, "Sho 'nuff!"

Davis Entertainment's John Davis and Gordy's son Kerry Gordy are producing. Penning the screenplay as well as producing is Dallas Jackson, who heads up the urban family label DJ Classicz with Davis. Wu-Tang Clan's RZA is co-producing.

The updated plot will be along the same lines of the original, centering on young martial arts student Leroy Green in his quest through the streets of New York to achieve the highest level of martial arts accomplishment, known as the Last Dragon. Those who achieve the high ranking possess the Glow, making them the greatest fighter alive.

The project, announced by Columbia presidents Doug Belgrad and Matt Tolmach, will take a new look at "Last Dragon" coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Motown next year. "We're thrilled to be working with Kerry Gordy as he continues his father's legacy, and we're confident that he along with John and Dallas are the perfect team to develop the project," Belgrad said. "They will capture everything that people love about the original while also bringing a fresh edge to the remake."

The original, which also starred one-namers Taimak and then-Prince protégé Vanity, was released in March 1985 by TriStar Pictures and received lukewarm reviews by critics like Roger Ebert, who gave it 2 1/2 stars and said it was a "great near-miss."

Despite the reviews, "Last Dragon" did well at the box office, grossing nearly $26 million. It soon became a cult classic for scenes like Bruce Lee follower Green remaining so loyal to the martial arts star that he eats his popcorn in a movie theater with chopsticks.

"I'm a huge fan of the original and look forward to bringing Sho'Nuff into the 21st century," Jackson said.

I am not quite sure how I feel about this. I have seen the original so many times I cannot even count and I enjoy all of the bad acting and cheesiness. Sam Jackson is a great choice to try to replicate the "Sho'Nuff" character, but I don't think anybody could be as good as Julius Carry was in the original.

Here is a video to some scenes featuring the "Sho'Nuff" character.

Here is a link to watch the entire scene in the movie theater which is not shown in its entirety in the above video. What a great bad guy character they created!

It's sad, but true, that I can recite many of the lines from this film. Whether it is lines by "Sho'Nuff" played by Carry, the main character "Leroy Green" played by Taimak, his little brother "Richie," the other bad guy "Eddie Arcadian," or the beautiful "Laura Charles" played by Vanity as well as some of the other minor characters. I can just start reciting them almost as easily as I can the lines from Caddyshack (which says a lot). I can even remember the slogan that Leroy's Dad used for his pizza place, "Just direct-a your feets-a to Daddy Green's Pizza."

The film has a mix of comedy (both intentionally and unintentionally), action with carefully choreographed martial arts fighting, and even a little romance. It also has a pretty girl (Vanity) which always helps. It even had the DeBarge song "Rhythm of the Night" in it which will rank in my top 200 songs of the 80s list when that gets published.

Like I said, the dialogue is pretty cheesy and the acting is pretty bad, but there is something about this movie that I just really enjoy. Maybe it is the quest for "the glow" which represents the greatness that was inside of us all along. I thought I was alone in my appreciation of The Last Dragon, but to my surprise it sounds like it is actually a cult classic. Here is a link to sort of a trailer for the movie well worth watching which gives you a little better glimpse into what it is about.

That does not do it justice. I would recommend watching this film to any fan of kung-fu movies or just cheesy 80s movies in general. I am not sure how many times you will have to watch before you really start to enjoy it as I still do, but give it at least one try. No matter how good the remake is or how good Sam Jackson is as "Sho'Nuff," I just don't think it has a chance of replacing the original to me.

That will do it for another issue of Kickin' it Old School. Thanks for reading about one of my "guilty pleasures." I am sure I will be sharing others and, believe me, they won't all be karate related. The fact that the first two movies I shared happened to have that connection is purely a coincidence. If you are interested in reading more of my 80's related issues, please click there for a summary. You can always click on the Archives in the upper left hand column or use the blogbar Search Box in the right hand column to find any other issues you may have missed. If you are a fan of Kickin' it, please pass the word and let others know to give it a try (and of course come back often!). Peace and much love.

Check this out: Here is a funny video of Thomas Wilson who played "Biff" brilliantly in the Back to the Future movies. Wilson still acts a little, but also is a comedian. "Biff's Question Song" is pretty funny as it describes what a recognizable character from an iconic movie might go through on a daily basis. Enjoy!

Quote of the day: "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony." -Mahatma Gandhi

Download this: Since it was featured in the original film The Last Dragon, I am going to go with "Rhythm of the Night" by DeBarge