Robert's Review

"Dead or Alive" is based off of the popular video game series. Anyone who's ever seen the games should know exactly what to expect – hot women in skimpy outfits who kick some serious butt in the DOA martial arts tournament. Like the games, the movie offers plenty of eye candy and PG-13 bouncing bosoms (however the real costumes seemed to be too tight and restrictive, so there wasn't as much bounce). But I digress – the premise and plot are pretty simple… a bunch of fighters from around the world – each one being the master of their specific martial arts form – are invited to come to DOA island where they will fight in a ladder competition until one of them wins and is proclaimed the best fighter in the world. The story focuses around the 5 hottest contestants: Christie Allen, a sexy jewel thief; Tina Armstrong, a butt-kicking pro-wrestler; Kasumi, a Ninja princess;  Ayane, a ninja sworn to hunt down Kasumi; and Helena Douglas, a daughter of the man who created DOA. Between all the fighting and competition they realize that something sinister is afoot and it's up to them to stop an evil plot.

Brett and I waited several months for this movie, drooling over the rapidly approaching release date. When it finally came, we couldn't wait to go and we weren't disappointed. "Dead or Alive" is just as we expected and hoped it would be… a movie so terrible that it's actually a lot of fun! This is a pure guy movie with lots of beautiful women, skimpy clothing, martial arts battles, etc. The acting is horrible and the plot a bit flimsy, but it's still very entertaining and we had a great time. It was pure, mindless entertainment and we really enjoyed ourselves. If fact, our rag-tag group of moviegoers we'd taken to the theater with us were all alone in there, so we couldn't help but goof around and crack jokes the entire time, which made the event all the more entertaining. Overall, if you'd like to see some beautiful eye candy and martial arts, and want to enjoy some mindless action entertainment, then DOA is for you! 

All in all, I'd give this movie 3 STARS (out of 5). Re-watch value: MEDIUM (it's such a bad movie, but it's still really fun and entertaining)

In "DOA: Dead or Alive" four beautiful women begin as rivals in a secret invitation-only martial arts contest, but find themselves teaming up with one another against a sinister force. Tina Armstrong, played by Jamie Pressly is a superstar in the world of women's wrestling. Christie, played by best-selling pop recording artist and actor Holly Valance, is a beautiful cat-thief and assassin-for-hire. Princess Kasumi, played by international fashion model and actor Devon Aoki, is an Asian warrior-aristocrat, schooled by martial arts masters. Helena Douglas, played by Sarah Carter, is an extreme sports athlete whose tragic past binds her to the remote palace in Southeast Asia where the Dead or Alive tournament takes place.

This movie is exactly what I expected; lots of action, lots of bikini clad gorgeous women, and cool martial arts.  If you go to this movie expecting anything else or anything more then you will be disappointed, however even with the mild dialog the movie proved to be entertaining and fun.  As with most movies based on video games this movie was exactly what you would expect.

Overall Review: 3 Stars (sheer entertainment and bikini-clad gorgeous women). Re-Watch Value: Moderate (when in the mood for a brain-dead type of movie).

Trivia: The volleyball scene is a reference to the DOA spin-off Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball (2003) (VG) and the ball used is an exact replica of the in game ball.

courtesy
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