The movie talks about a tough police man (Chuck Norris) from San Francisco , he's double-crossed and a friend cop is murdered . He renounces as a honorable cop in the presence his chief (Richard Roundtree) and helper (Matt Clark) . Later on , a journalist being eliminated by a mysterious killer , a sadistic villain Chinese (Professor Tanaka) . His friend reporter (Maggie Cooper) -working in Television channel whose owner is an elegant tycoon (Christopher Lee)- hands over Norris a tape with clues . The loner cop must protect her from threatening hoodlums . Perennial karate guy Norris along with his partner , Mako , undergo a violent confrontation against the Chinese Mafia , pitting corrupt cops from police department and criminal gangs named triads . Norris saves the day in this thrilling and exciting movie .

The picture is plenty of action-packed , tension , suspense and cheesy sub-plot , to boot with wild stunts . There's a lively conflict , ridden love interest as well , as Norris falls in love with a lovely journalist who must save her . The movie displays a plethora of martial art fights , as Norris cleans up the Chinese fighters by means of punches , kicks, bounds and leaps with struggles certainly slickly choreographed . It's violent , frenetic and hectic and not particularly literary but worthy entry in Kung-Fu genre , although runs out energy surprisingly early . Average Norris-thriller , exciting and tense at times , including fine work , as always , from Christopher Lee as a brilliant TV financier . Special appearance as hunk villain of Professor Tanaka with lots of visceral violence , he's a wrestler who possessed incredible strength , he was arguably the successor to Harold Sakata(famous Chinese nasty of ¨Goldfinger¨) as the archetypal Asian henchman . The film belongs to Norris'early period , during the 80s , such as : ¨Code of silence¨ , ¨Delta Force¨ , ¨Silent rage¨ , ¨Octagon¨ , ¨Forced vengeance¨ ,¨ Force of one¨ , among others with successful box-office in cinema theaters as video-rentals . In the 90s and 2000s with exception of ¨Walker Texas Ranger¨, the Norris star has gone down . Action addicts will give this one a passing grade , all others need not apply . If you're a previous Norris fans , you'll like it but contains enough action and violence for enthusiastic of the Chop-Socky genre . The motion picture was professionally directed by Steve Carver who directed to Norris in ¨Lone wolf McQuade¨, as well.

Not much of a Chuck Norris fan ( I prefer Bronson from the 70's and Stallone in the 80's for these type of emotionally empty action films),I found this one to have a bit more depth to it thanks to some more personal stories if not the power of it's not such a great leading man. Norris just seems to be barely alive on screen, and his face minus the beard is certainly not his fortune. But he's a basically honest cop dealing with a heroine smuggling ring, losing throughout the film several colleagues and friends including fellow police officer Terry Kiser and reporter pal Rosalind Chao. The only time that Nora seems to be acting is when he's either fighting or practicing, and of course, he's not saying a word.

This is the San Francisco of the early 1980s, a tough time, and not what you'd see in "Tales of the City". Norris quits the force in a rage, and he's on a rampage independently to stalk out the perpetrator behind the scenes, going up against the very large Professor Toru Tanaka whom we witness chasing after Chao through of the San Francisco Embarcadero area, onto the Market Street train and down to where she lives. It's one of the most horrifying deaths I've seen on screen, and the impact of her character is felt throughout the film.

The stalking scene though leaves a lot of realism to be desired, as the cops would either grab her to find out why she's running or do their best to stop Tanaka who is obviously up to no good. Other major cast members include Christopher Lee as Chao's boss, Mako as her father, Richard Roundtreee as Norris's and Stuart Pankow. As usual in a Norris film, there's obvious ridicule to the gay characters who show up (presented in hideous cartoonish ways) and gratuitous violence. But as usual for films set in big cities I visited, I enjoyed the San Francisco street scenes, and I wasn't bored. Norris films just aren't my bag, and based on research, his work hasn't really held up in general.

A light, entertaining martial arts thriller from Chuck Norris, personally this is a favourite of mine. There's a flow of almost constant action, things never become too bogged down in talk, while the plot is still interesting enough and contains enough twists to be watchable. Plus, the action in this film is hugely enjoyable and the best I've seen from Norris. And what a cast to die for! Norris himself is his usual self, wooden but athletic. The villain here is played by Christopher Lee, doing his usual charming, polite routine while secretly fronting a major drugs ring. Lee seems somewhat out of place in this movie and it's odd to watch him get to grips with Norris in the modern setting, but his appearance is a blessing for a horror fan like me.

Richard Roundtree plays his typical persona - gruff but good-natured - as Norris' superior who frequently gets thwarted by the big man. Mako, that dependable supporting actor, is a wise old martial arts expert who gets all of the best lines in his clichéd but fun role. Also popping up are Terry Kiser (only briefly though) and Professor Toru Tanaka, who has great fun as a club-footed villain who finally goes one-on-one with Norris in a battle to the death. Matt Clark, a familiar character actor from 1970s television, bags the supporting role with most character depth.

What I like most about this movie is the action, though, as it's fast and over-the-top all the way. Here, Norris is at home breaking arms and necks in the manner of Steven Seagal and there are there expertly-orchestrated fights; firstly at Mako's home, secondly on a cargo ship, and the finale at Lee's mountain-top house. Watching Norris battle and chop a dozen villains at each location is a lot of fun and the high death toll makes this great viewing for action fans. Although not the most original or inspired of action movies, AN EYE FOR AN EYE is certainly one of the most enjoyable in terms of raw entertainment.