The Last Dragon is a certified cult classic. Most of the world has probably never heard of it, but I guarantee that the average Black American not only knows about it, but can likely quote it verbatim. That’s how influential it is. My family has always owned a copy, first on a VHS that we taped from TV and now on DVD. I’ve seen the movie more times than I can count.
I wanted to talk about it for two reasons. One, it’s a martial arts movie featuring a Black protagonist. That’s cool and somewhat rare. I want to acknowledge that kind of representation. Two, I feel like I have a stock of questions about the movie that has built up over the years. Every time I watch it, I see something that puts a question mark in my head. I think it’s time to put everything out in the open and discuss it.
Here’s a snippet of the summary from the DVD case:
Martial arts student Leroy Green (Taimak) is on a quest to obtain the elusive all-powerful force known as ‘The Glow.’ Along the way he must battle the evil, self-proclaimed Shogun of Harlem—a kung fu warrior also known as Sho’Nuff (Julius J. Carry III)—and rescue a beautiful singer (Prince protégée Vanity) from an obsessed record promoter.
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
Introducing Leroy
The movie opens to shots of a shirtless, highly toned Black man showing off his kung fu skills in the shadows. This is Leroy (Taimak), our protagonist. It then transitions to Leroy working out on different equipment in a martial arts studio. His master (Thomas Ikeda), an older Asian man, randomly fires arrows at him to test his awareness. They’re all color-coded, and he’s supposed to catch a blue one. Leroy knocks aside the first few arrows, but he catches the last arrow, which is blue.
His master is astonished. He asks Leroy how he knew which arrow was the right one. Leroy doesn’t have an answer. He says he just instinctively knew. His master rips the emblem from Leroy’s uniform, which makes Leroy think he has offended his master in some way. How, by being too awesome? He drops to his knees in apology.
His master, however, announces that Leroy is now a master himself. Leroy has presumably trained with this man for many years and has reached the top of the game. It’s time. His master adds the emblem, which he calls “the last dragon,” to the only empty spot on a door that already hosts the previous six emblems that denoted Leroy’s skill levels in a circle.
Instead of being happy about his new accomplishment, Leroy is skeptical. He doesn’t believe he’s a master. He hasn’t achieved “The Glow,” a physical manifestation of his master status. There’s gotta be more to learn. Leroy’s master feels bad for him, so he creates a BS mission to give Leroy time to realize the truth for himself. He tells him to find another master named Sum Dum Goy. He also gives Leroy a gold medallion that he says belonged to Bruce Lee. Leroy is a huge Bruce Lee fan, so this lends credibility to the task.
The big question here is, why doesn’t Leroy believe he’s a master?
One theory is that Leroy has a raging case of imposter syndrome. Does he doubt that a Black man can truly be a kung fu master? Possibly. Remember, this movie takes place in the ’80s. A Black man doing martial arts was not unheard of at this time—think of the ’70s Blaxploitation movies—but it wasn’t exactly widespread either. Does he think his master is withholding information because he’s not Asian? Maybe. But I don’t think that’s the case. His master is fond of him, calls him his son, and clearly recognizes his talent. He simply has nothing left to teach him.
Another theory is that Leroy is afraid to become a master. It’s like when a person graduates from high school or college. There’s this huge question of what comes next. The training wheels are off. The restrictions of structured education are gone. The future is up for grabs. He has to decide for himself what it means to be a master and what a master does. Having to wade through those millions of possible paths can be paralyzing.
A final theory: Leroy doesn’t want the training to end. He enjoys what he does. If marital arts filled a hole in him, what will he fill it with now? What’s left for him to aspire to?
The Baddest Mofo
Later that night, Leroy goes to the movies to see a Bruce Lee flick. The crowd is rowdy, yelling at the screen and dancing in the aisles with a boom box. None of that matters. Leroy is in heaven while he munches on his popcorn and beholds his hero in action.
All of a sudden, another Black martial artist named Sho’Nuff (Julius Carry) bursts into the theater. Sho’Nuff is such a fascinating and flamboyant character. He has defeated every noteworthy fighter around, so he thinks he’s the top dog. Whereas Leroy is inspired by Chinese culture, with his wardrobe of Mandarin collars, a changshan, and conical hats, Sho’Nuff takes his inspiration from Japan. He calls himself the “Shogun of Harlem,” wears his exquisitely coiffed hair in a high ponytail that’s reminiscent of the chomange style, and often drapes a tiger-skin haori-type robe over his “armor” (football pads). So, it’s not just two Black men going up against each other; it’s like a clash of Asian cultures is happening at the same time. It’s not a perfect division, though. Leroy occasionally slips into Japanese practices, such when he refers to his family members with the ~san suffix.
Sho’Nuff travels with a group of six flunkies—all genders, all races, all dressed in uniforms. They do the bulk of his dirty work for him. They also serve as his personal cheerleaders. Seriously. Whenever he enters a room, they all line up, do an elaborate series of gestures, and shout, “SHO’NUFF!” when he prompts, “Who am I?” It’s an absurd production. Like, do they practice this routine at home or something?
It’s in the middle of this spiel that a little boy yells out, “I know who can beat you!” Thoroughly offended, Sho’Nuff hoists the boy up by his jacket lapels and demands the answer. The boy responds, “Bruce Leroy, that’s who!” I love that nickname, by the way. Sho’Nuff looks in the direction the boy points…directly to the front row where Leroy is still enjoying the movie.
Given the way Sho’Nuff’s face screws up at the name, he must know of Leroy. It’s unclear if they’ve actually met before, though. His head flunkie, Beast (André D. Brown), even says, “That’s the only guy that stands between Sho and total supremacy.” So, now I’m wondering if this is a random visit. Did someone tip Sho’Nuff off that Leroy was at the theatre? If Leroy is the only person he hasn’t beaten, it’s easy to deduce that Sho’Nuff would be looking to change that.
Sho’Nuff storms down the aisle and plants himself directly in front of Leroy. Leroy is unbothered. Barely acknowledges him. Even when Sho’Nuff punches his fists in front of his face and spouts crap about him, Leroy answers with lines of Eastern wisdom and continues to eat his popcorn. He doesn’t react when Sho’Nuff challenges him to a fight either.
Eventually, the other people in the theater get tired of Sho’Nuff’s grandstanding. One guy actually tells him to “sit down and shut up.” In response, Sho’Nuff lays down a blanket challenge for anyone in the place to come down front and make him shut up. I guess he wants to give Leroy a live demonstration of his skills. He humiliates several people who attempt to fight him and basically starts a riot before he realizes that Leroy is already leaving the building. Just as he slips out the door, Sho’Nuff vows that Leroy will fight him one day. Leroy keeps walking like, “Whatever, dude.”
Why does Leroy ignore Sho’Nuff so hard? Leroy doesn’t believe in fighting if he doesn’t have to (much like his idol), for one thing. Their “beef” is totally one-sided. Sho’Nuff is a bully. There’s no honor in fighting someone like that. Leroy doesn’t gain anything from fighting him. More to the point, Leroy doesn’t take Sho’Nuff seriously. When he first saw Sho’Nuff come in, he smiled and turned back around in his seat. And who wouldn’t think that Sho’Nuff is a bit ridiculous?
Race might play a part here too. Do the same insecurities that keep Leroy from seeing himself as a master keep him from seeing another Black man as a worthy opponent? Is Leroy is a self-hating Black man? He has wrapped himself in his Chinese persona so tightly that he hardly reads as Black at all. Sho’Nuff, despite having similarly wrapped himself in his Japanese persona, still comes off as unmistakably and unapologetically Black. His “name” is a whole Black slang term, for crying out loud!
Fighting Sho’Nuff would be like Leroy literally facing his Blackness. I don’t like putting it quite like that, though. It makes Sho’Nuff look like the scary Black man monster. That’s a negative, played-out stereotype. However, that could be exactly what it looks from Leroy’s perspective.
Eddie Arrives
We cut to a short, bald man fixing his tuxedo’s tie in the mirror. A peppy woman sits on the couch singing along to her Walkman and painting her nails, while a man wearing a thick gold chain feeds a pig leg to a tank of piranhas. These three white people are Eddie Arkadian (Christopher Murney), Angela “Angie” Viracco (Faith Prince), and Rock (Mike Starr), our antagonists.
A program comes on the TV. It’s the popular music show 7th Heaven, which is like a mishmash of Soul Train and 106 and Park. The host is the glamorous Laura Charles (Vanity). Laura is like Black Jem. She has a fantastic wardrobe, fabulously teased hair, fancy smoky makeup, and far more sex appeal than the average woman. 7th Heaven is always lit! In addition to performing her own original songs, Laura plays the hottest hits and music videos for a live audience while a group of people dance on the stage. She isn’t the strongest singer, to be honest, but she works the room like nobody’s business.
As they watch Laura’s performance, Eddie tells Angie, who is his girlfriend and an aspiring singer under his management, that she’s going to be a star like Laura one day. It’s a well-known fact that you haven’t made it until Laura Charles features your music on her show. I should note here that Eddie is a total sleaze. He calls himself a “talent manager,” but he’s mostly just a low-level criminal. He’s already failed to make Rock a pro boxer—though he points the finger at Rock for losing the fights—so now he’s trying to make it big in the music scene with Angie.
And therein lays the problem: Laura has repeatedly refused to meet with Eddie to discuss Angie’s music. Her schedule is already full. And let’s be real, Angie’s songs…aren’t great. Laura reiterates all of this to her manager J. J. (William H. Macy) as she refreshes her hair and makeup during her show’s recording. J. J. literally begs her to have dinner with Eddie because he’s afraid that Eddie will do something bad (to the both of them) if she refuses again. Laura brushes him off and goes off to perform the closing number.
Leroy just happens to be passing by the studio when Laura exits the studio and begins signing autographs. They have a moment, an instant connection. He stops dead in his tracks to stare at her as she gets into her car, and she doesn’t take her eyes off of him as the car pulls away. Oh, it’s love at first sight, y’all!
In addition to a lack of confidence, maybe one of the reasons why Leroy can’t activate The Glow is because he’s not a well-rounded person. His master mentioned something to this effect earlier, that the final level is all about going through the different trials and tribulations of life. Thus far, Leroy’s life has been solely focused on martial arts. What if love is one of his missing pieces? After all, Laura’s famous and popular. She’s a star. And what do stars do? Glow. Just a thought!
Just then, Laura discovers that her driver isn’t her driver. Eddie learned about Laura’s latest rejection and sent a group of his thugs to kidnap her. That’s why he was getting dressed up earlier. He was expecting a visit with Laura (voluntarily or not). He thinks that if he speaks to her in person, he can convince her to play Angie’s music. He sees himself as charming, a smooth operator. That apparently works well on the weak-minded people he usually targets. And if he can’t convince her, he’ll threaten her life until she changes her mind.
Laura jumps out of the car swinging. She screams, bites one guy’s hand, and beats the others with her purse. Although her efforts don’t have much of an impact, I’m proud of her for not taking her abduction quietly. Just as one bad guy draws back to punch her, Leroy stops his fist mid-air. Was he following her car, or was he just close enough to hear the commotion? He proceeds to beat the crap out of the thugs, who hilariously think they can defeat this unknown kung fu master. They jump back into the car and take off with quickness.
If Laura wasn’t already smitten with Leroy, his actions make her fall completely in love with him. He’s her literal hero. And I mean, who could blame her? This cute stranger comes out of nowhere, saves her life with his impressive skills, helps her pick up the things in her purse, hails a taxi for her, and then disappears into thin air. It doesn’t get more romantic than that! Before she gets in the taxi, she spots Leroy’s medallion in the gutter, which he dropped during the fight. She picks it up and takes it home with her.
In the meantime, Eddie is less than pleased when his battered thugs tell him what happened (or an extremely exaggerated version of the events). He vows that he will get to Laura one way or another. This scene somewhat parallels what happened with Leroy and Sho’Nuff at the theater. Both Laura and Leroy have targets on their backs.
Sho’Nuff Takes A Class
Leroy is at his personal studio where he teaches martial arts classes to kids. There are some humorous moments between him, the kids, and his friend/pupil Johnny Yu (Glen Eaton) before Sho’Nuff bursts in with his crew. Who the hell keeps telling him where Leroy is?
Leroy tells him right off the bat, “I do not wish to fight you.” Sho’Nuff twists his words to mean that Leroy’s a coward. He tells the three women in his posse (Shonte, Janet Bloem, and Lisa Dalton) to mess with him instead. Leroy stoically endures their taunting and heckling with his crossed arms as they circle him…until one woman socks him in the face. He instinctively falls into a crouch; Sho’Nuff assumes a similar stance and encourages Leroy to bring it. But Leroy straightens back up and bows instead.
Sho’Nuff takes the bow as another sign of submission. Furthermore, he orders Leroy to kiss his shoes. Leroy refuses, so Sho’Nuff’s other flunkies join the bullying and try to force Leroy to bow. Things intensify until Johnny jumps out of the crowd and shouts a challenge at Sho’Nuff. Sho’Nuff, who quickly deduces that the boy can’t fight worth a damn and who doesn’t appreciate being likened to Rick James, sics Beast on Johnny. Beast puts Johnny in a headlock and threatens to break his neck if Leroy doesn’t kiss the shoes.
Leroy has no choice. After he reluctantly gets on his knees and kisses Sho’Nuff’s Converses, Sho’Nuff kicks him in the face, busting his lip and knocking him onto his back. To his credit, however, he does order Beast to release Johnny, who ends up on the ground next to Leroy. Before he leaves, Sho’Nuff once again vows that Leroy will fight him one day.
This entire situation is embarrassing and frustrating for Leroy. Not only did he, the teacher, get kicked in the face in front of his students, but one of his students was nearly injured on his watch as well. Leroy simply says, “Sometimes it is hard to live the way of the wise.”
Under different circumstances, I think Leroy might have fought Sho’Nuff that day. Leroy’s temper—dare I say, his Blackness—peeked out during this exchange, which indicates that he’s not as immune to Sho’Nuff’s shenanigans as he pretends to be. It would have been considered self-defense since Sho’Nuff technically trespassed. But the sight of those kids watching the whole scene reminded Leroy of his principles. He had to protect them by deescalating the situation. If that meant kissing shoes, then his pride had to go in his back pocket.
Leroy and Richie
The next morning, Leroy is meditating on the rooftop of his building when his younger brother, Richie (Leo O’Brien), calls him down for breakfast.
The first thing we learn about Richie is that he loves Laura Charles with every fiber of his little teenaged soul. He sneaks into her soundstage every week with his two friends to see her show. We even saw them in the 7th Heaven audience in a previous scene declaring that he’s going to marry Laura. He makes plans with his friends on the phone to sneak in again later that day.
The second thing we learn is that Richie is extremely embarrassed by Leroy. Richie sees himself as this worldly, hip, and stylish guy. To him, Leroy is a huge nerd. He can’t be seen or associated with his big brother in any way. He says this directly to Leroy’s face at the breakfast table.
Leroy Sr. (Jim Moody) chides Richie for talking about Leroy so harshly. He reminds his younger son that he didn’t let the amount of hate he received as a Black pizza shop owner stop him from succeeding when he started their family business, Daddy Green’s Pizza. His point is that it’s not one person’s place to tell another person who they should be or judge them for their life choices. “Weird” is a relative term.
His speech could also be a subtle way of reminding or explaining to Richie why Leroy is the way he is. Did Leroy start learning martial arts because he was bullied by his dad’s haters? Leroy Sr. specifically says that people didn’t like that he was a Black man with a pizza parlor. At best, they laughed at him; at worst, they lashed out in a myriad prejudiced ways.
Either way, it would have had major impact on how a young Leroy would have viewed himself. That could be why he distanced himself from his Blackness. Once he took up martial arts, he began to pattern himself after Bruce Lee and he retreated into his Chinese persona because, in his mind, it was easier than being Black. Richie doesn’t have the same issues because the parlor was more successful and established as he grew up.
Additionally, there’s a part during the conversation where Richie says of Leroy, “People talk.” In other words, their neighbors, family members, etc. have been discussing (debating) Leroy’s sexuality. They think he’s gay. Now, I don’t personally think Leroy is gay. The way he looks at Laura throughout the movie pretty much clears that up. And there would be absolutely nothing wrong with him being gay if that were the case. It wouldn’t make him any less of a kung fu master. I bring this up because that’s a loaded statement that requires an unpacking.
First, it taps into certain unfair racist stereotypes. Bigots often characterize Asian men as unmanly, nerdy, or weak. They would use the same adjectives to describe a gay man. So when Richie implies that Leroy is gay for doing martial arts, he is also indirectly implying that Asian men, the biggest practioners of martial arts, are gay.
Second, there’s the idea that Leroy is less of a man, which is what people tend to mean when they call a man gay in any context. Richie literally points out that Leroy “won’t mess with no babes.” Is this the real reason for his disdain towards his brother? Leroy spends the bulk of his time beating on other dudes instead of chasing skirts like a “real” man is “supposed to,” so he’s gay, and thus, not worthy of respect? This is textbook toxic masculinity at its worst.
Third, there’s a colorism element in play. If martial arts are supposedly gay, then why doesn’t anyone question Sho’Nuff’s sexuality? The answer lies in his skin color. The loud, aggressive, and dark-skinned Sho’Nuff is characterized as masculine, strong, and straight as an arrow. Meanwhile, the light-skinned, quiet, and meek Leroy is the type of Black man who is often characterized as effeminate or wimpy.
The funny thing is, there are many moments when I question Sho’Nuff’s sexuality. The way he carries himself, the way he dresses, the way he makes these grand entrances…he’s a walking stereotype of a gay man. This is yet another example of the movie flipping a stereotype. The light-skinned guy that everyone thinks is gay is actually straight, while the dark-skinned guy that everyone thinks is straight is probably gay.
Lastly, is it possible that Leroy is running from more than his Blackness? Sho’Nuff could represent a threat to Leroy’s sexuality. His very presence might be triggering lingering questions that Leroy might have swimming in his subconscious about his own sexuality. Even if he has settled the issue for himself, it wouldn’t be unusual for him to have the occasional doubt after having heard so many people question it for him over the years.
Plus, Sho’Nuff is set up as a predatory gay man. His desire to defeat Leroy often reads more like a sexual desire for Leroy. He constantly makes inappropriate comments like “I got something real for his ass in these hands” or “I will gladly designate his ass.” He’s always trying to make Leroy submit to him, to get on his knees before him. There’s even a moment during their final showdown where Sho’Nuff rips off Leroy’s top for no reason. This kind of stalking, harassment, and violation of personal boundaries would definitely cause Leroy, as a straight man, to feel some kind of way.
Once again, I don’t like this particular narrative, though. It’s bad enough that Sho’Nuff represents the scary Black monster to Leroy. Now, he represents the scary gay monster too? That’s too much racist and homophobic imagery to project onto any character.
A commercial for 7th Heaven comes on the TV while they’re eating. Both Richie and Leroy get excited. Richie is just happy to see “[his] woman,” while Leroy finally has a time and place to see if she picked up his missing medallion. When Leroy asks Richie to take him to Laura’s soundstage, Richie refuses because he’s afraid that Leroy will a) embarrass him in front of his friends, and b) embarrass himself by trying to holla at Laura. Hilariously, Richie, whom I seriously doubt has any experience with women at this point, thinks he knows everything about women. He gives Leroy dating advice as they prep the pizza shop for the day.
Leroy begs Richie until he finally agrees…on the condition that Leroy carries him on his back and rap the whole way to the studio. What follows is the worst “rap” I have ever heard! I don’t think Leroy has ever heard a single rap song in his life. He just keeps saying, “What it is, what it look like.” I have no idea what that means. Is that even a song? It gets so awful that Richie stops the piggy back ride.
By the time they get to the place, it’s too late for Richie to use his secret backdoor entrance because his friends are no longer there to let him in. He tells Leroy to park it somewhere while he goes off to find another (free and illegal) way in. Leroy finds a little step stool to sit on while he waits.
Try, Try Again
Rock poses as a producer and tricks Laura into getting into his truck. Why she falls for this, I can’t tell you. Leroy sees it all go down. Although he’s not able to catch the truck as it pulls off, he does find a notebook with Eddie’s company’s name on it, clueing him in on who’s responsible for the kidnapping and where to find Laura. He suits up in a black gi (complete with a mask to hide his identity) and goes after her.
The next time we see Laura, she’s suffering through Angie’s music video for her song “Dirty Books.” Eddie, Angie, and the thugs are all cheering and dancing along as Laura rolls her eyes so hard they threaten to pop out of their sockets. At times, Eddie even grabs her head and forces it back to the TV. I have to admit that even though “Dirty Books” is horrible, it’s still kinda catchy.
When it’s finally over, Eddie asks Laura if she’ll play the song on her show. He says it like it’s a total given that she’ll say yes, like he hasn’t just kidnapped her or anything. Laura tells him no twice, in no uncertain terms. Her attitude enrages Eddie. Angie, who is a ditzy yet kind woman, tries her best to smooth things over because she knows exactly how things are about to play out. Eddie ignores her and tells his people to start torturing Laura.
Thankfully, Leroy bursts in and beats up Eddie’s flunkies (again). Then he dips Eddie’s head in the piranha tank. He’s only in there for a second, so he only gets minor injuries. But it scares the crap outta him.
In the aftermath of her kidnapping, Laura takes Leroy back to her house. He is thrilled to learn that she does have his medallion. In fact, she has put it on a ribbon for him. Then she starts flirting with him. Hard. She’s not at all subtle about what she wants. When Leroy realizes that he’s in danger, he jumps up, spouts some Eastern wisdom that only he understands, and slams his legs into the table as he scrambles out the door.
Laura finds Leroy’s hasty exit amusing. His awkwardness is adorable and yet another point in his favor. She’s not gonna give up on him.
The Trio
While continuing his quest to find the new master, Leroy stumbles across a fortune cookie factory called Sum Dum Goy in Chinatown. He assumes that this is the master’s headquarters. Lord, this is painful to watch! Leroy still hasn’t put two and two together. His former master, who keeps a pile of fortune cookies in his studio, obviously stole the new master’s name from this cookie brand.
Outside the factory are three of the funkiest Asian dudes ever (Henry Yuk, Michael G. Chin, and Fredric Mao) dancing to Raw Dog’s “Sukiyaki Hot Saki Sue” in front of the gathered crowd. IMDb identifies them as Hu, Lu, and Du Yi. They’ve got a boom box. They’ve got choreography. They’ve got attitude. You gotta give them their props. They’re feelin’ it!
When the performance is over, Leroy asks to speak to their master. One of the men tells him, “Ain’t no masters here, dude. Ain’t no slaves either!” While his words are borderline racist, I have to admit that this is one of the funniest lines in the whole movie. The guy’s delivery cracks up his two friends, but Leroy ignores it (no surprise there). They go on to tell him that the master doesn’t see visitors.
Add this stereotype reversal to the list. You’ve got Leroy, a Black man who’s wearing traditional Chinese clothes; then you have these Chinese guys, whose trendy ’80s fashion and AAVE-laden speech present levels of Blackness that rival Richie’s. I wonder what they think of each other. Do any of them see the irony?
In any case, Leroy leaves, having hit a brick wall.
Sho’Nuff Goes For Pizza
Sho’Nuff knows that he’s close to cracking Leroy. This time, he pops up at Daddy Green’s Pizza. When Leroy’s family won’t tell him Leroy’s whereabouts, he and his flunkies trash the place. They break the counters, rip decorations off the wall, throw a chair through the front window, put Richie in the trashcan, and kick out the glass in the door. Hilariously, Sho’Nuff also kicks out kicks out a TV screen that’s playing “Dirty Books.”
One thing about this scene bothers me. Leroy Sr. doesn’t offer much resistance beyond a smart remark when Sho’Nuff asks after Leroy Jr. The minute Sho’Nuff swells up at him, Leroy Sr. completely backs down. I don’t blame him for that. He’s an older gentleman who has zero martial arts skills. The problem is that both Mrs. Green (Esther Marrow) and Richie do try to fight back. Mrs. Green nearly hits Sho’Nuff with an oven tray (her husband holds her back) and she scores several direct hits to the flunkies’ faces with lumps of dough, while Richie yells at them to “chill out” before he ends up in the trash. It’s not a good look.
Leroy gets there just as the crew is taking off. Richie, who is angry about having been humiliated, immediately rips into Leroy. He believes that this attack is a direct result of Leroy refusing to fight Sho’Nuff. Richie spits the word “coward” at his brother and it lands like a punch to his gut.
Leroy’s parents don’t say a word. His mother simply hugs him. The way she’s shaking shows that she’s afraid, both from what she has just experienced and for what she now understands Leroy is facing. I don’t think she and Leroy Sr. agree that Leroy Jr. is a coward. Their silence is probably their way of letting Leroy handle things as he sees fit. They don’t want to pressure him to fight if he doesn’t want to. That speaks volumes about their trust in their child.
Later, a defeated Leroy works out in his studio as Richie’s cruel words echo in his head. By this point, he knows that he can’t avoid Sho’Nuff much longer. It was bad enough when Sho’Nuff tried to start stuff in front of Leroy’s students. Now he’s dragging Leroy’s family into things. There’s no telling what his next move will be. Leroy has to address the disrespect. However, he’s still suffering from a lack of confidence. He still doesn’t see himself as a master. He might even doubt that he can beat Sho’Nuff.
Then Laura shows up and makes things worse. She asks him to be her personal bodyguard so he can (insert sultry voice) “guard [her] body.” I mean…If she needs a bodyguard anyway, why not use the hottie who keeps saving her life? And if she can get something going on the side, that’s cool too.
Leroy declines. He’s standoffish and rude, not at all in the mood to deal with her. It doesn’t help that their conversation is interrupted by Johnny, who is cheesing like crazy as he meets the Laura Charles. Laura barely acknowledges Johnny because she’s too busy clocking Leroy’s chilly attitude. It must be jarring to see this version of Leroy, so very different from the guy she’s come to know. She leaves in a huff.
Gaining Allies, Losing Relationships
Eddie begins to hold interviews for fighters. I guess he figures he’ll have an easier time getting at Laura if Leroy’s not in the picture. So, he has to find people who have the skills necessary to take Leroy out. Predictably, the candidates are all psychos and murderers.
In an unexpected twist, Eddie decides to visit Sho’Nuff in his dojo. He and Rock admire how Sho’Nuff destroys his latest victim during a live fight. They offer “Mr. Nuff” a suitcase full of cash to do the same thing to Leroy. Sho’Nuff accepts the job, but he rejects the money. Why? That would be like a two-for-one deal—beat Leroy and get paid. I would think he would be totally down for that. How does he fund his lifestyle anyway?
Does Sho’Nuff actually have some semblance of a moral code? Apparently so. He wants to be able to say he’s the best fighter around. Taking the money would sully the situation. People might say that he was motivated by the money. Or what if he loses and people say that it was because his eyes weren’t on the real prize?
Sho’Nuff also seems like the type who wouldn’t appreciate working for somebody else, especially a random white guy. He and Eddie have aligned goals. That’s it. He was going to fight Leroy anyway, so Eddie’s not asking him to do something that would require payment. He’s in it for the glory.
Eddie proudly tells Angie about his plans when he gets home. She’s not happy to hear that he’s willing to kill people on her behalf, and she (correctly) accuses him of using her. Predictably, Eddie turns off his “charming” face and rips into her. This is normal for him. Multiple times in the movie thus far Eddie has verbally abused Angie. He has snapped, shouted, and called her names like “stupid broad” when she has dared to disagree with or question him. He has literally driven her to tears, though it’s usually played off for laughs, like she’s just too dramatic or sensitive.
This time starts off no differently. He spews classic lines from the abuser’s handbook about her being nothing without him, etc. etc. He tells her, “Without that outfit, you’re just another no-talent dental hygienist dropout from Kew Gardens getting by on her tits!” But this time is different because Angie doesn’t take the insults. Through tears, she throws back at him, “You’re nothing but a misguided midget asshole with dreams of ruling the world….And also getting by on my tits.” Then she walks out, having decided to quit both him and singing. Brava, Angie!
Angie is in an abusive relationship, which has affected her behavior and thought process. Understandable. Her hands aren’t totally clean, though. She turned a blind eye to Eddie’s dealings because 1) she loved him, and 2) they benefitted her lifestyle. She ignored his smaller crimes and rationalized them as being acceptable for his business and necessary for her career. But now that he’s promoting and performing violence in front of her, she has no choice but to bounce. She’s not trying to go to jail with him.
Leroy and Laura’s Field Trip
Feeling badly about how things ended with Laura the previous day, Leroy goes to her apartment. Just as he loses his courage to enter the building, Laura walks up. He apologizes for his behavior and she accepts. Then she tells him to stay put while she drops off her shopping bags upstairs. When she comes back down, she’s dressed in a short red and gold cheongsam—yes, couples outfits!—and invites him to her studio for a special surprise.
While Laura drives them to the studio in her gorgeous convertible, Leroy explains his master situation and why he can’t be her bodyguard. Somehow the conversation shifts to more personal matters. Leroy starts asking her questions about “the art of making love” (as Richie calls it) for “his friend” (who is obviously himself). He borrows yet another crazy sex metaphor from his dear little brother about paintbrushes and not knowing how to draw.
Leroy is insecure about being with Laura, who is likely far more sexually advanced than he is. The pressure is on for him to impress and satisfy her. I like that he’s willing to admit to his ignorance on this subject (more or less) and ask for help. Eventually, Laura deciphers his meaning and happily agrees to teach him some moves for “his friend.” He has just walked into her trap.
At the studio, Laura fires up a Bruce Lee montage featuring clips from Fists of Fury and set to the tune of Willie Hutch’s “The Glow.” Leroy gets super excited as he watches. He’s copying Bruce’s moves and imitating his trademark kung fu yells. Laura stands by his side, silently amused by his antics. Suddenly, she gives him a peck on the mouth. Leroy shyly turns his attention back to the footage. But when a scene pops up where Bruce passionately embraces and kisses a woman, Leroy does the same to Laura. It’s romantic and hot. It shows that he’s a quick study.
Unfortunately, the moment is ruined when Leroy sees a scene where Bruce Lee disguises himself as a telephone repairman to infiltrate his enemy’s house. As he explains the scene’s meaning to Laura, he gets the idea to borrow that tactic to meet Sum Dum Goy. He forgets all about Laura and runs out. Laura is none too pleased.
Unbeknownst to Leroy and Laura, Richie sees all of this. He came to the studio earlier with his friends with a plan to win Laura’s heart with a rap. He sneaks in through the catwalk when he hears the music start up. This is the exact moment when Leroy is kissing Laura.
Richie is enraged. He runs out of the studio, calling his brother everything but a child of God. See, Richie possesses all of the confidence that Leroy lacks. However, it’s wrapped up in the fragile ego of a teenaged boy. Who else but a delulu teenager would have the nerve to think he could bag a grown woman like Laura Charles? Richie cannot understand how Leroy of all people could get her when she could have had him.
The funny thing is that Richie’s friends defend Leroy. They say, “If the lady likes him, he must be doing something right.” They’re willing to give Leroy credit for snagging a woman like Laura. They don’t have the same emotional attachment to her as Richie does. And more to the point, I’m guessing they’re just surprised/relieved that Leroy’s not gay after all. Don’t think they weren’t some of the very people who were speculating about Leroy’s sexuality that Richie mentioned.
When Richie goes back in to confront Laura, she ignores his temper tantrum and demands that he come down from the catwalk. He leaves with this parting shot about Leroy: “I don’t understand what you see in him.” Just then, Eddie bursts in and his flunkies grab Laura. Richie runs back in and starts yelling, “Get your hands off my woman!” He, too, is taken.
I will give him credit for attempting to defend Laura, though the method was incredibly stupid on his part. He should have gone for help instead.
Exposed!
Leroy dresses up in his hippest clothes—a see-through red shirt with a white undershirt, a white hat, leather pants, and sunglasses—and goes back to Sum Dum Goy disguised as a pizza delivery guy. The Trio don’t buy his act at all. First, they remember him from his previous visit. When they question his identity, however, Leroy denies it and says, “You know we all look alike.” Ha! Second, his acting sucks. He tries to adopt AAVE to sound like them (or to imitate how they’re imitating Black people). Third, they know the master didn’t order a pizza because there is no master.
Nevertheless, they invite him in to smoke weed and play Craps with them. Leroy being Leroy, he convinces them to play hopscotch instead. As if he would compromise his body or ethics with drugs and gambling. Throughout the game, Leroy continues to ask them about the master. He shows them his medallion. They take it from him and lock him outside. This is the last straw for Leroy. He breaks down the door, grabs one of the guys by the shirt, and demands to see the master. They show him the fortune cookie machine.
Flabbergasted, Leroy runs straight to his former master’s house. His former master is unrepentant. In fact, he pulls another trick, giving Leroy an empty fortune cookie. Leroy still doesn’t get the message. His former master reiterates to Leroy that he’s the master and advises him to stop looking for something that’s already exists.
Angie The Snitch
Angie stops by Leroy’s studio, supposedly on her way out of town. She really meant it when she said she was done with Eddie because she’s there to tell Leroy about Eddie’s plans for him. Doesn’t Angie fear the repercussions of betraying Eddie? He’s not the scariest villain, but we’ve seen that he has no problem with murdering people if he feels slighted. Maybe that’s part of the reason why she tells Leroy. She knows that Leroy can beat Eddie, so her heads-up is a way to cover her own behind too. It’s not just because she’s a nice person.
Leroy isn’t there when she arrives. Johnny, however, is. It’s a weird moment because Johnny starts flirting heavily with Angie. He’s hitting the punching bag and showing off his skills while Angie giggles like a school girl. I say “weird” because for the first time, I questioned how old these characters are. I assume that Leroy is early-20s, Laura is mid-to-late 20s, Eddie is in his 40s, Angie is in her mid-20s, Johnny is in his late teens, and Sho’Nuff is in his 30s. That all pretty much gels with their real-life ages at the time the movie was made according to IMDb. It also brings up some concerns and questions.
First, if Laura is slightly older than Leroy, it would confirm my theories about why he’s so jumpy about them becoming physical and why he asks her to teach him things. She’s older and more experienced.
Second, if Sho’Nuff is 30+ years old, it makes him look like an even bigger egotistical jerk. Why is he bullying a guy ten years younger than himself? Is he going through a midlife crisis? Is he trying to prove that he still has “it” by beating Leroy? That’s loser behavior.
Third, if Angie is the same age as the actress playing her (28), it would explain how Eddie is able to manipulate her. She’s young enough that it wouldn’t take much to be snowed by a seemingly rich and powerful man taking an interest in her and her career. At the same time, she’s old enough that nobody would want to sign her as a popstar except somebody like Eddie. She likely feels indebted to him for that.
Fourth, Angie’s age also makes this exchange with Johnny inappropriate. Even if Johnny is 18, she would still be ten years older than him. And why does this movie have a reoccurring theme of older woman/younger man “romances”? Leroy likes Laura, Richie likes Laura, and now there’s this thing with Angie and Johnny. Again, I say it’s weird.
When Leroy gets to the studio, Johnny fills him in. Leroy starts suiting up so he can save the day. Of course, Johnny wants to go with him. Leroy, not wanting to put his friend in harm’s way, locks Johnny in a closet so he can’t follow him to the soundstage.
The Penultimate Showdown
Cut to Eddie, who has taken over 7th Heaven. Laura and Richie are tied together in a corner while he’s having the time of his life playing DJ. This moment proves a barb Angie threw at Eddie is true. She said that he doesn’t have the looks or talent to get the attention that he craves, so he lives vicariously through other people (like her and Rock). The money is a nice side benefit, but that’s not what he’s really after.
When Leroy arrives at the studio, Eddie unleashes his Street Fighter rejects. As good as Leroy is, he’s only one person who is grossly outnumbered. Thankfully, Johnny and the other students show up…and show out! The older kids fight one-on-one, while the younger ones fight in teams of twos and threes. And somehow Johnny magically manifests fighting skills! Just as Leroy strives to protect his students, his students want to protect him as well. He has taught them everything they know and sacrificed his ego for them. How could they offer him any less? The pride thing goes both ways.
Rock pulls out a gun to shoot Leroy at one point. Eddie stops him. The scene reminds me of the part in one of the Austin Powers movies where Scott, the son of the movie’s villain, Dr. Evil, suggests that they just shoot Austin in the head rather than continue to stage these elaborate assassination schemes that Austin will inevitably escape from. Like Dr. Evil, Eddie refuses to take such an easy victory. He wants to prolong the show. He wants Leroy to suffer for daring to cross him and interfere with his business. Once Eddie sees that the tide is turning in the wrong direction, however, he and Rock grab Laura and use her as bait to lead Leroy to Sho’Nuff.
Richie uses his break dancing skills to slip out of his ropes and follows them. He runs into Rock, whom he easily dispatches with a few well-placed kicks to the nuts. But then he meets Beast. Leroy hears Richie screaming for help and comes up on the scene just as Beast pitches him into a pile of trash (I sense a theme there.) He hits his head on an old oxygen tank lying in the heap upon landing.
Leroy is so furious that he wipes the floor with Beast. Richie is okay, if not a bit loopy. Leroy then locks him in a cage to keep him safe. Again, I’m sensing a theme. Richie’s pissed at the betrayal, but he still whispers “Be careful.”
It’s very telling that Richie had absolute faith that his big brother would save him. Despite his attitude towards Leroy, I think he knows deep down that Leroy is a big deal. Maybe he was afraid that Leroy, as a master, would overshadow him and his illusion that he’s “the man.” The kidnapping and the very real danger knocked him back into reality. He saw firsthand that what Leroy does isn’t a game. He tries to maintain his bravado, but the scared kid underneath reveals itself.
The Final Showdown
Just as Leroy gets Richie squared away in his cage, Sho’Nuff emerges from the freight elevator. Lord knows that man loves to make a dramatic entrance. The moment has arrived for Leroy to settle things.
Leroy goes in shaky. He makes a few hits; Sho’Nuff gets in some. The confidence still isn’t there. Just when Leroy thinks he’s landed the winning blow, Sho’Nuff reveals that he has The Glow (Red Edition). Sho’Nuff then tries to force Leroy to say that he (Sho’Nuff) is the master by repeatedly dunking Leroy’s head into a barrel full of water and holding him there. After every dunk, Sho’Nuff demands, “Who is the master?” If Leroy doesn’t answer, Sho’Nuff dunks him again.
While Leroy is underwater, he begins to recall the various conversations he’s had with his friends and family about his skills. Suddenly, something clicks for him: he is the master! Well, it’s about damn time, man!
What makes him finally get it? I think Leroy finally realizes that none of the people closest to him have doubts about him being the master, including Richie now. The fact that Sho’Nuff is currently trying to force Leroy to concede the title to him implies that he, too, knows that Leroy is the master. Leroy himself is the only one who doesn’t believe it. The possibility of death by drowning brings that clarity. In that moment, he accepts his master status. At the same time, he squashes whatever insecurities he had about his personal identity, one way or another.
From then on, Leroy makes a total comeback. Sho’Nuff pulls him out of the water and asks “Who’s the master?” again. Leroy says with a fierce smile, “I am.” When Sho’Nuff moves to punch him, Leroy grabs his fist…with a hand covered in The Glow (Gold Edition). Sho’Nuff is so shook that The Glow flickers out entirely for him. Leroy beats the crap outta him, ending with a sharp kung fu kick to the chest into a pool of water. But don’t worry—Leroy makes sure to drape Sho’Nuff’s unconscious body over the lip of the pool so he doesn’t drown. Even now Leroy’s being a nice guy.
Eddie, the sore loser, pops out of the shadows with Laura and a gun. He fires a single bullet and down Leroy goes. Oh, now you want to shoot him?! Richie and Laura both start crying because they think he’s dead. Surprise, surprise! When Eddie rolls over Leroy’s body, Leroy opens his mouth to show the bullet between his teeth. This is a hilarious throwback to Sho’Nuff and Leroy’s first conversation in the movie. Sho’Nuff had mentioned and laughed off a rumor he’d heard about Leroy being able to catch bullets with his teeth. Turns out the rumor was true. I’d like to know the full story there!
In retaliation, Leroy grabs Eddie, wraps a chain around his waist, and hoists him off his feet so he can’t cause any more trouble. Because he’s so short, Eddie just spins in the air angrily. When the police arrive, he makes up a crazy story about the hoodlum Leroy attacking him and Sho’Nuff, who are both totally innocent. Since the police already know Eddie very well, they ignore the lies and haul him off in cuffs.
What happens to Sho’Nuff after the fight? I assume he was arrested too. At a minimum, he should be up on vandalism or destruction of property charges for what he did to Daddy Green’s Pizza. I wonder how losing so spectacularly to Leroy affected him. I’m too realistic and practical to believe that his behavior changed for the better. He probably continued to walk around in jail having his flunkies—both the old ones who definitely went to the big house with him and the new ones he picked up since he got there—announce him. In fact, he probably still thinks that he’s the master and Leroy just got lucky. He’s probably planning his revenge as we speak. People like that never learn.
Happily Ever After
Laura and Leroy don’t get a chance to talk in the fight’s aftermath. Her people whisk her away so she can get to the 7th Heaven filming on time. They share plenty of longing glances at each other, though.
Later, she’s standing at the DJ booth during her show. Everyone else in dancing and having a blast, while she’s moping. Then Leroy walks in. He’s wearing all white and bearing a beautiful bouquet of flowers. He yells something at her several times, but she can’t hear him over the music. Suddenly, the music cuts out and catches him mid-yell asking Laura to teach him some moves. Everyone laughs and cheers.
One of Richie’s friends makes the mistake of calling Leroy a “cornball.” Richie shoves him and says, “He ain’t a cornball. He’s my brother. And he’s the master.” This is quite the turnaround! Richie’s entire attitude towards his brother has changed. He’s matured. Not only is he not calling Leroy names (or allowing anyone else to), but he’s no longer mad at Leroy for “stealing” Laura. There is genuine respect and love between them now. It’s so cute.
Laura charges down the booth’s stairs and into Leroy’s open arms. The whole scene stops and starts dramatically as she runs, interspersed with the credits. The two exit the stage on a platform that lifts them into the air as they cling to each other. A perfect ending!
Leroy and Laura are definitely in it for the long haul. They’re opposites in most ways, but they balance each other out well. She pulls him into the real world, which he desperately needs, and he treats her with the utmost care and understanding, which she probably doesn’t receive much of as a celebrity. They don’t try to change each other. It’s a match made in heaven. Dare I say, 7th Heaven?
Okay, I’ll stop now.
Conclusion
The Last Dragon can be a little cheesy and dated at times. It actually came out a few months before I was born in 1985. However, it’s still a great movie with two solid messages for 2025: love yourself and learn balance. It doesn’t matter if you have the whole world hyping you up if you don’t believe in your own abilities or accept yourself fully. At the same time, you can’t focus your entire life on one thing. You have to be well-rounded. Leroy had to figure out both of those lessons the hard way.
Every aspect of this movie works. I love the characters. They all come off as realistic and interesting. The way that I wanted to be Laura when I was growing up! The comedy aspects are fun. The fight scenes are exciting without being gratuitous. The romance elements are sincere and satisfying even though they aren’t the main focus.
Best of all is the amazing soundtrack. I would expect nothing less from a Berry Gordy/Motown-produced album. “The Last Dragon” (Dwight David) serves as the main theme, the ending ballad “First Time On A Ferris Wheel” (Syreeta and Smokie Robinson) never fails to bring me to tears, and there are some contemporary hits throw into the mix from the likes of DeBarge and Stevie Wonder. It creates the perfect atmosphere for whatever’s going on. Definitely worth checking out.
Lastly, I just want to give a shoutout to the various cast members who have passed, including Vanity, Julius J. Carry III, and Leo O’Brien. Rest In Peace and thank you for your performances.
*The Last Dragon DVD cover and summary © Tri-Star Pictures, Delphi III Productions, Motown Productions*