Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins

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Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins...

Directed by	Guy Hamilton
Produced by	Larry Spiegel
Written by	Warren Murphy & Richard Sapir ("The Destroyer" novels) Christopher Wood (screenplay)
Starring	Fred Ward Joel Grey Kate Mulgrew Wilford Brimley J.A. Preston George Coe
Music by	Craig Safan
Cinematography	Andrew Laszlo
Editing by	Mark Melnick
Distributed by	Orion Pictures
Release date(s)	October 11, 1985 (USA)
Running time	121 min.
Language	English
Budget	$40,000,000 (estimated)
Gross profits	$12,421,181 (USA)
IMDb profile

Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins is a 1985 film released in the United States. The action/adventure film featured Fred Ward, Joel Grey and Kate Mulgrew. It was directed by Guy Hamilton. The character is based on The Destroyer pulp paperback series. The movie was the first and only featuring the character Remo Williams, and fared poorly in theaters. The film received mixed reviews from critics.[1]

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Samuel Edward "Sam" Makin (played by Fred Ward) is a tough street cop recruited as a secret agent through a bizarre method: his death is faked so that there will be no questions asked as to his disappearance. Rechristened "Remo Williams" (after the name and location of the manufacturer of the bedpan in Makin's hospital room), his face is surgically altered and he is trained to be a human killing machine by his aged Korean martial arts master Chiun (played by Grey in heavy makeup). Though Remo's training is extremely rushed by Chiun's standards, Remo learns such skills as dodging bullets. The Chiun character, who is stereotypically nationalistic, racist and sexist, is both the comic relief and wise mentor figure in the film. Chiun and Remo practice a fictional form of Korean martial arts named Sinanju. Remo is sent to investigate a corrupt weapons procurement program within the US Army.

Like many films, this one did not follow the source material (The Destroyer novels) very closely, much to the disgust of some fans and the authors of the Destroyer series. Several Destroyer books actually make fun of the film and its promotional materials.

[edit] Trivia

The movie was filmed largely in Mexico City as well as at the volcano Popocatépetl.
The planned sequels were quickly cancelled following the financial failure of the film.
Remo is referenced in the 1986 film Jake Speed.
Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir. writers of the "The Destroyer" novels that the film is based on, wrote the film's novelization.
Some of the actors who auditioned for the part of Remo Williams in the film claimed to be proficient in Sinanju, not realizing it was fictional.