While trying to organize my thoughts concerning Kazuho Mitsuta's Mighty Jack, my mind kept returning to Alan J. Levi and Don McDougall's film Riding with Death (1981). The two films may not seem like they have much in common other than an emphasis on secret government organizations. Riding with Death is about a secret agent/truck driver who can turn invisible. Mighty Jack is about a secret espionage team of the same name that operates out of a flying submarine. But here's the key element that both films share: they were cobbled together from footage of a television show. Riding With Death used footage from two different episodes of Gemini Man. Mighty Jack is a combination of two different episodes from a Japanese tokusatsu series of the same name. Infamous producer Sandy Frank took the first and sixth episodes of the series, combined them into a barely cohesive movie, and released it in America. The film follows the Mighty Jack espionage organization as they fight against a terrorist group bent on world domination known only as "Q." That's about all I can say about the film. The plot was so confusing and jagged that I still have no idea what happened. I seem to remember something called "hot ice" and lots a massive explosions...but that's about it. Riding with Death was a bad movie, but at least there were parts that I enjoyed. Take the runaway big rig full of an explosive chemical scene! Mighty Jack is simply unpleasant and unwatchable. The horrendous dubbing doesn't help, either.
3/10
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