Idiot-Deluxe A towering testament to amateurism and a laughable movie from start to finish, let's delve into - The Miami Connection!Firstly, as far as bad movies go this is one of the best. Period. What we have here with The Miami Connection is one of the ultimate examples of when sheer enthusiasm exceeds talent many times over. The brainchild of one Y.K. Kim (karate expert and in-demand motivational speaker) who as you'll notice back when this was made in 1986, could barely speak English and he routinely butchers his lines, in fact he has some worst sounding speech you'll ever hear in any movie. However with the way that this movie rolls, it doesn't really seem to matter much, as the plots of martial arts films are never complicated affairs. It must be said when speaking of The Miami Connection and terrible acting, well... Y.K. Kim had plenty of company, because the movies entire cast is comprised of virtually nothing but amateur actors, who have a minimal amount skill or experience and that fact is proved to be true in every single scene of the movie. Think of The Miami Connection as a master class of terrible acting. One of the big dilemma's that this movie creates in the wake of it's sheer awesomeness is picking a favorite scene. Is it the fight scenes that involve ninjas on motor-cycles or is it the rip-roaring "Dragon Sound" scenes, which showcases Y. K. Kim and his band-mates jamming, while showing off their laughably lame skills of pretending to play bad music. When you watch The Miami Connection your subconscious will constantly be telling you "Only in the 80's" over and over again and to such an extent that this movie seems like a time-portal to the 80's; because in virtually every scene there's at least one or two things that directly ties it to the 80's, such as clothing, hair-styles, music, movie references, cars, and let's not forget that the 80's where the golden era of ninja flicks and The Miami Connection is absolutely crawling with ninjas! I also find it impossible not to be stricken by a few Miami Vice flashbacks when watching this ridiculous movie (particularly the opening sequence), so once again The Miami Connection draws up yet another 80's parallel, this film racks them up like no other. I won't bother to go into the plot, it's nothing more then a generic power-struggle, that centers around their band and a certain romantic relationship that causes friction with a rival gang, but to it's credit it does seem to have a bit more going on, plot-wise, then most other martial arts films. Another great thing about this movie, is the high degree of camaraderie that freely flows between Y. K. Kim and his fellow band-mates, together they exude an irrepressible spirit, that's equally matched by the bands infectious, no-holds-barred enthusiasm for their music and it's quite obvious that their a very tightly-knit group. One could say Dragon Sound offers up a glowing example of what a true band mentality is all about. ROCK ON!!! Even if their music does suck.....To mention a few more specifics about this awesome icon of crap cinema, I urge you to sit back and observe the acting of Jack McLaughlin whose credited as "Old Rock Band Leader", he's hard to miss because he's the loudest and angriest guy in the movie. I hold the opinion that he's also the worst actor ever, watch this movie and you'll see what I mean. Also be ready for this movies "Totally 80's" soundtrack, which is composed of a laughably bad collection of 80's rock/pop songs. My favorite cut (apart from Dragon Sound's own incomparably awesome musical statements) would have to be "Tough Guys", which is the tune heard during the biker rally scene, about in hour into the movie. Now that song utterly oozes with sweat, grit and badboy swagger - definitely the type of tune that'll put hair on your chest. In light of all the sarcastic admiration that this movie inspires, I almost forgot to mention the fact that there are a lot of genuinely good martial arts on display throughout the movie. Y.K. Kim and a few others are multiple-degree black belts and their fight choreography often shines - just don't expect Mr. Kim to be the second coming of Bruce Lee, no risk of that being the case. From a merchandising angle, one that's highly limited I suspect, the soundtrack to the movie is available on CD but better yet I've also seen, hilariously enough, some action figures that are based directly off the films characters! Unfortunately, I believe those were essentially prototypes, that were never produced in any great number, which when you apply stone-sober logic to the matter, makes sense, because who in their right mind would invest a lot of money in a toy-line that's based on The Miami Connection. But if your're a big fan of this movie, as I am, those action figures are a great and awesomely nostalgic sight to behold.Lastly, for those seeking additional laughter, I highly recommend that you watch the "Rifftrax:Live" edition of The Miami Connection, for it is undoubtedly the ultimate incarnation of this movie.

Fluke_Skywalker Plot; Cocaine smuggling ninjas battle a rock band of taekwondo masters in the neon-soaked streets of Miami.Nothing quite says "80s" like ninjas and cocaine, but rarely do we get them both together in the same film. Miami Connection is notorious for being one of the best "So bad it's good" films of all-time. Unearthed by the folks at Alamo Draft House in '09, it's since been restored and released to the public to many laughs and genuine critical acclaim.The amateurish production values and cringe-worthy acting certainly make Miami Connection a hoot to watch, but what makes it sing is that at its core beats a sincerely earnest heart. On one side you have cocaine and ninjas and nonstop martial arts action with doses of gratuitous nudity thrown in for good measure, and then on the other you have this infectious enthusiasm from all involved that gives the entire affair a likability often absent in the genre.This is by no means great cinema, but it makes a promise of cocaine, rock 'n roll and ninjas and delivers in spades.

hellraiser7 This film is one of my guilty pleasures, I've seen my share of so bad their good films, to me this is my favorite one because of all the things it done wrong it did one thing right, it actually entertained.This film is a very odd duck indeed. This could almost be an amateur film that the Dead Gentlemen/Zombie Orpahus group could make if they decided to do an action film on the cheap. Well OK, their film are actually content and quality wise I personally think a lot better. But still despite the films low budget it really felt like the makers were trying and their hearts were in the right place they wanted to make a fun martial arts action film and in a way they succeed well kinda sorta. In a way this film is like watching a live action Shonen Anime or even an 80's cartoon show since those series consist mainly of action and very little time for melodrama. It's no doubt a product of the 80's since MTV, Miami Vice, and even Ninjas were in. The story is colorful but yeah non sensical almost like something out of a bad pulp action novel. There are plot holes let alone doesn't really make much sense when you think about it, like for example there is some subplot of one of the band members trying to find and reconnect with his lost father which I'll admit was just out of the blue and the way it was handled felt like a stock plot for a soap opera. I couldn't help but both cringe and laugh a little at this at the same time, in a way you could say that could be a parody of the kind of subplots in most TV show even Shonen Anime that sometimes just pop out of nowhere just as a cheap shot at drama or just filler. And of course some of the dialog along with some of the line delivery is just terrible but in a good way that makes you almost both groan and laugh. Most to all of the cast weren't really actors in the first place but it did look like most of them tried even though they fell flat. And even the writers tried but couldn't cut it.The action is solid, the chirography is pretty good Y.K. Kim is a talented Tae-Kwon-Do martial artist even if he clearly can't act, at least not very well as it seems like his face is always stuck in intensity mode let alone seems like he still needed to learn more English as it looked like he had trouble delivering lines smoothly . But still I do like his skill in that style of martial art which is cool since I've taken that art and I'm a black belt in it.I really like the battles like one in the construction yard but mainly my favorite one was with the ninjas in the jungle area, we got to see some sword effects as well as some sword action, the ninja we could easily see and acted like ninjas even thought these ninja were clearly using the Tai-Kwon-Do style. And there were a few gore effects which were effective like a beheading scene. Though like I sad choreography is pretty good didn't say it was great, there are places where the choreography is off let alone some people in the fights looked like they needed to train more. But whatever it still delivered the goods.But also what stands out is there is some style the locations were all real they do take place in Florida and not somewhere else which is what most films do sometimes. So in a way when you watch this it could be like a travel guide for anyone that wants to go there. But also that music, this film has one of my favorite movie soundtracks ever. The songs are memorable, two of them are "Friends" and "Against the Ninja". Yeah their cheesy but catchy and just a lot of fun to dance to. On a side note the song "Friends" was in the end credits of the game "Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon" which is cool and fit perfectly for that game since it was a celebration of the eighties.Miami Connection is a kick, well sort of.Rating: 3 stars

gavin6942 A martial arts rock band goes up against a band of motorcycle ninjas who have tightened their grip on Florida's narcotics trade.I think that plot summary more or less says it all. As another reviewer noted, from a critical standpoint this is not a good movie (and hardly deserves my 7 rating). But from the point of view of someone who loves 80s cheese, this is a forgotten gem for sure.Can you beat a group of misfits who like to rock out, with one looking like Freddie Mercury? The songs are not good, but actually not all that bad, either... if you like 80s action films like "Commando" or "Cobra", this might be right up your alley.