When Bill Bly told me he was going into the movie business, I was almost afraid to ask. When I found out he was producing a bunkai video of Nijushiho with Vince Morris, was intrigued.

This DVD does not disappoint.

Shot on digital video and mastered to DVD-R media by Ascenscion Digital Films, this is a top quality production. From the box art to the DVD Menu - the quality of this work is evident. The DVD starts with a quick teaser clip, and then drops into the DVD menu, which has the kata performance in the background, while the Nijushio lettering burns and the Kissaki-Kai logo glows. Ascension Digital Films is to be commended - this is a professional job that could not be any finer.

With twelve lessons, and a time running of about fourty minutes, this tape delivers the goods on the Shotokan version of the Nijushiho kata.

The lessons begin with the Nijushiho kata aptly performed by a gentleman with a nice bald spot starting. This gives me great comfort as mine is coming along nicely. His performance (front and back) is strong, clean and excellent.

Then we get to Vince Morris, as our lecturer, explaining the salient points of each application he shows. He quickly covers the principles behind the Kissaki Kai training and practice philosophy. Each bunkai he explains in detail and demonstrated is in-your-face, street effective, deceptively simple, and often just plain mean. He stresses the use of kyusho points, but with proper technique to make them effective.

He explains what to hit, where to hit it, why to hit there - and best of all, there are slow motion replays for clarity. Then there is the added novelty of the group action, where his senior students pair off and practice.

This is great stuff - it's important to note that Vince always brings his opponent to the ground before delivering a finishing blow. This is important to note, because the principles found in kata bunkai are the exact reasons why the rules of sport karate are what they are - for example, note the higher reward of three points in sport karate for putting your opponent to the ground and striking.

What I like best about this DVD is that everyone on the DVD appears to be over the age of 40 - and they rock. This is an honest, straight forward production with a production value unseen before in any kata video to date.

This product is a must for every Shotokan karateka. Get the DVD, grab a buddy, and get to work. This DVD raises the bar and expands frontiers.

I give it five out of five stars. An absolute must-have.

Henry Norris, Tempo Karate, Raleigh, North Carolina

PS - you can buy this DVD from American Samurai $34.95 US