The Perfect Weapon is a 1991 American martial arts action film directed by Mark DiSalle and starring Jeff Speakman, John Dye, Mako, Mariska Hargitay, James Hong, Dante Basco and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa.

The film relates the story of a young man (Speakman), who is trained in the martial art of American Kenpo, and his fight against the Korean mafia in Los Angeles.

Jeff Sanders leads a double life of sorts: by day, he is a simple, unassuming construction worker, and by night, an expert American Kenpo student and master of his craft.

Jeff's background is revealed; after losing his mother as a child, he became an outcast and frequently lashed out at his family and society in an attempt to assuage his anger.

His father, Police Captain Carl Sanders, gained the idea from a mutual friend in Koreatown, Kim, to enroll Jeff in a Kenpo school to better manage his rage and feelings.

Inside his shop, Kim is having trouble with local Korean mob families, due to his refusal to pay them off and use his antique store to peddle drugs.

A hulking hitman named Tanaka appears and kills the lead henchman due to his failure to force Kim to comply by head-butting him.

The Perfect Weapon was the solo directing debut of Mark DiSalle, better known for his work as a producer of martial arts films like Bloodsport.

"[11] Rita Kemply wrote in The Washington Post that "Speakman, who studied under grand master Ed Parker, is introducing not only himself but the kenpo form to the screen.

"[12] Stephen Holden of The New York Times described it as "a macho fantasy of physical control, grace and invincibility in which women are all but absent", adding: In keeping with the genre, Mr. Speakman, who has a carefully groomed chin full of stubble throughout the film, emerges remarkably unscathed from battles in which he often floors three or four antagonists in a matter of seconds.