Badmovies.org Forum

Hey guys,

It's been a very long time since I've posted, but I got that b-movie itch once again and came crawling back.  I haven't been away or anything, and I've been reading a lot of the posts lately, it's just been awhile since I've posted.  Time to break my silence!

I posted this thread over at the 80s action forum at Ruthless Reviews, but thought I might get some good responses over here moreso than there.  You guys never fail to suggest a movie that I haven't heard of, only for me to check it out and absolutely love it.

Here are some gems I've seen in the past few months that hopefully some of you guys can relate to.  I've been on a b-movie 80s action kick lately, so a majority of these fall under that category.  These movies are more unknown than the usual classics such as Commando, Rambo, etc.  These ones are more under the radar.  Feel free to add more of your own!  Here goes:

Deadlock - stars Rutger Hauer, a favorite of mine, some girl with short hair and big hooters, and James Remar. I've always loved the premise of this movie: Hauer, a pacifist/jewel thief, gets tossed in prison after a jewel heist gone wrong. This, however, is no typical prison, as two prisoners are randomly attached to one another via exploding necklaces to prevent escapes. If they are ever more than 100 yards apart, both of their heads will explode. The warden is your typical a-hole. Hauer meets the girl with big knockers while in prison and the two of them discover they're the ones who are attached. I won't say too much else for those who haven't seen it, but the rest is a surprisingly fun and sometimes funny b-movie that's worth watching because of the crazy prison premise and the fact that it's pretty well made overall. See this if you come across it.

Bulletproof - stars Gary Busey. Simply put, one of my favorite b-movies ever. Anyone who's a fan of Busey, stupid one-liners, and Rambo-esque action will love the s**t out of this movie. Not only does this movie have a VERY young Danny Trejo in a blink-and-you'll-miss-him cameo, but it features one-liners by Busey that have one common theme: the word butthorn. What is butthorn? Who the hell knows, I'm figuring it's something crack-era Busey came up with on the fly. An example of the movie's wit:
Trejo: (seeing Busey sneaking around in the rafters of where else? An abandoned warehouse) Who the f**k is that?
Busey: I'm your worst nightmare butthorn!
Trejo: McBain!?
Busey: (teeth flaring) YEAH!
Of course, Busey then cleans house. The first part of the movie is a by-the-numbers cop action/drama movie, then it suddenly turns into a crazed Rambo fest complete with a futuristic tank Busey uses to trash everything in sight. Insane movie, please see it!

Edge of Honor - stars Corey Feldman and a younger chick with big hooters. Okay, so this movie might be more of a guilty pleasure that only I would like, but I always thought the premise was intriguing: Feldman and a group of boyscouts are out in the northwest wilderness messing on a camping trip. Feldman and a few of his cronies sneak out of camp and stumble upon a bunch of weapons - which happen to belong to a bunch of crazed drug dealing hillbillies, one of them being Patrick Swayze's ass ugly mulleted brother. The hillbillies find out the weapons have been messed with and set out to kill anyone that's seen them. They stumble upon the other group of boyscouts and kill all of them, including the leaders, except for Feldman and his pals. The rest of the movie is a Most Dangerous Game knockoff with Feldman and his pals running from the hillbillies. Low budget, and with Corey Feldman, but still worth watching nonetheless.

Blood of Heroes - starring Rutger Hauer. Awesome post apocalyptic movie with in which Rutger Hauer and a group of rag tag individuals play a futuristic game that can be described as a mix of football and deathmatches. Hauer is a washed up "jugger" (what the players of this game are referred to) who wants one last shot at the glory of being a champion - but is forced to do so with a group of inexperienced players. A really great and underrated movie that should be seen by more people.

Hunter's Blood - starring Clu Gulager, a young Billy Drago, John Travolta's brother, and a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo with a very young Billy Bob Thornton. I'd be very surprised if anyone's seen this. A huge guilty pleasure and my favorite movie of the ones listed. A group of guys get together for their ritual hunting trip in the Arkansas wilderness. Once there, they meet up with a bunch of locals who seem less-than-thrilled to meet them. After an altercation with the bunch, the group of guys learn from some local cops passing through that a bunch of hillbillies are out in the wilderness killing anything and anyone that moves to use them for meat. The guys blow the cops off, thinking nothing of it. But they soon meet up with the group of hillbillies, including Billy Drago(!), and find themselves on the run. Another Most Dangerous Game/Deliverance knockoff, but for some reason, I love the hell out of this movie. The movie does a really good job of establishing the buddy-buddy connection between the guys and making a lot of them out to be likeable. When they're being chased by the hillbillies, there is actually a sense of urgency on the viewer's part to see most of the characters live. There is some good gore too, which certainly doesn't hurt. A great ending too, which while I won't spoil, is very different from your typical happy ending. See it!

Quiet Cool - starring James Remar. Since I obviously suck at writing about movie premises, this one from IMDB does a good job of summing it up:

"Joe Dylanne (James Remar) is a plainclothes NYC cop with a badge...and a robust personality. He always resorts to unconventional methods in order to capture the city's slickest criminals. When Dylanne receives a message from Kate (Daphne Ashbrook), an old sweetheart of his, the news is not as pleasant as he anticipated. Rather, it is an imperative call for help. Dylanne must swing into full action. This cop must travel to a remote location in the northwest in order to investigate the disappearances of his friend's relatives. It turns out that most of Kate's relatives have been murdered in cold blood. The only survivor of the slaughter is Joshua (Adam Coleman Howard), an angst-ridden survivalist who explains to Dylanne about a sophisticated plan implicating marijuana plant growers. Dylanne and Joshua must trespass enemy territory in the name of revenge..."

A very cool and under the radar movie that has some great action in it and moves along at a quick pace.

Survival Quest - starring Lance Henriksen, Durmot Mulroney, a bunch of other people. An awesome little movie by the guy that did Phantasm. A bunch of people from all walks of life get together to take a course in the wilderness called Survival Quest, which teaches them how to survive via teamwork. The class it taught by Lance Henriksen, the ultimate badass mountain guy that lives off of the land. He teaches the group to work together and to rely on each other in any situation - which is great, because another group, a bunch of paramilitary psychos, are camping in the same wilderness. Soon the Survival Quest team finds themselves on the run as a member of the paramilitary group goes insane and begins targeting them. I don't want to go too much into detail to ruin some of the movie, but I thought it was really well done. It does a great job of creating a sense of closeness between the Survival Quest members and how they rely on each other as a team and also a nice job of creating tension as they try to escape from the paramilitary group. Plus it has Lance Henriksen ... need I say more?

Let's Get Harry - starring Robert Duvall (!), Mark Harmon, Glenn Frey of Eagles fame (!), Gary Busey, a bunch of other guys. The penultimate guy movie, right down to the gay-sounding title. Extremely cheesy and was even disowned by one of its directors, who pulled an Alan Smithee, which, for those of you that don't know, is the name given by a person that chooses not to be associated with the final film. Again, I'm not good as describing movies, so I'll let this blurb from IMDB suffice:

"When Harry Burck (Mark Harmon), an American engineer on loan to Colombia, is taken hostage and held for ranson. His brother, Corey (Michael Schoeffling) and friend, Jack (Gary Busey), are among a group of men lead by Shrike (Robert Duvall) to go deep into the jungles of Colombia to rescue Harry and an American ambassador."

What this fails to mention is the fact that the brother holds a Soldier of Fortune-esque tryout in his barn in the middle of nowhere in Illinois, which is how Duvall gets involved. The whole premise is a riot, but I thought the movie was a unknown blast. A good timewaster.

Kid – starring C. Thomas Howell. I thought this was a really interesting movie that played out somewhat like a modern day western. C. Thomas Howell plays a drifter that stumbles upon a lonely and small desert town. We have no idea what his name is or why he’s there … until one day he meets and befriends a local kid obsessed with heavy metal and his sister. The story unfolds as Kid finally begins to spill his guts to his new pals after staying silent for so long. We learn that Kid’s parents were hippies that were murdered in the woods by local police officers and the sheriff. Plot twists and violence ensue. I’ll stop right here as more details would ruin the movie. A really quirky movie with somewhat of a slow pace, but never seems boring. There’s some vigilante justice involved in a small desert town, which is where the western influence comes into play. A neat little flick that’s worth checking out if you stumble across it.

Avenging Force – starring Michael Dudikoff and Steve James. I’ve always thought Steve James was great in nearly everything he was in and wish he were still around today. Dudikoff is a very dry actor and is just sort of there, especially in this movie. This is a pretty crazy flick with a strange premise and lots of action. Dudikoff plays your typical action hero and Steve James plays a guy running for mayor. James’ family is gunned down by a bunch of local hicks who don’t take kindly to seeing an African American as their mayor. Meanwhile, a group of unknown men are running around the Louisiana bayou hunting down innocent victims, ala the Most Dangerous Game. Eventually the identities of the men are discovered and when the plot comes together James and Dudikoff find themselves as the ones being hunted. Again, I don’t want to go into too much detail to spoil anything, but with this type of movie, is there really all that much to spoil? A crazy action movie in the same vein as the first two American Ninja flicks. I say this because Sam Firstenberg directed American Ninja and Avenging Force, so if you enjoyed American Ninja, and like the Most Dangerous Game premise, you’ll love this movie. It’s cheesy as hell and all of the hunters have their own identities/weapons (i.e. one guy wears a Samurai mask, etc.), but it’s also a great timewaster and one of those movies to turn your brain off and just watch. Definitely worth checking out if you’re a b-movie action fan.

Fifty/Fifty – starring Peter Weller. This movie certainly came out of nowhere and entertained the hell out of me. It’s basically Lethal Weapon meets Rambo, or, in other words, an entire country dies at the hands of two leads who crack jokes the entire time. Ironically enough I snagged this at a local video store closing down for 50 cents and it was the best 50 cents I’ve spent in quite some time. Shouldn’t be too tough to track this movie down for much more than that. A good beer and buddies sort of movie.

Eye of the Tiger – starring Gary Busey and Yaphet Kotto. This one isn’t really under the radar, but there still might be some people out there that haven’t seen/heard of it. Busey’s actually subdued in this one for a change and plays a man just released from prison. He returns to his small hometown in the desert with his wife and kid to discover that a local gang of tough guys are always riding around terrorizing everyone on motorcycles. Of course Busey gets involved and ends up p**sing off the entire gang, and a lot of chases, violence, and mayhem ensue. You know you’re in for a classic when this movie not only is named after the hit Survivor song Eye of the Tiger, but also shamelessly blares it during the opening credits. Pure 80s cheese at its best. Really just an all around good action movie and nothing more than that. Another good turn-your-brain-off-at-the-door-and-enjoy type of movie.

The Wraith – starring Charlie Sheen. This is the best movie that nobody’s heard of. What seems to be a really crappy teen movie somehow churns out some of the best car chase scenes in movie history. You can snag this movie for very cheap on DVD and you’d be better for it if you did. It’s a very strange melting pot of some really crappy teen acting and some really awesome action scenes, namely, the car chases. There’s not really action other than car chases though, so if they aren’t your thing, then pass. The movie actually has a Dodge Turbo Interceptor in it, which was an extremely rare concept car that looked really futuristic (by 80s standards, of course). It’s a pretty badass car and is pretty much the main star of the movie. Anyway, do yourselves a favor and grab this one, it’s worth it.

Journey of Honor – starring Sho Kosugi. I’ll admit it: Sho Kosugi’s a god to me. His 80s ninja flicks changed the way I watched movies forever and brought me to the dark side, otherwise known as b-movies. So when I mention this movie to those who were raised on his ninja flicks, they look at me like I’m crazy. But it does exist, and it’s basically Sho’s vision of an epic movie set in 17th century Japan. It’s completely ridiculous but entertaining nonetheless. It’s not even close to being on par with his other movies (it’s only PG-13, boooo), and can drag a bit in places, but I think it’s worth watching if you’re a fan of Sho.

The Hidden – starring Kyle MacLachlan and Michael Nouri. A really off-the-wall movie with aliens, car chases, guns, shooting, violence, breasts, pretty much everything you can ask for in a movie and more. Another 80s gem that somehow got lost in the shuffle. It’s pretty much a buddy-buddy cop action movie with a sci-fi twist. Again, I won’t go into much detail about the plot, but needless to say, this one’s definitely worth checking out and comes highly recommended, plus it’s on DVD, so there’s no excuse not to watch it!

Number One with a Bullet – starring Robert Carradine and Billy Dee Williams. This movie was actually pretty ho-hum, but might be worth a try if you like by-the-numbers cop action movies or seeing Robert Carradine, the same guy who played Lewis Skolnick in the Nerds/Revenge of the Nerds movies, try to act like a total badass. It was quite funny to see him running around with guns and acting like a hardass Chuck Bronson type when all I could hear that nerd Horgh he would always do in the Nerds movies in the back of my head. Really a pretty mediocre movie, but again, if you find it cheap, and if you’re a fan of the Cannon flicks like I am, give it a shot.

The Challenge – starring Scott Glenn and Toshiro Mifune! A completely badass movie that everyone should see. Interestingly enough, all of the movie’s action scenes were choreographed by none other than Steven Seagal before he became a bloated a***ole (just kidding, I’m actually a big Seagal fan). Glenn plays a man caught between two feuding Japanese brothers and is taught by one of them the ways of the samurai. What follows is his journey in becoming a badass samurai warrior who then goes and kills a lot of people. Just a very well done movie that should be seen by action fans. A lost action classic.

Ghost Warrior – starring a bunch of unknown people. A very, very strange movie in which a frozen samurai comes to life after being transported to Los Angeles. No, I’m not making this up. The samurai warrior then befriends a journalist who discovers him and helps him cope with 20th century technology. The two soon find themselves on the run from the government, who wants him to remain a secret. Okay, so admittedly it’s been awhile since I’ve seen this movie, and it could very well suck upon another viewing, but I actually remember it being quite decent. Then again, it could be another guilty pleasure of mine, so tread with caution.

I've seen some of those but the one I wanted to comment one was The Hidden. I absolutely love this movie. I saw this in the theater about 4 times and got it on vhs when it came out. I don't know what it is about this movie but it's one of my favorites from its time. One of the best scenes in it is the opening car chase the way it's intermixed with the music and all. Seeing it for the first time, you have no idea why this guy is doing this and doesn't seem to care about the cops too much. Great movie.

Right on odinn, I'm with you all the way, the Hidden is a true classic.  I wish I could've been lucky like you to have seen it in the theater once, let alone four times.  That's awesome.  I agree that there is something about the movie that keeps me coming back to watch it ... maybe it's the fact that it doesn't take itself too seriously and for the kind of movie that it is it's done very well.

Out of the movies listed I've seen - The Wraith, Avenging Force, Kid, Survival Quest, Blood Of Heroes, and Deadlock. Out of those 6, I like Survival Quest the most (I even own a copy of it). This movie has a lot of heart. I also really like Avenging Force (a million times better than any of the American Ninja flicks) and Blood Of Heroes. The Wraith and Deadlock (I do have a used VHS copy, but Hauer looks old and bored in this) were only ok. I didn't like Kid when I saw it on tv. I may have to give it another try.

I'm definitely going to have to see The Hidden, Quiet Cool (beginning to be a big James Remar fan), Fifty/Fifty (I'll watch Peter Weller in just about anything), The Challenge, and Journey Of Honor. Thanks for the recommendations!



Post Edited (07-11-05 13:07)

LH-C:

I'm with you on Survival Quest; you summed it up perfectly, a movie with a lot of heart.  Avenging Force and Blood of Heroes are great too.  As for Kid, it's probably one of those "either you like it or you don't" kind of movies.  So if you didn't like it before, you probably won't like it now.  Deadlock's always been a guilty pleasure of mine, same with the Wraith.

You really can't go wrong with the Hidden, it's a blast.  Quiet Cool is very short if I remember correctly but has a lot of action and, as you said, it's worth checking out if you're a fan of James Remar (he's so young in this movie).  Fifty/Fifty will probably be more of a hit-or-miss kind of movie, but Weller's funny in it, so you might like it; but be warned, it's very goofy.  The Challenge is just flat-out awesome, IMO.  Journey of Honor is so different from the other Sho Kosugi movies, so don't go in expecting Pray for Death/Revenge of the Ninja quality.  It's more epic in scale, but it's also very cheesy and very unbelieveable at times.  Still worth watching though.

what about the 1990 classic "I Come In Peace" that movie was sick!

No doubt sippie, I Come in Peace is a classic, especially the line Dolph mumbles at the end of the movie.  Those of you who have seen it know what I'm talking about.  I actually was considering including it, but I thought that a lot of people knew about I Come in Peace already, especially around here, which is why I didn't list it.  Great flick though!

Two of those I especially love. The Blood of Heroes had some great lines and some cool characters. The old guy who walked around with a chest of drawers strapped to his back was hilarious. "Run Dog Boy!"

The Wraith was another great one, and yeah, hardly anybody I know had heard of it, even when it came out. Great mix of car chases (with some pretty sweet cars), crappy teen drama, weird characters and this sort of alien/ghost story AND Clint Howard in a crazy wig! What more could you want?

I'm with you Andy.  The cars in the Wraith were out of this world.  Very cool little movie.

Some more flicks for you all:

Shakedown - starring Peter Weller and the mighty Sam Elliott.  Another mostly by-the-numbers cop action movie, but this one sports some unique action scenes, such as a fight that takes place on a roller coaster.  Weller plays an attorney, and Elliott plays the badass cop.  The plot is your typical cop/drug dealers/corrupt cop type stuff, in other words, nothing to do handstands over.  The movie as a whole is pretty good, not anything spectacular, but certainly worth a look.

Wanted: Dead or Alive - starring Rutger Hauer and Gene Simmons (?) - Yep, that's right, Rutger Hauer and Gene Simmons.  Simmons plays a terrorist and Hauer is a bounty hunter on his trail.  That's basically the plot in a nutshell.  Not much to it, but there are the requesite explosions, guns, bombs, all of that good stuff.  There's some nice action scenes overall and Simmons surprisingly does a pretty damn good job.  It's cliche city and cheesy as hell, but it's Rutger Hauer ... need I say more?

Johnny Handsome - starring Mickey Rourke, Lance Henriksen, and Morgan Freeman.  It's a damn shame what happened to Rourke ... I honestly believe he was one of the best actors of the 80s by far and had some great years ahead of him.  Then he turned into leatherface and starred in Double Team with Dennis Rodman and Van Damme and that was the end of him.  He seems to be making a comeback now, which is great.  Anyway, this movie isn't necessarily chock full of action, but it's one of those flicks that makes you wonder why it isn't more known than it actually is.  The movie is directed by none other than Walter Hill, a true god among filmmakers and the genius behind some truly great and truly b-movies.  Rourke does a great job of playing a criminal who's disfigured from birth with a severe speech impediment.  He goes to prison following a double-cross and once paroled receives a new face from a doctor whom he befriends.  He tries to come clean and rebuild his life but falls into the temptation of getting revenge on those who stabbed him in the back.  The premise is far-fetched, but the movie is one of the most underrated flicks from the 80s.  Rourke does a fantastic job of getting you to root for his character.  It might be more known than the other movies I've listed, but for those of you who haven't seen this movie or heard of it, please do so.

Band of the Hand - starring James Remar, Larry Fishburne, a bunch of other people.  Okay, so I'm sure plenty of you have heard of or seen this movie, but there might be some people out there who haven't.  And if you haven't, boy, you're in for quite an 80s movie.  Make no mistake about it: this movie is far-fetched, cheesy, stupid, corny, you name it.  But that's what makes 80s movies so great, and, in essence, that's why Band of the Hand is one of my sentimental favorites.  Basically five juveniles are sent to the Florida everglades in an attempt to straighten them out and resocialize them.  After the attempt to do so is successful and they all learn survival training (easily the best part of the movie), they all go back to Miami and endless shootouts and violence occurs with Larry Fishburne and his merry little band of gangmembers.  You really can't get more 80s than this flick, which is a good thing for those of us who want movies to be made like they used to.  A cheesy classic that always gets s**t on for no good reason.  Should be required viewing for fans of 80s action movies.

Platoon Leader - starring Michael Dudikoff.  A war movie starring Michael Dudikoff, directed by Aaron Norris, brother of Chuck.  Surprisingly, it isn't as bad as you'd think or even expect.  I about died when Dudikoff actually turned in a surprisingly decent role as a young hotshot Lieutenant that's put in charge of a Vietnam platoon.  The problem is, his platoon isn't too happy with his appointment, and gives him living hell.  They soon learn to respect him once they learn that he's Michael Dudikoff and starred in American Ninja.  But seriously, this is a decent war movie, but it's easy to see why not many people have heard of it.  There's nothing special about it.  It's worth watching, it has action, all of the usual stuff we crave, but there isn't anything spectacular about any of it.  Fairly ho-hum, but worth a shot.

Dead Bang - starring Don Johnson and William Forsythe.  Don Johnson vs. the White Supremacists.  That's this movie in a nutshell.  Johnson is your usual alcoholic/washed up cop, a lot of gunfights, cop stuff ensues, blah blah.  Pretty by-the-numbers movie from John Frankenheimer.  Not too bad, worth a look since it can be had dirt cheap on DVD.  I don't have much to say about this one as it didn't really light the world on fire.  It didn't totally suck either, which was good.

No Retreat, No Surrender 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.  Yes, there are five of these movies.  The first four are unabashed classics.  That's right, classics.  I'll defend them to my grave.  But did you all know that five of these movies even existed?  The first one needs no introduction.  Everyone's seen it and laughed at it's extreme badness, not to mention Van Damme as the villain and Bruce Lee's ghost in a co-starring role.  Two, appropriately titled No Retreat, No Surrender 2: Raging Thunder, kicks so much ass it should be illegal and is a true gem among 80s classics.  Same goes with three, No Retreat, No Surrender: Blood Brothers.  King of the Kickboxers, aka No Retreat, No Surrender 4, is martial arts mayhem at its finest.  NRNS 2, 3, and 4 are arguably three of the best choreographed American movies of all time.  No, I'm not lying, and yes, I might be smoking crack.  

Then there's No Retreat, No Surrender 5: American Shaolin.

Jesus tapdancing Christ this movie is strange.  It has some surprisingly good fights in it, and the training is out of this world, but the movie is just damn weird.  It tells the tale of a smarmy little s**t who gets his ass kicked in a karate tournament by some dips**t and travels to China to become a shaolin monk so he can get his revenge.  Of course the shaolin temple does not accept him at first, but makes him prove his way in, which he obviously ends up doing.  What follows is really bizarre.  It's almost like a coming-of-age movie as the twerp befriends a bunch of shaolin monks and they all perform a song and dance routine called "There Ain't no Cure for the Shaolin Temple Blues," an obvious rip off of the song "There Ain't no Cure for the Summertime Blues."  Yes, it is as hilariously gay as it sounds.  And yes, there is a music video-esque rendition of this right in the middle of the movie, complete with the monks doing an air guitar.  So the monks teach the kid how to fight, and he teaches them how to be American, or how to act like a gay American, however you look at it.  They all even attend a dance.  I wish I could make this up.  After this excruciating but somehow watchable section of the movie we get to the final fight which surprisingly kicks ass.  So there you have it: one good fight, one extremely bizarre middle section of the movie, some great training, and a great end fight.  Worth getting if you have a high tolerance for crap (which I do), think that any of the above sounds amusing, or if you're a fan of the NRNS series.

Runaway Train - starring Jon Voight and Eric Roberts.  What you're about to read you will not believe, but it is true: Runaway Train is a Cannon movie that actually got nominated for Academy and Golden Globe awards.  Voight actually won a Golden Globe for his role.  I'm not s**tting you.  This is a legit great movie about two prison convicts (Voight and Roberts) that board a train in the middle of Alaska after escaping a high security prison.  While on board, the engineer dies, leaving the train speeding along the tracks out of control.  Roberts, Voight, and some broad who's a railway worker try to figure out how to stop the train and save their lives as the train approaches a dead end.  A true overlooked movie in every sense of the word.  Voight does a damn good job and is one mean son of a b***h in this movie.  Roberts plays the dumb-as-s**t prisoner, but he too does a great job.  I can't say enough good things about this movie.  It might not be so bad that it's good, which a lot of the movies I've listed are, but it does deserve to be more well-known.  Plus you can get it for under $10 on DVD, so what are you waiting for?

Two movies from the mid 90's which are action packed:

DIGITAL MAN (1995): Ken Olandt, Kristen Dalton, Matthias Hues- Matthias Hues plays a renegade cyborg who must be stopped by a specially organized commando team. Things get complicated when a secret with the team itself causes conflict and suspicion among its members while a conspiracy is at hand within the corporation responsible for the cyborg. Although the added elements of conspiracy could have drug down an action movie like this, they only use enough to pad the plot and concentrate on the action and the interaction of the team members which accomplishes moving the movie along at a good pace with at times edge of your seat tension. Machismo and cheese combine in this Phillip Roth directed actioner to make a fun ride for its 95 minute runtime.

RETROACTIVE (1997) Kylie Travis, Jim Belushi, Shannon Whirry- Kylie Travis plays a police negotiator who has taken time off from a failed negotiation which cost the hostages their lives. She is driving down a lonely Texas road when she runs off the road, disabling her car. Luck is on her side (eh) as she is picked up by a couple (Jim Belushi, Shannon Whirry). This puts her in the middle of an abusive psychopath and his girlfriend and leads to car chases, flying lead, murder, and, oddly enough, a time machine. RETROACTIVE plays the premise of regrets, and if you could go back and change things, well. There is more than enough action to move the story at a breakneck pace, while the time travel angle introduces many twists and turns. Since this movie hinges on the sympathy garnered by the character played by Shannon Whirry, it finds exactly what it needs in an incredible standout performance by her. Kylie Travis comes off as tough and sexy, especially every time she kicks Belushi's butt. Thouroughly enjoyable for its 91 minute runtime.

The Hidden has one of the shortest and best one-liners I've ever heard:

The baddie steps around a corner and levels a bazooka at the hero, who is standing a fairly short distance away and indoors to boot, and quips,

"bye!"

then shoots.

Also I'll never forget my best friend watching the first chase scene and muttering to himself, under his breath, "it's just a kit car... it's just a kit car... gotta be a kit car..."

Two of my favorites from this list are The Hidden and The Wraith.

I'd like to add my nominee for under the radar fun action flick: Raw Deal.  Arnold at his finest.

"Voight actually won a Golden Globe for his role"

He also got an Oscar nom.

Oh yeah, there's a lot of AWESOME suggestions on this thread.  I can't believe I've never heard of No Retreat, No Surrender.  The first two are directed by Corey Yuen, who is a *GREAT* fight choreographer.  He did Kiss of the Dragon, amongst *many* other films with good fight scenes.

LOL Can't believe I've seen about half of your list, Dolph. I must be worse that I imagined. You can add "Malone" to your list, a late 80s actioner starring Burt Reynols (as a CIA operative on holidays) and Cliff Robertson (as the head of the local survivalist group who puts himself on his way). There's worse ways of kill 90 minutes, as with most of the titles of your list.

Oh man, I loved Wanted Dead or Alive. Rutger Hauer has done some wild stuff in his career, and there was so much about this movie that was really cool, like Hauer's old factory residence with a freight elevator for his car. And I really wish Gene Simmons had played more movie villains. Great ending too: "F**k the bonus."

The mention of Runaway Train made me think of another fun little flick from the early 90s: Detonator, also known as Death Train. This movie about nuclear terrorism had Pierce Brosnan and Patrick Stewart attempting to stop Ted Levine who had a train with a nuclear bomb on it. Christopher Lee was in also in this movie as a Russian general bent on getting the Cold War going again. Pretty good little action flick, and worth seeing for the cast alone.



Post Edited (07-12-05 07:19)

Zapranoth wrote:

> The Hidden has one of the shortest and best one-liners I've
> ever heard:
>
> The baddie steps around a corner and levels a bazooka at the
> hero, who is standing a fairly short distance away and indoors
> to boot, and quips,
>
> "bye!"
>
> then shoots.

The most memorable line in that movie for me is: "I want that car."

Great suggestions, Menard.  I've heard of Retroactive and I've heard that it's definitely worth watching.  I haven't heard of Digital Man, but Matthias Hues never fails to crack me up, so I'll definitely give it a shot.

Raw Deal is a true Arnold classic and doesn't get as much spotlight as it should for being a true blue 80s action movie.  You really can't go wrong by watching it.

MALONE!  Hell yeah, Neville.  I actually enjoyed this movie and thought it was better than I had anticipated.  I had a good time with it and, like you said, there's worse ways to kill 90 minutes.  

Jim, you really are in for a treat.  The No Retreat, No Surrender series is awesome if you can tolerate tons of cheesiness.  Make no mistake, these movies are downright painful as far as acting goes.  But the action is excellent, especially in part 4.  They're really worth checking out at least, especially if you're a Corey Yuen fan.

Andy, I remember seeing Detonator for dirt cheap in one of those Walmart DVD bins.  I'll have to check it out based on your mention of it.

I'll try to add some more titles later today.

Four words that trump everything in this thread - KING OF THE KICKBOXERS

Dolph Lundgren wrote: "Jim, you really are in for a treat. The No Retreat, No Surrender series is awesome if you can tolerate tons of cheesiness. "

Number #2, aka Raging Thunder is one of my favourite crappy action movies ever. Lots of chesse, some good laughs, an incredibly stereotyped Russian villain (who even has a Lenin portrait in his office!!) and some creative use of hand grenades.

Foy:  Truer words have never been spoken.  Long live King of Kickboxers; everyone see this movie!

Some more movies, and yes, in case you're wondering, I do have no life:

Rage – starring Gary Daniels.  Okay, so I’m aware that Gary Daniels doesn’t exactly have a huge fan base.  In fact, a lot of people tend to hate the guy for one reason or another – probably because he does have quite the list of crappy movies on his resume.  But for some reason I’ve always had a soft spot for the guy and thought that, with the right vehicle, he could come off looking impressive.  Well I’m glad to say that Rage is this vehicle, as is Bloodmoon, but we’ll save that title for later.  Damn, what a crazy ride this movie is.  To say it’s action packed would be an understatement.  It rarely lets up.  This is a mid 90s PM Entertainment “classic.”  I put the word classic in quotation marks because my definition of action classic might not be the same as someone else’s.  That and I’m not ashamed to admit I love PM movies.  To me, this movie has everything an action movie needs to succeed: tons of action, stunts, explosions, gunplay, martial arts, crappy acting, you name it, this movie has it.  Believe me when I say some of the stunts are completely insane.  Now they might pale a bit in comparison to Jackie Chan, but for an American made b-movie, this flick certainly delivers.  Let’s just put it this way: two semi trucks are careening down the highway at high speeds, barreling toward one another.  A stuntman for Gary Daniels is standing on top of one of the semis as it flies down the road.  Right before the semis barrel into one another, causing a massive explosion, the stuntman leaps off of the semi to avoid the explosion.  You have to see it to believe it; my explanation does this no justice.  More stunts, a lot more action, and some of the crappiest acting this side of Steven Seagal and you have a grade-b classic in my book.  A must watch for any action fan.

Last Man Standing – starring some guy.  Don’t mistake this for the Walter Hill western starring Bruce Willis of the same name.  This is actually another PM Entertainment action fest starring some guy I’ve never heard of named Jeff Wincott.  The plot is your typical thieves/cop/ type stuff, so I won’t bore you with the details.  While the plot will win no awards, the movie entertains, and it entertains well, so at least it does what it sets out to do.  Some good stunts in this and a lot of action.  And the acting?  Crappy as ever, which for me, makes a great b-movie complete.  After all, I don’t want to see Jeff Wincott giving an Academy Award performance as an inspirational figure in a motivating drama, I’m watching this movie to see action, explosions, gunplay, and dammit, that’s what I got.  You’ll get the same if you check it out.  For a much MUCH better review than I could ever hope of writing, please check out the review for this one over at unknownmovies.com.

Hard Justice – starring David Bradley and Charles Napier.  This is probably one of my favorites of the movies I’ve listed.  Hard Justice is nothing more than an all-out action fest that rips off John Woo so much it should probably be illegal.  But dammit if it isn’t satisfying and great to watch.  Hand-to-hand fighting in a prison, massive gunfights galore, all in glorious slow motion, you name it.  The plot is your typical undercover agent investigates a prison type stuff and is pretty much an excuse to squeeze out as much action as possible in a prison and every other setting.  If you’re a fan of movies that love to use slow motion ala John Woo to emphasize many guys dying, then by all means, this is your movie.  Highly recommended.

Back in Action – starring Roddy Piper and Billy Blanks.  What a combo, these two.  To be honest I don’t remember too much about this movie, but I do remember it being decent.  It didn’t drag and I don’t remember the action being too bad at all.  Both Piper and Blanks also were pretty good together and played off of one another well.  I love this plot summary from IMDB, which makes the movie seem epic, when we all know the movie is simply there to provide us action junkies with a fix and nothing more:

“The sister of a former U.S. Green Beret is involved in a love affair with a mobster, endangering seriously her life. His brother will make his best efforts to save her from her boyfriend and his friends, fighting with or without external help. But perhaps this tough cop, Rossi, could help him... or stop him...”

Piper is always worth watching and Billy Blanks is just sort of there – at least he isn’t Tae-bo-ing all over the place.  I’d say give it a shot if you find it cheap, which most likely it will be.  This will win no awards and doesn’t even stand out too much as a b-movie, but it’s worth watching at 2 a.m. when you can’t sleep.

Talons of the Eagle – starring Jalal Merhi and Billy Blanks.  Okay, so if I’ve managed to keep your attention after listing the stars of this movie, one of two things is true: either you don’t know who Jalal Merhi is, or you’re willing to give the movie a shot despite knowing that Merhi usually sucks in most movies he’s in.  Either way, this is a surprisingly decent, fast paced, cheesy action movie.  Keep your standards low and try not to hate poor Jalal and you’ll probably have a good time with it.  There’s plenty of action in the way of martial arts and it’s pretty well done to boot.  I wouldn’t really recommend this, as if I did and most of you end up hating Merhi, I’ll never hear the end of it.  Nevertheless, recommended for those with a high tolerance for crap but a yearning for some surprisingly decent action.

Back to Back – starring Michael Rooker.  Now this movie I will recommend whole-heartedly.  I’m convinced a lot of you have probably already seen it, but for those who haven’t, be ready for a pretty bizarre yet fun ride.  This movie stars Michael Rooker as a cop who intersects paths with an Elvis-obsessed Yakuza member who’s feuding with the local mob.  There’s some really good gunplay in this, and a great scene involving Bobcat Goldthwait that you really do have to see to believe.  It’s a really crazy scene but I guarantee you’ll get a kick out of it.  Anyway, this is supposedly a sequel to American Yakuza, which I don’t really understand (for those of you who haven’t seen American Yakuza, do so NOW!).  See it!

Death Ring – starring Billy Drago, Don Swayze, Mike Norris, and Chad McQueen.  No, I’m not making this cast up.  And yes, they are the brothers and son of who you’d expect.  Don is the ass ugly mulleted brother of Patrick who was also in Edge of Honor.  Mike Norris is Chuck’s brother, and Chad McQueen is the son of legendary Steve McQueen.  If I remember correctly, the box proudly displays this, and why not?  Sadly it worked on me and I was suckered in.  I thought it was hilarious that the box cover has the names NORRIS, MCQUEEN, and SWAYZE all in capital letters, but when you look at the photos, you see the actual Norris, McQueen, and Swayze and bust out laughing.  That and I’ll watch anything with Billy Drago in it at least once.  Those of you who have been somewhat following this thread have probably realized by now that I have some quirky obsession with movies based on the Most Dangerous Game premise.  Why?  I really don’t know.  But once I got hooked on the actual short story, then saw Surviving the Game, my b-movie watching was never the same.  Thankfully there are a lot of movies available that use this premise, and I’m sure there are even more I’m unaware of (if you know any, please let me know!).  Surprise surprise, this is another one of those movies.  Drago plays one evil SOB that ends up hunting down the three leads with his cronies.  That’s about as deep as the plot gets.  This movie does have action obviously, but for some reason, I was left with sort of a lukewarm feeling after watching it.  So why am I listing it?  Because I’m sure someone out there will watch it and at least get a kick out of it.  I’m sure there are some brave souls on here that would get this to see if Mike Norris is as dull as Chuck (yes), if Don Swayze is anything like Patrick (no), and if Chad McQueen has progressed any as an actor since starring as that really annoying blond haired Cobra Kai member named Dutch in the Karate Kid (no).  Those who are simply curious, like the Most Dangerous Game premise, love cheesy action, or just want something to watch with low expectations, I would recommend this to.  Everyone else should probably stay away.  To be fair, I sort of liked it, I certainly didn’t hate it.  Then again I have a very high tolerance for crap, as I’m sure you’ve all figured out by now.  Tread with caution.

More "gems:"

One Man Force – starring Sloth from the Goonies.  Okay, so not the actual character Sloth, but the big football dude who played him.  Sadly, this movie flat-out sucked.  It was pretty slow moving, the action that was there wasn’t handled too well, and not even the big lug who played Sloth could save this movie, as his character was pretty much just one big unlikable a***ole.  I don’t remember the specifics of this movie, as it’s been awhile since I’ve seen it, so I’ll let this review from Amazon.com suffice.

“Never before have I seen a film that has summed up an entire stereotype, alas, One Man Force succeeds in proving me wrong. One Man Force is simply every 80's loose cannon cop cliche personified by the smooth, oafish John Matuszak [Sloth from the Goonies]. He has fights with the chief, looses a partner, and single handedly exposes a deadly alliance that is.....still unclear to me at the moment. Featuring Ronnie Cox, Richard Lynch, and Stacey Q, this film is a must own for those who have had it with the system....probably. This film gets 5 stars for it's shocking, unending hilarity in the fact that someone thought this would be a good action movie. If you like the McBain character from the Simpsons, or dig bad movies to make fun of, or would like to see that there's always truth in stereotypes, get One Man Force.” by “indianaswanson”

While it’s true that One Man Force is very easy to make fun of, it’s not really even worth the effort unless a bunch of buddies are ripping on it with you and alcohol is involved.  I guess it’s worth checking out if you’d like to see what Sloth really looked like, but you could just as easily find a picture of the dude on Google.  Tread with extreme caution.

Steele Justice – starring John Kreese from the Karate Kid, aka Martin Kove.  The badass guy who played Kreese gets a starting role and does not disappoint.  Again, technically this movie is pretty damn bad, but you’ll have fun with it if you love a good body count and don’t mind seeing a story that you’ve pretty much seen a million times before.  This is a revenge driven action movie with Martin Kove playing the role of a Vietnam vet that kills everything in sight when his friend is killed by an enemy of his from Vietnam.  That’s as much story as you need to know.  This movie knows its role and doesn’t try to be anything else … which is good for us, the viewer.  Lots of death and gunfights fill up the movie’s running time.  This movie pretty much sums up the 80s action movie mentality that “USA rules and let’s kill all of the other nationalities.”  I’d say recommended if you happen to stumble across it.  I don’t know if it’s necessarily worth the effort to track down, but you could certainly do much, much worse.

Automatic – starring Olivier Gruner.  Who the hell is Olivier Gruner, you might be asking?  He’s pretty much your typical action dude with a French accent.  You might also recognize him in the action classic Nemesis, a movie that should be seen by everyone.  Anyway, Automatic certainly doesn’t disappoint.  In fact, I thought it was surprisingly pretty damn good, and not even in a so-bad-it’s-good way.  I think it’s legitimately good.  Gruner is a robot (a good role for him) programmed to protect human lives.  These robots are the wave of the future and are used for practically every purpose.  He saves a woman from getting raped from a corporate businessman and accidentally kills the man in the process, going against what he was created for.  This really p**ses off Gruner’s creator, the head of a company called RobGen.  The creator hires a human merc and from then on it’s a boatload of well-done action with some good thrills and sci-fi themes.  The premise of this movie is pretty decent, and even though it’s been done before, it doesn’t seem rehashed or boring.  I give this one a good recommendation; it’s worth tracking down.

My favorite part of The Hidden is William Boyett with the boom box. Can't hate an evil alien that loves head-banging rock'n roll.

My pick would be The Brotherhood of the Wolf - French made monster/kung-fu/political thriller/love story movie. Some folks would call it a mess, but the director (Christopher Gans) actually pulls it off. It is loosely based on a real incident.

Samuel Le Bihan and Marc Dacascos, star as the King's Royal Taxidermist and his ass-kicking Indian side kick sent to investigate a "Beast" that has been killing people in a rural French province.

The movie even features Monica Belluci as a local prostitute who is actually an agent of the Vatican.

It's an  odd movie, but I think it's really great. In fact this has inspired to want to watch again soon.

All this about The Hidden made me have to watch it again last night and doing so made me realize that I need to replace that old tape with a nice, new DVD.
"I want that car...I need the keys."

Hey odinn, go for the DVD!  I got mine for dirt cheap and it was worth every penny.

More flicks:

Trapper County War – starring Rob Estes and Ernie Hudson.  This movie is flat-out bizarre.  Two city boys go out for a drive and find themselves taking a detour in some podunk town in the middle of nowhere.  They stop in a restaurant where one of the city kids, Rob Estes, becomes friendly with a local waitress.  The two hit it off and she convinces him to go to a town dance with her.  He does, and when the locals find out about this relationship, they’re none too happy.  Especially Don Swayze, a corrupt officer of the town.  It turns out the girl was taken in by his crazy parents at an early age and raised as their own.  He also wants a piece of her in the worst way.  Estes convinces the girl to flee the town with him and his friend and when the locals learn of her escape, they make it their duty to try to stop Estes and co. from escaping Trapper County.  So the insane and over-the-top parents, Don Swayze, and a bunch of hicks hunt Estes down in an effort to get the girl back.  Along the way, Estes meets Ernie Hudson, who happens to live in a cabin in the middle of the woods with a bunch of heavy artillery, and the two take on the army of hicks.  I say this movie is bizarre because everyone in it is so over-the-top it’s nearly ridiculous.  Especially the parents, who try to hard to be evil that they’re cringe worthy.  The premise is crazy and the beginning is a bit shaky, but once Estes meets Hudson, the movie becomes more fast paced and action-oriented.  It’s hard to recommend this one unless you absolutely love cheese.  If you can’t stand horrible acting, over-the-top characters, or a somewhat slow beginning, then stay away.  The hunting portion of the movie is pretty decent and makes up for the slow first half.  Recommended to those with a very high tolerance of crap.

The Isaac Florentine action movie collection, including Bridge of Dragons with Dolph Lundgren, U.S. Seals 2, Cold Harvest with Gary Daniels, Savate with Olivier Gruner, Special Forces, and High Voltage with Bruce Lee’s daughter.  Mr. Florentine is the best action director that many people haven’t heard of.  In his movies he likes to use John Woo-type gunfights and martial arts doubles that make the stars they’re doubling for look like Jackie Chan on speed.  The best thing about Florentine is that he knows what type of movies he’s making, he doesn’t try to make them into anything that they’re not, and he always delivers the action goods.  If this guy were making movies in the 80s he would’ve been making tons of action classics with the usual heavy hitters, Chuck, Arnold, Stallone, etc.  Instead he’s forced to work with such worldly talent as Antonio Sabato Jr. and Johnny Lawrence from the Karate Kid.  At least he was able to work with Dolph.  Here’s a rundown of the movies Florentine’s made:

Bridge of Dragons – starring Dolph Lundgren.  Okay, so my views might be a little skewed, with me being a Dolph Lundgren fan, but this movie, while very cheesy, is also very entertaining.  You won’t care about the plot, but you will about the action.  This movie has Dolph-fu, fights, a gunfight with Dolph jumping and diving around and killing everyone like Chow Yun-Fat, and explosions.  You really can’t go wrong with this one.  Last time I checked Wal-Mart had an abundance of this DVD in its $5 bin.  Now there really is no excuse not to check this one out.

U.S. Seals 2 – starring a bunch of people.  This movie if Florentine’s best, his masterpiece, if you could call it that.  Simply put, it has an insane amount of kung fu action in it, and I’m not talking about your Don “the Dragon” Wilson type crap either.  We’re talking full-on over-the-top kung fu fights that will make you wonder if this was even made in the states.  And it doesn’t let up.  It’s pretty much just an hour and a half of ass kicking at its finest.  If I remember correctly, it was choreographed by a relatively unknown member of Jackie Chan’s stunt team.  This is the kind of action we’re talking about.  The only annoying part about the movie is that every time a character turns his or her head, or makes a gesture, there’s a loud “swoosh” noise that plays, as if they were swinging a gigantic axe or something.  It’s really cheesy but thankfully doesn’t take away from the fact that the movie delivers the goods.  Ignore the absolutely ass-tastic cover art of the DVD, which makes this movie out to look like one of those Army commercials you see on TV, or one of those Spec Ops 4 military-type video games.  Get this flick at all costs.  Another gem you can probably get for $5 at Wal-Mart.

Cold Harvest – starring Gary Daniels.  I remember this movie being a post apocalypse action flick with a western twist that has a lot of good martial arts in it.  That’s about all I remember, as I haven’t seen this movie in ages.  I’d go ahead and say check it out for sure, unless you really hate Gary Daniels, in which case, you probably shouldn’t bother.  Another good Florentine movie as far as I remember.

Savate – starring Olivier Gruner.  An Isaac Florentine movie with Olivier in it.  Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, or if you love bad action movie actors like I do) for us it’s the one who kicks a lot of ass and can barely speak English.  Gruner’s back again and kicking ass in Florentine’s take on a western.  Only this one has kung fu in it, of course.  All westerns should.  This one’s pretty good.  Gruner’s a piece of wood in this one but he can kick ass when prompted and the movie prompts him quite well.  I got this one for dirt-cheap on VHS.  Recommended if you can do the same.

High Voltage – starring Bruce Lee’s daughter and Antonio Sabato Jr.  I liked this movie, but I do like crap, so it’s sort of a backhanded compliment.  I really didn’t like Sabato at all.  He reminds me of Lorenzo Lamas and that’s not a good thing.  Sort of like his doppelganger.  Thankfully some well-done gunplay saves this cheesy movie.  And by cheesy I mean Wisconsin dairy farmer at a Green Bay Packers game cheesy.  If you can stomach Sabato Jr., I’d give it a recommendation.  I can honestly say Florentine hasn’t steered me wrong yet.  Although Sabato Jr. shouldn’t be anywhere near this movie, Florentine makes the best of it and churns out a decent little timewaster.  Action junkies needing a fix will like this just fine.

Special Forces – starring who knows?  The newest Florentine movie and also up there with one of his best.  This movie has more of the same kind of action U.S. Seals did, with some GREAT martial arts fights, and gunplay to boot.  I don’t want to sound too gushy but I really think Florentine is one of the best direct-to-video directors out there today and is keeping the b-action movie genre alive.  Van Damme, Seagal, all these guys need to look this guy up.  He does a great job of making quality action movies with quality HK style martial arts action.  Grab this flick for cheap with U.S. Seals 2 and make a back-to-back marathon of the two.  You’ll be glad you did.

A Better Way to Die – starring some guy, Joe Pantaliano, Lou Diamond Phillips, and Natasha Henstridge.  This is actually an action movie that came out in 2000 that is very much in the same vein as late 80s/early 90s classics.  This is basic cop vs. Mafia stuff with a boatload of shootouts.  I say it’s in the vein of 80s classics because the shootouts are plentiful and the story is pretty much an afterthought, or, in other words, just the way that I like my action movies.  Turn your brain off and have a blast; it’s nice that these kinds of movies, while scarce, are still being made nowadays.  A very stylish and highly recommended movie.

Bridge of dragons. I saw that at 300am on tv one time. I was going to mention in this thread but forgot got the name. Thanks Dolph.

_____________________________
"We Greeks created democracy! You also created homos!"-Ghost World



Post Edited (07-13-05 13:10)

I've seen about 10 of your suggestions from the OP, Dolph. And heard of most of the others. "Shakedown" was a personal favorite, since it starts out like a serious corrupt cop drama but turns into 80s action fare, and you can get whiplash from the transition. I love how grafted on the final battle is, almost like it came from another movie. But it has all those 80s action elements: Lear jet, Porsche, big handgun, grenades, and impossible physical derringdo. It's like a primer for all those later Michael Bay films. Plus the film includes shots of the latter days of the Times Square grindhouse theaters when crack was king before they all shut down and Guliani later came to town and cleaned the place up.  

I also like "The Last Challenge" and "Dead Bang" but I'm a Frankenheimer fan anyway.

How about:

Men of War - starring......you, or your name sake anyway. Dolph's a mercenary witha small crew in the South Pacific fighting to protect the locals from bigger badder mercs hired to take over the island for the valuable mining rights. Annoying fake Aussie tough guy actor Trevor Goddard hams it up as a psycho bad guy and sports the funniest cross-shaped patch of fake chest hair you will see this side of anime. Kind of a more serious verison of "Fifty/Fifty". If nothing else there's lots of cool location scenery to see.

Silent Trigger -starring the real Dolph again, and directed by Russell Mulcahy. Dolph's a sniper hired to pull a hit from inside a high rise building under construction. Decent film with a cool opening setup and action scenes. Costars the really hot Gina Bellman, who I wish had been in more movies.

How about some of the later Charles Bronson flicks like: Assassination, Messenger of Death, Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects, Murphy's Law, etc. Not his best stuff but they have their moments.

I just saw a Daniel Baldwin flick on FX yesterday, "Tunnel". Not that great but good for some laughs since the story sets it up to use as few locations or sets as possible. The baddie majorly overacts, Baldwin looks as fat,greas,y and stupid as he usually does and he can't even pretend to move fast during the action scenes. His character is so laid back and indifferent he borders on incompetent. Or maybe Baldwin was just waiting to get paid to spend it on booze or crack.

You might also look for Baldwin in the Fred Olen Ray action non-classic "Active Stealth". Lots of familiar faces going through the motions, the DVD is worth finding since Ray's commentary is actually a good lesson in low-budget filmmaking and tricks of the trade. Also you find out that all scenes of Terry Funk running had to be cut since they were too painful to watch since funk looks weird when he tries to run due to his plastic kneecaps. Also Ray points out that Andrew Stevens, even though he's a somewhat successful film producer, still acts in Ray's films so he can keep his SAG health insurance.

Let me add another one: "Drive " (1997). It is the usual direct-to-video Mark Dacascos flick, the only difference being that this one is fantastic. It stars Dacascos as an augmented hitman that runs away from his employees, who of course won't give up easily.

The main differences with the other Dacascos films I've seen is that this one follows the Jackie Chan formula: Hyper-kinetic fights, constant actions and comedy. It's lots of fun, seriously, and probably the best film Dacascos has starred in.

Here's the IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116147/

Note how good ratings it has.

Rich: no problem!  Bridge of Dragons is definitely one of the better Dolph flicks.

Yaddo: awesome recommendations!  Men of War is another great one I forgot to mention and you're so right about the main bad guy and his "anime patch."  That's hilarious.  Silent Trigger was good as well.  Neat little film and another good Dolph vehicle.  All of the Chuck Bronson films you listed, Assassination, Messenger of Death, Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects, and Murphy's Law are all good little action flicks, IMO.  Standouts among those are Kinjite, just for the fact that it's so damn goofy, and Murphy's Law.  But I love 'em all, truthfully.  Tunnel and Active Stealth sound like ones I'm going to have to track down.  As for that tidbit on Terry Funk, I can just picture him trying to run with those knees, looking more like he's waddling instead.

Neville: Drive = best DTV action movie of the 90s, possibly ever.  A true action movie classic in every way.  The fight scenes are unreal, Dacascos and Hardison have a great chemistry, I could go on and on.  Thanks to the Internet it's finally staring to get the notice it deserves, but it still deserves a helluva lot more.  I'd kill for a sequel with the same actors and directing team.

I'm sure a lot of you have seen the following movies, but just in case, here are some more that should not be overlooked:

Crying Freeman - starring Mark Dacascos.  Strange movie name, right?  That's because this is based off of an even more strange anime, big surprise there, huh?  While I didn't really care for the anime at all, this movie delivers the goods - and then some.  It was directed by Christophe Gans, some frenchman that is two-for-two with me as far as his movies go (he also directed Brotherhood of the Wolf, a strange, long, but excellent movie).  This movie is about an assassin named Freeman (Dacascos in his best form yet) who is spotted killing three men in the woods by a beautiful lady artist - who just so happens to be a virgin.  Believe me, when you see this lady, you'll think to yourself, "least believable virgin ever."  She's gorgeous.  And, another fun fact, she's also married to Dacascos in real life.  Anyway, back to the flick.  Freeman also sheds a tear every time that he kills.  Why?  It's based off of anime, that's why.  It doesn't have to make sense.  I think the movie says it's a "tear of regret" or some BS like that.  At any rate, the "virgin" is captivated by Freeman, even though she witnessed him murder a bunch of guys.  I think the tear did it for her.  Freeman is ordered by his organization to kill the virgin, which he obviously doesn't like.  Instead he does his duty of taking that virginity away and the two form an alliance while trying to stay away from the cops and taking on Yakuza gang members.  It makes me want to cry myself that some people on IMDB say this film's weakness is its action.  Not a chance.  Gans films the action brilliantly, with touches of slow-mo, but not so much that it seems the characters are constantly moving like molasses.  The action, while not a mile a minute, is certainly in abundance and is certainly done very well.  There are more gun battles than there are actual hand-to-hand fights, and the end of the movie finds Freeman taking on a group of guys in an 80s-esque finale where everyone dies.  Gotta love that.  I had to sadly resort to grabbing a bootleg of this movie because I don't have a region-free player and, as far as I know, there isn't a VHS of this movie.  It might be a bit more hard to come by than the other movies I've listed, but it's definitely worth it.  Fans of stylish action will love this.  Highly recommended!

Bloodmoon - starring Gary Daniels.  YES.  Finally another movie that shows Gary Daniels does have some talent in him - when it comes to martial arts.  This flick's directed by Tony Leung Siu Hung, an HK movie veteran who knows how to direct Daniels to make him look like a badass.  And he does this very well.  Honestly, the plot of this movie is downright horrible.  But I'm hoping those interested in watching a martial arts movie called Bloodmoon with Gary Daniels do not care about such things like plot or acting.  Nevertheless, I can easily sum up the plot in one sentence.  Daniels plays a cop who tries to stop a murdering martial arts master from killing sports champions.  No, I'm not making this up.  But the fights, oh, the glorious fights.  There are many of them and they're done very well with an obvious HK style.  This isn't your usual punch-punch-punch-punch choreography.  There's some truly eye-popping stuff on display here, especially the kendo master fight and the warehouse finale.  To those of you who are WWE/ECW fans, keep an eye out for Rob Van Damme, who makes a cameo and fights against the main bad guy.  Everything else but the action in this movie sucks.  But don't let that stop you from checking it out - it's very worth it, believe me.

Death Hunt - starring Charles Bronson and Lee Marvin.  Those two names alone should prompt a rental out of any action/guy movie fan.  Bronson plays a trapper in the Canada during the 1930s.  After being accused of committing a murder by a bunch of men during a run-in, Marvin the Mountie and the men spend the entire rest of the movie hunting down Bronson, although Marvin does have some regret.  Bronson just wants to be left alone and fights for his innocence and freedom.  Supposedly this is based on a true story.  I think they made the right choice casting-wise.  I know if there's anyone I'd want to play me, it'd be Bronson.  He obviously does a great job in this, as does Marvin.  I'd say this is a must for any action movie fan, and an obvious must for any fan of Bronson and/or Marvin.  No special effects, no PG-13 BS, no pretty boy actors, just straight ahead, violent action the way they used to make it.  Those craving the way action movies "used to be" will love this.

Wow, this topic is loaded with goodies. The only film out of all the ones mentioned that I have seen is DEATH HUNT which is a good one with Charles Bronson and Lee Marvin.

Some great sounding titles and b-movie actors under this topic. Anyone have any prices on DVD's of all these fine titles. What are the cheapest prices you have all found for each film?

Yeah, Detonator is pretty decent.  Better than I expected.  Isn't it a straight-to-video release as well?  There's also a sequel, but I haven't seen it.

Scott,

Out of all of the titles listed, Death Hunt is certainly a great one to have seen.  I don't know how overlooked it is, but it shouldn't be!

At any rate, DVD prices have varied for me, and unfortunately, some of the titles I've listed aren't even on DVD as far as I know.  I know I was able to get Bridge of Dragons, U.S. Seals 2, Special Forces, High Voltage, Bulletproof, Blood of Heroes, Edge of Honor, Eye of the Tiger, the Wraith, Runaway Train, Shakedown, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Johnny Handsome, Dead Bang, Back to Back, Trapper County War, Bloodmoon, and a Better Way to Die for $10 or under, sometimes easily.  Band of the Hand was a bit more last time I checked, but that was when it was first released on DVD, so the price might've gone down since then.  Same with the Hidden.  But none of these DVDs will get too much more than that.  I found some in the Wal-Mart bins, while others I got off of DeepDiscountDVD.com, or in used stores, places like that.  Might want to try Amazon too, they might have some good prices.

I'll post some more titles later today.

It was either straight to video or a TV movie. I rented it on VHS shortly after it came out, and haven't seen it since. Think I might go looking for it in the bargain bins and see if I can find it again.



Post Edited (07-14-05 10:16)

Andy,

If I remember correctly, Wal-Mart has it (or had it) in their $5 bin.  I'll have to start looking for it with you!

Today I’m going to tackle Sho Kosugi movies.  Not the usual heavy-hitters, and not Journey of Honor, since I’ve already babbled about that one.  Instead we’ll take a look at some of the movies Kosugi’s done that all action fans might not have seen, as well as one of Kosugi’s sons making a most impressive debut.  Here goes:

Rage of Honor – starring Sho Kosugi.  So many fans of Sho Kosugi have heard of and loved Revenge of the Ninja, Blind Fury, and Pray for Death.  I’ll go ahead and say they’re some of the finest action movies to come out of the 80s, and even rival most made in the 90s and today.  But there are other movies Kosugi did during that time period that might not be held in the same regard, like Rage of Honor.  I suppose there’s a reason this movie is lesser-known that the other Kosugi classics; it’s been argued that this movie simply isn’t as good as his other ones.  While I’d have to agree somewhat, I still think Rage of Honor is a decent cheesy b-action movie in its own right.  In my eyes, when Kosugi suits up as a ninja, nine times out of ten you’re going to be in for a treat.  Those looking for their fix of Kosugi ninja action will get it in this movie.  Quality-wise it’s not up there with Revenge of the Ninja, but quantity-wise it betters Revenge of the Ninja in that there are tons of fights and action scenes.  Personally, although cheesy, I didn’t think they did a bad job with the action in this movie at all.  I’ve certainly seen a lot worse, and I think that when Kosugi’s behind the action, like he is in this, that he does a good job of crafting action scenes, especially ones involving ninjas running around and kicking ass.  I think if he were given a shot at directing this one would’ve turned out better, but as is, it’s fine – if you don’t compare it to his other, better movies.

Enter the Ninja – starring Franco Nero and Sho Kosugi.  Franco Nero and Sho Kosugi in a ninja action movie?  It’s a strange combo, but it certainly ends up working.  Nero plays the “good” ninja, always clad in white, always kicking ass.  Kosugi plays the “evil” ninja, always clad in black, always jealous of Nero and his skills, and always trying to kill him in various ninja ways.  Basically Kosugi is jealous of the fact that Nero has learned the ways of the ninja and makes it his personal duty to try and kill Nero with his pals when hired to do so.  There’s your story in a nutshell.  I really, really liked this movie a lot.  Kosugi plays a great bad guy for a change and the ninja action is front and foremost.  It’s very cheesy and very 70s looking at times, but it’s certainly not awful, which is what I’ve heard several people say.  The action carries this one to a recommendation, as it’s done well, in Kosugi fashion.

Sadly, I have not seen Ninja III: the Domination.  I want to badly, and I will at some point.  Anyone have any thoughts on this one?

I would talk about 9 Deaths of the Ninja, but Andrew did a phenomenal job tackling that one, and said everything about it that really needs to be said perfectly.  I must admit though that the beginning with Kosugi and the dancers is one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.

Muscle Heat – starring Kane Kosugi.  Who the hell is Kane Kosugi, and why does his name seem familiar?  You might have recognized him from playing the role of one of Sho Kosugi’s kids in nearly every flick he’s ever made (or so it seems).  You might remember the fact that Kosugi’s kids, although small, could probably have kicked our asses in a fight despite being 4 feet tall and under 10 years old.  Well, they’ve obviously grown up since then.  And one of them, Kane, is doing his part in carrying the torch that his father held proudly in the 80s – sort of.  I say sort of because Kane’s branching out from the ways of the ninja and doing his own thing.  And with that we have Muscle Heat.  Although the title is questionable and sounds more like something you’d pick up in a porno shop, believe me, this movie DELIVERS.  I believe that it was entirely a Japanese production and was recently released here in the states on DVD.  If that’s the case, then please go out right now and buy this.  I beg of you.  Although Sho’s nowhere to be seen, in some ways, Kane puts him to shame (yes, I actually said it).  Kane might not have his father’s charisma, but he makes up for it in sheer ass-kickery.  Kane is much faster than his father was in his heyday and could very easily be the next action star.  Anyway, on with the movie.  Kane plays a court-martialed Navy SEAL sent to Japan to help another cop who is investigating an illegal fighting ring where many deaths have been occurring.  It turns out that some of the fighters in this ring are using an illegal drug called blood heat.  Ah, yes.  The illegal fighting ring premise.  So many times this has been done very well (Bloodsport, anyone?) but so many times it has somehow managed to fail me (Shootfighter II, ugh).  This movie gets it right because it doesn’t just focus on just the fighting ring so that all of the action is confined to one area.  Oh no.  We also get violent shootouts in John Woo mode, Kane going around and kicking ass outside of the ring, throwing and knocking people through several plates of glass (you have to see this to believe it) and it simply delivers action on top of more action.  I loved this movie.  I loved every cheesy minute of it.  It almost made me shed a tear that Kane was not only out there kicking ass like his old man, but that he was doing it oh-so-well.  This movie is very 80s in its execution because it has your typical meathead fighters in the ring, hammy bad guys, bad acting, and, most importantly, it focuses on the ACTION and doesn’t really give a damn about anything else.  The fight choreography is extremely well done.  It’s FAST, crisp, crazy at some points, just plain great.  Easily one of the best action movies I’ve seen in quite some time, definitely a king among newer action movies, just below Ong-Bak.  Action movie fans need this.

I saw "Ninja III - The Domination" many years ago on TV, and I remember it was a damn weird ninja movie.

(SPOILERS WARNING)

It starts with some decent 80s ninja action as a ninja is seen killing several people on a golf course and later being killed by the police. And here's where the weirdness begins: the spirit of the ninja enters a young woman who starts feeling strange. Her boyfriend starts investigating and the whole thing ends up with Sho Kosugi helping him exorcise the girl and obtaining revenge on the ninja spirit or something like that.

(END SPOILERS)

It has some decent 80s action at the beginning and ending, but behaves most of the time like a possession horror film, and a pretty lame one. You can even see cables when the woman discobers she can "teleport" stuff through the airs.

Neville,

I don't know what's worse: how bad Ninja III sounds or how much your review makes me want to see it even more.  I really am attracted to crap when it comes down to it.

A mixed bag of flicks tonight:

P.O.W. the Escape - starring David Carradine and Steve James. In case you're wondering, yes, Steve James did seemingly co-star in every b-action movie released in the 80s. This movie was decent. A pretty generic word to use, but the movie itself is pretty generic too, so they cancel each other out. Carradine plays a Vietnam Colonel who has to go behind enemy lines to save a bunch of American P.O.W.'s from the clutches of the EVIL Vietcong. Sound familiar? Of course it does; Chuck did it before, and he did it better, IMO. That's not to say P.O.W. isn't a good time; it can be, depending on the amount of people you're watching it with, and the amount of beers you've consumed. Without these vices it's a watchable flick, but with them, it's fun MST3K type fodder. The action is typical of a mid 80s Cannon film, in other words, lots of people die by gunfire. Pure 80s "America rules!" movie mentality. Recommended with a group of pals.

Full Eclipse - starring Mario Van Peebles. This is an interesting movie, to say the least. Van Peebles plays a detective who joins a special force team after the death of his partner. This team, however, is pretty unconventional in that they're a bunch of werewolves. Yes, werewolf cops. Of course Van Peebles ends up becoming part of the vigilante werewolf cop squad by taking a serum that allows him to shift into one. So we have a bunch of werewolf cops who prey on the scum of the city. An interesting premise, to say the least, and a surprisingly good movie as well. Director Anthony Hickox blends together a bunch of genres successfully; he incorporates John Woo type gunfights, werewolf action, gore, a little of the softcore, drama, horror, double-crosses, you name it. It's a crazy blend of genres but it's also a fun movie to watch. I say check it out if you can!

Circle of Iron - starring David Carradine. Supposedly this movie was based on the philosophies/writings of the legend, Bruce Lee, with additional help from James Coburn. I guess this movie could be referred to as more of a philosophic approach to kung fu, with some action tossed in for good measure. I think it was more the fact that Bruce Lee was unable to make the film, so any attempts to have the movie rely purely on action were squashed. The movie stars some guy as a martial artist who wins a fighting tournament that allows him to go on a journey to find the Book of All Knowledge. David Carradine plays four different roles in the movie, but mostly as a blind man who the main guy runs into along the way. There are several other unique people the guy meets on his journey that either befriend him or try to kick his ass. Confused? Try watching the movie; it's pretty out there at times. The martial arts choreography is obviously not up to what we're used to today, but it's standard for a late 70s movie. So while the action might not light the world on fire, it's good for what it is. It sounds like I'm pretty borderline on this movie, but to be honest, there's something about it that I really, really like. I think it's the fact that the main character's journey is completely out there and memorable, as are the characters he meets. I was able to snag this on DVD for cheap recently; I suggest those of you who like surreal action movies to do the same.

My update for the weekend:

The Last Samurai – starring Lance Henriksen and John Saxon.  Don’t confuse this movie with the Tom Cruise flick the Last Samurai – they couldn’t be more different.  This is a really cheap movie released sometime in the early 90s.  But, when I came across it at a local DVD store, saw the price ($4.99), saw that the title had samurai in it, and saw the fact that Lance Henriksen was in it (one of my favorites), I jumped all over it without hesitation.  Who wouldn’t?  Someone was smart by advertising all three of those at the same time while enticing suckers like me who will pay $5 to see Henriksen paint a freaking house just as long as it has a cool title.  “Lance Henriksen in … House Painting Ninjas from Hell.”  So I leapt at the offer, came home, and popped the DVD in … and was promptly met with boredom the first half hour of the movie.  Not a good sign.  Never a good sign.  The whole movie has a whole “shot in two days with a camcorder from Rent-a-Center” look to it, or maybe that was just the DVD, which I’m thinking might be some kind of HK bootleg.  At any rate, at first, I wasn’t too impressed.  But I’m a forgiving guy when it comes to these kinds of movies, so unless they’re completely and totally botched and have absolutely no redeeming value, I can at least come up with something that I enjoyed.  And while the movie does get better, it never really rises above “watchable.”  I didn’t hate the movie by any stretch of the imagination, but it didn’t wow me, either.  This movie is a strange mixture of samurai action and philosophies, fantasy, adventure, guns, and more.  It sounds cool, but the end result is average.  Worth a rainy day watch.

Warriors – starring Michael Pare and THE MAN, Gary Busey.  “Warriors, come out to PLAAAAAAAY!”  Not those Warriors.  These ones are stuck in a less-than-mediocre b-movie filmed in Canada.  Again, never a good sign.  Michael Pare plays the typical good guy, which means Busey is left to play the bad guy.  So far, so good.  I’m a fan of both and sometimes their presence can make a movie rise above total badness.  Not this time.  This movie is boring.  The cardinal sin that an action movie can be is boring.  It’s an ACTION MOVIE.  It’s called WARRIORS.  It’s got a scene chewing b-movie legend and a guy who’s more than capable of being a good action lead.  So how do things go completely wrong here?  In every area conceivable.  Busey is subdued in this one to the point that you ask yourself, “why did they even cast him?”  If you cast Busey in a movie, you have to let him run wild.  If you do, the movie’s much better off for it, i.e. Surviving the Game, Bulletproof, etc.  But in this movie he comes off as bored and tired, maybe because he realized even he couldn’t breathe any life into this one.  I wish I could say it’s even worth watching to make fun of.  But it takes itself so seriously that you can’t even do that.  Pare’s character is so boring and cliché that he can’t do much either.  The movie basically boils down to Pare being a trained killer and having to use his skills to go against his squad leader, Busey.  It sounds like a primo recipe for an action movie, but nothing happens.  Everyone in this acts like they’re in a coma and the movie will put you into one.  NOT recommended.

The Junkman – starring H.B. Halicki.  The story behind Mr. Halicki is legendary and is one that should be heard for any movie lover.  For those of you who don’t know it, I’ll describe it briefly: Halicki was an every day car enthusiast who had a dream.  That dream?  To make a movie with the mother of all car chases in it.  A car chase so spectacular that people will remember it years from now.  So Halicki realized this dream by shooting a little movie that you might have heard of called Gone in Sixty Seconds.  He did this with bunch of his friends, a bunch of cars, and a bunch of people willing to lend their time and make his dream come true.  The movie turned out to fulfill what Halicki wanted and had a phenomenal number of cars crashed (I think it was somewhere in the 90 cars range) during the nearly 40 minute car chase at the end of the movie.  Yes, that’s right, 40 minutes.  It truly is something to see and is refreshing from today’s CGI laden chases with special effects.  Halicki did all of the stunt driving and all of the dangerous maneuvers on his own.  Unfortunately, when filming a sequel to Gone in Sixty Seconds, he died while performing a big stunt.  It’s a sad ending to what seemed to be a fascinating guy.  The movie was later remade with Nic Cage and was a big success, overshadowing the fact that the older movie did it 25 years earlier, and did it better.  

After filming Gone in Sixty Seconds, Halicki worked on a really bizarre movie called the Junkman.  It’s bizarre in that it sort of plays out like a movie within a movie: Halicki plays a movie-maker much like himself in real life, only in this movie, a bunch of hitmen are hired to kill him, forcing him to go on the run.  There’s your complex plot in a nutshell.  I’ll be honest, this is a dumb movie.  But you can tell that Halicki and the people involved are having fun with it, because the movie rarely seems to take itself seriously at all.  There’s a sense that the Junkman is basically a bunch of friends who got together to make a movie.  Don’t mistake this for thinking the movie’s amateurish (well, the acting is, but nobody ever accused Halicki of being Robert freaking DeNiro) because when it comes to the car chases, it is anything but.  The plot is pretty much an excuse to show several cars tearing it up, so for those of you who enjoy a good old fashioned car chase, it’s worth seeing based on that alone.  That being said, it’s dumb, the acting sucks, and the plot is pretty much filler, but if you’re a fan of cars in any way, shape, or form, and love seeing them being driven fast and crashing into everything in sight, you’ll get a kick out of the Junkman.  Watching this movie is like watching a porno with all of the sex scenes replaced with car chases.  You couldn’t care less about anything else, but when it comes down to the goods, you’re paying attention.

I love "Circle of Iron" because it is so odd. I have the DVD as well, the extras go along way toward explaining some things. Carradine says that any of the humorous bits were added to the script by Stanley Mann. And the original story was set on then contemporary Earth with the seeker (Cord) to be played by Coburn and Lee as the guide. Coburn, Lee, and Silliphant were all friends and had an interest in showcasing Zen Buddhist ideals in a film. Hence the quirky character of the film, but if you read a little Zen you can see where they were coming from. Jeff Cooper, the lead, was a stunt man and minor actor (He had a small role in one of the BIlly Jack films and I've seen him in a corny David Niven comedy on Turner South also) at the time, but he seems to have vanished, they tried to contact him for the extras for the Blue Underground DVD, but had no luck.

"Death Hunt" is a fun favorite. Some great lines like "Your daddy said the best part of you ran down your mama's leg." There's a link in the Ruthless Reviews review of this to a website of obscure Canadian history about the real Albert Johnson. From the story there, he was even more of a badass than in the movie, but he probably was the Mad Trapper if there ever was one.

Another recommendation: "Target X" starring David Heavener. Cheesy 90s action chase film, about an innocent man selected to be the prey for a secret pay-per-view bloodsport, that manages to ripoff: The Most Deadly Game,The Running Man,The 10th Victim, Surviving the Game, and even a scene from Pulp Fiction. Look for cheesy movie favorite Robert Z'Dar in that scene.

I just rented a movie I think that belongs in this thread and might have been mentioned:

Fist of the Northstar- I think everyone know the story by now. Kenshrio looks for his girlfriend and seeks some revenge using the bad-ass Hodshiensken(sp?) moves.The gory was ok so was the fighting. Chris Penn was in it a delievers a funny line "It ain't easy being sleaze".


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Ray,when some asks you if your a God you say YES! - Ghostbusters



Post Edited (07-18-05 02:48)

Yaddo,

Good stuff on Circle of Iron ... I haven't had the chance to check out the extras yet, but they sound like they're worth watching.  I'm with you though, I think the fact that the movie's so strange plays in its favor, IMO.

Target X sounds like a bonafide b-movie classic the way you described it.  Great recommendation, I'm all over it.

Rich,

Ah yes, Fist of the North Star.  Probably one of the most hated b-movies that I've come across, simply because a majority of the fans remember the gory anime so fondly and the live action movie has such heavy hitting stars as Downtown Julie Brown and that Rufio from Hook.  That being said, I liked it.  I didn't think it was THAT bad and it certainly could've been worse.  I too thought the fighting was actually pretty decent.  Chris Penn was an odd choice but he did okay.  Interestingly enough IMDB says there's an uncut print of this movie ... I'm wondering if that's true or just BS.  Anyone know?

A variety of action today:

The Driver – starring Ryan O’Neal and Bruce Dern.  This is one of those criminally overlooked films that somehow got lost in the shuffle.  Walter Hill delivers another classic that combines his talent for writing great dialogue and some awesome car chases.  Hill’s probably one of my favorite directors ever; if anyone could helm the perfect “guy movie,” it’d be him. .  The thing I like about Hill is that he can do so many different kinds of action movies, and he does them all well.  He’s made so many classic flicks over the years, a lot of them in the 80s.  While this one came out in the late 70s, clothing aside, it does have some 80s sensibilities.  O’Neal plays a man known only as “the Driver.”  This is appropriate, because he’s the best wheelman around.  Bruce Dern plays the detective, who’s hell bent on putting an end to the driver’s reign.  There’s your plot.  Admittedly, Ryan O’Neal is a strange choice to play the leading man in this movie; there are times in which the character of the driver is supposed to come off as a hard ass, but O’Neal looks so much like a pretty boy movie star that sometimes it takes away from the movie somewhat.  But he does an okay job, since he really doesn’t talk much, and the reason we’re watching is to see some nice car chases.  Hill doesn’t disappoint.  He often lets the cars do the talking, and as an action movie audience, we’re better off because of that.  The chases have a sense of realism to them, so you won’t see two cars jumping off of buildings or anything like that, which is refreshing.  See this movie.

Highwaymen – starring Jim Caviezel and Rhona Mitra.  At the time this movie was made, Jim Caviezel was known by some as “that guy who starred in Frequency and the Count of Monte Cristo.”  It probably would’ve been tough to pick him out from a guy you’d see on the street.  But after a little movie called the Passion of the Christ was released, Caviezel was suddenly a household name and the smart execs saw little light bulbs sparkle in their heads.  “Let’s release Highwaymen after Passion comes out, people will surely see it!”  Yeah, because those who enjoyed Caviezel as Jesus Christ will just love seeing him flying around in a Barricuda serving up some vintage vigilante justice.  What we have here is a little under the radar flick that was released by Robert Harmon.  You might (or might not) have heard of another flick he directed, which also took place primarily on the opens roads: the Hitcher, an 80s classic with C. Thomas Howell and Rutger Hauer.  I guess Harmon wanted another crack at the open road so he made this movie, which admittedly, we don’t really see too much of anymore.  I think it plays like a somewhat modern version of Mad Max in a way; Caviezel plays a man who witnesses his wife get run over by some madman racing down the highway who loves committing hit-and-run murders with his El Dorado.  This enrages Caviezel, who then becomes the Mad Max type who tools around in a rigged up Barricuda that includes police frequencies and a cb radio, all the while looking for the man who killed his wife.  Along the way, Caviezel befriends a VERY easy on the eyes Rhona Mitra after saving her from the madman after he kills her friend using his El Dorado as a weapon.  From then on it’s a cat-and-mouse chase between Caviezel and Mitra and the maniac.  A cool little movie that harkens back to the basics and doesn’t rely on a lot of flash or CGI effects.  The pace of the movie never lets up and the fact that it’s so short leads me to believe some things were cut out.  At any rate, check it out if you get the chance.

Nighthawks – starring Sylvester Stallone, Billy Dee Williams, and Rutger Hauer.  I have a friend who’s a Stallone fan.  He owns all of the Rocky movies, all of the Rambo movies, you know, the Stallone classics.  One day he saw Nighthawks in my collection and started laughing.  It’s an old VHS tape and shows half of Stallone’s bearded face on the cover, and the other half of Rutger Hauer’s.  He says Stallone looks like he should be in a porno.  I say he actually was in one, but that’s another conversation entirely.  Anyway, there’s no denying this, as he looks totally different in this movie.  I try to convince him that the movie is actually pretty good, to which he dismisses once I tell him it’s nothing like Rambo, Cobra, etc.  I guess what I’m getting at is once upon a time Stallone was actually known for his acting.  After Rocky I and II were released, he was sort of in this in-between phase of his career, and thus, starred in Nighthawks.  But you know what?  Him and Hauer do a damn good job in this movie.  Sly stars as Deke DaSilva (love the name), an undercover cop who, along with Billy Dee, his partner, are suddenly transferred to an anti-terrorist unit after years of baiting muggers.  They soon find themselves chasing after Hauer, who plays Wulfgar, a German terrorist, after he decides to make the good ol’ US of A his next target.  The rest of the movie plays out with Stallone and Williams chasing after Hauer, trying to stop him before commits more atrocities.  Good performances and some solid action give this film a slight boost.  It won’t blow you away, but you could find much worse ways to spend your time.  A rainy day flick for sure.

The Park is Mine – starring Tommy Lee Jones.  This movie plagued another friend of mine for years.  “You like crappy action movies,” he says.  Guilty as charged.  “There’s this movie my dad used to love, he says it’s about some guy who decides one day he’s going to take over New York City’s Central Park.  The movie’s pretty much him running around and shooting people that try to come into his park.”  Thanks to the Internet, we were able to find and watch this movie.  It’s a little-known 80s flick starring, of all people, Tommy Lee Jones.  My friend’s description was somewhat correct: Jones plays a war vet who becomes fed up with how Vietnam vets are treated.  So what does he do?  He decides to take over Central Park so that he can be heard.  Obviously this works and soon the police are after Jones and his crusade not only to remember those who fell in Vietnam, but also to rid NYC of the “thugs, perverts, and weirdos.”  Doesn’t sound like too bad of a plan to me.  Basically the rest of the movie is an off-the-wall Jones running around in his Yankees hat, war paint, and weaponry wreaking havoc on those who try to enter his park.  It’s actually a pretty cool, if not cheesy and contrived, little movie.  Jones does a nice job of getting you to emphasize with his character.  It’s hard to root against him in this movie.  Some nice action and neat ideas (for an action movie) make this movie worth seeing.  80s action at it’s “finest.”

The Night Hawks looks interesting I going to get it on Netflick, "The park is mine" sounds like it mirrors the classic "Taxi Driver" is some ways.


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Ray,when some asks you if your a God you say YES! - Ghostbusters

There are two releases of 'Nighthawks' on DVD. The first release is in pan-and-scan with the original score, and the second is letterboxed with the music replaced with a generic score. Whoever screwed up on these releases is an idiot. Just wanted to warn you guys.

Rich,

Give Nighthawks a shot ... even though the DVDs were screwed up, as LH-C pointed out, it's worth checking out.

As for The Park is Mine mirroring Taxi Driver, you could say that.  Taxi Driver takes a more character-oriented approach, while The Park is Mine opts for action instead.  

A small update today:

The Ostermann Weekend – starring Rutger Hauer and Craig T. Nelson.  By the time this film was released, Sam Peckinpah, a legend in filmmaking, was on his last legs as a director.  In the eyes of many people, he hardly went out with a bang.  The Ostermann Weekend would end up being his last film before his death in 1984.  Needless to say, the reactions to the film were and still are extremely mixed – and with good reason.  The Ostermann Weekend is a very strange film at times, and the whole premise is based on paranoia – something Peckinpah himself was probably plagued with at the time he was filming.  I happened to like the Ostermann Weekend quite a bit, and despite its flaws, thought it was an interesting movie to watch.  It shouldn’t be compared to Peckinpah films of old, and while there is a good amount of Peckinpah-flavored action in the film, it’s not the slam-bang action movie type.  The film is based around Hauer, who plays an investigative news show host, who’s told by the CIA that his friends are traitors to the US.  This causes a lot of tension and anger when Hauer, his friends, and his friends’ wives get together at his house to have a fun weekend, as Hauer believes they’re traitors, and they believe they’re under scrutiny from Hauer.  Hauer’s house is bugged and mic’d by the CIA to spy on them, adding to the sense of paranoia.  This sets the stage for a Peckinpah-esque finale, which will satisfy action fans.  This movie is more of a thriller than an action movie, but the action it does have is done in typical Peckinpah fashion, which makes this movie at least worth watching once.  I thought the movie was pretty good, but with that being said, I can’t recommend it to everyone.  I think it’s a love-it-or-hate-it type movie.

Opposing Force - starring Lisa Eichhorn (who?) and Tom Skerritt.  Here is your prototypical under the radar 80s action movie that very few people have heard of, and even fewer have seen.  It stars Eichhorn as Casey, the only woman among a bunch of soldiers who sign up for a training mission that leaves them on an island where they have to reach a specific zone before the opposing force captures them.  As I’m sure you can predict, things go wrong quickly and the training mission turns out to be the real.  I thought this movie had a cool premise and that it delivered on the action front.  After the setup, things play out in a Rambo-like fashion where it’s survival of the fittest.  Eichhorn does an adequate job and is a nice change of pace from your usual ripped male action hero.  If you’re paying attention for the action, you should be satisfied.  Check it out.

Being that there has been a focus on a few Rutger Hauer movies in the last few posts (and why not; is there a better action movie star?), I have an inclusion.


A BREED APART (1984): Rutger Hauer, Powers, Booth, Kathleen Turner, Donald Pleasence - Powers Booth plays a mountain climber who is looking to finance an expedition. He is called upon by a reclusive millionaire (Donald Pleasence) who collects rare bird eggs, mostly from endangered species, to obtain an egg from a mountain top on a small island. The problem is that this small island is owned and controlled by a vet (Rutger Hauer) who is a conservationist and will protect the wildlife on the island with a vengeance. Add to this a widow (Kathleen Turner) with a child who owns the general store/dock where Hauer get his supplies; she wants him while the child looks at him as a hero figure; but Hauer's character needs a good slap in the face to realize he might feel the same way. Booth's and Hauer's characters also gain a confidence in each other which complicates Booth's mission. And, if that were not enough, there is a group of hicks who have it in mind that they want to teach Hauer a lesson. Overall a well done character driven story about trust and self-realization which has just enough action to move it along while not getting in the way of the story.



Post Edited (07-20-05 12:16)

"Nighthawks" is actually pretty good, I hate that it gets mocked if it's remembered at all outside b-movie circles. But I loathe the Keith Emerson score, and I'm even an ELP fan. It dates the film even worse than the clothes and music.

"Ostermann Weekend" I hated since it wastes a great cast on a muddled plot, and can't decide if it's serious or a dark comedy (mostly Craig T. Nelson's later dialogue). But I hated the book as well. I'd rather sit through a two hour loop of the two Julian Lennon videos Peckinpah directed after this than watch it again. But if you liked it Dolph, have you seen Peckinpah's "Cross of Iron" or "The Killer Elite"? They might be up your alley.

"The Park is Mine" only interested me to see Tommy Lee Jones in a career doldrum. It's not really an action picture but I always like "Black Moon Rising" better.

"The Driver" has great car chases but tries to be an action movie verison of a European existenial flick. But damn Isabelle Adjani was beautiful, almost worth sitting through this one again just for her.

Fist of the North Star I saw the live action version before I saw the anime (but I was aware it was a remake) so I had nothing to compare it to. Mostly harmless and cheesy, I've seen far worse. But Downtown Julie Brown as a tough broad, even my imagination wouldn't buy that one. She was just too damn cute for it to work.

A Breed Apart is one of those films that has always been on my "next time I see it, I' buy/rent it" list. Somehow I've never seen it. One of those films where I'd see it on the shelf everytime but always but it off.

Yaddo,

Can't disagree with you on Nighthawks, right down to the score.  

I see what you're saying about Ostermann Weekend, although I haven't read the book.  It's one you either like or don't like.  I've seen some of the Killer Elite (I need to watch the rest of it) and, for some reason, haven't gotten around to seeing Cross of Iron.  I want to though, for sure.

The Park is Mine was an interesting choice for Jones.  How well known was he before he did the movie?

As for Fist of the North Star, I think you did yourself a favor watching the live action before the anime.  That sounds weird, but a lot of people I've talked to despise the live action because they compare it to the anime.  Since you didn't have anything to compare to, it's probably why you didn't hate the flick.  I didn't hate it either, but then again, I can see why hardcore fans would be upset.

I'm with you on A Breed Apart.  I need to see it though, as I'm sure I'll end up enjoying it, only to ask myself, "why didn't I see this sooner?"

Just a small update today, as I've sadly not seen too many action movies lately:

Dead to Rights – starring Charles Bronson.  This movie pained me in a number of ways.  Charles Bronson is like a god to me.  Even if a movie he’s in isn’t so good, he usually makes it worth watching.  Not this time.  This movie is so by-the-numbers that it plays out like a collection of everything you’ve ever seen before in a typical cop drama.  With a name like Dead to Rights, and the presence of Charles Bronson, and an R rating, I was under the assumption that we might get some nice action.  NO.  Absolutely nothing happens within the first half our, and when the “action” finally does come, it consists of some hoodlum shooting a lady in slow motion, no squibs or anything.  Then back to more drama.  Honestly I see absolutely no reason why this should’ve been anything over PG-13, if that.  The story consists of some crazy guy running around killing nuns.  It’s up to Bronson and his daughter, a Sergeant and Lieutenant respectively, to track the guy down.  The only problem is that Bronson and his daughter don’t get along.  Add the fact that she’s in charge of him, despite being his daughter, and you’re primed for tension and drama.  Yawn.  Poor Charles looks so old and tired in this movie; he gives it his best, but with the script he had to work with, there wasn’t much he could do.  This movie has made-for-TV written all over it (I think it was a TV movie, actually).  I hate to even review it under the under the radar action movie category, because the action in this is very few and far between and is very bland.  But for as many movies as I’ve recommended, I’m also doing by best to steer people clear of movies that might’ve caught interest.  Don’t let the fact that Charles Bronson is in this one fool you – stay away.

TL Jones was not a big star at the time of "The Park is Mine", but a respected serious actor. He had gotten some notice in film roles for "The Eyes of Laura Mars" and a few other things. He got major attention playing Loretta Lynn's husband in "Coal Miner's Daughter" and was acclaimed for his acting in "The Executioner's Song", the TV movie about serial killer Gary Gilmore. The TV movie got a theatrical release in Europe, which helped draw attention to him. but between those two films and "Lonesome Dove" his career was pretty flat.

Is "Dead to Rights" the TV Movie "Family of Cops" under a different name or is it a sequel? I saw FOC on TV and remember thinking it was time for Bronson to move into character roles if he was going to keep acting, which he didn't for much longer. He had a good small role in Sean Penn's "The Indian Runner", I wish he had been able to do more stuff like that before his health and the Alzheimer's he was supposed to be suffering from in his last years forced him to give it up.