I put the "spoiler" label to try to ensure following the parameters for this site -- but I don't think anything here would ruin any element of this movie for anyone. There is absolutely no doubt as to what is going to happen next, and very, very little as to when or where.
Chan, Norris, Segal, Van Damme. It would take this guy 20 seconds to dispose of all four -- 30 seconds, tops! Stallone in full "Rambo" mode, plus Swarzegenner as the "Terminator," Harry from "True Lies," or any other of his macho personas -- another half-minute. The whole "A-Team," including Mr. T at his meanest, maybe 45 seconds, since they usually have some armored vehicles. Now to penetrate (alone) a Mafia Don's home, with more button men than the Corleone, Tattaglia and Barzini families combined, it takes a few minutes because of the numbers involved and the size of the estate. (He also has to be certain none of the lady guests are harmed, since there is a party involved.) Later, tackling the remainder of the crime boss' force in a large factory site, another few minutes.
I got into this film shortly after it had begun, surfing to the CW channel. It was during a local programming period, and the local listing of the title was erroneous, so I was able to get to this site only after seeing the credits at the end.
I had flipped-on the record button, and so was able to count the number of stunt performers in this picture -- count'em -- sixty-five (65)!!
Frankly, I had not heard of Gary Daniels until this flick. Part of the fun of doing these comments (for me it is great relaxation therapy), is sometimes reading the other comments as you are doing yours.
I see several from obvious Daniels aficionados, and some with criticism of the acting. "Sol" from Brooklyn had an enjoyable comment to read (and I'd guess someone named Sol, from Brooklyn, ought to have some degree of affinity and familiarity with this genre), and others noted Daniels' less-than-Di Nero- or -Pacino- level of acting talent -- but these do not diminish the superior action elements of the story. Daniels' obviously prodigious abilities in the martial arts make his level of activity in dispatching the bad guys very believable (even though the extent, circumstances and numbers of adversaries involved may stretch this believability a tad).
I got into the film just as the several policeman, who were involved in the bust where the Don's son was killed, were being debriefed. So I missed the initial car chase referenced by others, but there were certainly more to come, in quantity, in this presentation.
Regarding references to Daniels' acting - I have commented about Patrick Swayze, referencing Leonard Maltin's depicting Swayze's acting range as "from A to B." It's possible Daniels' range could be considered "from A to A-minus." Also, the histrionics of the Don's wife were on the "Spears" or "Madonna" level, as described elsewhere here.
Even Sollozzo, the drug dealer who had the nerve to attempt to whack Don Corleone in "The Godfather," or the always rash Bugsy Siegel, would hesitate to initiate the extreme level of carnage the crime boss revengefully ordered in this picture.
But that was what set the tone, and this still was fun to view. And the car chase scenes obviously were either bereft of a lot of computerized enhancements, or were so artfully-added as to be undetectable. They were on a level of those in big-budget films we remember, involving Gene Hackman, Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood, etc.
Chan, Norris, Segal, Van Damme. It would take this guy 20 seconds to dispose of all four -- 30 seconds, tops! Stallone in full "Rambo" mode, plus Swarzegenner as the "Terminator," Harry from "True Lies," or any other of his macho personas -- another half-minute. The whole "A-Team," including Mr. T at his meanest, maybe 45 seconds, since they usually have some armored vehicles. Now to penetrate (alone) a Mafia Don's home, with more button men than the Corleone, Tattaglia and Barzini families combined, it takes a few minutes because of the numbers involved and the size of the estate. (He also has to be certain none of the lady guests are harmed, since there is a party involved.) Later, tackling the remainder of the crime boss' force in a large factory site, another few minutes.
I got into this film shortly after it had begun, surfing to the CW channel. It was during a local programming period, and the local listing of the title was erroneous, so I was able to get to this site only after seeing the credits at the end.
I had flipped-on the record button, and so was able to count the number of stunt performers in this picture -- count'em -- sixty-five (65)!!
Frankly, I had not heard of Gary Daniels until this flick. Part of the fun of doing these comments (for me it is great relaxation therapy), is sometimes reading the other comments as you are doing yours.
I see several from obvious Daniels aficionados, and some with criticism of the acting. "Sol" from Brooklyn had an enjoyable comment to read (and I'd guess someone named Sol, from Brooklyn, ought to have some degree of affinity and familiarity with this genre), and others noted Daniels' less-than-Di Nero- or -Pacino- level of acting talent -- but these do not diminish the superior action elements of the story. Daniels' obviously prodigious abilities in the martial arts make his level of activity in dispatching the bad guys very believable (even though the extent, circumstances and numbers of adversaries involved may stretch this believability a tad).
I got into the film just as the several policeman, who were involved in the bust where the Don's son was killed, were being debriefed. So I missed the initial car chase referenced by others, but there were certainly more to come, in quantity, in this presentation.
Regarding references to Daniels' acting - I have commented about Patrick Swayze, referencing Leonard Maltin's depicting Swayze's acting range as "from A to B." It's possible Daniels' range could be considered "from A to A-minus." Also, the histrionics of the Don's wife were on the "Spears" or "Madonna" level, as described elsewhere here.
Even Sollozzo, the drug dealer who had the nerve to attempt to whack Don Corleone in "The Godfather," or the always rash Bugsy Siegel, would hesitate to initiate the extreme level of carnage the crime boss revengefully ordered in this picture.
But that was what set the tone, and this still was fun to view. And the car chase scenes obviously were either bereft of a lot of computerized enhancements, or were so artfully-added as to be undetectable. They were on a level of those in big-budget films we remember, involving Gene Hackman, Steve McQueen, Clint Eastwood, etc.