Broken Arrow, the lesser known John Woo actioner with John Travolta (Face/Off being the favoured sibling) is an adrenaline blast of pure popcorn movie enchantment. From beginning to end we are treated to pulse pounding fighter jet chases, delightfully cheesy dialogue, bone crunching man to man combat, and endless shootouts bathed in the bloody, nerve shattering glory that only the 90's could deliver. Woo brings his operatic grace out to the desert, and amongst the constant brutish blunt force trauma, his pointed touch is unmistakable. John Travolta gives a loony toons worthy performance that's so far over the top, he shatters the ceiling and blasts off into orbit, grimacing like the joker hijacking an F18. He knows he's in camp territory too, and milks it. He plays Deakins, a jaded lunatic Air Force pilot who absconds with two deadly nuclear warheads, intent on selling them to radicals. Christian Slater is Hale, his second in command, who finds himself on a warpath with Travolta as he chases him through the desert. Woo and team surgically remove any unnecessary, dragging plot lines and distill their process to one simple formula: action. Furious quantities of it too, and indeed Slater finds himself constantly hopping trains, emptying clips into countless paramilitary cannon fodder and taking down helicopters he scarcely finds time to breathe. He gets support in the obligatory female lead, feisty park ranger Terry Carmichael (Samantha Mathis holds her own amongst the boys splendidly). Woo is an action maestro, and he unleashes a hell storm of beautifully staged set pieces and delirious fight scenes for fans of the genre to bask in. Accompanied by Hans Zimmer's thunderous, effortlessly cool score, it's a real treat. Supporting our three leads are Kurtwood Smith, Chris Mulkey, Bob Gunton, Frank Whaley, Howie Long, Delroy Lindo and Daniel Von Bargen filling out the respective genre archetypes that we love to see. It doesn't have the 007 esque class or panache of Face/Off, but it has plenty of sound and fury to slake anyone's lust for gaudy, excessively enjoyable slash and burn action that's off the rails.
Review of Broken Arrow
