C.C. Action

The Kill Reflex (1989) is a movie I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows a Chicago detective with a new partner because his long time partner was murdered. Together they'll need to hunt down why his partner's death seems to be getting swept under the carpet.

This movie is directed by and stars Fred Williamson (Adios Amigo) and also stars Maud Adams (Octopussy), Bo Svenson (Kill Bill), Julie Gregg (The Godfather) and Frank Pesce (Beverly Hills Cop).

The storyline for this picture is very straight forward and fairly bland. The lines are corny but will give you a few chuckles here and there. The action scenes are fairly mediocre and not as abundant as you'd expect. The conclusion shootout and action sequence is probably the best part of the movie.

Overall this is a bad movie added to the genre without enough redeeming aspects to recommend watching it. I'd score this a 2/10 and recommend skipping it.

My review was written in July 1990 after watching the movie on RCA/Columbia video cassette.

Fred Wiliamson tips the balance from action to drama in the effective direct-to-video feature "The Kill Reflex", originally monikered "Soda Cracker".

Nicknamed Soda Cracker, Williamson is his usual relaxed cop in Chicago out to find his partner's killer. Though there is an action-packed finale involving baddie Bo Svenson (Williamson's regular screen teammate), film concentrates on the human drama of the cop's widow Julie Gregg adjusting as well as policewoman Maud Adams' relationship with the principals.

Vocalist Phyllis Hyman, previously on screen performing in Spike Lee's "School Daze", makes a strong impression as Svenson's girlfriend.

Fred Williamson should not be allowed behind a camera. While I find his classic blaxploitation films to be some of the finest of its genre, this latter one was simply Godawful. Acting, storyline, title ("Soda Cracker" when aired on cable), you name it. I've never seen as many inconsistent emotions to scenes than this film. The continuity was all over the place. It was unintentionally hilarious at times. The only positives that I can see: eye candy provided by Maud Adams & Phyllis Hyman. Albeit, Fred spent so much time on one scene with singer Hyman that it could have been released as a concert film. LOL! Pass on this, and stick to any of his classic ones from the 70s.

I admire what Fred Williamson did after the blaxpoitation craze of the 1970s died out and the major studios were no longer interested in making these movies, which was to make his movies himself. What I don't admire, however, is the quality of most of Williamson's self- directed movies, and "Soda Cracker" (a.k.a. "The Kill Reflex") is no exception. Where to start with this movie? Well, probably with the biggest complaint I had with it - it is unbelievably slow and boring. There is an incredible amount of padding on display. In the first sixty minutes, Williamson's cop character makes almost no effort towards investigating the murder of his partner. Not only that, this first hour only has about a couple of minutes of action at most, and what there is is incredibly flat and unexciting. Things pick up (very slightly) in the last half hour, but it's too little and too late. Add in rock bottom production values and passionless acting, the entire package is incredibly hard to sit through from start to finish. At least in its present version - I could see that the people behind "Mystery Science Theater 3000" could really skewer this movie in a hilarious manner. If they should do so in the future, only then should you watch this movie.

Movie is now showing on Screenpix Voices under the title "Soda Cracker."