Executive Target

The movie as a whole is hardly average, but I like Everhart's ice-womanish play, and Michael Madsen is always a good actor to see

But however efficient and fast paced enough to keep you awake. Many car chases and action scenes. There were batches of such kind of stuff in the nineties, which you forgot just after watching them. This one seems to have been pulled with a gigantic budget. See for yourself. Michael Madsen is like a ghost here with a wooden character. I think his best performance will forever remain in RESERVOIR DOGS.

The PM Entertainment Group Incorporated has created some of the best direct-to-video motion pictures ever. Their films, which concern primarily with action heroes battling impossible odds are lavishly exuberant and fun to watch. Though the PM team earns high marks for effort, EXECUTIVE TARGET is just not one of their more memorable classics...

Anyway, EXECUTIVE TARGET focuses on a stunt-car driver for action movies, Nick James (Michael Madsen), who is being transferred to a security prison in L.A. after being convicted for some minor, negligible offenses. He has one more year left of his sentenced term...but not so fast yet...

While riding on a prison bus, James and his criminal colleagues are ambushed by a couple of professional, anonymous assassins. James tries to escape via a convertible and wild chase scenes with the police ensue. James was considered lucky then to have fled from the cops, but unfortunately, the criminal masterminds have now kidnapped James' wife. They have forced her to partake in these schemes of Presidential proportions. James must abide by the villains' demands: to help kidnap the President of the U.S. of A...or else...they will silence his wife permanently...

Nick James has no choice but to help these bad guys kidnap the ye olde President of America...

Former Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model Angie Everhart and devious character actor Keith David are the main antagonists. Roy Scheider(!) (JAWS, BLUE THUNDER) is the main character, the imaginary pseudo-President of the United States, Carlson. At least, Mr. Scheider can look on the bright side, in this movie, he gets the privilege to play the President of the United States. How many actors in these days can brag about the opportunity to play the President of the United States of A-merica?

EXECUTIVE TARGET is sadly, prosaic material. The gossamer story-line does not help and the plot is as weak as hell. This film just barely survives the premise's implausibility, owning its gratitude to some well staged car chases, gun battles, explosions, action sequences, and just total carnage. If you love watching objects bursting into flames for no discernible reason, sit down and continue reading to find out more about this film! The action in this film is standard fare though. Lots of exploding helicopters are popular in this movie, police cars crash and conflagrations happen all over the place. Shoot-outs though are a bit less common in this film. To summarize about the pleasing action scenes of EXECUTIVE TARGET, their pyrotechnics are enough to mollify any adventurous fan's satisfaction. It will definitely keep your heart pulsating in anticipation!

As for the texture of EXECUTIVE TARGET, do not expect much. Character development is nonexistent, the sinister, hostile and diabolical villains' motives also do not make much sense either, particularly the reason why they would want to kidnap the President of the U.S.A. in the first place. Michael Madsen remained nondescript and wooden as the main hero. Angie Everhart stayed acerbic as an obstinate "lady venom," and Roy Scheider continued to be taciturn as the President who supposedly had a lot of notoriety. EXECUTIVE TARGET misses the mark in being original, but it has lots of action, colossal car chases, mayhem and frenzy, and corny humor. No melodramatic moments here, just straightforward entertainment that is diverting, if nothing else.

In this movie, my friend, do not expect anything within a proximity of novelty in this low-budget action film. Still, if you will learn to lock up your common sense elsewhere for a good 96 minutes, then maybe you will be appeased by this motion picture that's surprisingly average. My personal opinion though, about EXECUTIVE TARGET is that it is a more nominal effort from the usually talented Pepin-Merhi group, who are very good at making many explosive movies.

RATING: ** out of ****.

Nick James is a professional stunt driver on his way to prison. However, bad guys with evil plans decide to use him as a getaway driver for a very important job, kidnapping the President of the United States, so they ambush the prison bus and coerce him to go along with them. Naturally, Nick James is a good guy at heart and starts to work things his way.

The good thing about this movie is that the opening scene lets you know right away what you're in for - a nice, though very overdone epic score, plays during the beginning scenes. It seems to be music from bigger and more expensive action pictures like "The Rock" or "Batman Begins." Though the score oddly complements the outrageous chase scenes which are pretty well done, but thoroughly silly. Thankfully, the rest of the plot is equally silly so overall it works out as an enjoyable no-brainer action movie.

The film's tagline of this being the greatest chase movie ever, however is really the one unnecessarily overdone thing. It's not and in watching you can see that it doesn't really try to be so for a truly intriguing and involving thriller, look elsewhere. This is just lots of fun for boys who like fast toys. --- 6/10

Rated R for violence and profanity

This movie had promise. Unfortunately, it's let down by a lame plot, bad acting and a very cheap, made for TV look.

The movie centres on stunt car driver Nick (Michael Madsen) who is sprung from jail (after being wrongly convicted.... surprise!) to drive the getaway car for a bunch of crooks who intend to kidnap the president and sell him to the highest bidder.

Unfortunately, this somewhat original idea, and the talents of Madsen and Roy Scheider (as the president) are ruined by poor execution and plotting. The story fails to explain adequately what the military has to do with everything, the constant presidential speeches have no real point in the plot and Madsen's character is sometimes made to look like a sincere guy and at other times just like the money hungry thieves he supposedly detests.

The car chase sequences, which could have been exciting, simply come across as silly because of ultra slow motion shots and cars that begin to explode before they've even collided ! The villains hideout also looks like some cheap leftover from the original Star Trek series.

And finally, the acting itself is generally quite poor, particularly the bad guys (Angie Everhart is NOT an actress). Even Madsen, who I thought was great in "Donnie Brasco" and "Reservoir Dogs" seems to be coasting along for the ride, although this could be partly attributed to the lame dialogue his character has been given.

All in all, "Executive Target" is about what you'd expect from a cheap made for TV movie, which is a pity really because there is definite potential here.

4/10.