A Dangerous Man

If you've seen one Seagal flick, you've seen them all. This is particularity true with his later DTV output so I'm not going to waste time going into details, they're all the same here but what is new is that this one actually isn't half bad!

The movie has some real action scenes throughout with the last 20ish minutes being almost nonstop gunfights. Seagal must have been feeling peppy because he even jogs for a few seconds! Ok, that was probably his double but he does move around more than usual.

If for some reason you want to see what the sensei has been up to in his recent years (besides eating at the buffet) this is one of your better options.

An American crime thriller; A story about an ex-special forces operative falsely convicted of murder. He is released from prison, only to stumble into a gangland shootout. Rescuing a woman who had been kidnapped, he battles to protect her from Russian gangsters, corrupt cops, and Chinese special agents. This is a routine story and plot with stereotypical villains, but it is fast-paced and gripping because of the intensity and brutality of the action scenes that never seem to stop. There are a few continuity issues, and the gunfights are overlong, but it is watchable for its gung ho and energy.

I don't think Seagal fan's will be disappointed with this one. Bearing in mind it's DTV it would be unfair to compare it to the likes of Under Siege and Exit Wounds but its definitely one his better efforts from the last ten or so years. Lots of action in this one and well done to for the quality of the gun fights. Seagal packs in quite a few brutal fist fights too. The story although perhaps a little bit more complicated than it needed to be moves along at a good pace. Byron Mann who teamed up with Seagal previously in Belly of the Beast and also appeared in Sniper 3 with Tom Berenger makes a good bad guy but he is perhaps a little underused. Recommended for Seagal fans.

The movie can't be rated yet. I would give it four stars for Steve's hand fighting, at most.

A total war, Americans fought Chinese, Chinese fought Chinese, Russians fought Americans, Russians also fought Chinese. I was totally lost at the last scene. No idea who was fighting whom any more. One basic idea is, Shane is, like he said, the good guy.

A lot of bullets. But if you look closer, those bullets couldn't make bullet holes. Even if they hit, because the girls screamed several times and died, they don't create visible wounds on human bodies. Are they Made in China, too?

Shane is the good guy, lots of fast hand and gun fights, he never got touched. Skilled, lucky and bulletproof.

My suggestion, omit the plot, watch the hand fights.

-Ufortunately even though its a relatively good film,it failed to impress after the highs of DTK and TK.The film does start strongly,and in the positives i have to count Steven's performance as it shows a character and not Seagal himself..He is angry,disappointed,sad and violent and he doesn't hide it..The action was pretty good,some explosions and a lot of shootouts,but the latter were almost unwatchable, due to the frantic editing.The editing also affects the fight scenes,most are shot really close to Steven's face(a 'trend' started by the ever popular Burne movies) making it really hard to understand whats going on and to actually SEE the fight..Thus even though the film does have a satisfying amount of fights,only a few are completely watchable..I think the best and most extensive fight was in the beginning with the Chinese man at the rest stop..The supporting cast is pretty good,and while Byron Mann makes a really convincing villain he is terribly underused, appearing in only a handful of scenes and failing to showcase his martial art skills..The film goes for a much darker tone than The Keeper, which surprisingly does not feel out of place since the story is much darker and brutal than Seagal's previous effort.

Negatives

-Dubbing in 30% of the film -Bad editing that ruins most of the fights,the worse since KS -Villain underused -Seagal only in 60-70% of the film -Boring story

Positives

-Plenty of action scenes -Seagal gives a surprisingly good performance -Lots of bloody action -Polished,and on a darker tone and style than TK -Good supporting cast -Effective villain -More fight scenes than TK -Stunt doubles remain "hidden"(no outrageous/blatant use of them like BOTB or Out Of Reach)

Overall my feelings are kind of mixed about this one..On the one hand it's a straightforward action film,and it doesn't take long for the action to start,also Steven is pretty good in it.But it just didn't really click with me,the editing was awful and i think we could have gotten a much better film with a bit more care..Personally I would rate it at 70%. A satisfying Seagal action movie, but keep your expectations lowered.