Excessive Force

I wanted to check this flick cause i loved thomas ian griffith in karate kid 3 and in the cobra kai tv series and the result was awesome.

Thomas delivered one of his best performances and he showed some great martial arts skills.

For a b movie the cast was superb.

We had mr.henriksen in the mix we had "uncle polly" from the rocky series we had james earl jones and we even had tony todd in the mix.

The plot was nice and we even had a kind of a romance with griffith and his ex girlfriend in the movie with some nice romance - erotic scenes.

If u like a good action b movie flick and u like a bunch of martial arts then this movie is for you.

Thomas Ian Griffith seems to be a better actor then screenplay writer, because the story is somewhat forgetful, the story centers around Terry McCain, A tough Dirty Harry like cop. who beats a confession out of witness in order to put a mob boss(Burt Young) away for life. But the mob boss, gets off due to Terry's excessive antics on a witness. But the heat really gets turned up on Terry, when the mob boss turns up dead, and Terry becomes the main suspect. Thomas Ian Griffith may seem like another Steven Seagal, but unlike Steven Seagal, Thomas Ian Griffith is an action hero who can act, and unlike Steven Seagal's characters, Thomas Ian Griffith made the character of Terry McCain, more human then one dymentional. Despite good acting by Thomas Ian Griffith,and good martial arts scenes. The story is very forgetful.

The most interesting thing about this film is that it failed to lauch a leading man career for Thomas Ian Griffith. Griffith had a starring role as the villain in 1989's The Karate Kid Part III. I remember at the time seeing the trailers for this that I wasn't surprised to see the actor who brought the terrifying Terry Silver to life being given his own film. It seemed like an obvious move. He had good looks, impressive physical martial arts skills, and was a charismatic actor as well. So why did it bomb at the box office? Having just re-watched the film, these are my thoughts.

It's just not a good movie for one. Excessive Force is what is known as a "star vehicle." A film written solely to cater to an actor's strengths. Interestingly this vehicle was written by the star himself. The real problem is the film's premise, so it was doomed from the start. Griffith should have starred in a martial arts themed movie rather than a karate cop crime thriller. Just imagine if Jean Claude Van Damme had tried to start his movie career in a cop thriller where he does spin kicks rather than the martial arts tournament films Bloodsport and Kickboxer. He may never have had a career. Griffith was trained in taekwondo, which specializes in kicks and especially head kicks. I lost count of how many spinning hook kicks Griffith used to defeat an enemy in this movie. It just doesn't seem as tough or as useful as Steven Seagal's aikido strikes and joint locks. Something should have been mentioned about how unusual it is for a six and a half foot tall cop to be karate kicking crooks all over town. But as I mentioned earlier, the story is the real problem.

Terry (the same name he had in The Karate Kid Part III) is involved in an action scene in the beginning before we even know a thing about him. And we never really do learn who he is. He plays the piano, he dresses stylishly, and he's a cop. We don't really know much else. Griffith's height was a bit of a problem for him being a leading man. He towers over everyone else. He really does seem better suited for the role of the villain. The supporting cast really help this film and it's worth watching for Lance Hendrickson, Tony Todd, and James Earl Jones. I should also mention Burt Young who made a good mobster, but is sadly not in the movie enough. That also hurt the movie, that as the layers of the plot unfold, the bad guys keep changing.

If you like violent rated R action movies I think you will like this one. It's just a missed opportunity more than anything. If they wanted Griffith to play a cop then they should have cut back on the taekwondo, maybe had him take out the dangling earring, and not make him so chic looking. He would have been better off with the slicked back Seagal style haircut he had in The Karate Kid Part III rather than the feathered styled look he had here. He just doesn't look tough. He looks like a model.

The stage curtains open ...

Having seen Thomas Ian Griffith in "Karate Kid - Part III", I was well aware of who he was when this film came out. I missed seeing it in the theaters, and though it was on the shelves at the video rental store, I didn't rent it either. In fact, I never really gave it much thought until recently when I stumbled across the trailer for this movie and I was like ... "Oh, yeah! I never saw that one." So, I finally settled in and gave it a chance.

Griffith plays the part of Terry McCain, a detective with the Chicago Police Department. He is involved with a drug bust that goes wrong, and $3 million of a mob boss's money goes missing. The boss systematically begins to pick off his suspects which leads him to McCain - who was there. When the boss turns up dead however, McCain is the prime suspect - framed for something he didin't do. Now the mob and the police department are both trying to gun him down and he can trust no one as he tries to clear his name.

"Excessive Force" is an action movie that packs a punch, but doesn't hit very hard. There is plenty of violence and mayhem for your eyes to see. McCain, as a character, is really non-existent. This movie serves as an indulgence in gun fights and high flying kicks. Each downtime scene is there basically to bridge and set up the next fight scene. If all you want is martial arts combat and gunfire, then this is your movie.

I was suprised at what a dud this was. It had a great cast. Co-starring were also James Earl Jones, Lance Henriksen, and Tony Todd in support of Griffith's bid to become an action star. Even with that type of casting, the movie fails. I am so disappointed. Yet, I have honestly seen a lot worse. It wasn't bad, but there is no substance to it. A forgettable plot, which is just an excuse to have an action movie. It's just "okay" - not a recommend.

i liked this movie.sure ti's your typical action/crime drama film,but Thomas Ian Griffith makes a pretty credible action star.plus Burt Young was very convincing as a mob boss.there's certainly plenty of action here,but it's not too over the top.i thought the fight scenes were more realistic than in most movies of the genre.Griffith displays some great moves.which suggest he is very skilled in fighting himself,or the fight choreography was very well done.what's refreshing is there are no flashy camera tricks this time around.the movie moves at a good pace,and there are a few twists and turns,which make it more interesting.it is unrealistic at times,of course.Griffith is basically a one man army,against what should be overwhelming odds.other than that this is an entertaining 95 minutes.i give Excessive Force a 7/10