The Rage

Too bad, I really like Kristen Cloke and Gary Busey. But the director failed to put this together. There's a lot of action, a lot of promise, but it all comes off hokey. The director didn't do his job. Promising action comes off lame. So much seems contrived in a desperate attempt to save the film. This version of "The Rage" (DirecTV credits it as 1996) simply isn't worth the time to watch it. Another director would have done a better job.

Aside from the horrendous acting and the ridiculous and ludicrous plot, this movie wasn't too bad. Unfortunately, that doesn't leave much movie not to suck. Do not waste your time on this film, even if you find yourself suffering from insomnia, as I did. Watch an infomercial instead.

The first in a new style of films for Lamas- no tattoo's, motorcycles or karate. I, for one, miss them. But this is a serious movie. He plays a FBI profiler who has lived so long with the bad guys in his head that he no longer trusts anyone, including himself. Gary Busey is either a great actor or somebody I wouldn't want to meet in broad daylight on a crowded street. Kristen Cloke pursues Lamas as doggedly as she pursues the serial killer. There is one surprise after another as the story unfolds not the least of which is the ending. It seems to never come - there is always one more layer to the story. Cloke and Lamas start out as the good guys, turn into the bad guys and somehow end up the heroes. But it's definitely worth the rental price. For maximum enjoyment throw in a candy bar,a bag of popcorn and a soft drink. You're going to the MOVIES!

This was absolutely the worst movie I have seen in quite a while. And not in a good way. Some bad movies are fun to watch. This was a complete waste of time. The characters were typical -- bad guys being over the top bad, bad cops being over the top bad, the tormented good cop who is fighting the system in the name of a good cause and the stock rookie female partner who offers help and redemption for the good cop. The writers were so lazy that they lifted events out of current headlines to add to the movie without any real value. Bad script. Bad dialogue. Even over the top shoot-em up car chases. Nothing good to be found here. The only positive thing I can say about this movie was the beautiful background scenery. Other than that, it was a bust.

As I happened to stumble upon this 1997 action thriller here in 2024, I opted to sit down and watch it, since it was a movie that I hadn't already seen, nor actually ever heard about.

I didn't know what I was in for here, so writers Sidney J. Furie and Greg Mellott had every opportunity to impress and entertain me with their movie. It was an okay enough script, but definitely had its flaws and shortcomings. I love how police officers and FBI just randomly shoot their weapons at vehicles without regards for bystanders and such.

A large portion of the movie was spent showing police officers and FBI agents on foot standing and shooting at driving vehicles or running and shooting at driving vehicles.

The dialogue in the movie was pretty terrible. It was poorly written, the actors and actresses didn't really have much to work with.

There are some familiar faces on the cast list in this movie, with the likes of Gary Busey, Lorenzo Lamas, Roy Scheider, David Carradine and Jeff Doucette. The acting performances were fair enough, though you're not in for an evening of Shakespearian theater here. I wasn't familiar with female leading actress Kristen Cloke, but talk about delivering a wooden performance of a staggering slaughter of dialogue.

Not a great movie, nor a movie that I will ever return to watch a second time. There are far better action thrillers readily available.

My rating of director Sidney J. Furie's 1997 movie "The Rage" lands on a five out of ten stars.