Gunmen

If you've read any of my other movie reviews, you'll know by now that i'm a massive Christopher Lambert fan. Gunmen see's Lambert team up with Mario Van Peebles who also stars in Highlander 3 with Lambert, in the same year. Lambert is a drug smuggling rebel with a soft side and Peebles is a tough cop. They team when they hear about 400 million dollars which are hidden in a boat somewhere, so they set out to find it. In their quest there are laughs, thrills and spills galore. But the two of them don't exactly get on together, they are like two little kids argueing.

For a low budget movie it's pretty good. I would say it was one of Lamberts better movies but not as good as Highlander and Fortress.

If you like explosive action and guns galore, this is the one for you.

Silly in parts but good fun.

I rated it 7/10

A generically hip, but brutal offbeat comedy action joint that moves at a breakneck pace and offers a lot time for Denis Leary to do his ruthlessly lip-smacking viper bad-guy shtick (and constantly calling those who work for him "morons") … and lets not forget Patrick Stewart in somewhat of an unconventional role as a crippled, cold-blooded South American drug lord. I don't know why, but I had trouble seeing Stewart in the part. I guess Capt. Picard kept coming to mind. Anyhow Mario Van Pebbles finds himself teaming up with Christopher Lambert (who both shares a good chemistry) on the hunt for $400 million dollars of stolen drug money stole away on a boat with Leary on their trail that was hired by Stewart.

A very enjoyable, if inflamed b-grade action buddy fare that's held together by a vacant on-the-run narrative laced with self-irony and the screenplay was written by Stephen Sommers (known for "The Mummy" blockbusters). Razor-sharp one-liners fly about ("You talk more sh!t than a radio") and the edgy violence is explosively staged with some cracking (and over-the-top) stunt-work amongst some flavorous exotic locations. It's slickly made and the camera-work simply excels. Performances are fitting. Van Pebbles' brings a rough and ready trait to his agent character and Lambert gives his crooked character a twitchy, but capable side. Although his accent was a bit of a stretch. A bold Brenda Bakke also makes an impression as one of the mercenaries. Furthermore there's good minor support by Sally Kirkland and a comical Kadeem Hardison.

GUNMEN is a brilliant action movie, and of course very funny. Once again, the great Mr. Denis Leary shows he has the chops to be a great screen villain. As with JUDGMENT NIGHT, he excels as a wonderfully nasty bad guy.

As for our leads, Mario Van Peebles and Christopher Lambert work brilliantly together as they joke and shoot on the way to find some laundered drug money. I don't know what everyone's problem with Lambert is because he's been brilliant in every film I've seen him in. I hated what I saw of HIGHLANDER 3, but that was just because the film sucked, not because of Lambert.

Strangely, there's no love interest for our heroes. But that's no problem. Patrick Stewart pops up in what is basically an extended cameo as Leary's boss. He's okay, but I'm glad that Leary is the main villain of the piece.

GUNMEN does not disappoint as there is non-stop action and side-splitting comedy on offer. Enjoy.

This film is certainly uneven, and borrows from obvious Sergio Leone westerns, but you should find it entertaining. Worth seeing, if for no other reason, to see Patrick Stewart playing a crippled south american druglord who buries alive his disloyal wife in his opening scene. Another scene that will have you shaking your head in disbelief is when two main characters shoot each other in the leg in an attempt at humor.

It is a shame Gunmen didn't get fair treatment when it was brought to DVD. Originally shot in 2.35:1 widescreen, the DVD and obviously, the video are only available in 1.33:1 full TV screen format. Almost half the picture is missing, and it shows. Even ignoring the lush scenery cut off, too often the characters' faces are missing from the frame. Even worse is that the DVD transfer is rotten. It may have been from a S-VHS master from what it looks like. It is full of film grain which compresses awfully on DVDs, making the entire movie look muddy.

This is a terrible shame because Gunmen is a fun, lightweight flick of two guys, one good, the other bad, forced to work together against a common enemy. There are many funny one liners, and the action scenes are pretty good, though low budget. Denis Leary is always fun to watch when he's angry or evil, and he's almost always both in Gunmen.