Silk - Sedosa e Mortífera

It's like a cross between a TV movie and a homemade movie done here. But the plot is well made. You have a cop who fights crime with dignity and grace. A cop who has secrets. Jenny(Cec Verrell) who is like a female Dirty Harry, that is more no nonsense than him. She's not a shrinking violet. When the killer is a Vietnam veteran, it's strike a nerve to one that is in law enforcement.

Plenty of action in this movie. It's a lot of fun. No vigilante would dare to tangle with this cop. It's the 80's with a movie look like the 70's. Plenty of retro here. Recommend for the nostalgic.

2.5 out of 5 stars.

My review was written in December 1986 after watching the movie on MGM/UA video cassette.

"Silk" is a 1985 Filipino action pic set in Honolulu, which recently bypassed theatrical release to debut as a video cassette as part of Concorde Pictures' deal with MGM/UA Home Video.

Tough bab Cec Verrell, previously seen as a cop in "Hollywood Vice Squad", title roles as a one-woman SWAT team for the Honolulu police. Episodic screenplay, resembling a tv episode of a cops show, has the police investigating a series of murders, ultimately resolved as drug-related. A corrupt cop teammate of Silk's is involved and the key element is a racke whereby the identities (papers, etc.) of dead people are sold to gangsters for reuse.

Action helmer Cirio H. Santiago does an okay job of staging stunts and shootouts, featuring a combination of American and familiar Filipino thesps. English-language dialog, much of it recorded in direct sound format, is effectively done.

Verrell sports an unusual hairdo: greased-back short haircut which is not punk nor butch. Fortunately, for social occasions her character goes glamorous with curls and dresses instead of the otherwise unbecoming macho look.

I've noticed Cec Verrell in many movies and TV shows throughout the eighties. This B movie seems like this is what she's best known for.

The action scenes weren't too bad, but the story leaves a lot to be desired. Familiar yarn fighting drug smugglers and the bigger organization behind it with the result being cliche after cliche.

Cec Verrell isn't a bad actress in my opinion. She had a chance with this one to be known as a a serious action star; the writing definitely could have been better. I don't know if this work affected her career in a bad light.

She went to star in other works, even a series regular in a 1988 Top Gun like show. Even that fell apart.

Cec Verrell deserved better than Silk and others.

Going by "Silk", Cec Verrell is an underrated 1980s action actress who should have gotten a bigger break. Her dialogue delivery is a little stiff, but in this genre actions speak louder than words, and Verrell shows her credentials right from the opening sequence, doing some pretty daring stunts. She has physical presence; her body looks strong, and that adds authenticity to her part as a cop. And she's not a female Dirty Harry: she always gives her targets the chance to drop their weapons and surrender, before opening fire (of course, if they try to play rough, she can play rough too). Beyond her, there is little else in "Silk" worth recommending. The plot is neither coherent nor interesting, and the supporting cast is largely indistinguishable. Quite frankly, when Verrell isn't on the screen, the film quickly becomes boring. ** out of 4.

Cec Verrell plays one super-tough cop in this action thriller. She is a beautiful lieutenant with the Honolulu P.D. fighting criminals non-stop. Whether shooting them down with a shotgun, M-16, or handgun, she will stop at nothing to get her man. Wanted dead or alive does not apply to this movie because she takes them (over a dozen victims, yes they must be said to be victims of this super cop) in always in the same condition... dead!