Linha de Fogo

"Quiet Fire" has very little going for it except unintended laughs. And there are quiet a few of them. Bad, bad acting, terrible writing and direction. This film has the look of a cheap TV movie. Karen Black (as usual) rises above the rest and actually gives a performance with at least some sort of characterization. It was actually kind of startling when she first appeared on screen because I had been sort of dulled into this state of catatonia by the amateurish acting of the rest of the cast...

The evil, crooked Senate hopeful referred to in the previous comment as a "Ted Turner look-a-like" use the term "kapeesh" a lot - and is referred to as sexy, with "great hair". Judge for yourself. Hmmm....

After watching the trailer and reading the divided reviews, I had to see 'Quiet Fire'. This PM Group flick starts off on a solid if predictable note. A chase followed by a crooked politician giving a hammy speech. I thought it might be a watchable low budget b-movie then I couldn't stop laughing when the star got shoved around looking panicked during a cheap police interrogation early on. A rather stupid story handled ineffectively sinks the ship here.

A man is pursued at night by a car full of goons, but he gets away albeit seriously wounded. He turns up at the gym job of his ex-Vietnam buddy Jesse (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs) the next day, relays some cryptic info and dies. Before long Jesse & his ex-gf are on the run from various baddies looking to kill him with a dirty Senator (who also happens to be the men's ex-CO from Vietnam) and a computer disc at the center of things.

The action is poor and obvious Jacobs has no real martial arts skills though he tries in vain. Typically in an action flick the hero is able to dispatch capable goons, but everyone who comes at him here seems very inept. It doesn't do the movie any favors. The Vietnam black ops backstory is a cliche. The on and off ex-gf who still loves him. Taking his sweet ass time to get the disc then it doesn't even matter. The inability to put together who's behind the whole thing even though he's all over the tv & radio campaigning for election and you hate the dude. The entire lame showdown at the end.

'Quiet Fire' justifiably deserves poor reviews and those are the ones you should listen to. Jacobs who also directed and co-wrote some of the dialog does himself no honors. Robert D'Zar (Tango & Cash, Samurai Cop) has a bit role as a dirty cop, but Karen Black delivers the best line that sums up movie making and the people involved here. "Just trying to keep the dream alive ... and pay the rent."

One unusual moment in the history of movie company PM Entertainment was during the 1989-1991 period when they hired Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs to star in six movies. Did PM really think that LHJ was a marketable star? Or was he the biggest star they could afford at the time. I suspect the latter. Anyway, one interesting thing about this particular PM/LHJ movie is that LHJ not only starred in the movie, he also directed and is credited with additional dialogue. It's pretty easy to see why he didn't have much of a directing career apart from this movie. In fairness, he was working with a real low budget, which explains things like a general cheap look to the movie. There isn't that much action in the movie, and what there is is constructed in a way to be lame and unexciting. But the worst thing about the movie is the script. The plot and its various twists will seem very familiar to most viewers. About the only original element in the movie is the portrayal of the two assassins who come near the end of the movie. While the movie is occasionally lame enough to generate unintentional chuckles (such as with LHJ's lame martial arts skills), for the most part the movie is a tired bore.

Jesse Palmer (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs) was one of the best men ever to serve the military during the Vietnam War. He was one soldier who always straightened out his priorities. In every mission he must accomplish, he will always return a hero, or else...he would not have returned at all... Nearly twenty years later, Palmer is out to prove his worth again...

Palmer knows a secret that is a bit esoteric. What he knows could very well have an impact on the reputation of a well-known politician. What he also knows could essentially endanger the lives of his friends and family. What he knows could put his own life on the line. This politician refuses to let Palmer tarnish his own image...so he decides to mark this loose cannon for death!

Palmer, a Vietnam Veteran must discomfit his ex-commanding officer turned crooked senate candidate named Whalen (Lance Lindsay, a Ted Turner look-alike) from conspiring to turn over part of the U.S. Government to terrorists. Whalen has all the help that he can afford. Mercenaries, assassins, a surveillance tracking system, endless firepower, and hired killers are at this corrupt senator's disposal. Oh yes, and who could forget those two muscular ladies, dressed to kill... Palmer, on the other hand, only has his wits, fists and a few other surprises to help put an end to a greedy politician's guileful schemes. This one innocent man must expose this corrupt senator before he wins the election...

Meanwhile, two dirty cops named Russo (Robert Z'Dar) and Overstreet (Jastereo Coviare) happen to work on the wrong side of the law. They have been hired by Whalen to personally annihilate Palmer himself. Not only is Palmer running from the law, but his girlfriend Jana (Nadia Marie) is inadvertently caught in this whole elaborate chase too. What these two fugitives eventually unveil though is a revelation. The "Quiet Fire" conspiracy is a devious project involving the use of high-tech weaponry for the benefit of America's prime adversaries. American may no longer be of use once their own technology on enemy soil is turned against this country...

They're running out of time!

QUIET FIRE is definitely a low-budget and obscure action flick. There is little, if any substance in this interesting but somewhat hackneyed political action thriller. The plot is OK, but it illustrates miniscule novelty. The performances were adequate, but Karen Black was absolutely astounding in a completely off-the-wall performance. As an eccentric storekeeper, Kim (Black) manages to weasel in a few tried moments of humor in an otherwise straightforward action flick. Robert Z'Dar (MANIAC COP) tries to keep it real, but I could not help laugh at his sometimes histrionic performance as a deceitful cop. Maybe it is my perception, but that insidious senator looks so much like Ted Turner. Perhaps it is a mere coincidence...or could this case of double vision lead to a deeper machination? Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs (from the hit TV sitcom "Welcome Back, Kotter") keeps his cool here also. Hilton-Jacobs is casually talented behind as well as in front of the camera.

Though the film moves at a plodding pace, this is a reasonably fun motion picture. The action scenes are smooth and well made with well-executed car chases, gun battles, and martial arts fighting. QUIET FIRE contains stronger quality production values than the usual B-movie.

It's trite, it's generic, but it has a well-structured formula. This film works as a routine shoot 'em up action film. QUIET FIRE is pleasing but an often simplistic and plain diversion. This movie is not great by any means, but passable. QUIET FIRE is worth an overnight rental...assuming you have seen about every other action film ever made.

RATING: ** out of ****.