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Chuck Norris plays a private investigator named "John Shepherd" who is investigating the disappearance of an elderly Jewish diamond cutter named "Issac Teller" (Bernie Kopell) who has been kidnapped from his home. What makes this odd to John Shepherd is that no ransom has been demanded and the kidnappers also try to abduct Issac's niece, "Elizabeth Teller" (Joanna Pacula) as well. Now, even though this isn't a bad film and it certainly has some suspense and action, there really isn't anything here to differentiate it from a host of other films in this genre. Chuck Norris is his usual bland self who gives his standard vanilla performance. Likewise, both Joanna Pacula and Daniel Bernhardt (as the the bad guy"Dirk") perform adequately as well. And while Tracy Scoggins ("Alena") is also in this film, her part was limited and this fact adds another reason for the lackluster final product. That said, if a person is looking for an average action film then this is certainly something they should consider.

After a deadly kidnapping rescue gone wrong, a guilt ridden detective (Chuck Norris) goes out on his own to successfully rescue an aged diamond cutter from the hands of a murderous thief. With the kidnapped man's niece Elizabeth aiding in his rescue, Shep learns the diamond cutter perfected his skill during his years as an Auschwitz prisoner. Shep must learn the truth about the cutter's past to unravel the clues and rescue him before it is too late.

Being a fan of old school-style action films I enjoyed this Chuck Norris actioner, his last film before retirement, which could have been released in the 1980's. At 65, Chuck has still got the moves, kicking the bad guys, throwing them out of the window. His showdown with Daniel Bernhardt is quite good. Incidentally, Bernhardt makes a good villain, a chameleon-like character, a master of disguises. The Nazi and diamond-related story makes a change from the usual terrorist storyline, there's some good action, and a fast-paced plot, though the editing can be a bit jumpy and the story a little confusing. The Cutter is not exactly at the level of Code of Silence/Lonewolf McQuade, but it's better than any of late 80's-early 90's Norris films (Hitman, Sidekick, Hellbound etc.)

John Shepherd (Chuck Norris) is a private investigator with a heart of gold. One day, he runs across attempted kidnap victim Elizabeth Teller (Joanna Pacula). She and her uncle Issac (Bernie Kopell) are expert gem cutters. Dirk (Daniel Bernhardt) is a murderer and raided an archaeological dig in the Sinai desert. He stole the Breastplate of Aaron from the dig, and kidnaps Issac to do a specific cut on the gems in the breastplate.

This is a pretty good movie if it was made in the late 80s. Chuck Norris, Joanna Pacula, Bernie Kopell, and Tracy Scoggins are great blast from the past. The action is explosive enough ... for the 80s. The fact is movie making has moved on. It's not like Chuck has gotten any better as an actor. He doesn't have the same moves as his younger self. This is no more than a relatively good B-movie.

"The Cutter" is an action movie starring everybody's favorite punchline: Chuck Norris. The movie should be a no-strings-attached action flick and because it doesn't succeed at that, I can't help but be let down by it.

The plot: An old diamond cutter named Isaac (Bernie Kopell) gets kidnapped by Dirk (Daniel Bernhardt) and he is put in a cell to cut a centuries-old diamond. John Shepard (Norris) is the detective who has to save him. The problem with the movie is that it tries too hard. There's some dialogue and situations involving the holocaust that hurt the flow of the movie. It's distracting. The movie's heart is the right place though.

Chuck Norris does a decent job with the material he's given, but basically he's coasting. What Norris does excel at is his "martial arts". I put that in quotes because we all know he's pretty lame, but when you see it, it's still kind of exciting. There are two good fights in the film: The one on the bus and the end fight. The only problem is that the action is cut too fast to see, but you can make out Norris and not a stunt double (most of the time).

The movie in a nutshell: It's a 90 minute "Walker, Texas Ranger" episode with more explosions.

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The acting in this movie was surprisingly good and very believable. Of course, it was fairly Hollywoodish in some parts, but I personally enjoyed it. If you are a fan of action, then this film is definitely for you. It has everything in that regard from guns to martial arts. Chuck Norris does a fine job of fighting and he and Ms. Pacula do a great job together uncovering who has kidnapped her uncle and why, but there is no romance at all between them. It does have a historical point to it as well, which I thought was interesting. I loved how it all tied back into the Judaism, that made it interesting if you are a fan of history at all. Some things happened way too easily for the characters, but some of it was believable. Spokane Washington is where the film was set, and coming from WA myself, I think that they could have filmed somewhere else that was smaller and had a far more interesting film with more scenery. All in all, this film was interesting and if you want to see an action packed Chuck Norris movie, this one is for you!