Iron Fist

THIS FILM IS ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT. Richard Norton must the greatest actor ever to come out of Australia. His acting, fighting and screen presence are all fantastic and he holds the film together with his abundantly magnetic charisma and martial arts skills. It is a mystery why the great Richard Norton has not had more lead roles in his career because he easily has the charisma and acting skills, not to mention his incredible level of fighting skills, to match the Van Dammes and Seagals of this world. It's also worth mentioning the amount of times he bottles people in this film, he is truly prolific. in my humble opinion he should be crowned KING OF THE WORLD.

In comparison to many other stars of low-budget martial arts movies - say, Steven Seagal, Don "The Dragon" Wilson or Dolph Lundgren - Richard Norton has at least one quality that puts him ahead: his sense of humor. And this quality comes through clearly in "Under The Gun": there are a few humorous bits that made me laugh out loud. Besides, the whole movie at times begins to resemble a surreal black comedy. Norton's character simply wants to get through a few hours peacefully before he can escape to a better life, but almost everything that can go wrong, does go wrong, and he becomes the target of corrupt cops, impatient mobsters, big goons, suspicious accountants, humiliated pimps, etc. Even the airplane ticket lady on the phone is rude to him! The entire movie takes place during these few hours, which is a quite unusual concept for this kind of movie. The fight scenes (choreographed by Norton himself) are above-average, both violent and technical. Norton is supported by Kathy Long, the kind of woman who will melt your heart with her cute smile one moment, then on the next she'll take on three guys in a fight and come (convincingly) on top. In other words, she's great. But her role is briefer than it should have been, and that was my only serious disappointment with this film. **1/2 out of 4.

Richard Norton is entertaining in anything, and in this he's funny as well. The scene where he bites a telephone in frustration (ad-libbed!) had my husband and me nearly rolling on the floor. Of course, it's a very serious movie, with some very tense and some tragic moments in addition to the many funny ones, but it has a happy ending.

I rented this movie mostly for Richard Norton, and several other of the better-known Australian martial artists with whom I am familiar appear alongside him in the movie.

It's shockingly acted - let's face it, Richard Norton may be a good martial artist, but a great actor he is not. The plot was secondary to the fight scenes, as it really should be in a movie that's really just a vehicle for some spectacular action sequences.

Kathy Long redeems what would otherwise just be another film packed with guys beating the crap out of each other for 90 minutes.

The fight scene with Norton vs Sam Greco is worth a look, but this film will probably only appeal to die hard MA fans and even then, will really only appeal to Australians for novelty value.

The scene is the night former hockey star Frank Torrence plans to sell his bar and redeem the promise of a better life for his wife and him. Rogue cops, weak friends, and an unreliable accountant get in his way! As Frank, Richard Norton delivers a knock-out performance in "Under the Gun", an unorthodox action picture that limits the plot to the course of one unpredictable night. The twists and the humor never slow down, as Frank has to make the sale and avoid the kind of downfall that took him out of hockey. He's being framed (again) for drugs and only one friend on the force is willing to help him out of the jam. "Under the Gun" is stylish, smart action that does not eliminate plot or character in favor of the fights. In fact, the fights are incorporated into the film to supplement and develop the characters, primarily Frank. Clearly Richard Norton invested his considerable talents into making an action movie with a difference, and the audience wins!