Hi. This is my first post here, so be gentle with me
I used to watch Steven Seagal films a lot when I was younger (I'm 40 now) and have recently been catching up with his movies again after a couple recently screened on television, Above The Law and On Deadly Ground.
What else can be said about On Deadly Ground that hasn't already been said here and elsewhere? As much as I enjoy Seagal's films, this one is enjoyable for all the wrong reasons. It has an unintentionally funny bar fight that ranks as one of the funniest 'bad movie' scenes I've watched...I have no idea how Mike Starr did that scene with a straight face, especially when Steven says "What does it take to change the essence of a man?". I can see that they were going for something of a more spiritual level with this film, but that whole bit takes you right out of the film and it never recovers.
We also have the well meaning environmental message of the film, which is especially timely now....but how can you take it seriously when Seagal's character almost single handedly destroys an oil refinery which would cause an incredible amount of damage to the environment? The speech that follows is right on in its message but so out of place and hypocritical following the destruction and violence the viewer just witnessed.
Is it just me or does Seagal's character come off a little Timothy McVeigh in this movie? Look at the scene when he takes Joan Chen (who is criminally wasted in this film) to his mountain hideaway and we see countless boxes of explosives. His answer to why he has stockpiled this arsenal? A calm "just in case". That came off a little creepy to me!
And Michael Caine...what was Steven thinking as a director allowing Caine to look like the way he did in the film? Not only is his hair painted black, he's covered in so much make-up he stands out in a scene for all the wrong reasons. And who thought it'd be a good idea for Caine to perform a dramatic scene with cold cream on his face, especially just under his nose?
I don't want to come here and appear to be a Seagal basher because I am not. I admire the man and most of his work. I admire the fact that he tried introducing positive and meaningful themes into his films that would make people think. However, kick-ass action films aren't really an appropriate genre to do this. And it took On Deadly Ground to demonstrate why.
I'm looking forward to going back and watching the really good stuff like Marked For Death and Under Siege, and then catching up with his later DTV efforts, regardless of all the bad things I've heard. Regardless of how bad the film around him is, I think Seagal is always worth watching...and I hope I still think that after seeing his most recent work.
Thanks for having me here, I hope to join in more regularly.