On Deadly Ground.

Review #1764: On Deadly Ground.

Cast: 

Steven Seagal (Forrest Taft), Michael Caine (Michael Jennings), Joan Chen (Masu), John C. McGinley (MacGruder), R. Lee Ermey (Stone), Shari Shattuck (Liles), Billy Bob Thornton (Homer Carlton), Richard Hamilton (Hugh Palmer), Chief Irvin Brink (Silook), John Trudell (Johnny Redfeather), Mike Starr (Big Mike), and Sven-Ole Thorsen (Otto) Directed by Steven Seagal.

Review: 

For a long time, I wondered exactly what to think about watching a movie featuring Steven Seagal. No, really. When one has seen countless action movies that have featured folks like Arnold Schwarzenegger, or Bruce Willis, or even folks outside the Hollywood system in the heyday of action films, one does eventually wonder just how green the grass is on the other side when it comes to folks with reputation that could be considered "boorish" or "different". Of course, let's start at the beginning. Born in Michigan but raised in California, he actually started his adult life as a martial arts instructor in Japan before returning back to run his own dojo (of course, he had made claims that he actually had an association with certain CIA agents during that time, but this is dubious). Eventually, he broke into films, although he started out as a coordinator for stunts and martial arts. At any rate, it was the help of an agent within Hollywood that got him into his first film role with Above the Law (1988), which he also co-produced and co-wrote. This would be followed by a string of action vehicles such as Hard to Kill (1990), Out for Justice (1991), and Under Siege (1992), with the latter generally being considered his most mainstream hit. Seagal still persists on as an actor in film roles, although generally they are either "direct-to-video" or "video-on-demand" or "well, he has a supporting role, but he is top-billed like some other action stars". At any rate, 1994 Seagal had star power that he could use for something meaningful in films and he clearly wanted to make a feature film with a message. As such, On Deadly Ground is his debut feature film as a director, done in a deal with Warner Bros. that in exchange for directing that he could star in Under Siege 2: Dark Territory for them the following year.

Oh, he was trying to be serious with this film. With lines such as ”What does it take to change the essence of a man?”, you better believe that the action star wanted to create something thoughtful. Of course, he was quoted as stating he did not consider himself a martial-arts star, as if he did not in fact want to be thought of as the next incarnation of folks like Chuck Norris (another time, another time). Indeed, Seagal can state that he directed a film for a major studio that other stars did not...and he inadvertently made one of the most unintentionally hilarious films of its time, a movie that waxes on about the environment and what must be done about it while being stuffed with a body-count akin to a horror movie, complete with giving an esteemed actor like Michael Caine an unsightly hairdo in a role likely up there in amusement with Jaws: The Revenge. You could actually cut the movie to make it look like Seagal is some sort of slasher character, since he runs the gamut of creative death sequences for the folks he takes down (who are as one dimensional as he is), which revolves from setting traps to dropping people into oil. But hey, let's briefly talk about the supporting folks first, because they sure are disposable enough to make fun of. Caine looks and sounds befuddled here, as if he was wondering where the "Captain Planet" voice booth was instead, and he is given exactly the amount of depth one would expect from a cardboard cutout villain. Chen is the accompanying leading lady with Seagal, and it is amusing to see the absolute zero chemistry between the two, which is made more amusing with her being present for a variety of death scenes that involve no reaction on her part. McGinley plays the toady role with cheese that at least looks like he is having an ounce of fun (one wonders how Thornton did with his small part in amusement). Ermey is technically meant to be the adversary to Seagal, but since our hero never experiences any real threat, he is more amusing than anything.

I strongly suspect that there would have better movies to watch Seagal in before I tried this one, because no one could be this wooden. He may have the physique for an action star, but he seems far too wrapped up in...whatever his attempt at charisma is. There are lines that sound like they should be funny, but it is the stuff that is supposed to be taken seriously (such as the aforementioned line I stated in the previous paragraph...which he speaks to a guy he just beat up after doing a slap hand game) that is more amusing, as if he was playing a killer without any awareness at all. To top it all off, Seagal spends the last couple of minutes talking about the environment (as if to the audience), which apparently was actually cut down from the request of Warner Bros. (since Seagal had a much longer plan); it might be appropriate for Greenpeace but otherwise it proves hysterical when it comes from a movie where a dude just destroyed a rig and dozens of people. At any rate, the movie (known first as "Rainbow Warrior" and "Spirit Warrior" before this title) involved a guy trying to rectify the wrongs of an oil company that plans to use their latest device to drill before the native Alaskans can retrieve the land back, a vision quest, and dozens of amusing moments. Oddly enough, the most equivalent film in that regard might be Billy Jack (1971), since that movie also features a hero that is friendly with the natives that likes to kick and kick before preaching about a certain message (which was pacifism, although that movie had plodding sequences with hippies). Honestly, more folks should probably check this one out for its sheer failure in message and execution, regardless of how it easy it seems to pick on Seagal these days. This is the one chance you have to see him as both star and director, and it all comes in a flop like this.

 

Overall, I give it 3 out of 10 stars.

Next Time: Fate lends a hand and delivers In the Name of the King for Black Friday.