Customer Reviews

Excessive Force [VHS]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Action superstar Thomas Ian Griffith takes on evil Italians and corrupt cops in this edge-of-your seat thriller. In perhaps his best role of all time, Griffith crafts a fascinating character unlike any ever seen before: a cop frustrated with his work and alienated from his wife. When Griffith uses excessive force to get a confession, a web of intruige and sinister alliances is slowly revealed to him. The film also features a supporting cast of seasoned veterans such as James Earl Jones and Lance Henriksen who both deliver solid performances. With plot twists you will never see coming, touching moments which will leave you in tears and the one of best guitar-solo and saxophone soundtracks ever written - not to mention explosive, glass-breaking karate action, "Excessive Force" is a 90 minute visual feast of pure adrenaline! A must-see film for any fan of good cinema.

This is one of those good action flicks in a long list that have taken way too long to make the DVD transfer. This is quite possibly an action fan's best introduction to Thomas Ian Griffith. Once you become acquainted with this film, you will soon realize just how underutilized this man is in the Hollywood Action scene. He combines impressive moves with decent acting chops and just comes across as a pretty cool cat. In addition, this was a fresh action film. It didn't rely on lead spraying alone. Character developement and a few twists combined with awesome casting--James Earl Jones, among other familiar and welcome faces--was obviously important in the overall spectrum of this movie. It wasn't just thrown together. We get a cop who winds up caught in the crossfire of the shadey politics of his own police precinct, finding himself alone in the struggle with no one to trust after his partner is brutily murdered. This film poses the question, "how well do you know your friends?" This is one you can share with fellow action fans that may not have had the pleasure of viewing. Griffith's movies are few and far apart but they're all worth watching. Support this man! I'm looking forward to seeing his work on the sequel to Timecop.

After his partner is tortured and killed, Terry decides enough is enough. For a rather [inexpensive] movie "Excessive Force" is awesome: Great cast, Great fight scenes, and some Great lines. Thomas Ian Griffith never took off as the action hero of the 90's, but with other memorable roles in Karate Kid 3 & Vampires, he proves he's not just another Perfect Weapon, or Stone Cold. If you like the kind of action flick that is usually on [a pay channel] around 3:00 AM, then check out "Excessive Force", you'll be glad you did.

Good action movie. I actually saw this in the theater(yes, it did have a theatrical release!) back in the day. This was about the time when cheap action and horror films were starting to disappear from theaters. Excessive Force would be straight to video if released today. Pity, coz it's pretty fun. Thomas Ian Griffth never became the next Seagal or VanDamme-something the producers were obviously trying to do with him-but he really does the action tough guy thing wonderfully. He even had a hand in the script. He's got the look and the moves, he's even a decent actor. He went on to do some direct to video action pics, and played the lead vampire in John Carpenter's Vampires. You may also remember him as one of the villians from Karate Kid III(the guy who teaches Daniel how to break noses). Other than that, the guy is virtually unknown. The plot doesn't offer anything groundbreaking in terms of cops/robbers action, but it's a cliched film done well. It's got a better than average supporting cast of James Earl Jones, Lance Henriksen, Tony Todd(the Candyman himself!), and Burt Young(Paulie from the Rocky movies). These guys must have also seen potential of the script to want to appear in it. Good supporting actors, a good script, and a good performance from the lead raise this otherwise by-the-numbers action movie up a few notches to something quite entertaining.

One of the more lamentable cases of Hollywood banishing a promising action hero is that of Thomas Ian Griffith, a man of considerable charisma and even more considerable physical talents who seems destined to be remembered as a villain in a lesser "Karate Kid" sequel. Despite continuing a small-time starring career for several years following "Excessive Force", his chances of being the next Seagal or Van Damme were dashed when his first major movie ticket bombed and he was shelved into DTV releases and the odd supporting role in films like Vampires. True, this movie isn't ever going to be considered among action's greats, but it's solid and enjoyable enough to credit Griffith as a truly regrettable loss.

The story: following a $3 million mafia drug bust, the police team headed by Officer Terry McCain (Griffith) is targeted by a scorned underworld boss (Burt Young, Rocky series) who suddenly winds up dead. McCain's teammates die around him as a new police chief is instated (Lance Henriksen, Aliens), and before long, he comes to suspect that the offense is coming from inside the police department. With the mob and crooked cops gunning for him, McCain must rely on his detective work and skills as a martial artist to survive.

The most significant feature of the film is the surprisingly varied cast which also includes Tony Todd (Candyman series) as McCain's trusted partner, Charlotte Lewis (The Golden Child) as McCain's love interest, and the inimitable James Earl Jones as the owner of a jazz club McCain frequents. However, I'm sorry to say that this cast isn't utilized nearly as much as it should have been: while Burt Young and Jones both get a scene in which they demonstrate why they're Oscar nominees for other movies, their onscreen exposure is very limited in this outing. The same goes for Tony Todd, who goes from solid to swell before disappearing for half of the movie. Henriksen is seen continually alongside Griffith and Lewis, but even though their portrayals are solid, they can't keep the story as interesting as it should be.

Speaking of consistency, Griffith's mixture of karate and tae kwon do is display throughout the movie. Within the first two minutes, he's dropped a picture-perfect axe kick on some unfortunate's head and continues to kick people in the face at least once every ten minutes, not to mention managing at least two flying kicks throughout the film. Like the drama portion of the flick, however, the martial aspect is also not without fault: while Griffith has excellent form and performs without the aid of stunt doubles, the vast majority of his work still comes off as lackluster. Part of this is due to weak sound effects and could've-been-better camerawork, but Griffith just doesn't comes off as a strong guy...at least not in comparison to his competition (Van Damme, Norris, etc.). I like me a good, long fight, but not when it's because the the villains are selling the hero's blows like a pinch on the arm.

For fans of this era of action films, this entry will nevertheless supply a classier addition to a library of B-movies. Depending on how much forethought you give the plot, it doesn't offer too many unexpected twists, but despite its relative complexity, it moves with a clear pace and is easy to follow - a significant accomplishment for lifetime low-budget director Jon Hess (Alligator 2 - The Mutation). Pick it up, action fans. You can definitely go worse.

I remember this movie from my teenage years. It made an impression on me, I really thought Thomas Ian Griffith was hot stuff. Too bad he didn't get the recognition he deserved. This movie is not great American cinema, but it is pretty good considering the time period and content matter. So I am not going to bash it. Whenever you are in the mood for a bit of ass kicking in a movie, then check ths out! I am a satisfied customer, and this dvd is now a welcome additioin to my growing movie library.

At first I thought this was a generic 90's Segal/Van Damme wannabe production and only looked at it because Charlotte Lewis graces the screen. She's of Irish/Iraqui/Chilean heritage and is quite the exotic looking hottie. So I thought I'd spend some time fast forwarding through a lame actioner looking for a little Carlotte Lewis sugar. But something surprising happened, the movie was actually good. It has several strong points not he least of which is that in addition to setting the movie in Chicago, the creators actually shot in in Chicago, as opposed to Toronto. I love playing the "Guess where they shot that" game. EXCESSIVE FORCE shows off the Windy City in its best and worst lights. You get the beauty and the warts. I think viewers get a feel for the city.
Charlotte Lewis is of course beautiful, exotic sultry and just about anything you could want in an action star's girlfriend. She even gets to use an Uzi and that scene will get your heart rate up.
Thomas Ian Griffith turns in a more intelligent script and performance than I thought him possible. Really pleasantly surprised. he also seems to know the city a little more than the usual Hollywood writer and that's always good. His script even has a little texture to it.
You've got a great supporting cast too what with James Earle Jones, Lance Henricksen and Burt Young all turning in their usual solid performances in whatever roll it is they were playing. Ian Gomez, who was pretty funny in The Drew Carey Show has a bit role too.
What you have here is a surprisingly good movie that has plenty of bone crushing action and is just good looking enough and just smart enough to raise it above the howling pack. I wish Griffith would have kept making movies because he could have turned into a really solid lower budget action movie creator. So too paraphrase old Tymie British poet Robert Herrick, "Gather ye Thomas Ian Griffith movies while ye may".

This was my first time ever seeing Thomas Ian Griffith and besides being a great actor, he is also a very attractive one also. This is the best movie I have ever seen and hope to see more of him in the future.

THIS MOVIE IS JUST O.K., THOUGH VERY OLD IN ITS MAKING, HOWEVER, THE COPS GIRLFRIEND IS FINE AND I ENJOYED JUST LOOKING AT HER, SO, I'LL KEEP IT.

I just want to say that I saw this movie when it first came to cable either on showtime or HBO. I enjoyed it then and now that I have it I can watch it when I feel like it. Thomas Ian Griffith was outstanding and so was James Earl Jones. I immediately remembered who the good and bad guys were. It was just a feel good movie with some Bruce Lee and Jet Li moves in it.