Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Yes, I loved it anyway!, May 29, 2002
Even predictable action flicks provide good escapism. Some of the predictability does not happen because the script needed another rewrite.I am a Steven Segal fan. My first choice in films is action. "Exit Wounds" did not disappoint me on either count. However, several undeveloped script elements are just ploys to introduce characters or transition locations. Many of the problems with the movie belong to the screenwriter or film editor. I would have liked to see deleted scenes, which were not included in the DVD special features. Segal's fight scenes are not overdone: he goes in, gets the job done without excess violence, and walks away calmly. He could be considered a knight of the round table, a Jedi master, a starship captain, or your average guy with extraordinary qualities. This movie is action driven, but the intelligence that Segal brings to all of his characters shows through. Detroit cop Orin Boyd is a maverick officer, and his one-man shows frequently get him into trouble. The opening scene depicts him using his gut instinct, which is based in deductive reasoning and observation skills. He sees a cop, with a scraped ear, wearing an earring; the patrolman is one of the entourage who is escorting the Vice President from the podium, where he spoke about gun control, back to his hotel. Boyd rescues the VP from an assassination attempt, but instead of gratitude, he is sent from one precinct to another. Who are these assassins? That inherent question is never answered, though I thought it would be before the movie ended. I see this as an opening gambit to create the plausible impression that "bad cops" were involved. However, even scene setting should have a reasonable answer. Jill Hennesy is the captain of the new precinct and requires that Boyd attend a "rage class." In the class, he meets Tom Arnold, who is the comic relief, and never fails to do his job right. The classroom and meeting were also just a tool to provide a trusted resource when the investigation of a drug ring left no one to trust. Completely undeveloped is the romance between Hennesy and Segal, though innuendoes and quips pass between the two. A beautiful woman and a virile man, obviously attracted to one another, may have added the sparkle that is missing from most action films; it would have been so natural here, and not taken the focus away from the plot. DMX, like Segal, carries an aura of calm assurance. He is dynamic and sexy, and could well be another superstar and box office draw. His character is quiet, and his reasons for the involvement in the drug investigation are excellent. Even with the problems, I know I will watch this movie many more times. Therefore, I give it four stars. If you do not like violent, action packed movies with undeveloped script elements, then you might not like this one. Victoria Tarrani
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Seagal proved he still had it, then flunked out again, May 18, 2005
A lot of you may have considered Steven Seagal's non-presence for the 4 years before this film a blessing (he last appeared in 1997's Fire Down Below, which was a No. 1 hit but still weak movie) but I think that audiences are just too dismissive of him and that he needs to be given another chance. They waited for him to slip up and as soon as he delivered a flop he got called names and we forgot about him. Give the guy a break. The Mob is after him! And in real life his Aikido won't do him any good in that kind of situation.
With Exit Wounds, veteran action producer Joel Silver had thrust Steve back in the limelight, put him on the Slimfast diet (it really, really works) and given him better material to work with. After all an actor can only do as good as the script.
From a novel of the same name by John Westerman (but bearing about 40% resemblance to it) the plot centres on Orin Boyd, a cop busted down to Patrolman after a rough encounter with the Vice-President (Gore? Cheney?). Once on the streets Boyd's suspicious nose can't keep him out of trouble with undercover cops who are trying to bust local Drug Boss Latrell Walker (DMX), or so it seems.
Boyd smells foul play and intrudes upon a stakeout, handcuffing TK (Anthony Anderson), one of Walkers men to the front of his car before doing so. When he returns to find the front of his car missing and the thug long gone Boyd takes it upon as his responsibility to get it back and inadvertently expose a ring of corrupt cops in the process. After all his car comes first.
There are many attempts at irony throughout the movie and surprisingly enough most of them work. Boyd is forced to attend rage control classes in which he meets eccentric TV host Henry Wayne (Tom Arnold) who becomes his wannabe partner. But sadly enough the classes don't work as Boyd continues to uses violence first, ask questions later. And there is a public service announcement too. Seagal survives a car wreck by airbag. A later car crash victim doesn't have one and dies.
There are only a couple of 'cop movie' clichés but not much else. The bad guys are pretty stereotyped although they serve their purpose. And it's a pity we know who they are as soon as we see them, but they were never intended to be used for suspense in the first place. But they really do stink the place out. You WANT them to die.
Bartkowiak's direction is better than in his debut Romeo Must Die and adds a heavy dose of frenetic rush to such a fast-paced film. Action scenes are handled with experience and care. There is no MTV-style editing and no confusion to be had. He should have spent just a tiny little bit more time with the characters. It's not often that action movies have such strong characters and Exit Wounds does give us enough of them.
Seagal had learned a little, just a little, more in the acting area but still doesn't know how to express himself much. There's too much frowning and not enough other emotions from Boyd. We do want to feel more from him but he won't allow us. I guess this is just how Seagal is. He just can't get away from himself too much no matter what role he plays. I wish Seagal would try harder. He'll win more fans this way. But it's good to see that he is in better condition than of late and has proved to Hollywood that he is still here and still frowning. Sadly he has chosen to star in loads of rather poor Asian movies since (the real-life Mob forced him into this) and as we all await Under Siege 3 we don't hold our breath.
The DVD is in great-looking 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen with a brilliant Dolby 5.1 soundtrack. Some fluff extras are included.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
pure agony, November 12, 2002
this glop sets new standards in movie incoherence. We open with an attack on the vice president by people dressed as cops, seagal runs in and saves the day by throwing the VP off a bridge into what we've just been shown is shallow water with jagged rocks. he looks back over the side of the bridge after throwing him and guess what the VP is fine, rocks nowhere to be seen. We're told the attack was the work of 'some michigan militia', case closed, which is on a par with the substitute when one guys asks why there aren't any cops on the scene our hero responds 'He (the badguy) paid them off'. 'some michigan militia' sounds interesting, how come they were so organised, what were that political beliefs? who cares! the VP and the 'michigan militia' (sounds even stupider every time i write it) abandoned for some story bout crooked cops. seagal gets demoted for saving the VP's life, which is the most ridiculous 'ain't authority stupid' happening in any action movie ever, makes dirty harry's superiors seem reasonable, and the guys behind the demotion are segal's friends (?). Enter tom arnold, always excruciating, no different here.Anyway forget the plot, its not important, lets examine the bare faced stealing of lines from better films. DMX explains that he promised his father he would always be 'his brother's keeper' (new jack city). the villain swivels around in his chair and says 'the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist' (the usual suspects) so cringeworthy was this moment i struggled hard to stop myself throwing something at the tv. a good guy authority figure blows away a crooked cop 'you're fired' (robocop and probably a few arnie movies). As for action... at one point seagal (who is totally impervious to pain and physical harm) jumps at a car heading fast for him, we clearly see that he is barely going to clear the windscreen, but whadda you know? next shot shows he successfully vaulted the thing. Seagal seems to added new tricks to his armoury, now when kicking people it seems the man can fly ala crouching tiger etc. The inanities just keep chalking themselves up, we're told a big cop is 'real dumb' then told as if to confirm this that he infiltrated and brought down an entire Ku klux klan chapter undercover, what a dummy eh? Seagal walks out of a shoot out with his gun at his side straight into a swat team, he flashes his badge and they go straight past him (just like in real life). the list goes on and on and on, add to this an actress who seems to have been selected because she looks like gina gershon (gina obviously too good for seagal movies now) and a hilarious ending where facing imminent death the character that demoted seagal earlier in the film bursts in to his rescue with a shotgun. This moment brings to mind the DVD of 'the great silence' with klaus kinski which has an alternate happy ending as an extra in which a character who we see killed earlier in the film suddenly appears from nowhere and shoots all the villains in the back. All the cops in the precinct below captain are crooked, in the final shoot out we see dozens of villains in their police uniforms running around with machine guns. Where are the gangster's in this city? where are the drug dealers that would object to the cop's operations? How were all these cops corrupted into being merciless killers? And to top it all off, the head traitor gets to do his 'after all my years on the beat what have i got to show for it' (ransom springs to mind, as well as a hundred other movies) routine. Still its a step up from the patriot and the glimmerman, this is total trash, but at least i made it to the end.
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