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Exit Wounds (2001)
It's a shame, at least to me, that this was Steven Seagal's last theatrically released vehicle. Some people probably jumped for joy when his career down to the toilet after this. Not me. I, to this day, have never gotten a chance to see a Steven Seagal film in theaters. This was his last theatrically released (until Machete) film and I was 5 years old when it came out. That sort of depresses me, not having the big man kick ass on the big screen. It's also a bit depressing that this met with mostly negative critical acclaim, because it's a pretty good film. Not in a "Steven Seagal kicks ass" way, but it's actually a fairly well-made, engaging film.
Steven Seagal plays Orin Boyd, a veteran lone wolf cop who finds himself to the notorious 15th district, after disobeying orders and singlehandedly saving the Vice President Of The United States' life. Soon enough, Orin uncovers a web of corruption inside the police department, manages to piss off the majority of police officers in the department and is forced to attend anger management classes.
Before I actually begin, have you ever noticed that in every Seagal film, he battles corruption? Nico says on the back "Seagal fights corruption with martial arts". In Hard To Kill, he uncovers corruption run from the Mayor's office, in Out For Justice, he figures out his dead partner was corrupt, Under Siege has him fighting turncoat naval officers and disillusioned CIA officers, and so on.
I wouldn't have liked Exit Wounds as much if it didn't have loud, over the top comedic elements in place, which it certainly does. If it didn't have that, I wouldn't have seen the genius on display. Casting Steven Seagal as the straight man with comedic supporting actors (Tom Arnold, Anthony Anderson) is relevatory, and in my diseased mind, I think Steven Seagal could work in a straight up comedy vehicle. I'd pay to see that.
Seriously, as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jim Cameron did in True Lies, Seagal and director Andrzej Bartkowiak use his Steve's wooden acting abilities to a great advantage, and putting him in an anger management class is brilliant. If the whole movie was about Boyd and his anger management class, I wouldn't have minded a bit, and Seagal's career could have been given a breath of fresh air.
Still, Exit Wounds is a good film. The overloaded action scenes are nothing new, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't entertained by them at all. And the scenes of Seagal kicking ass weren't among the best we've seen of him, nor is his performance itself (his best is Out For Justice), but they're still pretty cool and his one-note performance is, as mentioned, utilized well in comedic situations. The twists and plot are pretty standard, but if you're expecting something fresh from Steve, you're crazy. And the supporting cast work range from ok to good, but a special mention has to go Tom Arnold and Anthony Anderson. If they had a morning show, I'd watch it.
And on a side note, this is one of the only films that has a hip hop soundtrack and doesn't actively annoy me. I don't know why that is, but it just doesn't.
Due to having Spirited Away at a , I can't rate this anything beyond that, because we would have a riot on our hands. But while it doesn't have some majestic beauty like that film, Exit Wounds has a certain amount of cool charm and sh!tloads of enjoyability. And if this was Seagal's last leading role theatrical release, at least it was a nice film to go out on.
It's a shame, at least to me, that this was Steven Seagal's last theatrically released vehicle. Some people probably jumped for joy when his career down to the toilet after this. Not me. I, to this day, have never gotten a chance to see a Steven Seagal film in theaters. This was his last theatrically released (until Machete) film and I was 5 years old when it came out. That sort of depresses me, not having the big man kick ass on the big screen. It's also a bit depressing that this met with mostly negative critical acclaim, because it's a pretty good film. Not in a "Steven Seagal kicks ass" way, but it's actually a fairly well-made, engaging film.
Steven Seagal plays Orin Boyd, a veteran lone wolf cop who finds himself to the notorious 15th district, after disobeying orders and singlehandedly saving the Vice President Of The United States' life. Soon enough, Orin uncovers a web of corruption inside the police department, manages to piss off the majority of police officers in the department and is forced to attend anger management classes.
Before I actually begin, have you ever noticed that in every Seagal film, he battles corruption? Nico says on the back "Seagal fights corruption with martial arts". In Hard To Kill, he uncovers corruption run from the Mayor's office, in Out For Justice, he figures out his dead partner was corrupt, Under Siege has him fighting turncoat naval officers and disillusioned CIA officers, and so on.
I wouldn't have liked Exit Wounds as much if it didn't have loud, over the top comedic elements in place, which it certainly does. If it didn't have that, I wouldn't have seen the genius on display. Casting Steven Seagal as the straight man with comedic supporting actors (Tom Arnold, Anthony Anderson) is relevatory, and in my diseased mind, I think Steven Seagal could work in a straight up comedy vehicle. I'd pay to see that.
Seriously, as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jim Cameron did in True Lies, Seagal and director Andrzej Bartkowiak use his Steve's wooden acting abilities to a great advantage, and putting him in an anger management class is brilliant. If the whole movie was about Boyd and his anger management class, I wouldn't have minded a bit, and Seagal's career could have been given a breath of fresh air.
Still, Exit Wounds is a good film. The overloaded action scenes are nothing new, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't entertained by them at all. And the scenes of Seagal kicking ass weren't among the best we've seen of him, nor is his performance itself (his best is Out For Justice), but they're still pretty cool and his one-note performance is, as mentioned, utilized well in comedic situations. The twists and plot are pretty standard, but if you're expecting something fresh from Steve, you're crazy. And the supporting cast work range from ok to good, but a special mention has to go Tom Arnold and Anthony Anderson. If they had a morning show, I'd watch it.
And on a side note, this is one of the only films that has a hip hop soundtrack and doesn't actively annoy me. I don't know why that is, but it just doesn't.
Due to having Spirited Away at a , I can't rate this anything beyond that, because we would have a riot on our hands. But while it doesn't have some majestic beauty like that film, Exit Wounds has a certain amount of cool charm and sh!tloads of enjoyability. And if this was Seagal's last leading role theatrical release, at least it was a nice film to go out on.