Force of Execution

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I was cooking lunch. As per usual, I decided to play a movie on Netflix in the background. I watched the rest of Badasses on the Bayou. A spectacularly terrible film. By the end of that movie I was already busy doing something else. After the credits, Netflix recommended me "Force of Execution". There was a 10 second countdown then it played the recommended movie automatically. Words cannot describe my state of despair upon having experienced the first two scenes. I'd rather get punched in the face.

OK -- it really is time for Seagal to STOP making these rubbish films. This one lacks a real storyline and is poorly written. My family has been a fan of Steven since his first film, but this effort is utterly disgraceful, and reflects extremely adversely on him. "Force of Execution" seems purposely to have been shot with colour aberrations and under insufficient lighting conditions. Steven looks lost, perplexed; there's no attempt at acting, and, frankly, he appears ill. We've become used to his throaty mumbling, but in this flick, it's especially challenging to work out what he's saying. The wig and heavy brown makeup are a joke, a bad joke. How on earth did Danny Trejo and Ving Rimes agree to take part in this? I have to add, however, that neither seems interested in his role, just kinda walking through it. Sad. Please, Steven, STOP making these films. I can't take it any more.

What a pleasant surprise! Here we have the best names in the industry: Rhames, Trejo, Seagal. And upstart newcomer, Bren Foster, who gives us kicks and keeps on tickin'! Thank you producers, investors, and glorious directors for a wonderful addition to the pantheon of all- time-classic kick-ass film magic. Your work here is highly commended. Keep 'em comin'!

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source: Force of Execution

Mr. Alexander (Steven Seagal) is an ex-government agent who learned "things" in the mountains of Thailand. He is now the crime boss over the city of Albuquerque. Iceman (Ving Rhames) has recently got out of prison and is challenging Alexander, who simply wants to be bought out honorably. In what passes for a Seagal subplot, Roman Hurst (Bren Foster)who works for Alexander, gets double crossed by Iceman and is forced to retire, losing the use of his hands- somewhat, but he can still slow motion kickbox. He now lives in a room off a diner owned by Alexander and run by Jimmy Peanuts (Danny Trejo). The waitress (Jenny Gabrielle) becomes a focal point, because that is where the crime boss likes his girlfriend to work. The plot, like Seagal is straight forward. Trejo supplies us with a surprise, but the plot is not twisty. The tough guy dialog is cliche, using lines like, "You broke the code." Seagal is a bad guy who kills people, but commands with over doses of corny respect speeches. At one point Seagal sits down and describes his gun collection, giving us the advantage points of each piece, topping it off with "Isn't that amazing." I found this to be a better quality Seagal film, as he is not in every scene and shares with Rhames and Trejo.

Seagal's best days are now far behind him, but he's made a niche for himself in the DTV market. FORCE OF EXECUTION, while not one of the better movies he's made, is at least watchable and has some good action to boot. This time around, Seagal is Alexander, a crime boss with a past in government special ops. He runs a southwestern town with an iron fist, to be sure, but backed up with a code of honor. Martial artist Bren Foster plays Hurst, Alexander's chief hit-man and a protégé of sorts. They are joined in the cast by Ving Rhames, an up-and-coming gangster and Danny Trejo as a bar owner with a few tricks up his sleeve. The event that sets the plot in motion is a hit that goes bad, resulting in Hurst's "retirement," and the severe injury of his hands. Meanwhile, Iceman (Rhames) maneuvers around Alexander in order to take control of his territory, climaxing in a showdown between the two gangs. First, the good parts. Seagal is playing a type of character that he doesn't usually play, an antihero of sorts in a movie populated solely with lowlifes. There is also some decent martial arts on display, but mostly from Bren Foster. Seagal is relegated to doing his usual chops and take-downs when he isn't just using firearms. Finally, Ving Rhames gives the best performance in the movie as Iceman, lending credibility to his role as a gangster and delivering some great improvised dialogue. The rest is mediocre at best. The basic plot is paper thin, and not enough time is spent developing the three main characters. Most of the dialogue scenes are corny discussions about honor and respect, tough talking without any purpose other than to make the characters seem tougher. As far as the technical aspects go, director Keoni Waxman opts for the currently in-vogue shaky-cam, and some of the editing choices obscure the action. While this was most likely to conceal stunt doubles in some shots, it makes the action hard to follow in places, especially with Seagal. Fortunately for Bren Foster, they pulled back the camera a little bit so you can see him work. Overall this should be enough to placate Seagal fans, but everyone else should just stay away.

From Keoni Waxman, director of Maximum Conviction and A Dangerous Man, returns with Seagal to bring you Force of Execution, an action/crime movie showcasing several interesting performances with a lot of tepid dialogue and clichés. The movie follows, mostly, Bren Foster as he portrays the protégé of sorts to crime boss Mr. Alexander (Seagal), who is pulled out of premature retirement when a sadistic up-and-comer (Ving Rhames) begins killing his way to the top. The Pros: Steven Seagal turns in an enigmatic performance as Mr. Alexander as he sports, for the first time, a mean goatee. His fights are well choreographed as are Bren Fosters', who is also fun to watch. Ving Rhames and Danny Trejo are, as always, reliably efficient. The Cons: As a Seagal fan, it's a bit of a drag to see him almost take a backseat to somebody else. The entire plot is also quite predictable. Final Verdict: Seagal fans be sure to watch but prepare to miss the big guy for around half the movie.

First, I've liked Seagal's early movies (Above the Law, etc.) and have seen all that hit theaters and half the "straight to video" movies he's made. I'm a martial arts aficionado & can overlook a fair amount of bad acting & thin plot as long as choreography & fighter abilities are at least somewhat accomplished and plausible. I respect that Seagal is Aikido Sensei 7th Dan and was first white man to run a martial arts dojo in Japan in his early years. Furthermore I cut him some slack that he's older and not light on his feet any more (but really, he couldn't loose at least a FEW pounds?!!). That said, THIS IS WITHOUT A DOUBT ONE OF THE WORST MOVIES EVER MADE! Plot is kinder-garden level at best & almost non-existent. Acting is awful, script is worse than awful, concept is awful and worst of all this movie has some of the worst fighting ability and choreography I've ever seen. Seagal does virtually none of his own fighting and you only see him start to throw a punch & camera cuts to guy falling down, every time! A boring, worthless, un-engaging piece of crap movie. Most insulting is this is obviously just a low-budget excuse for a pay day for Seagal & he literally does not care how it reflects on him. He has truly dishonored & embarrassed himself & the Aikido arts & soiled his spirit & integrity by releasing such a ruinously awful piece of junk, it exhibits that he has no integrity left and is now only a worldly uncharismatic uncaring shadow of his former self. I don't wish to disrespect him or be unkind but he has completely disrespected himself for many years & this is the final bad straw. Won't watch anything further he ever is involved in and would never vote for him if he gets into politics; His lack of objectivity & caring is appalling & disturbing. I hope someone forwards this review to him. STEVEN: You need to wake up & regain your lost values and abilities to at least some degree (Sorry, tough love). At least start doing some moving meditation & energy exercises; Qi-Gong, Tai-chi, something... If movement is restricted from injuries then at least throw your own short-range wing-chun type punches & let the camera show it... Even the greatest masters eventually lose combat ability over time, but the greatest masters never sell out integrity - C'mon Steven... READERS: Don't waste your time watching this, seriously, don't bother.