March 16, 2007
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If you shoot James Earl Jones, you're probably gonna die.After watching Jon Hess' sleazy martial arts cop flick Excessive Force for the umpteenth time, I began to wonder why, exactly, Thomas Ian Griffith never caught on as the next big Hollywood action icon. He's certainly good looking, he's got a great head of hair, and his long legs can kick a man square in the face from three states away. On top of that, the guy can actually act. Nothing fancy, of course, but he's certainly better than those muscle-bound clowns he was hoping to usurp a few years ago. It's always a sad day when the guy with the talent is forced to squander his skills on something like The Sea Wolf.
Excessive Force is probably Griffith's finest hour to-date. Though his script is jam-packed with familiar characters and moldly cliches you've seen -- and smelled -- countless times before in far superior pictures, the film is kept afloat by a plethora of non-stop action sequences sprinkled with the star's impossibly fluid spin kicks. It should have transformed Thomas from your run-of-the-mill co-starring schlep into a big bright shining star with a sprawling Beverly Hills mansion. Unfortunately, he's probably still most famous for his turn as Terry Silver in that cinemaic embarrassment known as Karate Kid III.
Weep for what could have been, dear readers.
The Kenpo Karate expert stars as Terry McCain, a tough-as-nails Chicago cop who won't hesitate to shove your face through a few windows if he even thinks you're about to cause some trouble. His questionable tactics land him in hot water once again after charges are dropped against local mob boss Sal DiMarco (Burt Young) due to McCain's heavy reliance on excessive force, hence the title of the flick. Terry is given a stern talking to by his superiors and sent merrily on his way. Ah, to be a fictional cop in the 90's.
We wouldn't have a movie if things didn't get ugly, so it doesn't take long for our hero and his buddies to find themselves on the aforementioned crime lord's bad side. Apparently some crooked cop snatched about three million dollars from a drug deal gone bad, and McCain and his crew are at the top of the suspect list.
DiMarco makes his intentions very clear by brutally murdering Terry's best friend Dylan (Tom Hodges) and dumping his battered corpse in a nearby landfill. Understandably furious, McCain sets out to avenge his partner's death, a decision that will thrust him deep into a sinister world of treachery, corrupt cops, and lots of broken windows.
As you can tell, Excessive Force isn't built on anything remotely resembling an original idea. If you can't figure out the twists and turns by the fifteen minute mark, you're either a bookworm, one of those nature-loving outdoorsy types, or a five year-old girl with a huge collection of talking dolls. The story is the very definition of pedestrian: a loud, stupid, testosterone-fueled Hollywood vehicle for an up-and-coming star who has his sights set on the cool table. If you need further proof of the film's moronic nature, behold McCain's light jazz leanings.
Need I say more?
If you're not going to spend too much time crafting an interesting, thought-provoking action epic, you might want to spend all of your money on incredible stunts, fiery explosions, and lots of bloody shoot-outs. Thankfully, this is one crucial element that Excessive Force has an abundance of. There's rarely a dull moment to be found anywhere in the flick; almost every inch of footage consists of sex, violence, foul language, or Thomas Ian Griffith dangling from a pole while planting bullets in the back of a bad guy's cranium. Oh, and he kicks/shoves/throws a few people through lots of glass, as well. Can't forget about that.
Because New Line was banking on Griffith becoming the next "big thing" in Hollywood action, they filled their snazzy production with a handful of talented individuals. There's Tony Todd (Candyman), Burt Young (Back to School), Tom Hodges (Heavy Weights), James Earl Jones (Patriot Games), and the legendary Lance Henriksen. The Aliens star is rather mellow this time around, that is, until he's given the opportunity to gun down a few people with an automatic weapon. Then it's all show and swagger, complete with a snazzy "empty gun toss" as he disappears through a doorway. Getting countless rounds pumped into my torso by this guy would be an honor. Wow.
Every decade needs bonafide action celebrity, every child a martial arts guru. The 90's should have belonged to Thomas Ian Griffith, and Excessive Force should have carried him to the throne. It's not the greatest movie you'll ever witness in your entire life, but it's leaps and bounds above some of the stuff Seagal was upchucking into cineplexes at the time. It's just a by-the-numbers crooked cop thriller with a little spin kicking action thrown in for additional flavor. This film should have been a sophisticated teleportation device that would open a trans-dimensional gateway to greater things for its writer/star.
Thomas Ian Griffith, we hardly knew ye.
Posted by
The Film Fiend
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