You must be possibly bored with Steven Seagal taking on international mercenaries well so am I? In this fourth and final installment in Seagal Month, our favorite portly martial artist tries to take on L.A. street gangs with "Urban Justice"! "Urban Justice" has an interesting behind-the-scenes story when during the beginning of production; Screen Gems was considering a theatrical release for this film. Unsurprisingly, this is another one for the straight-to-DVD bin. This film is also notable for the fact Seagal isn't the only famous person in it and it's filmed in Los Angeles and Albuquerque instead of Romania and Bulgaria. So, is Seagal back? You wish.
A rookie cop gets killed in a drive-by shooting, and the LAPD dismisses it off as a random act of violence. I guess they haven't learned anything since the Rodney King incident. To make this film already mind-boggling, the slain officer has a father who happens to be an ex-Special Forces operative named Simon Bannister or Simon Ballister whatever I don't care. That's right; Seagal is playing this character just like every role for the past 56 years of his career. Moving into the worst part of L.A., Seagal enlists the help of a liquor store owner (Carmen Sarrano, in a thankless role) and an unlimited supply of guns to take on two rival gangs. Will Seagal avenge the death of a son that we've already forgotten about? Then prepare to be bored in the next 96 minutes.
The concept of Seagal facing off against street gangs may sound like mindless fun but it's eminently forgettable and clichéd. It appears that 90% of the film takes place in absolute darkness possibly to cover up Seagal's sweaty skin and multiple chins. The fight scenes are both under directed and over directed to the point of inconsistency. And I'm sorry Don E. Fauntleroy, but you are not Michael Mann. However, there are some positives as Seagal is doubled much, much less and appears in the film more than usual doing his own fights. While Eddie Griffin is insufferable as the main thug, sadly there is not enough Danny Trejo.
I guess the real reason "Urban Justice" never got a theatrical release is because moviegoers aren't going to waste their hard-earned money on this formulaic, standard and generic tripe. Three stars for Trejo's all-to-brief appearance, Seagal's hard-to-make-out mumbling and most of all, not filming it in Eastern Europe.
Thank god I don't have to review any more of Seagal.
A rookie cop gets killed in a drive-by shooting, and the LAPD dismisses it off as a random act of violence. I guess they haven't learned anything since the Rodney King incident. To make this film already mind-boggling, the slain officer has a father who happens to be an ex-Special Forces operative named Simon Bannister or Simon Ballister whatever I don't care. That's right; Seagal is playing this character just like every role for the past 56 years of his career. Moving into the worst part of L.A., Seagal enlists the help of a liquor store owner (Carmen Sarrano, in a thankless role) and an unlimited supply of guns to take on two rival gangs. Will Seagal avenge the death of a son that we've already forgotten about? Then prepare to be bored in the next 96 minutes.
The concept of Seagal facing off against street gangs may sound like mindless fun but it's eminently forgettable and clichéd. It appears that 90% of the film takes place in absolute darkness possibly to cover up Seagal's sweaty skin and multiple chins. The fight scenes are both under directed and over directed to the point of inconsistency. And I'm sorry Don E. Fauntleroy, but you are not Michael Mann. However, there are some positives as Seagal is doubled much, much less and appears in the film more than usual doing his own fights. While Eddie Griffin is insufferable as the main thug, sadly there is not enough Danny Trejo.
I guess the real reason "Urban Justice" never got a theatrical release is because moviegoers aren't going to waste their hard-earned money on this formulaic, standard and generic tripe. Three stars for Trejo's all-to-brief appearance, Seagal's hard-to-make-out mumbling and most of all, not filming it in Eastern Europe.
Thank god I don't have to review any more of Seagal.