I remember seeing the trailer for 2003's The Hunted in a theater back in the early 2000's. The story of a special forces operator having trouble dealing with
society and going on a surprise violent rampage elicited an
immediate "Rambo for the new millennium" from someone in the crowd. A few Sunday's ago I found myself inexplicably watching the William Friedkin directed, somewhat forgotten man to man, hand to hand mini-classic starring Benicio Del Toro and Tommy Lee Jones . When I first saw the flick, I was semi-obsessed with it and devoured the DVD special features and commentary. Tweeting to the director that it was underrated, Friedkin and several dozen others agreed.
The film opens in Kosovo where Special Forces soldier Aaron Hallam (Del Toro) is knee deep into a violent mission to take out some bad guys. Years later we find him challenging two hunters in the woods of Oregon and killing them with a knife. Hallam's teacher and deep woods tracker L.T. Bonham (Jones) is called in to assist with the investigation. Being trained in the arts of stealth, self sufficiency in nature and the production and use of edged weapons, Hallam makes for an excellent soldier. But the stress of battle has him seemingly coming off the hinges and unable to hold a job or maintain healthy relationships back in the world. With the threat of confidential military affairs going public, Hallam is targeted for assassination by some of his former teammates turned government agents. But Hallam escapes and the chase is on with Bonham, agent Abby Durrell (Connie Nielsen) and half the city's police in pursuit. It all leads to a final confrontation between former teacher and student where only one will leave alive.
Based on a script by David and Peter Griffiths along with Art Monterastelli, at face value The Hunted treads familiar ground as Stallone's 1984 breakout hit First Blood where a returning Vietnam veteran butts heads with a small town sheriff and wreaks havoc when they won't leave him alone. But The Hunted tells it's own story in a very unique way in a fast paced, educational and violent style as we see flashes of Hallam's intense training designed to take a person's life quickly and efficiently. Then we have Tommy Lee Jones' Bonham feeling partially responsible for Hallam's actions and stepping up to deal with the issue and save civilian lives. At a brisk and simple 94 minutes, The Hunted is a genre film elevated by it's cast and crew. Director Friedkin films everything practically so we get expansive woods, chases through crowded streets, cars crashing, trucks flipping, high falls and impressive hand to hand and knife to knife fights with a brutal showdown on the side of a waterfall. The amount of research displayed is great from Hallam's training to each using their tracking prowess to find the other and the final confrontation where one makes a knife out of scrap metal and the other chisels an over sized arrowhead from a piece of rock. Del Toro is calm, cool and reserved here with a hint of instability while Jones is his usual solid, strong and weary self.
Released in March of 2003, The Hunted was meant to be Benicio Del Toro's leading man follow up to his Best Supporting Actor Oscar for 2000's Traffic. Jones was coming off consecutive hits like Men in Black II, Space Cowboys, Double Jeopardy and Friedkin collaboration Rules of Engagement. While the director had boffo box office success with The Exorcist and The French Connection in the 70's, Friedkin struggled in the 80's and 90's, giving us among others the awesomely stylistic secret service saga and Dammaged Goods favorite To Live and Die In L.A. and long delayed death penalty drama Rampage starring Michael Biehn. Both films are high on my list but along with the likes of Cruising, The Guardian and Blue Chips failed to find a wide audience. Some would argue that his hiring for 1995's big budget thriller Jade came from being married to the head of Paramount. After Jade flopped, Friedkin was entrusted with another expensive film there, 2000's military themed Rules of Engagement starring Samuel L. Jackson and Jones. The financial success of Engagement lead to The Hunted but during shooting, star Del Toro broke his wrist and delayed filming for four months.
Once finished, The Hunted opened on March 14th to a so-so $13.4 million bucks and weak reviews. Although Roger Ebert did give it a glowing 3.5 out of 4 stars, commending it's simple story but superb execution of a chase movie. Going on to gross $34.2 million in the states at a supposed $55 million budget, The Hunted could hardly be called a hit and would rank 85th for the year. Friedkin would follow up with 2006's Bug, an independent horror film with 1/10th the budget of Hunted before bouncing back critically with 2011's offbeat Killer Joe. Del Toro's leading man career would never take off as supporting roles in Sin City and 21 Grams would be lauded while the big budget, two part bio-pic Che barely saw theatrical release. 2010's enjoyable if uneven passion project The Wolfman would lose it's original director shortly before filming and suffer cost overruns before disappointing at the box office. Still in high demand, Del Toro was sought out for the villain role in 2009's Star Trek, ended up in 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy and is rumored to be up for a baddie in an upcoming Star Wars spin-off. Jones would continue to work in films big and small like The Missing and Lincoln, directing The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada while popping up in Oscar winner No Country For Old Men along with the crowd pleasing, money making Captain America and Men in Black 3.
While The Hunted remains a film few have seen, it still holds up as an exciting, violent, educational and strangely hypnotic entry in the rare one on one, hand to hand combat, knife fighting, chase thriller genre. A decade plus removed and it's safe to say they don't make'em like that anymore.
I don't know why it's taken me so long getting around to writing about Invasion U.S.A. from 1985. It's one of Chuck's greatest flicks and I enjoyed the hell out of watching it with some whiskey at my side. Apparently, by the mid 80's, America hadn't been invaded for 200 years. Evil Russian spy guy Mikhail Rostov (Richard Lynch, View In Peace) is looking to change that with the help of a Communist army made up of his fellow countrymen, Cubans and some Arabs. Landing on the beaches of Florida, they kill civilian men, women and children ruthlessly. The C.I.A. tries to recruit former operative Matt Hunter (Norris) to look into the case but he's too busy wrestling and wrangling alligators in the Florida Everglades. The company wouldn't let Hunter kill Rostov when he had the chance so now it's their problem. You see, Hunter once caught Rostov during a thwarted assassination by bazooka attempt and the Red is still plenty pissed and scarred about it. Nightmares of Hunter sticking a gun to his temple and telling him, "It's time to die..." have him waking up in anger and fright before dispatching some dudes to take care of The Chuck. They miss of course but kill his airboat riding, frog eating buddy John (Dehl Berti, View In Peace) so now it's on and Hunter is gonna show those dirty Commies how America kicks ass!
Meanwhile, the mercenary army creates violent havoc on the streets of Miami. Posing as cops they commit terrorist attacks and stoke the fire of social and racial unrest until civilians begin fighting each other. In a key scene the baddies attack a shopping mall during Christmas but Hunter saves the day with his jacked up truck, denim shirt and twin Uzi's. Now with a taste for bloody revenge, Hunter starts offing Rostov's army with extreme "guns, karate, explosion and knife through the hand" prejudice.
Man what a great flick. It's funny, ridiculous, intense, violent and near exploitative. Rostov is a real shitbag, seeing Americans as soft and not realizing how their own safety can be used against them. In an early scene, Rostov shoves a snorting with a steel straw cokehead's head into the table then throws her out the window AND shoots a dealer in the nuts. It was an interesting twist to have him so mentally messed up by Hunter and thus making some bad strategic decisions out of fear. Joseph Zito directs a script by James Bruner, Chuck himself and brother Aaron with that sleazy 80's vibe where people are violently killed via squibs and shots to the head. Chuck's unexpected but welcome dry humor is on display early talking about Social Security and being sick of eating frogs. After friend John is killed, Hunter goes sullen as it's time for Rostov to die. Norris delivers several lines in awesome yet intense whisper giving "I'm not interested or You're beginning to irritate me and Not this time" surprising menace and quotability. All in, Norris whispers "It's time to die" three times throughout the running time and makes good on his words at the end with a frigging bazooka duel!
Hot on the heels of the well received cop thriller Code of Silence, Norris would enter his Cannon Film days for schlock masters Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus with Invasion. Norris was loyal to the Go-Go boys stating that they were there for him when he needed them. Making an estimated $2 million a film in 1985, Invasion U.S.A. is said to have cost a then staggering $16 million clams with $5 going to the mall scene alone shot over 3 nights with thousands of extras that's as harrowing as it is impressive with explosions, squibs and trucks crashing through glass and storefronts on location in Georgia. Opening on September 27th with a healthy $6.8 million weekend take, putting it ahead of flicks like Romancing the Stone sequel The Jewel of the Nile, St. Elmo's Fire, Fright Night and The Breakfast Club and behind action flicks Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Commando, Pale Rider and Rambo II. Although Invasion opened up strong, it would gross less than all of those films on it's way to $17.5 million; putting it ahead of To Live and Die in L.A., Death Wish 3, King Solomon's Mines, Remo Williams, American Ninja and Lifeforce.
From here, Norris would team up with Lee Marvin for hit The Delta Force before facing diminishing returns on Mission in Action III, Hero and the Terror, Delta Force 2 and The Hitman. Director Zito already had successes Mission in Action and Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter under his belt and would go on to the big budget Dolph Lundgren vehicle Red Scorpion before seemingly fading away from filmmaking. The character of Matt Hunter would appear in 1986's Avenging Force with Michael Dudikoff taking over the role when Norris passed.
Keanu Reeves. The most unlikely movie star of the 90's? I've always liked the guy and his performances in films like Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Point Break, Bogus Journey, Speed, The Replacements and The Gift show he's an actor capable of drama, action and comedy. 1999's The Matrix and it's subsequent sequels established him as one of the globe's most recognizable stars but I never got past the first installment and wasn't much of a fan. Since then he's popped up in productions big and small while directing a documentary about film versus digital then again on kung-fu flick Man of Tai Chi which was given a small theatrical release along with Video On Demand. His big budget samurai flick 47 Ronin got lost in the holiday shuffle after a tumultuous production and little critical or fan support. A bit of a recluse and loner, Reeves doesn't seem to be chasing Hollywood leading man status and has been known to give up part of his salary to pay for co-stars and crew.
Lately, Reeves has upped his professional output having replaced Daniel Craig in court room drama The Whole Truth but before then audiences can see him in action film John Wick. Written by Derek Kolstad of Cuba Gooding, Jr., Steve Austin and Dolph Lundgren team ups The Package and One in the Chamber and directed by stunt men and 87Eleven founders Chad Stahelski and David Leitch. Stahleski has doubled Reeves in the past and served as Stunt Coordinator and Second Unit Director on films like The Hunger Games, Killer Elite and The Expendables while Leitch has doubled for the likes of Brad Pitt and Jean-Claude Van Damme then served as Stunt and Second Unit maestro on flicks such as The Wolverine, Escape Plan and upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Jurassic Park reboots. He also played Terry Bogard in video game adaptation of The King of Fighters, which is cool. 87Eleven is the brainchild of experienced stunt performers looking to design and create safe yet uniquely violent, physical, on screen action. They have a gym by the LAX airport frequented by the likes of Jason Statham, Gerard Butler and Ryan Reynolds while fight film staples and martial artists turned coordinators Larnell Stovall (Ride Along, Undisputed 3) and J.J. "Loco" Perry (Vanishing Son, Warrior) are among the staff.
John Wick is the story of a legendary but retired hitman who is brought back to the violent trade when some Russian gangsters mess with him. Contracts are put on his life and Wick must fend off former friends and foes while tracking down the son of a local mob boss who did him wrong in violent, modern day The Punisher and Taken style. With an impressive supporting cast that includes Adrianne Palicki (G.I. Joe 2), Alfie Allen (Game of Thrones) and Willem Dafoe (To Live and Die in L.A.) with appearances by Bridget Moynahan (Tom Sellack's Blue Bloods), Ian McShane (Death Race), Kevin Nash (The Punisher), Daniel Bernhardt (Bloodsport 2), John Leguizamo (Executive Decision) and David Patrick Kelly (The Warriors), John Wick might not rewrite the book on action films but looks to provide a moody, stylized, tactical rough and tumble affair that should console any action fan disappointed by the fact that The Expendables III is PG-13.
"It's my territory. It's your territory. They're just renting it."
(Gravelly announcer voice) It is the year 2020, the Earth has been ravaged by dragons; the soaring, fire breathing menace of lore. Mankind has nearly gone extinct, survivors live quietly among ruins and ash. One man seeks to preserve life while another seeks to eradicate a species. It is, the Reign of Fire.
"There's nothing magical about them, they're made up of a collection of organs; a mind, a heart, a liver, you take out one of these, you bring down the beast!"
I remember seeing this flick upon release on my birthday in 2002 and thinking what a ridiculous bad ass Matthew McConaughey was as the bald headed, yoked out, tatted up dragon slayer Denton Van Zan. Christian Bale is also fine in his role as the peaceful, logical leader of a group of survivors, Quinn, but McCon took the flashier role and ran with it. He's brash, physical and driven, like To Live and Die In LA's Richard Chance, Van Zan was one who lived by the sword and would die by the sword (or in this case, a dragon and an axe). It was a nice departure from McConaughey who previously played nice opposite Jennifer Lopez in the rom-com, The Wedding Planner.
"Dig your own holes, die in them."
What's fun about these characters is that you know they're not going to be the reasonable voice of the picture or even make it to the end but they will invigorate those around them and force them to act. In Reign of Fire, Van Zan's sudden appearance, dragon theories and man power demands force semi-pacifist Quinn to confront his fear of the beasts and attempt to obliterate them once and for all. His notion that there is only one male in the species leads to an ill fated trek to London to hunt down the big daddy. After his forces are wiped out, Van Zan realizes his full throttle, fight hard, die fast style of warfare will not advance the human race (it is good at getting the blood pumping though). With the help of Bale's calm and collected Quinn, they sneak into London undetected and feed papa Dragon an explosive Popsicle but not before he eats Van Zan like a bug.
To prepare for the role, McConaughey says he spent two months at his ranch getting in shape by pushing a truck, wrestling with cows, lifting weights, running and boxing. Allegedly, Arnold Schwarzenegger himself was in talks to appear in the film so it's ironically appropriate that McConaughey took a page from The Oak and played the role with physical gusto.
