Grimerlana Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.

Donald Seymour This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Dark Jedi Last evening I decided to play a bit of Russian roulette again watch one one Steven Seagal's direct to DVD movies that was given on W9. Again there was nothing else worth watching and I did think the last one that I watched, The Keeper, was too bad (for a direct to DVD by Steven Seagal that is) so I thought let's watch it.This was not one of the better movies that I have watched to say the least. The movie starts off with a series of rapid cuts from a fire-fight and it pretty much continues in that manner. The entire movie is cut in a very choppy manner which I personally am not too thrilled about. The plot is forgettable to say the least and the entire movie is just a copy-paste job of standard scenes and actions sequences from start to finish.The action scenes are not too bad and what makes the movie not be a total waste. Do not try to find any logic in people's actions though. There is none. When Seagal felt he wanted some tough talk then he plopped it in and so on. I guess he likes scantily clad ladies as well since the movie is liberally sprinkled with them. Too bad only the bad guys seems to have the hard hitting chicks working for them though.Someone said that this was a "guy movie" and I would say that is a correct statement. It is filled with elements that would appeal to the stereotype of some "beer belching" male person doing most of his thinking using the reptile parts of his brain. I do not mind action, though talk and scantily clad ladies in the movies but I do prefer when there is a script worth talking about to string everything together instead if just throwing them into a blender and serve the slop that comes out.Not a total waste of an evening but close.

Samiam3 Seagal in Born to Raise Hell seems almost identical to Seagal as himself in his reality series. In some ways this might be a good thing. It means that the film acknowledges that there is no point in asking him to play act stereotypes anymore, like he did in his last film A Dangerous Man. Here he's just being himself. Something else which makes that a positive is the simple fact that the movie isn't really about him. It's more about a drug war between cops and Eastern European mafia. Seagal is just one cop out of a handful. As a screenwriter, Seagal chooses to write him self out rather than in, and subsequently we spend more time with the mafia.The fight scenes come with a crunchy sound mix, and they allow us to see more Seagal than Stunt man, but they reek of bad editing. the people who direct movies like Born to Raise Hell are not qualified for anything except music videos. this movie implements a very miscalculated Goddardian style of cutting, and a severe overuse of slow motion. We don't need to see a guy ripping a bedroom apart for jewels at five frames per second. The last scene is kind of touching (at least for a Seagal movie). It was around that part when I realized that the movie is not really about Seagal. That and the fact that we only here his name about five times. I don't wanna mislead anyone however. Born to Raise Hell will probably do the job for whatever fan base the old man has left. He's done better, but he's also done way worse.

Hellmant 'BORN TO RAISE HELL': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five) Another generic Steven Seagal action film, in this one he plays an Interpol agent caught in the middle of a Russian and Gypsy street gang war in Eastern Europe. Seagal also wrote the script while veteran stuntman and actor Lauro Chartrand makes his directorial debut. Another up and coming martial arts star Darren Shahlavi co-stars as the movie's villain. The action scenes are decent but the story is tired and dull. If you're an action junkie and or Seagal fan you probably won't be disappointed though.Seagal stars as Samuel Axel, an Interpol agent recently put on assignment in Eastern Europe. He's also breaking in a new partner, a rookie named Steve (D. Neil Mark) who's also expecting a child. The two are a part of a special task force investigating gun and dope smugglers in the Balkans. Their prime interests are a Gypsy gang leader named Costel (Shahlavi) and a Russian gang leader called Dimitri (Dan Badarau, who shares a striking resemblance with Marlon Brando). When things get messy Axel is forced to resort to unconventional measures in order to get the job done.Like I said Seagal is credited for writing the script but it's basically just parts of a dozen other movies pieced together. The story is irrelevant and about as forgettable as they come. The action scenes are entertaining none the less. A much better fight scene could have been choreographed between Seagal and Shahlavi though. What we get is routine and could have been filmed with anyone opposite Seagal. What a waste of talent! Still the movie was made for just $10 million and say what you will about Seagal's career but his movies continue to be profitable successes. This is just one of many that will soon blur in with all the others but during the 90 minutes I spent watching it it was mildly entertaining.Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://youtu.be/Ie33IbZzmi0

lee nicholson (dolemite72) Just watched BORN TO RAISE HELL, and i've got mixed feelings about it. I won't bore you with the plot (partly because they wasn't much of one, anyhow)But first off, let me say the cinematography was good. The locations and camera work were crisp, sharp and better than most DTV releases. It could have done with less of the (as VERN calls them) "Avid Fart" technique (of jump-cuts, speed-ed up, slowed down shots)Seagal was OK (extremely foul-mouthed, i might add) but (and as usual, with these Eastern European releases) he only had about 70% screen time (as the rest was filled up, with either semi-naked female dancers, "Avid Fart" stuff, or other character plots)The dubbing (as previously mentioned) is rife throughout (not as bad as ATTACK FORCE, but almost near enough) The doubles are also there, in the movies 4 (or so) fight scenes, not particularly noticeable, but for nearly every shot of Seagal fighting, there's another 'Below the neckline' or 'From behind' to match it. And it's all the more infuriating, because Seagal does some fast handy-work, punch kick and flip combos himself, in this movie...so the doubles weren't really needed. The fight scenes also consist of a lot of fast (close-up) edits also.The plot is (like i previously stated) wafer-thin....which consists of Seagal leading a strike force police unit in Romania...getting the drop on some drug dealers, who rat out an even bigger criminal (not to mention psychopath) to get a lighter sentence. This Psychopath likes to commit 'home invasions' on rich couples, and rapes the wives before killing them both.Then Seagal teams up with another mobster, and they both go after the psychopath.......The end.Despite the fact, that this is a by-the-numbers Seagal effort (nowhere near as good as A DANGEROUS MAN, URBAN JUSTICE or DRIVEN TO KILL) it does have a few interesting points. The plot (however slim) has parallels to early 70's Italian 'Polizia' movies (in that it shows the Law teaming up with the lesser evils to bring down the greater ones)And Seagal adds real police procedures to the 'raid' and 'arrest' sequences (probably picked up from his stint as a real life deputy) A mixed bag for sure, but not without interest....but a step back from A DANGEROUS MAN. The one good thing about a less than memorable Seagal movie, is that, when i watch it again (in about 6 months time) i'll barely remember a thing about it (thus, it's like watching a new movie) and chances are, i'll either see something i didn't notice before, or it'll just plain grow on me. Either way, it's far from the turkey it could have been, but could have been better. I suppose it's A DANGEROUS MAN's fault, for being so good