The Butcher (2009)

The Butcher (2009)- * * *

Directed by: Jesse V. Johnson

Starring: Eric Roberts, Jerry Trimble, Robert Davi, Keith David, Bokeem Woodbine, Irina Bjorklund, Vernon Wells, Geoffrey Lewis, and Michael Ironside







Merle "The Butcher" Hench is one cool dude. He's an ex-boxer, has a pair of golden guns, and he drives a 1969 Dodge Charger. His temperament is very even and he doesn't yell. He also has a gambling problem. As an enforcer for Irish mobster Murdoch (Davi), he is highly skilled in "the science of violence", as someone tells him. However, Merle's luck begins to change when he wins money from both Chinatown Pete (Woodbine), and Larry Cobb (David).

Meanwhile, thinking that Merle is "over the hill", he is set up as the patsy for a multi-million-dollar heist on a group of other gangsters. While Hench does end up with some of the money, and plans to use it to run off into the sunset with diner waitress Jackie (Bjorklund), he can't help but shake the fact that he needs to get revenge for the fact that Murdoch and his boys betrayed his long-time loyalty to them. So, risking it all - including a potentially brighter future with Jackie - The Butcher gambles one last time...for his life.

There's a lot to recommend about The Butcher. The style of it is fairly downbeat and a bit unorthodox, with some interesting flashbacks. It seems influenced by the "L.A. Noir" of the past. It's a fantastic showcase for fan favorite Eric Roberts as well, as he not only gets to ponder on the existential side of things, he also does some Eric Roberts-Fu on the baddies, and he shoots a whole heck of a lot of them as well. 

Director Johnson is almost venerable towards Roberts and gives him the starring role he deserves. There are a lot of other interesting character moments as well - Davi doing an Irish accent, instead of the expected Italian one, was a surprise treat. Woodbine and David as The Butcher's gambling cronies added a lot. The great Geoffrey Lewis as Naylor, the pawnshop owner, stood out. Although he only appears in the silent flashbacks, Vernon G. Wells is hiding in there as well. And this has to be one of the best-ever performances in Jerry Trimble's career.

The cast is strong and the main idea behind the film is simple but effective. We've seen a good amount of Johnson's films at this point, and he really seems to understand action and what the fans want. He's one of the very few directors out there that really seem completely dedicated to the action genre. 

While The Butcher is far from a thrill a minute - it's deliberately paced and takes time to build up a head of steam - Johnson seems to be showing the fact that you can combine action violence and quasi-film noir without a hitch. When the action does come, it's explosive. It's all the more impactful because of the character moments that surround it. Johnson does his best to eschew cardboard characterizations. 

We applaud everything about the film, with the exception of one little caveat. It's too long. At almost two full hours, we couldn't help but think that if it was trimmed down to 90 minutes or so, it could have worked better. Yes, we realize we just contradicted ourselves a bit - it takes time to build up character moments, so how can we say we love those moments and then want to cut them - but surely a few trims here and there just to get things down to a reasonable running time couldn't hurt.

Perhaps interestingly, the working title for the Van Damme film 6 Bullets (2012) was The Butcher. They must have realized that this The Butcher predated it, then they changed it. Then they got Joe Flanigan. As all movies should.

The Butcher is a solid film all around with a lot of good points and highlights. Its mix of thoughtfulness in with the violence was appreciated. There are interesting faces, as well as ideas, and the cast is excellent. The only thorn in the movie's side is that it's too long. So, as that's not a complete dealbreaker, we say check it out.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Savage Dog (2017)

Savage Dog (2017)- * * *

Directed by: Jesse Johnson

Starring: Scott Adkins, Keith David, Juju Chan, Marko Zaror, Charles Fathy, Cung Le, Aki Aleong, Matthew Marsden and Vladimir Kulich

Martin Tillman (Adkins) is an Irishman and expert fighter. His rise to the top of the fight game is severely hampered by the fact that it’s 1959 and he’s in an Indochinese forced-labor camp. So he survives the only way he can - by becoming the number-one champ in the brawls that are held within said camp. These fights are held outside, so all the locals can see them, and Tillman becomes extremely popular. So much so that when it comes time for him to be released, the cadre of baddies that run the camp – Rastignac (Zaror), Steiner (Kulich), Boon (Le), and Amarillo (Fathy) – don’t want him to leave. Of course, Tillman does indeed get out of there but he stays in Indochina to work at a bar run by his buddy Valentine (David) and his wife Isabelle (Chan). 

Naturally, trouble starts when the baddies don’t leave them alone. After something happens (we won’t say what; no spoilers here), Tillman is forced to go on a rampage of revenge against his former captors. As if all that wasn’t enough, he’s also being trailed by a British government agent named Harrison (Marsden) for his supposed former connections to the IRA. Luckily, Tillman was trained to fight locally by a Tribal Chieftain (Aleong). Will Tillman get revenge and show he’s a SAVAGE DOG for the last time?

Thank goodness for Scott Adkins. He really is keeping the flame of the golden age of action cinema alive and burning. If it wasn’t for him, where would we be today? We’d have to fall back on the films still being made by the prior generation of action stars that are still working. Not that that is such a bad thing, but, let’s face it, Adkins has the vitality that some of the older guys naturally are losing over time. It’s fun to watch Adkins because he’s likable and has killer Martial Arts abilities. That formula is necessary for a truly great action star, so it’s no wonder he works so much in the DTV industry. He’s one of the very few men of action out there still left, so of course filmmakers are going to use him if they want to make this type of movie. 

While Savage Dog is indeed a Punchfighter/Revenge Movie, we applaud the filmmakers for at least giving it a setting that is different – the fifties and the former Indochina. That was a nice change of pace. Adkins and David have a nice chemistry together, and the fights overall are executed very well. The whole second half of the movie is simply Tillman getting revenge. That’s what’s good about DTV as opposed to Hollywood – you know they aren’t going to wuss out and revenge will be appropriately violent and bloody.


Nowhere is that more true than here in Savage Dog. For whatever reason – maybe it’s to further separate itself from its competitors even more so than its chosen time and place – writer/director Johnson decided to go not just with the standard action violence, but gore as well. While we certainly weren’t offended by it, it just seemed a little unnecessary. Rather than have limbs and heads being graphically chopped up and mutilated, maybe they could have concentrated a little more on the final fights between Adkins and Le and/or Zaror. If they extended each fight by 30 seconds instead of gore-ing it up, that would have fit the bill just fine. But as it stands, it makes Savage Dog something of an oddity.

A movie that surely lives up to its name, Savage Dog is perfect for Adkins fans, and nicely narrated by David. We say check it out.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett

Marked For Death (1990)

Marked For Death (1990)- * * *1\2

Directed by: Dwight H. Little

Starring: Steven Seagal, Basil Wallace, Tom Wright, Joanna Pacula, and Keith David

John Hatcher (Seagal) is a retired DEA agent and now police “troubleshooter” who doesn’t like the fact that a ruthless Jamaican gang is now selling drugs to children at the local schools and getting into violent turf wars. (We’re helpfully informed that these gangs are called “posses”). Deciding to clean up the streets, he teams up with old buddy Max (David) and a Jamaican cop named Charles (Wright). But a psychotic, violent, pure evil baddie named Screwface (Wallace) is the head of the snake, as it were. It seems that these Jamaicans are not irie. Not irie at all. When members of Screwface’s gang – sorry, posse – target Hatcher’s sister and her young daughter, Hatcher gets really mad and decides to eliminate the posse for good. He even gets to travel to Jamaica, which seems like a delightful perk during your vengeance-obsessed rampage. Will Hatcher and the gang get Screwface…or will the fact that he’s MARKED FOR DEATH get in his way? Find out today!

Ah, to go back to those golden years when action movies were violent, bone-crunching affairs that delivered the goods with a nice, simple revenge plot, some nudity, a few car chases, shootouts, Martial Arts scenes, and a minimum of dilly-dallying; when Seagal movies had quality, the good guys were good and the bad guys were evil. This is exactly what Marked For Death encompasses, and we couldn’t be happier about it. 

The initial Seagal “three-word title” era was clearly the best time in his career, and here is a prime example from those glory years. It seems he actually cares, and all he wants to do is take drugs off the streets – WAY off. If that means some baddies have a rough time of it, so be it. Comes with the territory.

Because Seagal was embraced by Hollywood at the time, it has good production values and is shot well. Perhaps one of the all-time best Seagal action sequences is in Marked For Death – the car chase/mall fight. It’s truly excellent and Seagal at his best. Teaming him up with Keith David so they can go bust some heads was the right choice and pays off well. 

Opposite them is a tour-de-force performance by Basil Wallace as Screwface – Wallace goes “all in” as a truly scary and unhinged bad guy. Action movies need a bad baddie, as we always say, and here you get a doozy. It would have been nice to see more of Joanna Pacula, but something had to give, because this movie really moves – great pacing is another plus here. There’s really not much fat to speak of. That would come in later Seagal vehicles.

Right before Hatcher and Max go on their final “revenge vacation” to Jamaica, there’s a nice “making the weapons” montage that we always love to see. These guys don’t do off-the-rack bullets. They take the time to craft their own. If Seagal’s career as a Lawman ever ends (we hope it doesn’t), he could always move back to Brooklyn – where he was in Out For Justice – and sell artisanal ammunition. That even has a nice ring to it. 

And, in what is perhaps the opposite of Burt Reynolds in Malone (1987), everybody already knows Hatcher. From the local hoodlums to the police higher-ups, it seems everybody is always saying something like, “oh, it’s you, Hatcher” – everyone in Chicago has had prior experience with the guy. Someone else that knows Hatcher (well, Seagal, really)? Jimmy Cliff. Seagal insisted he perform in the movie, and he even does so with the musical backing of Seagal himself. He also co-wrote the song “John Crow”, which makes sense as it directly mentions the name Screwface in the lyrics. You never see movies nowadays that reference the characters in song. It’s really a shame we’ve lost that.

Marked For Death represents the middle of an action-movie trifecta for director Dwight Little. Previous to this, he directed Getting Even (1986) of “Kenderson!!!!” fame, and after it he came up with another winner – Rapid Fire (1992). Clearly the guy knows his stuff, which would explain why Marked For Death delivers the goods. Too bad he had to go into TV work because Hollywood sucks so much now. He should have continued making enjoyable action movies like the three mentioned above – imagine what he could have done had he continued on that path? Well, let’s be thankful for what we’ve got.

Perhaps not wanting to seem insensitive to the Jamaican community, there is a credit at the end of the  movie that informs us that – and I’m paraphrasing here – “bad Jamaicans” represent less than one percent of the total Jamaican population in the U.S., and that the evils of posses were blown out of proportion for entertainment purposes only. 

I’m sure immigrant communities that saw Marked For Death and then waited until the end of the end credits appreciated this. In other words, relax, people, Screwface isn’t going to be coming to a community near you. However, due to the popularity of then-current In Living Color sketch “Hey Mon!” and its hardworking ethos, this may have been rendered unnecessary. But we digress. Sometimes pretty far.

Marked For Death is prime early-90’s video store action, prime Seagal, and a darn fine time in front of your TV screen. Crack open a cold one and enjoy.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett 

Nails (1992)

Nails (1992)- * * *1\2

Directed by: John Flynn

Starring: Dennis Hopper, Earl Billings, Anne Archer, Cliff DeYoung, Keith David, Tomas Milian, and John Hawkes










Harry “Nails” Niles (Hopper) is an LAPD homicide cop - and perhaps the ultimate Cop On the Edge! While his clueless co-workers call him a “dinosaur”, Nails’ old-school ways get results, and you don’t want to get on his bad side. But that’s just what happens when a gang of Cuban drug dealers kills Nails’ beloved Black Partner, Willis (Billings). Nails goes after them with a vengeance, turning L.A. upside down in the process. Not just to avenge Willis, but to settle some of his unfinished business as well. Willis, before his untimely death, was “working on something big” - and it just may be a criminal conspiracy that goes all the way to the top! 

Now back with his old partner, Herrera (Milian), Nails, in his own inimitable fashion, tries to find out how Congressman Stambusky (De Young) and his cohort Noah Owens (David) are involved. And all this while he tries to reconnect with old flame Mary (Archer). Will the bad guys get NAILED once and for all?

Nails is a killer Cop On The Edge movie, and getting Dennis Hopper to play him was an inspired choice. This movie truly is Hopper at his absolute best - his energy, charisma and likability carry the film. He’s angry and drinking from the get-go, just as it should be. Just why this L.A. cop has a Southern accent is never explained (or ever mentioned) but it’s all part of the fun. 

But it’s not all violence and darkness, there’s some nice humor as well and Hopper gives the Nails character charm, in his own unique way. It’s almost weird James Ellroy wasn’t involved with this project, it’s almost like Dark Blue (2002) or Street Kings (2008) in its approach, before those movies came on the scene.

You really have to enjoy cop drama/thrillers (and preferably have seen a lot of them) to properly appreciate Nails. It has just about every cliche you can name - and as we always say, that’s not a bad thing and we need these cliches for our entertainment purposes. 

The Black partner who’s close to retirement, the drug deal gone wrong, the abandoned warehouse, the WYC (White Yelling Chief), the WYC who demands our rogue cop hand in his badge and gun, the echoey guitar riffs on the soundtrack during chases/tense scenes, and of course the Cop On The Edge itself, and so much more. Those of you out there that enjoy these things, like we do, will have a feast here. 

The movie gets further bonus points for being about dyspeptic middle-aged people, not stupid, flashy kids, there’s a lot of un-PC dialogue, there’s no stupid little kid to ruin things, and, the original foodie, Herrera is always seen eating. Usually a burrito. If you don’t like it, take it up with Harry Niles.

We should take a moment here to recognize the unheralded genius of director John Flynn. It’s an absolute tragedy that he’s not a household name, yet plagiarists like Tarantino are. Besides directing the early Seagal in Out For Justice (1991), he also did Lock Up (1989) with Sly, the underrated James Woods vehicle Best Seller (1987), and the Jan Michael Vincent movie Defiance (1980). But the Coup De Grace is that he directed one of the best movies ever, Rolling Thunder (1977). If he directed nothing else but that in his career, he would be a legend in our eyes. But his career making tough, interesting fare speaks for itself. 

Back to the cast, Milian is likable as Herrera, Archer does well in a somewhat thankless role, Keith David fits the bill perfectly as Owens, and Cliff De Young, interestingly enough, plays a guy named Stambusky, which, though different, today has connotations of a certain child molester that are hard to ignore.

Featuring an end credits song by Eddie Money, Nails might be THE classic example of the Cop On The Edge movie. We say see it soon.

Comeuppance Review by: Ty and Brett

Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988)

Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988)- * * *1\2

Directed by: Aaron Norris

Starring: Chuck Norris, Aki Aleong, Yehuda Efroni, Miki Kim, Roland Harrah III, and Keith David













Braddock is back once again in this triumphant end to the trilogy. This time around, Braddock (Chuck, of course) is just trying to live life one day at a time after the end of the war. He’s informed by a kindly priest, Rev. Polanski (Efroni) that his wife Lin (Kim), who is Vietnamese, is still alive there. After all these years, he thought she was dead. So he travels back to ‘Nam to reunite with her. He also finally sees his 12 year old son Van (Harrah). Ruining the emotional moment, there’s yet another sadistic Vietnamese General, Gen. Quoc (Aleong). He hates Braddock - and also children - so Braddock has to not just get out of the country, but bring an entire orphanage along with him! Can Braddock do it?

To us, this third and final installment in the Braddock trilogy is clearly the best. It’s funnier, looser, weirder, and has a different vibe from the previous two films. Possibly due to the fact that it was made three years after the second movie and this time it’s directed by Aaron Norris. Because it, honestly, didn’t really have to be made, it has kind of an “Eh, screw it” kind of vibe and they just threw everything at the wall to see what sticks. Luckily, this approach is totally winning.

Everything, perhaps in spite of itself, seems to work here: Braddock showing his sensitive side, the especially dark Prerequisite Torture, the fact that Braddock’s son calls him “Braddock”, the fact that Gen. Quoc is constantly screaming “Braddock!!!!!”, the Patton (1970)-like musical stings, Braddock’s awesomely awesome “Supergun”, and many more excellent moments. 

All three movies had quality explosions, and this one doesn’t disappoint in the blow-ups department either. Matching that are some top-notch neck snaps as well. The whole movie is loaded with that classic 80’s violence/silliness/patriotism mix that’s the hallmark of the Golden Age of video-store action movies of the day. It’s incredibly addictive once you get into them (and since you’re reading this site, we assume you also have got the bug, and we thank you).

Besides all the onscreen action, some of the dialogue is priceless too. Most outstanding, of course, is the super-quotable “I don’t step on toes...I step on necks” line, which Braddock actually lives up to later in the movie. The music by Ron Bloom and Lenny McDonald adds a lot, and their Bruce Springsteen-meets-Warren Zevon songs add another layer of icing for the wedding cake of radness that is Braddock. 

Also adding to the list of Braddock firsts, this is the first of the three to be released on the Media label. You have to buy this movie on VHS for one very simple reason: there is an amazing commercial on the tape for Braddock merchandise. You can get Braddock hats, T-shirts and sweatshirts. This commercial alone makes the tape worth buying.

We love this movie for some very personal reasons. It’s the first Braddock movie we all saw, and we rented it from our local video store back in the 90’s. As a group of friends, we watched the movie, and two things of note happened: we misheard the song lyrics in the beginning, and we imagined the ultra-gruff vocalist sang: “In the streets of Saigon, when my ass was king”. So we continue to quote that (plus you can‘t deny it’s true in Chuck’s case - we just thought the singer was being a bit on the nose) to this day. And, somehow, another song was crafted. Sung to the tune of “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina” came: “Don’t cry for me Col. Braddock, I know that you’re missing in action.” (Thanks Ant).  So clearly we have a strong personal connection to this fine film that you might not have. But that’s the genius of Braddock. He inspires creativity. There may be a heavy metal CD in the works that’s a concept album all about Braddock. It truly never ends.

Nevertheless, this, the best of the Braddock movies, represents a fine end to the trilogy. It’s highly rare that sequels get BETTER as they go along, yet the Braddock movies get absolutely no credit for bucking that trend. It might be the only trilogy in movie history to improve as it goes along, but do you ever hear anyone say that? No, of course not. So take a trip to the Philippines and watch Braddock work his magic, one more time.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty

Also check out a write-up by our friends at Ruthless Reviews!

Executive Target (1997)

Executive Target (1997)-* * *

Directed by: Joseph Merhi

Starring: Michael Madsen, Angie Everhart, Keith David, Roy Scheider, Dayton Callie, Gareth Williams, Robert Miano, and Matthias Hues




"First I get the money, then I get the Prez..."-Nick






Nick James (Madsen) is a professional stunt car driver who is on his way to prison. While riding the prison transfer bus, Lacey (Everhart) and the stupidly-named Clay Ripple (Williams) manage to break him out and he escapes. They do this because they are the minions of super-villain Lamar (David). Lamar hears that Nick is the best at what he does and they want him to be the wheelman for a bank robbery. Nick wants no part of it, but they kidnap his wife Nadia (Christopherson) and say they will kill her if he doesn’t comply. But there’s something bigger afoot: to quote the movie’s tagline, “Kidnapping the President is worth a hell of a lot of money”.  So while Nick does technically kidnap President Carlson (Scheider), The Prez is sympathetic to Nick’s situation and they vow to take down Lamar’s terrorist organization.

PM once again delivers the car-flipping-over-and-exploding-in-the-middle-of-the-street goods, at least in the action department. Sure, the chase scenes are overlong and contain some classic cliches (fruit carts and women with carriages, the only thing missing was two workers carrying a large pane of glass), but, like Last Man Standing (1996), it seems Pepin & Merhi were trying, even STRIVING for theatrical quality. It doesn’t quite make it, but at least they’re trying, unlike many of their competitors.

One of the more convincing reasons to watch this movie is the cast. We didn’t even mention Robert Miano and Matthias Hues. Sadly, it’s a nothing role for Hues, as he plays Vic, a bank robber who gets shot (remind you of any other Michael Madsen movies?). He doesn’t appear until forty minutes into the film, and has only one line of spoken dialogue: “I Can’t”. Unless you count some of his moanings and groanings while he is wounded. Gareth Williams is hate-able as Ripple, Keith David goes way over the top as the main baddie, but what do you expect of a criminal mastermind with an underground command center so large, it has its own name - “Area 55”? But somehow the authorities don’t know this place exists. Maybe that’s because it’s “two hours outside L.A.”. Because nothing exists there, right?

Scheider plays exactly the same role he does in The Peacekeeper (1997) (why is he even here?), Madsen is laconic, and Everhart is fun to watch as she plays the villainess with the permanent scowl on her face. You gotta love the banter between some of the characters, it’s priceless (well, more groan-inducing). Especially the scenes with Nick’s buddy Bela (Callie).

If it’s car stunts and blow-ups you seek, look no further. This movie exemplifies the PM credo that multiple, gigantic explosions and cars flying and flipping every which way need not make sense or have any justification - it’s just awesome to watch and can be highly entertaining, if in a pretty dumb way. But these stunts took a lot of work and effort to pull off, and we recognize and respect that. These are REAL stunts, not CGI garbage. We wholly support the true stunt/pyrotechnic masterminds behind Executive Target.

Comeuppance Review by: Brett and Ty