Marked for Death
1990 Directed by Dwight H. Little
Synopsis
Just retired from the Drug Enforcement Agency, John Hatcher (Seagal) returns to his hometown and quickly discovers that drugs have infiltrated his old neighborhood. Determined to drive the dealers out , Hatcher crosses pathes with a ferocious Jamaican druglord who vowes that Hatcher and his family are now marked for death.
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"One thought he was invincible... the other thought he could fly.....They were both wrong."
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Seagal’s third feature outing is perhaps his most brutal, but lacks the pace of his next film, “Out for Justice”.
But it’s certainly a step up from his debut "Above the law".A big plus with “Marked for Death” is that we have a full-on theatrical villain! Something seriously lacking in “Hard to Kill”.
Here the bad guy is a whacked-out, Voodoo practising, Babylon grooving, Jamaican psycho of the most deranged order, lovingly named 'Screwface' (Basil Wallace, having a furiously good time).‘Screwface and his gang also bring up a pretty unique aspect to any American action film…that of Jamaican bad guys. And screenwriters Michael Grais and Mark Victor certainly make the most of this Jamaican twist.
We are treated… -
Seagals best film. Featuring such stunning lines:
"You want some blow? " "Yeah I'll blow your f**king head off!!"
Even the trailer for this was great with our Stevey swinging a sword around (Despite only doing that in the film for all of about 2 minutes). Fantastic!
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"One thought he was invincible... the other thought he could fly.....They were both wrong."
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I actually think Dwight H. Little is a really solid B-director. His Halloween sequel is the best since the original, while Rapid Fire with Brandon Lee is a favourite American martial arts flick. Even his Tekken flick from a couple of years ago was better than it had any right to be. So it's a shame he got lumbered with this limp early Seagal vehicle, which is basically the same as all the others. Terrible acting, pattycake fights and Seagal's weird greasy ponytail.
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Seagal actioner from the nineties as he plays his usual tough guy role against a group of jamaican dug dealers. Mumbling his way through a decent revenge thriller this film is full of bad acting and plenty of violence.A guilty pleasure.
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Seagal’s third feature outing is perhaps his most brutal, but lacks the pace of his next film, “Out for Justice”.
But it’s certainly a step up from his debut "Above the law".A big plus with “Marked for Death” is that we have a full-on theatrical villain! Something seriously lacking in “Hard to Kill”.
Here the bad guy is a whacked-out, Voodoo practising, Babylon grooving, Jamaican psycho of the most deranged order, lovingly named 'Screwface' (Basil Wallace, having a furiously good time).‘Screwface and his gang also bring up a pretty unique aspect to any American action film…that of Jamaican bad guys. And screenwriters Michael Grais and Mark Victor certainly make the most of this Jamaican twist.
We are treated… -
Second best Seagal film, Steven takes on Jamaican drug posses (a popular subject in the late 80's). Horrifically violent with bone breaking aikido moves from Seagal.
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Steven Seagal. There was a time when he made entertaining action films. Sure, his movies are remarkably similar - Seagal forever playing an unstoppable badass and using martial arts to take down the bad guys - but where they fail to deliver on originality, they deliver on action, fun and even humour (whether they intend to amuse or not.)
Last weekend, I had the pleasure of finding Marked for Death on TV. For me, Marked for Death is easily among Seagal’s best films. The film opens with John Hatcher, a Drug Enforcement Agent beating and bullying drug dealers and shooting a prostitute in the back. Next, we find Hatcher in a confessional repenting for a long and impressive list of…
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BLOOD CLOT!
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A slick, early Seagal actioner which is undeniably badass but also quite uninvolving and unlikable. It's always fun to see Seagal hurt people, but here, the story isn't much and the characters are pretty one-note and cliched. I like it, but not as much as Seagal's others.
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Enjoyable 80s-era action flick (although technically it's 1990) starring Steven Seagal. This was during the early Seagal run when he was a legitimate action star and releasing a steady stream of major theatrical releases.
One of the bloodier entries, it moves at a good clip and has some solid action scenes. Still though, it actually isn't quite as good as I remembered it being, with more 80s cheese, pedestrian cinematography, and bad acting on display than I had thought.
I waffled between a 3 and 3.5 star, but looking at other films I have at 3.5 I have to slot this at a 3. This is very comparable to Punisher: War Zone which I put at a 3.5; I think Punisher earns that extra half star based purely on modern sensibilities and production values, but they are similar flicks. Consider Marked for Death recommended if you are looking for a relatively quick, bloody action flick that doesn't offer much else.