OUT FOR JUSTICE (1991)

Directed by John Flynn. Starring: Steven Seagal, William Forsythe, Jerry Orbach, Gina Gershon, Jo Champa, Dominic Chiansese. Action/Drama. Synopsis: A Brooklyn narcotics officer goes on an intense manhunt through the streets and homes of his own neighborhood to bring the killer of his partner to justice. Along the way, he must face some current and past personal demons as his search brings him face to face with people he has known all of his life, on both sides of the law. 

Well, after recently giving one poor and one mediocre review ( d****** it with faint praise), to two recent Seagal movies (Mercenary for Justice, Shadow Man) , I decided to dust off one of my favorite enigmatic action hero's movies and give it a look see for the first time since I was still a member of the under 30 club and the senior Bush was preparing to sweep to an easy reelection. 

Well, for about two hours it was the early 90's again, the absolute magical value of film to, in some cases, whisk us away to another time and/or place for a little while and entertain us to boot. Out for Justice is vintage Seagal, and we see the lean, energetic, charismatic action here who just seems to be seething beneath the cool, pony-tailed exterior. This film, along with Above the Law, are probably the best of the purely Seagal films (I don't count Under Siege or Executive Decision, while both are better films, in my view, neither can fairly or accurately be said to be a purely Seagal film). When watching Gino (Seagal) work his way through the streets of his old neighborhood in Brooklyn, you remember that, at one point in time, Seagal's acting ability was not as readily panned by fans as it is today with his current, uninspired releases.

From the start, we see that Gino is a cop more interested in making things right than the strict letter of the law or police procedure. He emphatically avenges a street hooker who is taking a beating at the hands of her pimp at the expense of blowing an unrelated undercover surveillance operation. Gino throws the loud mouth around and finally sends him through the windshield of a car, his ostentatious red boots sticking out.

A very interesting opening 40 seconds or so. Now, the story moves on to the real action. Quickly. We see Gino trying to spend some quality time with his son amidst a pending divorce from his wife (Jo Champa), but is interrupted with the news that his partner Bobby has been shot down in cold blood on the street in front of his wife and kids. There is no question as to the killer, its Richie (William Forsythe Extreme Prejudice) a neighborhood ne'er- do-well with breathtaking crack addiction and un unexplainable death wish as he embarks on his killing rampage with the full knowledge that the cops, the local mob, and, of course Gino, are looking to put a permanent end to him. Oh, and its made juicier by the fact that Gino and Richie have known each other since they were kids, with Richie's father (Dominic Chianese The Sopranos) being a surrogate dad to Gino.

The action is non stop and the story interesting, as we see Richie slipping further and further off the deep end, and Gino becoming more and more aggressive and unforgiving in his pursuit of Richie, particularly in a wonderful couple of scenes with Richies's sister, Patti (Gina Gershon Bound) who melts the screen with her tough sensuality.

Seagal fans will see their hero at his fighting best here, the fight scenes are crisp and he actually faces someone in this film with a knowledge of martial arts. The pool cues as swords scene against "Sticks" in the pool hall is one for the ages for movie fight fans. Another treat to this film is that we see the late, great Jerry Orbach in a limited role as the Captain who reluctantly, but wisely, gives Gino free reign to run over Brooklyn in search of Richie.

This is clearly one of Seagal's best efforts, and I don't know if anyone could ask for a better Richie than Forsythe, who plays it perfectly. The bad guy in this one is not some faceless goverment operator, or someone with next level martial arts knowledge or high level weapons. He's not particularly all that bright, either, but what he needs to come across as is scary due to the level of his hate and drug induced paranoia. Forsythe does this in spades. The strong supporting cast shows you nonbelievers that, at one point in time, Seagal could command major $ backing from a top studio.

Out for Justice is not just a "beat 'im up" action flick, either, there is an undercurrent of coming to grips with the past, reconciliation, and the definition of friends. Is it great, thought provoking stuff? No. But, its there and its not to bad nor does it take from the film. For those of you too young to remember Seagal at his height or who have formed an opinion based on his post 1996 stuff, check this one out to see what we Seagal fans were fussing about at the time and missing now.