On Deadly Ground (1994)

Director:

Steven Seagal

Writers (WGA):

Ed Horowitz (written by) &
Robin U. Russin (written by)

Release Date:

18 February 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

His battle to save the Alaskan wilderness and protect its people can only be won...

Plot:

Mystical martial artist/environmental agent takes on a ruthless oil corporation.

Plot Keywords:

Environmental | Directed By Star | Alaska | Crooked Businessman | Environmental Activism

Awards:

1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Steven Seagal	...	Forrest Taft
Michael Caine	...	Michael Jennings
Joan Chen	...	Masu
John C. McGinley	...	MacGruder
R. Lee Ermey	...	Stone
Shari Shattuck	...	Liles
Billy Bob Thornton	...	Homer Carlton
Richard Hamilton	...	Hugh Palmer
Chief Irvin Brink	...	Silook
Apanguluk Charlie Kairaiuak	...	Tunrak
Elsie Pistolhead	...	Takanapsaluk
John Trudell	...	Johnny Redfeather
Mike Starr	...	Big Mike
Sven-Ole Thorsen	...	Otto (as Swen-Ole Thorsen)
Jules Desjarlais	...	Drunken Eskimo

Also Known As:

Rainbow Warrior (USA) (working title)
Spirit Warrior (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Inuktitut

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Philippines:R-18 | Iceland:16 | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Germany:18 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:15 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (cut) | USA:R | Norway:18 (video premiere) (1994) | Norway:(Banned) (1994-2003) (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Fletcher Oil Refinery - 24721 Main Street, Carson, California, USA

Company:

Seagal/Nasso Productions

Trivia:

The ideas for titles of the film were “Rainbow Warrior” and “Spint Warrior”.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: When Seagal hurls a villain through a pane of glass, a microphone and its operator are very visible to the left of the shot.

Quotes:

Spinks: [on Forrest] Our man in D.C. finds *nothin'* on this guy before 1987, which means either he was born fully grown, or his background is *so* top secret, it doesn't even *flag* "Top Secret" when you run his jacket.

Movie Connections:

References Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)

Soundtrack:

HARD WORKIN' MAN

Ludicrous.

Steven Seagal sets out to protect the environment by blowing most of it up. Oh, and killing a few people too. This is a message movie with a VERY confused message. Still, most Seagal fans won't care for the movie's moral subtext (subtext? hah!), they'll just want to see their hero bust some chops. In an ecologically sound way, of course.

This movie is so inept there's precious little of even THAT. Large chunks of the movie are instead spent with po-faced Seagal staring solemnly into the camera waxing lyrical about how he loves the earth. Well so do I, but living on this planet does have its drawbacks; after all, this is a world where brainless studio execs throw money at Seagal to go BEHIND the camera as well! Isn't letting him stand in front of it enough? Come to think of it, isn't letting him even 20 feet near the studio... Ah well. "Under Siege" only worked because of the villains.

Let's just try and forget Michael Caine was ever in this; we can grant him that small mercy at least. Oh to have been a fly on the wall when Seagal was directing the Cockernee one. STEVE: "Well you just stand there... " MIKE: "What do I emote?" STEVE: (blankly) Emote... ?

It's pitifully obvious no-one tried to restrain Caine's excesses on set. How else do you explain the blatant caricature of his performance? He may as well have had E.V.I.L. stamped across his forehead...

If you were still even THINKING that you might enjoy this for some other reason than 'camp' value after reading the plot summary, there is no hope for you. Those who watch EXPECTING to find a bad movie will be heartily rewarded for their nous. "Steve saves the environment and kills bad guys" is even less interesting with the added plot element. Scary, huh?