Raven (1996) (V)

Director:

Russell Solberg

Writer:

Jacobsen Hart (writer)

Release Date:

14 October 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Action

Tagline:

For years the government paid him to kill. Now he is self-employed!

Plot:

A notorious criminal is hunted down by the elite Raven Special Forces team when things go wrong on a mission to capture stolen military hardware.

Plot Keywords:

Betrayal | Helicopter | Thrown Through Window | Hand Grenade | Plastic Explosive

Cast

Burt Reynolds	...	Jerome 'Raven' Katz
Matt Battaglia	...	Martin Grant,a.k.a. 'Duce'
Krista Allen	...	Cali Goodwin
David Ackroyd	...	Bill Gilley
Richard Gant	...	Russ Carlson
Angela Harry	...	Eva
Walter Olkewicz	...	Bernie DeFrewd
Madison Mason	...	Governor Sklar
Kim Chase	...	Sharon
Christopher Mayer	...	Hub (as Chip Mayer)
Charles Wahlheim	...	Ablin
Michael Saad	...	Adeeb (as Mike Saad)
Charles Walker	...	Al Ryan
Peter Savard	...	Sen. Berg
Mike White	...	Mike

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, and for sexuality and some language.

Runtime:

Netherlands:93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:M | Germany:18 | UK:18 (video premiere) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

San Diego, California, USA

Company:

Stu Segall Productions

A shameless misfire...

Disjointed action film features an unfunny Burt Reynolds as Raven (hence, the title character), the leader of a team of hotshot mercenaries. This specialized team of hardcore mercenaries serve as government operatives to the United States. On a routine mission in Bosnia, the mercenary fighters must retrieve a "decoder" device which will render the U.S. the most powerful nation in the world. However, when the going gets the tough, the tough turn into a state of foolishness. Each squad member becomes systematically eliminated...and the mission was deemed...a fiasco...

Raven, left for dead due to a helicopter crash...has turned out to be very much alive...and boy...is he having fun eliminating the competition... Raven, after taking a one year hiatus from his enjoyable job as a professional killer, is now self-employed. He feels a necessity to eradicate the "Four Stars," a group comprising of corrupt U.S. Senators who were responsible for selling Raven out during the disastrous mission at Bosnia. One by one, the members of the Four Stars succumb to Raven's various booby traps, and the remaining few must join forces with several ex-mercenaries for Raven is capable of undermining an esoteric government conspiracy. When the odds turn substantially difficult, the hardened feel compelled...to spout out stupid wisecracks!

RAVEN was a bomb of titanic proportions. The film's premise was one extended cliché with every stereotypical characters (i.e. Corrupt government officials, lonesome mercenary, damsel-in-distress, etc.) imaginable. The pyrotechnics were plentiful, and the body count was surprising high, but RAVEN lacked pizzazz and both a credible cast and plot. The humor in RAVEN, granted, was hysterical at times. Still, the humor in RAVEN was undeniably sophomoric...

RAVEN was a numbing experience. The film tried to be a mixture of both a comedy and an action/adventure film. However, this film manages to FAIL on both accounts. The motion picture, RAVEN, like a nomad, wanders around aimlessly with nowhere to go and no direction to seek. This movie had absolutely no ambitions and the ineptitude cages the entire film in, being viewed as no more than a low-rent actioner. Burt Reynolds certainly has done better films in his life...and he definitely has had better experiences.

RAVEN is simply a pitiful, trite, as low as they can get thriller with no suspense that can't be predicted a million miles away. SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT this is not! The only justifiable reason to watch this movie is to check out the fine actress, Krista Allen, who shows plenty of promise. Her dynamic appeal and wonderful personality make this film barely palatable.

RATING: *1/2 out of ****.