[.ca] Action Jackson (Full Screen) (ISBN 0790742004)

From Amazon.com:
Having built a name for himself playing Apollo Creed in the Rocky movies, Carl Weathers hoped to launch his own action-hero franchise as the wishfully named Action Jackson. But this first film never took off and it turned into a one-movie series. Weathers plays Jackson, a police sergeant so nicknamed because he always seems to be where the action is. He runs afoul of an evil auto magnate (Craig T. Nelson), who promptly sets about putting Jackson in the middle of a jackpot for murder. Jackson springs himself from jail and goes on the run, aided by junkie-with-a-heart-of-gold Vanity, before bringing Nelson to justice. Weathers is an impressive specimen but an indistinct personality (though he can handle a one-liner), and he's overmatched against fire-breathing villain Nelson. --Marshall Fine

Bad, But In A Good Way..:
This movie has every single cop show cliche in the book, but it is hilarious nonetheless. The yelling police captain boss, the main character who's "unorthodox methods" get the job done but get him in trouble and the bumbling fellow cops. Lets not forget the villain and his cadre of super-baddies. Vanity is particularly terrible and Sharon Stone is displayed here in a pre-"I'm a serious actress" mode. Great fun.

Apollo Creed goes down for the count...:
Always looking for a little something to add to my repertoire of silly action fare, I decided to give Action Jackson a whirl. I figured that it'd be at least half-way decent; it was produced by Joel Silver, the guy who oversaw the production of the Lethal Weapon flicks and the first two Die Hards, after all. With a resume like that, how could'ja go wrong? Whoops, forgot about 'The Last Boy Scout'... I found 'Action Jackson' to be not just a bad movie, but a legendarily bad movie. What's the diff between 'bad' and 'legendarily bad', you ask? 'Bad' is when I watch a dumb movie once, and have no interest in watching it again. 'Legendarily bad' is when I watch a dumb movie once, and I am so astonished by how bad it is, I hafta watch it again, 'cuz I couldn't believe how lousy it was the first time 'round. Simply put, it's the cinematic rendition of me doin' a double-take. It was also a sad waste of approximately three hours of my life that could've been better spent watchin' the grass in my back yard grow... Anyway, on to our star of the show, Carl Weathers. After watching him perform in this sad affair, I'd say that, for a leading man, he makes a really good supporting character. Then again, it probably wasn't his fault-there's only so much one can do when one is working off of a lousy script filled with really lame jokes and hokey one-liners. On the upside, though, his character does manage to survive all the way through the movie, which had become a rare thing for him ever since Rocky IV... Craig T. Nelson of 'Coach' fame is the heavy, a psychotic car manufacturer (the movie's based in Detroit) with aspirations of becoming a political kingmaker. Sadly, after spending a few nights watching him in 'Coach', I can't take Nelson seriously in any role that's not comedic-well, except perhaps as Carol-Ann's dad in 'Poltergeist'. But other than that, he just looks a bit too goofy to pull off the 'Underhanded-action-flick-bad-guy' deal. I did love him overselling his character's death (following a nice, juicy blood squib) for all he's worth, though-that was good for a chuckle or two. And alas, there's poor Sharon Stone in one of her less-than-memorable pre-Total Recall roles (not to mention one of her not-so-notable pre-Basic Instinct nudie scenes) as she plays the ill-fated wife of the future college football coach-- whoops, I mean avaricious car builder. Taking into consideration how retarded this flick is, I find her character's murder by her significant other halfway into the proceedings a mercy killing... Other notable appearances include... - Thomas Wilson, best known as Biff "Hello, McFly?!" Tannen from the 'Back to the Future' movies, appears here as a smarmy, smart-aleck patrolman. His performance is reminiscent of Bill Paxton's most famous roles (think of Chet from 'Weird Science' crossed with Simon from 'True Lies'), only without any of the wit or warmth. - Robert Davi as a tightly-wound and highly paranoid friend of Jackson's who knows just a little too much about the main heavy's avaricious aspirations. And you know what that means, right? Yep, you guessed it-- several seconds after tellin' our hero all he knows, he's bumped off in his apartment by a henchman disguised as a UPS driver. Y'know, for a guy who's is tryin' to lay low, and jumps at every little sound he hears, Davi's character didn't seem to mind lettin' the fake UPS guy just waltz on in... - That Asian dude with the long hair and Fu Manchu who you always see playin' an evil henchman who gets bumped off right before climactic final fight between the hero and the heavy, appears here as an evil henchman who gets bumped off right before the climactic final fight between the hero and the heavy. No type-casting here, heh... Speakin' of the final fight, you'll likely find yourself in stitches after watching Jackson drive a sports car up a couple flights of stairs on his way to the climactic duel. And if that ain't funny enough, you'll also get a kick outta the "playing chicken-with-a-taxicab" sequence. This moment features plenty of implausible explosions, as well as our hero performing the superhuman feat of punching through a windshield which apparently isn't made from that safety glass they use nowadays. Musta' been an American-made taxi, hmm? And this scene's climax was so ridiculous-- well, more so than you'd usually expect from an action flick--, I was laughing like a mental patient for a full minute after its conclusion! On a final note: there's some folks' contention that 'Action Jackson' was a pathetic attempt to cash in on the 'Beverly Hills Cop' flicks by trying to ape the style and humor of the latter movie. Personally, I don't see any real similarities between the movies; for one thing, 'BHC's comedic moments were actually funny, and intentionally so. The only moment that appears to be derived from those wonderful Eddie Murphy vehicles is Apollo's- whoops, I mean Jackson's little 'preacher-sermon' act that he uses to get out of a jam during the pool-hall interrogation scene. Otherwise, I'm not sensing any real parallels here. But then again, I wasn't really lookin' for any, either... 'Late

Action Is What You Can Expect In This Film:
Carl Weathers Does a bang up job here playing a cop who is always at the centre of the action in a film filled with violence a high body count explosions and car chases all the things movie fans have come to expect from action films. Weathers is Action Jackson a detroit cop who has been demoted to sergent from lieuntenat after being accused of brutality tactics wages a personal war with an auto magnete who cost him his posistion. Craig T Nelson Plays Peter Dellaplane an evil villain who loves the conquest of power systamatically kills all the auto union leaders one by one And has jackson's best friend killed. Great Action Great Performances this film should not be missed.

ACTION PACKED!:
This is one of those 80's action B films you just have to love. I grew up on these types of movies and seeing them just bring back memories. Carl Weathers who played Apollo Creed in Rocky and Dillon in Predator, stars as Detroits toughest cop battling a psycho car dealer. Here are the best things about this flick: - the title track sung by the Pointer Sisters, gets you going - The bad guy played by Craig T.Nelson, brilliantly - Sharon Stone in her earlier days of acting. - Bill Duke,from Preadtor and Commando, as the Captain - Vanity , who is sexier than hell, plays the groupie. - great action sequences, including the car scene in the finale. - the 200lb Muslim guy who saves Jackson, says" Hello, Im Mr. ED" - The semminal line from this movie: "BBQ huh?...How do ya like your ribs?" This is just a great movie for action fans, if you are looking for action films without all the overdeveloped plots and artificial characters, this is one you will enjoy. Just say action!

A capable shoot 'em up:
Perhaps it should come as no surprise that Carl Weathers attempted to cash in on the beefy action hero genre of the 1980s. The actor, who played effective second-string roles in the shoot 'em up classic "Predator" and did a stint as punching bag Apollo Creed in several "Rocky" films, finally got his own movie in 1988's "Action Jackson." Apparently, the producers of the picture planned to make further "Action Jackson" movies if the first one hit it big. Sadly, for Weathers at least, the movie tanked at the box office before sinking into relative obscurity on cable television. Not surprisingly, the DVD revolution has resurrected films like "Action Jackson," thus introducing the movie to a whole new generation of action fans. After watching the film, I realize we need to see more motion pictures like this one. Arnold Schwarzenegger went soft once he had kids and refused to make the mega-body count actioners like "Commando" anymore, Sylvester Stallone has lost any allure he once had after years of pedestrian "thrillers," and the action genre has undergone a fundamental change thanks to films like "The Matrix." It's probably hard for some to believe action movies once looked like "Action Jackson." Carl Weathers plays "Action" Jackson, a loose cannon Detroit cop with a law degree and an authority problem. He was once the star of the department until he busted the son of powerful automobile tycoon Peter Dellaplane (Craig T. Nelson) for a heinous crime. In the process of bringing this guy into custody, Jackson beat him up and broke his arm. Dellaplane the father has a lot of clout in the city, and he called in some favors in order to insure Jackson suffered greatly for his actions. Action is still on the force, but he's a lowly cop always under the close supervision of the bull necked Captain Armbruster ("Predator" alumni Bill Duke). Still, Action Jackson's reputation as a no nonsense cop strikes fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere. When some powerful union representatives start dying in droves (one falls out of a building while engulfed in flames, another one dies when his boat evaporates in a huge fireball), Jackson suspects Peter Dellaplane knows something about the gruesome murders. Despite the obstacles in the department, Jackson plows into the case head on. After his informant Tony Moretti (played with wonderfully paranoid seediness by Robert Davi) tips him off about Dellaplane and then promptly dies, Jackson hits the streets in force. Eventually, both the police department and the automaker's goons are hot on his trail. The requisite car chases, fistfights, and shootings occur with the regularity of a Swiss watch. Sharon Stone even turns up from time to time in the role of Patrice Dellaplane, a woman who seems unaware of her evil husband's plans to crush union opposition to his new line of cars or his plans to get rid of anyone who stands in his way. Since Stone plays opposite Nelson for most of the film, 1980's singer Vanity steps in to provide Action Jackson with female companionship. She plays Sydney Ash, a singer with links to Dellaplane who eventually helps Jackson bring the automaker down. Comic relief, if you can call it that, comes from Thomas F. Wilson (Biff from "Back to the Future") as the mouthy yet fumbling Officer Kornblau. Actually, the jokes run heavy throughout the whole picture, with several running gags popping up every few minutes or so. At least the movie does end on a memorable note, though, as Action Jackson drives a car up the stairs of Peter Dellaplane's house prior to the inevitable final showdown between the cop and car kingpin. A lot of things work to the good in "Action Jackson." Craig T. Nelson excels in the role of Peter Dellaplane. He positively oozes evil as a greedy corporate type who will do anything in his quest for profit and political power. Carl Weathers does an admirable job as Action Jackson, ably pulling off a character that balances comedy with tough guy attitude. Moreover, most of the action scenes and stunts look good and work well in the context of the story. Unfortunately, many things cripple the movie. Vanity and Sharon Stone appear in roles obviously meant to be nothing more than eye candy. Perhaps the biggest problem in "Action Jackson" is the cut and paste appearance of a significant portion of the film. The first part of the movie moves forward in a logical arc, but not so the final thirty minutes. It looks as though scenes were just thrown together to complete the picture. I guess I shouldn't complain too much, however. These sorts of motion pictures usually violate the laws of reality on a regular basis. I've never been able to understand how cops can destroy millions of dollars of property, endanger innocent civilians, kill dozens of people, yet end up back on patrol the following day. Probably because the script calls for it, I guess. The DVD contains no extras. If memory serves me right, I remember several incidents in the movie that never appeared on the DVD version. I seem to recall Action Jackson shooting Peter Dellaplane in the head during the final showdown, but here he doesn't do that. Hmmm. Why release an edited version of a rather obscure, by the numbers action film on DVD? It's not as though "Action Jackson" wallows in gore. Oh well, watching the movie all these years later was still a nice trip down memory lane. Give "Action Jackson" a whirl if you like this sort of thing.