On Deadly Ground [1994] Review

Same again: classic Seagal. A Seagal / Nasso Productions so you know it’s BS (Before Steamroller!) One of the opening shots, a pan up from Seagal stepping out of the helicopter – turning around – and lighting a cigarette, is absolutely amazing as it proves definitely that Seagal’s direction is purely focused on bolstering his ego (and maybe environmental awareness as well). The next time Seagal tried and failed to light a cigarette was on a small fire before blowing up an oil rig. The cigarette was alight in the next shot. In the bar, Seagal’s accent from a chair (common in these, earlier, films) was met by a woman’s over-exaggerated grasp. Hacking into the database, Seagal (very visibly) only taps the surface of the keyboard. The excellent quote as a response to not being the most culturally informed and spiritual person in the room, ‘I’m a mouse, hiding from the crows in the house of a raven’ is fantastic. Furthermore, Seagal’s Native American spiritual journey was an early equivalent of the strip club theme of more contemporary films.
Logic such as “To save the environment, let’s blow it up!” is very on-brand and the ridiculous amount of explosives in the hut and guns is also very welcome.
The explosives have words on the front, such as ‘front towards enemy’: whether this is for Seagal’s own instruction is unclear.
There are so many analogies about how badass Seagal is (though the script was not written by Seagal, Seagal did direct it.)
Lots of pushing people through sugar glass using a pole (an environmental sub-theme perhaps?)
‘I wouldn’t dirty my bullets.’
This place blows in two minutes: ten minutes later *00:10… 00:09…*
That’s all.