I miss Cannon movies. No other company epitomized 80s action movie cliches better than they did. Shootouts, explosions, ninjas, you name it. They gave us the goods in spades. One of those goods was bonafide action star Michael Dudikoff. The star of such action classics as American Ninja 1&2 and Avenging Force, just to name a few. But Cannon went bankrupt, and Dudikoff’s career took a downturn after that, becoming relegated to the DTV market (Although he continued to make great action flicks there as well).
Now, in this day and age of genuine articles and great pretenders, we await the arrival of a hero & movie to save us. An epic combo package to bring back the heroic nature Dudikoff & Cannon so masterfully gave us. Alas, that combo of hero and movie is here. His name is Scott Adkins. And that movie is Savage Dog.
THE EPITOME OF AN ACTION STAR.
“In 1959 Indochina, former prize fighter and prisoner Martin Tillman must take revenge on corrupt forces after they have taken everything he holds dear…” Now, ask anybody that knows me, they can tell you how much I love Scott Adkins movies. He’s just the epitome of an action star. Quite frankly, if you ask me, the guy is the most complete action star in the world (Ha). And this one is another one in a long line of action movies that proves just that. But in my opinion, it does more than that. So much more. It quite beautifully brings back that amazing feeling you got when you watched a Cannon/Dudikoff movie. Truthfully speaking, I’ll go as far as to say this is the greatest Cannon/Dudikoff movie Cannon/Dudikoff never made. Scott Adkins as Tillman perfectly invokes the spirit of Dudikoff during the proceedings. That steely eyed look. That super cool demeanor. It’s all there. Adkins is the second coming of Dudikoff here.RELATED:
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MR. KEITH MF-ING DAVID AND CREW.
He is backed by the iconic Keith David as Valentine, the man who takes Tillman in as a cooler at his bar and becomes a father figure to him. You are a legend, Mr. David. Rounding out the cast are Vladimir Kulich as Steiner, the tough MMA fighter Kung Le as the cold-blooded soldier Boon, the beautiful Juju Chan as Isabelle, Martin’s lover, and the spectacular Marco Zaror as Steiner’s main henchman Rastignac. or, as he likes to call himself… The Executioner. And everyone & thing are brought to life exceptionally by the great action auteur himself, Jesse V. Johnson, who perfectly captures the look and feel of a Cannon movie. Although the fight scenes are a bit faster and more “intricate”
Now, to put it in perspective, making an action packed period piece on a low budget is no small task, but Johnson executes it all amazingly. But because it’s a period piece, we don’t get the awesome gymkata style of fighting we usually get from Adkins. You can tell he had to tone it down a bit in this one. But that’s not at all a bad thing. Because in this one, even though it’s a more grounded style of fighting, it’s more hardcore. I’m talking bare knuckle, “Hard Times” style of fighting, but with the occasional beautiful kick here and there. And it is awesome! Just brutal, hardcore beatdowns.
But it’s not just fighting here. It’s just Adkins running around killing countless bad guys single-handedly, army-style.
And now a fair warning for the faint of heart. This is one violent movie. VERRRY is cruel. I’m talking about severed limbs, decapitations, exploding heads, and quite possibly one of the most brutal and disgusting disposals of the last bad guy in action movie history. I’m completely serious. Top 3 getting rid of the bad guys. There with Richter’s death in Total Recall and Night Slasher in Cobra.