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Marked
For Death
Dwight H. Little, 1990, USA
Rating: 4.0 |
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Posted: April
25, 2003
It is time to right a wrong and to undo a terrible injustice that I have done to
Steven Seagal. I claimed to be a fan of his, and yet when the time came for me
to review one of his films, I was sent to see
Half Past Dead, not one of his
better offerings. I later found out that this was an attempt by the evil puppet
masters here at Shaking Through, who, acting on behalf of the German mafia, used
me as an unwitting pawn to discredit Mr. Seagal. A word to you evildoers. I am on
to you. I give you now a Seagal classic: Marked For Death.
I will not waste your time with the premise. Alright, alright, let's run through
it briefly. Federal Drug Agent John Hatcher (henceforth Steven Seagal) retires
from his unfulfilling work and, on the advice of a priest, attempts to find his
"gentler self." He does this by returning to his childhood neighborhood to stay
with his sister and niece. Here's the problem: A Jamaican drug cartel has moved
into town, peddling narcotics, causing mayhem, and just generally destroying the
local property values. Seagal has a run in with these punks, and draws the
attention of their kingpin, the evil Screwface. That's right; I said Screwface. Suffice it to say, the film moves rapidly toward a Screwface Vs. Seagal
showdown, and I'm sure you don't need a flow chart to figure out what happens.
I wish to focus not on the storyline, but rather on those features that make
this a Seagal classic. First, in true Kung Fu fashion, there is the tired
warrior weary of battle, seeking a place of solace and comfort. To his dismay,
he discovers that no matter how hard he tries, no amount of inner peace can
anesthetize him to the perpetual encroachment of evildoers. Because of this, the
warrior is forced into battle once again. Here we strike at the heart of a
classic Seagal film, the notion that a just man cannot turn his back on evil no
matter how hard he tries. It was as true in Above The Law, Out For Justice
and On Deadly Ground, as it is here. This is Seagal the warrior.
When a man of peace is forced into action, brah, look out. When that man of
peace is proficient with firearms and skilled in the martial arts, it's a bad
day to be a bad guy. Marked For Death is full of examples of this, but perhaps
none more so than the Jamaican thug who gets his arm broken backwards at the
elbow. Zorro had his "Z"; Seagal has the patented reverse arm break. Another
point to ponder: As mentioned, Seagal is highly proficient with firearms, but no
matter how many people he busts caps in, the bad guy in charge will hardly ever
get shot. That's when Seagal goes old school. It's almost like an exorcism. The
hero must lay hands on the villain and forcibly separate him from his mortal
coil. This is Seagal the avenger.
Here's the point: Marked For Death is chock full of the previously-mentioned
characteristics that make a Seagal film a "classic." What Chuck Norris did to
simplify international relations, Seagal does to present the essence of good
versus evil. While hell may have no fury like a woman scorned, evil has no
greater foe than a good man pushed too far. This is equally true for niche film
reviewers. Are you listening, you higher-ups at Shaking Through?
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