Even though Steven Seagal has made movies who are much worse than this, this is still far from being his best work. I wonder if the whole movie was made just for self-ironical reasons (remember, Seagal fortunately has a lot of self-irony). The main problem is that Seagal is too fat too be a real action-star right now. Some of the fights in this movie still are pretty cool, but there are just something that isn't there. Maybe it's because some of the fights are so overdone so that everyone know that it isn't Mr.Seagal doing most of it anyway? The worst part about the fighting is the roundhouse kicks. Even though they're rather cool, they're as far from the typical Seagal fighting style that it's possible to be. And you never see Steven's face when these are performed..........................
The story is standard, but that's totally OK. No one cares too much about that anyway in a movie like this. This is in fact one of Seagal's best movies after "Exit Wounds". That doesn't mean that this one is any good, because some of the others are pure garbage.
Belly of the Beast
2003
Action
Plot summary
Ten years ago, Jake Hopper was a CIA agent who was stationed in Thailand. Then one day, things went sour, and his partner, Sunti barely escaped with his life...after accidentally killing a woman. Jake called it quits and returned to the United States when his wife died, and Sunti became a Buddhist monk to atone for his sins. For the past 10 years, Jake has run a successful private security business, and has been raising his daughter Jessica, who is now an adult. While hiking in Thailand, Jessica and her friend Sarah Winthorpe are kidnapped. A group of Islamic fundamentalists known as the Abu Karaf claims responsibility. Sarah is the daughter of United States senator John Winthorpe. For ransom, the Abu Karaf demand the release of 20 prisoners from American custody. The US Secretary of State urges restraint -- he won't negotiate. Tom Collins, an ex-colleague of Jake's, recognizes Jessica on the ransom tape and tips Jake off. Jake knows that he must rescue the girls himself. An old CIA buddy puts Jake in contact with Leon Washington, an active CIA agent who is working in Thailand. Jake goes to Bangkok, and escapes an assassination attempt. Leon arranges a meeting for himself with with Soku -- the internal security chief for General Jantapan. Jantapan is a rebel military general who is making a play to be one of the most powerful men in Thailand. Secretly, Jantapan is messing with some dangerous spiritual forces. Soku provides Jake with a cover story, but the CIA wants Jake out of it -- they are planning to take out the Abu Karaf with the aid of the Thai army, and they don't want a civilian in the middle. Jake is a spiritual man, so he contacts his spiritual master Paijan Paitoon. As Jake is in trouble, Paitoon offers to arrange a divination from the oracle of the order. Jake enlists the help of Sunti. Jake gets Lulu, the girlfriend of arms dealer Fitch McQuoid, to steal information leading to the Abu Karaf. Jake and Sunti follow the leads to a warehouse where they discover evidence of highly sophisticated weaponry. With their enemies now after Lulu, Jake takes Lulu under his wing. Jake shares some of his info with Leon. Can he trust Leon? Another attempt is made on Jake's life -- and this time, Jake is sure that Leon was involved. Finally, the Abu Karaf contact Jake to arrange a meeting -- the pieces are coming together, and Jake figures out that it was not the Abu Karaf who kidnapped Jessica and Sarah. Jantapan tries to send the spirit of an ancient warrior demon to kill Jake, but the ceremony goes wrong and the spirit enters Jantapan himself, giving Jantapan amazing physical and spiritual powers. Jake and Sunti go to meet Mongkol, the leader of the Abu Karaf. Mongkol confirms that ever since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Jantapan has worked to corner the narcotics and arms markets. It was Jantapan who kidnapped the girls, blaming the Abu Karaf so the army would wipe out his competition. Mongkol knows where the girls are, and he gives Jake plans and intelligence. They both need the girls alive. Jake must engage in a battle that will put both his physical and spiritual powers to the ultimate test.
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720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
Seagal should get in shape
Not that great really
Starting with the upsides the soundtrack is okay and Monica Lo looks gorgeous. Plus the film starts off promisingly, and the film moves along reasonably. However, there are many things wrong with this film, starting with the non-existent plotting, routine action and clichéd script. The direction is plodding, the love subplot is so trite and slows the film down considerably and there are parts where the cinematography is shoddy. Then there is the acting, which really wasn't great. Steven Seagal looks unkempt and gives a lazy performance here, while the supporting players except for Lo are unexceptional at best. Overall, disappointing and not recommended. 4/10 Bethany Cox
Hero Steven Seagal battling nefarious fanatic terrorists who kidnapped his daughter in Thailand
Thailand, 1994 Jake Hooper (Steven Seagal) is a tough CIA agent , along with his buddy Sunti (Byron Mann) undertaking a mission when accidentally murdering an innocent woman . Jake returns United States , while Sunti becomes a Buddhist monk. Ten years later , Hooper working as a security agent , when his daughter Jessica (Sara Lane) and the senator's daughter are abducted while were hiking in the jungle of Thailand. Then, an Islamic fundamentalist band reclaims the kidnapping . Jake goes to Thailand to release the prisoners , there he takes contact with Leon, a CIA agent assigned to case.
The film displays several gunshots , struggles, bloody killings and lots of violence when fights and murders happen. It's exciting and tense, at time lackluster action movie, but the fighting and gun-play are well done in this routine actioner . The film is produced by Avi Lerner and his production called Milennium along with Trevor Short, Danny Lerner, usual financier from Steven Seagal and Jean Claude Van Damme movies . The picture belongs to last period of Seagal career, when he's doing middling and low-budget films, direct-to-video and many of them are deemed semi-turkeys stinkers . Following the tendency to oriental action cinema , Seagal -also producer- hired Asian directors as Mink (Into the sun),Leong (Out the reach) , and Siu Tung Ching. These movies aren't on the level previous successful and big budget movies, such as : Under siege I , II, Glimmer man, Exit wounds, Fire down below , Executive decision , among them . The motion picture was middlingly directed by Siu Tung Ching . He's a cool director of Jet Li vehicles , and filmmaker of the¨Ghost Chinese story¨ saga , besides being an excellent stunts choreographer in movies as ¨House of flying daggers" , "Hero¨, among others . The story is occasionally entertaining , but only for Steven Seagal fans.