Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Onlinewsma Absolutely Brilliant!

Kaelan Mccaffrey Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Mandeep Tyson The acting in this movie is really good.

lost-in-limbo Joseph Zito is no stranger to noisy gun-ho, explosive action joints with films like semi 80s classics "Missing in Action" and "Invasion USA" under his belt. So you know what he would bring to the table and Zito doesn't disappoint. He goes big on nearly all fronts. An all-out assault on the senses with general mayhem. Now who to play an indestructible Russian Special Force soldier who must go undercover to infiltrate and assassinate an African rebel leader. Look no further than a stolid Dolph Lundgren. He's perfect for the role, as an instrument of war. The plot is typically laid-out; as a soldier goes in terminate a target to only realise he's expandable and left for dead by his superiors. This sees him sympathizing with the guerrillas' cause and leading them against his old comrades. It doesn't offer up much in its one-note story and the script can be a touch preachy, but the tough action is frenetic and well-staged even with some slow (the spiritual journey with the bushman), tired passages. The grimy atmosphere adds to its humid tempo. There are some colourful supporting cast with the live-wire Emmet Walsh, T.P McKenna as the evil Russian General, and sadistic glee from Carmen Argenziano as a Cuban Colonel. Also character actor Brion James shows up for a small part doing the standard bad guy shtick. A film that sticks to formula, but that's its strength and Zito knows it.

Bene Cumb 1980ies saw various Cold War related films with titles beginning with Red: Red Dawn and Red Heat are most known, Red Scorpion has got somewhat less attention, but it is not bad at all. Many other action films contain much more clichés and Lundgren is less numb actor than e.g. Seagal, Dudikoff or Norris.The only thing that really annoys me is letting Americans or Slavic emigrants to communicate in Russian - the result (= accent) is horrible, providing films undue undertones.But still, both the script and Lundgren's performance have earned my 6 points; M. Emmet Walsh's part is even more catchy. Just forget the past black-and-white East-West collisions and enjoy it as a proper action film with constant (and at times complex) fight between good and evil, friendship and betrayal.

homman-hofield OK now I'm not going to try and say that this film is by any means a true classic, BUT it is a type of classic.in so much as that it has the man Dolph, mostly half nude, and it has guns, and some really nasty ones at that. so the plot is really weak, nobody is going to buy into the fact that one guy can save a nation but thats not the point, its really just a vehicle for Dolph to do his thing, which is to look tough and sound funny in a monotone kinda way.i really like the torture scene where the guy is sticking large needles through Dolphs anatomy, actually looks pretty realistic considering its not a big budget film, and also i like the scarification that Dolphs little tribesman friend does for him while he is drugged.the highlight of the film for me is probably the goofy relationship that is forged between Dolphs character and the little bushman, its really fun. the language barrier is well played out but the writers and actors have enabled this element to flow very well and their means of communication is really very effective at translating the messages of the relationship for the film.so do yourself a favor and go rent the DVD as it has at long last been released, and sit back and enjoy some cornball action for all its worth.just don't expect any special features cause their isn't any.

Comeuppance Reviews Lt. Nikolai Rachenko is a Russian Special Forces soldier assigned to go undercover in Africa to root out an anti-communist leader, Kallunda (White) - don't forget, Rachenko's superiors are all commies. While in the midst of this deep cover, Rachenko becomes sympathetic to the anti-communist cause and realizes he has been manipulated by the higher-ups. So he goes on an explosion-packed killing spree, shooting and, when need be, dismembering his enemies (hey, it was an emergency). Rachenko may seem like a man of stone, but it's clear he yearns to be free. Along the way he meets an obnoxious American journalist, Dewey Ferguson (Walsh) and an elderly African tribesman shows Rachenko his human side.With a movie starring Dolph Lundgren, directed by Joseph Zito (forever in the hall of fame for Invasion USA, 1985 alone), and produced by Jack Abramoff (rumor has it his "evil hat" was an uncredited co-producer), you'd think the results would be just a bit more impressive. Not that Red Scorpion is bad at all - but it's too long and the middle section drags. Perhaps that's just to lull us before the big final battle, but it's quite a lull. There's no reason for this film to be 100 minutes. With the pedigree involved in the movie's production, it's not unreasonable to expect more.The film has some really high-quality, impressive explosions. The team that worked on the pyrotechnics should be applauded. And of course, the hero gets tortured (there are some really impressive effects there too), but there are some nice underlying plot ideas in addition to the many "blow-ups": 1. Think for yourself, 2. Communism sucks, 3. A friendship can exist between a geriatric African bushman and a blonde, Swedish hulk even if they don't speak the same language 4. The intrigue of "who are the real enemies?", and of course, playing the same, repetitive Little Richard songs over and over again will remind everyone of America's greatness and freedom.Interestingly enough, the one American character, Dewey, is obnoxious and unlikable throughout most of the film. If this movie is just a propaganda piece for the U.S., they aren't helping their case by portraying Americans that way. But we do learn the secret of the "Red Scorpion" tattoo - later seen as the only, tenuous (at best) link between this film and its sequel. But there are actual scorpions in the movie that crawl on Dolph's body. Whether they are "Red", i.e., commies sent by his superiors, remains unknown.There were a lot of anti-communist 80's action movies, but this one has Dolph Lundgren, and apparently the filmmakers were so impressed with their explosions, rightfully I might add, that during the end credits, there are continuous explosion sounds. You don't see them, you just hear them. While you may know what to expect with Red Scorpion, its messages help it stand out.For more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com