FirstWitch
A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
Deanna
There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.
Scarlet
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
Blue_Jay_Way
I saw this movie back in 1987, and it had a tremendous amount of hype about the Steve McQueen connection to the original 1950s TV series. Steve McQueen had died in 1980, and the buzz about the Wanted Dead or Alive movie started around 1984. Sadly, the movie had nothing of the spirit of Josh Randall at all. Steve McQueen's Josh Randall character was very direct and to the point. He was not sentimental at all, and he often had to use his smarts and his sawed off rifle to get out of trouble. Josh Randall also used a lot of snappy dialogue and quick wit. Josh never stayed in one place. He was always on the move, and he loved women, but he was never in love. Rutger Hauer's version of the character is very morose and sentimental. He is in love with a girlfriend. He is attached to a boat and a warehouse that is also his man-cave. There is no witty dialogue from Hauer. There is no fast action either. Hauer is kind of boring to watch. The action is typical of a Chuck Norris movie, The A-Team TV series, or Hunter TV series. It looks like generic action sequences were used from some "Action Scenes Handbook." There is a fair amount of shooting, explosions, and killing, but it is not fresh or exciting. This movie is not bad, but it is far from great.
Woodyanders
Rugged bounty hunter Nick Randall (Rutger Hauer in top two-fisted form) gets used as bait by the CIA so they can apprehend nefarious terrorist Malik Al Rahim (well played with deliciously wicked relish by Gene Simmons). After Rahim kills two people close to Randall, Randall decides to get Rahim on his own terms. Director Gary Sherman, who also co-wrote the hard-edged script with Brian Taggert and Michael Patrick Goodman, keeps the involving story moving at a brisk pace, maintains a tough gritty tone throughout, and stages the thrilling action set pieces with rip-roaring aplomb. The fine acting by the super cast gives this movie an extra sparky buzz: Hauer makes for a strong and engaging rough'n'tumble hero, Simmons portrays the chillingly ruthless villain with commendable restraint, Mel Harris radiates real warmth as Randall's sweet girlfriend Terry, plus there are sturdy contributions from Robert Guillaume as the suave Philmore Walker, William Russ as Randall's jolly cop buddy Det. Danny Quintz, Jerry Hardin as the shifty John Lipton, Hugh Gillin as the no-nonsense Patrick Donoby, Robert Harper as slimy fed Dave Henderson, and Dennis Burkley as scuzzy redneck arms dealer Farnsworth. The grenade in mouth climax is a doozy. Alex Nepomniaischy's slick cinematography provides a neat glossy look. Joe Renzetti's bluesy score hits the right-on groovy spot. A really cool flick.
Aaron1375
This film to me was pretty good. It sort of is a bit like "Nighthawks" another film featuring terrorist, one of which being Hauer himself. This one though has Hauer as the good guy and Gene Simmons as the bad guy. Both are very good in their roles. Both never being or becoming super celebrities. Hauer has been in a lot more movies than Simmons and he has been in some very big movies during his days. Still, he rarely got to be the lead star in films. Simmons just played bad guys like the one here and the one in "Runaway". He was actually rather good in both films and I am surprised he never got more chances to play in movies cause I so could see him in a horror movie as the sadistic killer. This film has terrorist on the attack and a bounty hunter is going to be the one to bring them down. I loved watching Hauer as Nick Randall do his thing. He is a former CIA operative and a descendant of a legendary bounty hunter. The action is pretty good here and there, it could use a bit of work, but I still thought it played out rather well. The ending to this movie is really good, though at the same time while it is satisfying it is also a bit sad too.
jaspersanten
The main reason that I bought this movie was that Gene Simmons is my most beloved rock idol. As well, I'm proud that my tiny little country has the honor to be asked for an actor like Rutger Hauer in a big American movie. The title of this movie sounds full of suspense and the description on the back of the cover sounds lethal, full of nuclear terror and L.A.-wide fear...But I didn't like the movie at all; the tension of the confrontations between the main players hardly ever wasn't built up in a creepy way. The main enemies even hardly ever met each other in the movie. This wouldn't be a real problem if other players would have had fierce clashes with each others, but they mostly remained far away; the one in the police station, the other hidden in the oil warehouse. When they prosecute each other in the factory, the scenes seemed pretty predictable to me. A good thriller ought to be quite unpredictable with a complicated plot. The story was just humble, could be compared to many other thrillers. Even the personalities were neither eccentric nor very expressive. It's a tragedy that the love scenes in the movie were the most beautiful. This ought to be a real thriller, not a romantic movie!! Gene, you should run away back to your far better movie 'Runaway' and Rutger, welcome back to Holland!
