On Deadly Ground
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| On Deadly Ground (R) | |
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| Directed by | Steven Seagal |
| Produced by | Steven Seagal A. Kitman Ho Julius R. Nasso |
| Written by | Ed Horowitz & Robin U. Russin |
| Starring | Steven Seagal Michael Caine Joan Chen R. Lee Ermey John C. McGinley Billy Bob Thornton Richard Hamilton Mike Starr |
| Music by | Basil Poledouris |
| Cinematography | Ric Waite |
| Editing by | Don Brochu Robert A. Ferretti |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | February 18, 1994 (USA) |
| Running time | 101 min |
| Language | English, Inuktitut |
| Budget | $50,000,000(estimated) |
| Gross revenue | $38,590,500 (USA) |
| IMDb profile | |
On Deadly Ground is a 1994 environmental action-adventure film, co-produced, directed by and starring Steven Seagal, and co-starring, Bart the Bear, Michael Caine, Joan Chen, and John C. McGinley.
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[edit] Synopsis
Steven Seagal plays Forrest Taft, a specialist in dealing with oil drilling-related fires. Taft discovers that Aegis Oil, his employer, is using faulty equipment on a new refinery in Alaska and is covering up the fact. He later discovers that the reason is so that the land doesn't revert back to the Eskimo tribes, which would cost Aegis Oil countless millions in revenue. Aegis' CEO, the arrogant Michael Jennings (Michael Caine) is, like Taft, a former member of an elite military unit. Jennings puts on a facade of caring for the environment and the Eskimo people, but, in reality couldn't care less about them.
Aegis engineer named Hugh Palmer (Richard Hamilton) has also come to the same conclusion and confides to Taft, suggesting he go public with the startling information. When Jennings learns of this he hires a group of mercenaries led by Stone (R. Lee Ermey) and MacGruder (John C. McGinley), who gets the henchman Otto (Sven-Ole Thorsen) to torture and murder Palmer. To get Taft out the way they set a trap for him. Although he is wounded, Taft survives and is rescued by Masu (Joan Chen) who's the daughter of Silook, the chief of her tribe.
Silook has Taft undergo a vision quest in which he sees the truth. When made to choose between two women, Seagal opts for the elderly, clothed grandmother, forgoing the erotically-charged nude eskimo seductress. Bart the Bear plays an unnamed character during this hallucination-allegory. Silook refers to Taft as a bear (obviously in a positive way) but Taft, out of shame for what he's been part of, however unwittingly, says: "No. I'm a mouse." Silook responds: "That's what the bear would say."
Taft, with Masu's help, assures that the refinery does not go on line, using Seagal's trademark blend of aikido and terrorism.
[edit] Forrest Taft as the Vigilante Environmentalist
Most of Seagal's movies are stereotypical of the action film genre, especially in portraying the protagonist's use of the classic combination of martial arts and proficiency in the use of firearms and explosives. In line with the theme of his later movies, the character played by Seagal not only displays his prowess in martial arts, but also shows a wide array of knowledge and an astounding depth of skill in weapons and demolition. Aside from his inventory of skills in hand-to-hand combat, Forrest Taft is also depicted as a skilled marksman and demolition specialist. As a former CIA field operative, he has access to various firearms and munitions. Notable examples of weapons (both conventional and improvised) used by Taft throughout the movie include:
- a 12-gauge Shotgun, with which he dispatches the attackers in Huey's cabin;
- a .45 ACP hidden in Huey's spare bedroom;
- a pair of M18A1 Claymore Antipersonnel Mines; the first used to harass the mercenaries trailing him, and the second detonated inside an elevator on the level defended by marksmen employed by Aegis Oil;
- an M14 Rifle, used in the battle on the Aegis-1 Oil Rig;
- a submachine gun
- an impressive quantity of C4 and other explosives, used throughout the film, especially in sabotaging the Aegis-1 Oil Platform;
- M67 grenades, used along with the C4 to destroy the pursuing helicopter .
[edit] Criticisms
Departing from the usual action movie protocol, Forrest Taft does not have a traditional sidekick; rather Seagal's only foil is Masu, with whom he develops a romantic friendship, the norm for Steven Seagal's films.
Male anatomy takes center stage, but is strangely showcased without any (intentional) humor: Overdubbed sound portions of the first fight scene are notable for Taft's victims calling out the injured portions of their bodies ("my nuts!" and "my balls!"), as Taft puts them in their place. These voice tracks do not match the film, as the victims are either dazed or grimacing, and not visibly vocalizing. During this fight scene, the antagonist also vigorously refers to his own testicles as part of his display of confidence and fortitude.
On Deadly Ground was also criticized for using the context of an action-adventure film to promote an environmentalist message, by those on both sides of the issue. Some environmentalists criticized the film for excessive violence while some opposed to environmentalism criticized the message. The final scene, with Seagal giving a speech about the obsolescence of the internal combustion engine and the need for cleaner alternative fuels, was cut from its original 11 minute length before the film's release after audiences at initial screenings complained it was overlong and preachy.
Reviewer Michael Dequina of RottenTomatoes.com called it "a vanity project in the strongest sense of the term, this film has it all: bad acting, bad writing, bad direction, bad action sequences."
Upon release, On Deadly Ground met with generally poor critical reviews, largely because of perceived stereotyping of Native Americans and their spiritual beliefs. It earned $38.6M during its theatrical run.
Some audiences felt that the scene of Hugh Palmer being tortured and killed was too violent and sadistic.
Some film critics characterized the film as rehash of Billy Jack [1].
[edit] Trivia
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- Was parodied in South Park's Season 12 episode Over Logging, when Randy Marsh was giving a speech telling people only to use the internet when they really need to.
- Seagal agreed to appear in Under Siege 2 if Warner Bros. let him direct this film.[citation needed]
- Jeremy Irons was originally intended to play Michael Jennings. [2]
- Originally had titles of Rainbow Warrior and Spirit Warrior, but both were replaced shortly before release. [3]
- It is rumored that the original cut of the film featured an 11-minute speech at the end by Seagal about pollution. Test audiences reportedly walked out during the closing speech and thus, the film was re-edited. [4]
- The shotgun used by Forrest Taft in the assault on the refinery is a USAS-12*
- Other actors who were wanted for the role of Michael Jennings were Anthony Hopkins and Alan Rickman
- Libby Riddles (first woman to win the Iditarod) worked on the set as a dog sledding coordinator.
- Ed Horowitz, one of this film's writers, also co-wrote Seagal's 2001 film Exit Wounds.
