1990 Color 80min
Starring: David Carradine, Robert Tessier, Anna Rapagna, William Zipp, Patrick Culliton and David Wildsmith.
Directed By: David A. Prior
The year is 1991 and crime has spiraled out of control. Standard police enforcement is no longer an effective means of stemming the tide of violence. In response, the United States government has relinquished control (Yeah right. Like the government would ever voluntarily relinquish control of anything...) of the police department and handed over the reigns to the private sector. Within two years crime was under control, but in the process civil rights were all but abandoned. You are now guilty until proven innocent; you are judged without a trial and your sentence is carried out on the street.
It's not wise to mess with David Carradine.To make things worse, the main organization of bounty hunters known as the Civilian Operated Police (C.O.P.S.) have been taken over by a ruthless gangster by the name of Jason Adams. Once in control, he maintains his power by setting exorbitant bounties and death sentences on anyone who would dare stand in his way. Now Marion Sims, a news reporter who has obtained secretly filmed surveillance tapes showing some of Adams' more ruthless techniques, has earned his wrath. It's up to C.O.P.S. officer, John Tucker (Played by David Carradine) to stop Adams reign of terror and to restore law and order to the Civilian Operated Police. It certainly won't be easy, but did I mention that John Tucker just happens to possess a super-cool, robotic arm of justice? That's right, it just got a little easier.
“I told you to use your damn turn signal, motherf--”I very much enjoyed this movie. From the moment I saw David Carradine step out of his Jeep Cherokee Chief, (That's right, the top bounty hunter of the future tools around in a Cherokee Chief. What of it?) I was in B-movie heaven. It got even better when Carradine whipped out his robo-arm and started laying sizable amounts of whoop-ass on unsuspecting criminals.
“Are you trying to seduce me, you skanky whore?”Actually, there were quite a few moments of joy. Like when I noticed that Adams' bodyguard, Becker, was being played by none other than Robert Tessier. Or when I spotted Carradine's robe from Kung Fu on our leading lady. There was also the first scene at C.O.P.S. headquarters where a couple of bounty hunters who resemble Freddie Mercury and Duane “Dog” Chapman are seen loafing about. Oh, and I can't fail to mention the hilarious “soft-rock chase scene.” By the time it all culminated in this epic battle between Tucker and Becker, I had already entered a state of B-movie Zen.
Then you have David Carradine and his “John Wayne meets Bruce Campbell” one-liners. Here are a couple of my personal favorites:
- Just before a duel with a rogue officer:
Carradine: “I thought I told you to find yourself another line of work.”
Crooked C.O.P.S. Officer: “I like this job.”
Carradine: “Dyin' ain't much of a job.”
- While comforting a woman:
Carradine: “Nobody's gonna kill you. I promise. Nobody. But I'm gonna kick some f*ckin ass!”
Honestly, with dialog like this I spent practically the entire movie giggling to myself like an escaped mental patient. You may be interested to know that this movie was made by the very same people (Action International Pictures) who produced the infamous sci-fi epic, Space Mutiny. Now that knowledge will either fill you with unspeakable terror, or make you squeal with delight. I was delighted at the possibilities. While this film is nowhere near as goofy as Space Mutiny, you can rest assured that it is still very, very good. In a bad sort of way, of course. What can I say? I'm a sucker for David Carradine.
“Aw shucks Derek. I'm fond of you too, guy.” Reviewed by Derek Miller
Posted 2/14/08
