MISSING IN ACTION

title: MISSING IN ACTION

year: 1984

cast: Chuck Norris, James Hong, M. Emmett Walsh

rating: ***1/2

A more subtle "Rambo", Chuck Norris goes to Saigon on a diplomatic "peaceful" mission to talk to Vietnamese politicians about rescuing American MIAs, but he's not there to negotiate. He sneaks out of his guarded hotel room and wearing black sneaks around the city and then kills James Hong, a politician that Chuck alone knows is crooked. From here he teams up with former vet M. Emmett Walsh, who seems like the pilot character "Jock" from "Raiders of the lost Ark" if he had more to do. They buy a really neat bulletproof raft, sail into Vietnam, shoot a lot of bad guys and rescue a couple MIAs. That's in a nutshell, and there doesn't need to be anything more than that.

THE DELTA FORCE

title: THE DELTA FORCE

year: 1986

cast: Chuck Norris, Lee Marvin, Robert Forster, Martin Balsam, Bo Svenson, Robert Vaughan, George Kennedy

rating: ***1/2

This is an above-average hijack movie which, unlike others of its ilk, never gets to claustrophobic or tedious because the hostages are moved to several different locales, first an airplane and then the ground. One hour and twenty minutes into the film the operation to save the hostages begins. The stuff before nicely builds momentum and centers mostly on the hijackers, plane crew and hostages while Lee Marvin and Chuck Norris await on the sidelines to go into action. When the action finally happens it's well worth the wait. Norris on a motorcycle with torpedoes - now that's cool. And Robert Forster is so impressive as the head of the middle eastern terrorists I didn't even know it was him at first.

TOP DOG

title: TOP DOG

year: 1995

cast: Chuck Norris, Timothy Bottoms

rating: **1/2

Chuck Norris teams up with a capable shaggy police dog named Reno to stop a group of racists. The direction puts you right there with the dog's movements and this happens during some of the action scenes as well. Chuck and the dog don't get along at first and then learn how to depend on each other; this happens in EVERY cop-buddy film, so why should this be different just because one of the cops has a flea collar? Good for kids, but pretty violent... for the adults forced to watch it with them.

BREAKER, BREAKER

year: 1977
cast: Chuck Norris
rating: ***1/2

This is Chuck Norris's "White Lightning". He's a veteran trucker who's newbie trucker brother is hijacked by a small town cop and sentenced to jail. Chuck searches for him and has to take on this small town of "Texasland" ruled by a very strange judge who quotes Shakespeare and overacts to the hilt. Chuck single-handedly beats up everyone in town and that's about the jist of it: but it's one helluva jist. The direction is tight and there's even some psychedelic elements involved in the fight scenes, including the final bout with the biggest toughest minion where Chuck's movements is intercut with a horse running in circles. You have to see it to get it.

HERO AND THE TERROR

title: HERO AND THE TERROR

year: 1988

cast: Chuck Norris, Ron O'Neal, Jeffery Kramer, Jack O'Halloran, Brynn Thayer, Tony DiBenedetto, Donna Gordon, Billy Drago

rating: ***1/2

Another action/horror where Chuck Norris plays a cop after a relentless seemingly unbeatable monster of a man, but unlike SILENT RAGE, this one works. Jack O'Halloran lurks somewhere within the newly restored Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles where he used to dwell when it was shut down, and is killing women by sneaking through a grate in the restroom. Known as the Terror, he had just escaped from a mental asylum where Norris's character, the Hero, had put him a year before. Norris is haunted by nightmares of the Terror and now he must find him somewhere within the mazy, complicated structure of the historic L.A. venue. Intense action and horror-like one-by-one killings mix perfectly; along with a little romance which never gets too corny. This is one of the better latter eighties Chuck Norris vehicles.

CODE OF SILENCE

title: CODE OF SILENCE

year: 1983

cast: Chuck Norris

rating: **

This movie looks good, does all the right things, but something just isn't there. Future "Fugitive" Oscar nominated Andrew Davis directs with an eighties Walter Hill precision but all that really happens is Chuck Norris going from location to location and not getting killed. Chuck plays a cop who's dealing with a mobster who's out for revenge and his fellow cops aren't much help. There's not enough Martial Arts to appease Chuck fans and not enough action to appease fans of the action genre. The script is clunky and downright confusing at times, leaving the viewer not to guess what's gonna happen next, but what just happened? I watched it an hour ago and I'm still not sure.

SILENT RAGE

year: 1982

rating: **

A killer with a bloody axe and two corpses in his wake is first arrested by Texas Sheriff Chuck Norris (after a big fight) and then — after breaking free from his handcuffs — is shot numerous times by police after he tries to escape. The killer rejuvenates thanks to three doctors who pump him with drugs before his death. Killer-man awakens ala Frankenstein's monster and goes back to slaughtering and it's up to cop Chuck Norris to stop him. The best moments happen between Norris and his fat silly deputy sidekick played by Flounder from ANIMAL HOUSE, Stephen Furst. A scene involving Norris beating up a bevy of bikers is probably the peak of this standard action flick, which tries mixing "Friday The 13th" style horror but without much of a pulse... at least not a steady one.

A FORCE OF ONE

year: 1979

cast: Chuck Norris, Jennifer O'Neal

rating: ****

This really doesn't live up to its title since there's a slew of characters played by dependable actors. Jennifer O'Neal, Clu Galagher, Ron O'Neal, Pepe Serna, James Whitemore Jr. and (the late) Ray Vitte play cops who are losing their fellow officers to a mysterious killer who uses martial arts. These killings are connected to kids riding skateboards who sell drugs for an unknown dealer. In order to survive, the cops are sent to learn karate from... guess who? As far as acting goes this is a good vehicle for Chuck Norris since he gets to not only play a martial arts instructor/kickboxer, but we get to see him giving lessons, and we get some great kickboxing bouts to boot.

FORCED VENGEANCE

title: FORCED VENGEANCE

year: 1982

cast: Chuck Norris, Mary Louise Weller

rating: ***

A good Chuck Norris flick where he plays something other than a cop or soldier, but more of a seedy character, at least one who works a seedy job: head of security at a Toyko Casino who beats up gambers and collects debts for the owner who's like a father to him. The first half as the plot's set up is better than the second half as the plot's carried out. The casino is taken over by mobsters who kill the owner and his luckless son. Before this happens we get to see Chuck travelling around gorgeous-looking Toyko, getting in various fights, and taking care of things at the casino. Then the death of the casino owner happens much too quickly and now we're "forced" the "vengeance" in the title and even though the fighting continues, things simmer down since nothing's left to build.

GOOD GUYS WEAR BLACK

title: GOOD GUYS WEAR BLACK

year: 1978

cast: Chuck Norris

rating: **1/2

After enjoying THE OCTAGON and really enjoying LONE WOLF McQUADE, I finally hit a Chuck Norris snag with this semi-clunker about a Vietnam commando abandoned with his troops on a top secret mission to rescue MIAs and then, five years later, is a car racer who teaches college. Sexy Ann Archer plays a reporter uncovering the secret mission while Norris's troops are being picked off by... someone. Perhaps it's the North Vietnamese or the CIA. Who knows, and who cares? Not even Chuck seems to. Meanwhile, the pacing and acting is too low-key (except veteran actor Dana Andrews providing an 11th hour monologue). The action has eclectic James Bond-like moments but plot isn't very strong to corral the overall motion. Hit or miss (a hit being "Magnum Force") director Ted Post keeps things rolling: but like a car with a deflating front tire.

THE OCTAGON

title: THE OCTAGON

year: 1980

cast: Chuck Norris, Lee Van Cleef

rating: ***

Twice now I've rented eighties Chuck Norris flicks because of the curiosity factor concerning two dead actors. "Lone Wolf McQuade" because of David Carradine and this one because of Lee Van Cleef, famous for "Angel Eyes" in "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly". Cleef isn't in it much but Norris sure fights a lot of really quick Ninjas, and that's all that really matters here. The plot gets a bit convoluted but doesn't slow things down. There are good enough character-actors (other than Cleef) who make up for Norris's ever-wooden acting, and fists abound. The low point is a very cheesy inner-thought dialog that Norris has with himself, sounding like something from a bad science-fiction spoof. Other than that, we have action, we have Norris, and for the most part... it is good.

LONE WOLF McQUADE

title: LONE WOLF McQUADE
year: 1983
cast: Chuck Norris, David Carradine, Robert Beltran, L.Q. Jones, R.G. Armstrong
rating: ***1/2

Borrowing the Spagetthi Western whistling music ala Ennio Morricone gives Chuck Norris a pass; he doesn't have to act, he can just BE the badass with a few close-ups and that familiar music, which embodies blood, guns, and tons of action (in this case, martial arts style). The head baddie David Carradine doesn't say much but we get to see him doing some real kung fu. All in all this is one of the best Chuck Norris films. It flows terrifically from tight, simple dialog to dropkicking action; and the quick-punch editing gives a Sam Peckinpahesque quality: the quicker you get back to the fighting, the better.