The Specialist (1994)

Too much of everything

Must See Movie...

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

*Could be a spoiler or two* My ONLY problem with the whole movie was James Woods! Nobody, I mean NOBODY ... goes around flaunting laws and rules and treating every single person he comes into contact with, like garbage. Another thing ... Eric Roberts' character is insanely jealous, to the point that he sees Stallones character looking into his car, he immediately jumps out and threatens Stallone with all types of bodily injury, (even pulling a knife on Stallone in wide open public), yet, a li'l bit later, in his mansion, he walks into a room where Woods has just slapped the "ca-ca" out of Stone's character (meaning, she would obviously have a hand print on her face, or a bruise, or black-eye, or SOMETHING), and Roberts does or says absolutely nothing! But, back to Woods. He treats the bomb crew like rookie desk clerks, and no one says anything or calls him on it. He even makes a li'l "pen-bomb", and activates it in the bomb squad room, daring the bomb squad leader to deactivate it it in less than 10 seconds ... and he gets away with it (yeah, right)! But, other than Woods, this is actually a good, entertaining movie. Plenty of action, lots of explosions, even a very uncomfortable-looking shower sex scene! This is a movie where just about everyone that you want to see blown up, gets blown up!

This passable but alternatively forgettable action flick sees bomb expert (getting tired of this one already) Sylvester Stallone getting caught up with a load of femme fatales, revenge, double and triple crosses and a corrupt official, played by James Woods at his manic best. The main trouble with this film is that it relies on dialogue instead of action for impact - which is a shame, because the action, when it comes, is extremely impressive.One stunt sees a man's car explode - and the man, and his chair, fly up to hit the ceiling before falling back to earth, on fire. This is hands down one of the most show-stopping stunts I've ever seen but sadly there are only a handful in the film. Other bits to watch out for are the explosive finale, where just about everything blows up, and the short scene where Stallone takes on a number of bad guys in a kitchen (one guy gets chucked in the deep-fat fryer, I like it!). Or how about Stallone's incredibly over-the-top reaction to a punk sitting in a taken seat on a bus - he beats him up and chucks him outta the window.Stallone himself gets a chance to flex his muscles (and worryingly vein-lined physique) here but not his acting abilities - in fact, he's extremely wooden. Sharon Stone is quite alluring as the female lead, and predictably gets to shed her clothes in a ludicrously laughable sex scene which sees the naked pair romping around in the shower. However, the star of the show is the memorable James Woods, putting in a great psychotic performance in the tradition of Jack Nicholson and Joe Pesci - it's just a shame his role isn't a more interesting one and rather clichéd.There are remarkable moments here - a bomb causes an entire apartment block to fall into the sea - but half an hour could have been shorn off with little impact. There are far too many characters who come and go - Eric Roberts seems to be one of the major players until his sudden death halfway through - and as I said previously, too much plot and not enough on the action side. Still, basically this is a glossy, colourful and exciting thriller which passes the time and is worth watching for Woods alone - he's great!

Sylvester Stallone plays a former CIA bomb expert turned hit man, who gets hired by a beautiful woman to take out the crime boss responsible for the death of her parents. He plans the hit, gets pulled in by the feminine wiles of his employer, meets a nemesis from his past, things get blown up, the usual.It's a passable film by most standards. Stallone doesn't bring as much ham as he usually does, which is a shame, but the explosions themselves are pretty neat, especially the end scene in a house filled with things designed to go kaboom. But, as you've probably already guessed, the characters are utterly lifeless, the plot is paper thin, the dialogue is laughable and the story telling is something that could be topped by a kindergartener.Still, there's something about Stallone and his particular style of action films that makes this a watchable movie. Nowhere near one of his better films, but I in no way regret seeing it.

The Specialist is one of those underrated movies, and I'm talking from a critic's point of view. It's a super exciting flick, cause it's different from a lot of other sorts around that time, the thrilling climax almost bringing shades of the finale in The Professional. Stone, a woman controlled by a mafia family, responsible for killing her parents, enlists the help of CIA bomb specialist, Stallone to take them out one by one, Steiger saved for last. This is perfect for Stallone, playing another loner type character who's methods of assassination are dangerously impressive, Roberts demise for one. Woods who used to work alongside Stallone in the bomb disposal business had a falling out, when Woods went AWOL on a job. Woods, sacked from the agency is now working for Steiger as well as the police department recognizes the work where the scene is set for the re acquaintance of two arch rivals. Featuring some nice broads in lingerie, The Specialist is fun all the way, where it's great to Stone as a revenge driven woman, who falls for Stallone, the chemistry between em, almost void. Stallone, might as well been a mummy in that briefly erotic sex scene. The baddies are great, Roberts almost mirroring that scene in Final Analysis, when he confronts Stallone, only he isn't smiling. God knows why this film got so much flack. Director Luisa followed this up, with the blockbuster Anaconda.