Search - US Seals 2 on DVD

Hong Kong Style Action Takes On The Military!

12/02/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, let's get this out of the way first: If you are looking for a typical shoot-em-up military movie THIS IS NOT IT! But, if you like your action in the Hong Kong -Yuen Woo Ping- Jet Li-John Woo style this will make your day. Nu Image did the film a big diservice by promoting it as a military film as this is probably one of the best American made Chop Sockey films in a long while.A simple and sometimes flawed plot (but who cares) takes a crew of rag-tag SEALs to an island where one of their own (Damian Chapa) has kidnapped a nuclear scientist (Kate Connor) and snatched a few mean looking missles pointed towards the States. The SEALs carry no guns as the island is surrounded by combustible gases so the action is hand to hand all the way (There is one big gun battle in the opening for you Gun-Fu fans).The film stars Michael Worth, who is probably the only "real" actor in the genre that can also move like the big boys and does not disapear behind a stunt man when the action starts. He also adds much needed vunerability to a genre so overloaded with testosterone. He is surrounded by other recognizable and capable faces such as Marshall Teaugue, Hakim Alston, Sophia Crawford and Karen Kim. The film actualy makes an attempt to create empathy for the charactors making the film work even better. Director Isaac Florentine seems to have blended John Woo and Sergio Leone together here giving the film at least a sense of style. He definately knows this genre.Remember, this is no SAVING PRIVATE RYAN but then it doesn't try to be. If you like the independant action films ( you know, a few un intended laughs) and enjoy the stylish action from the Hong Kong School Of Filmmaking, than this DVD is worth the purchase (or at least rental)"

Review It For What It Is.....Kick Butt Action Movie

06/20/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, getting out of the way that we all know what kind of film we are watching, I will approach it from there....The film definately has some of the better fight scenes from the low budget (and even higher budget) American action films. The choreography, as well as the actors themselves, is all top notch. The only thing that kills it though is the VERY over thte yop sound effects. They work fine during a fight, but when someone moves a finger and we hear the same sound....that's a problem.Actor Michael Worth (Ghost Rock) carries the role well, even if he may seem a bit young to be a retired SEAL leader. The writing left him little to do with dialouge, but he makes it his own and remains charming. He seems to be one of those actors that has not quite been noticed by the studios yet but probably will be soon. His co stars Karen Kim and Marshall Teague all work well together and make a good team.The fights are very Hong Kong in style and should be the main point of interest for this film since the premise is all to set up the action.Not much gunning or SEAL tactics, but plenty of spin kicks and some battling babes if that is to your liking."

Action Galore, Leave Your Brains At The Door

Mike Schorn | APO, AE United States | 03/25/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

""U.S. Seals II" is unique for a DTV movie: while other films of this genre either vehemently repel viewers (like Seagal's The Foreigner) or attract an underground crowd via some unsung stroke of genius (like Van Damme's In Hell), this little opus can do both in the blink of an eye. You see, the action is good - damn good, even - but just about everything else about the film is fit to line a cat's litter box with. "Seals II" defines the action movie archetype by delivering big thrills at the consummate expense of drama, plot, and to a lesser extent, production values. It's a movie you must love martial arts for and watch with low expectations if you want to get a good experience out of it, and for that, I like it.



The plot: Casey (Michael Worth, Acapulco H.E.A.T.) was the leader of an elite team of Navy SEALs before his friend and teammate Ratliff (Damian Chapa, Blood In, Blood Out) betrayed the squad by murdering one of their sensei's daughters and going AWOL. Several years into his disgust-induced retirement, Casey is approached by his former superiors with a request to form a new team of Seals to infiltrate a newly-risen Ratliff's fortified island, where he has taken a kidnapped military scientist (Kate Connor, Snake Island) so she may build him a nuclear warhead to further his terrorist schemes. Casey accepts, and dynamic action ensues.



Let's get the bad stuff out of the way first. For starters, if you're such a snob that you need a well-planned storyline, professional acting performances, and thoughtful dialogue to have a good time, you're watching the wrong movie. Just look at the cover of the film - looks as though it could've been Photoshopped together on your own computer, right? Well, that's the general quality of the picture: the cinematography is decent and Michael Worth does what's expected of an action hero, but that's it: the rest of the cast perform with the cumulative talent of a roomful of porn stars, the production is bare-bones until it attempts something it's completely incapable of (e.g. a CGI rocket launch), and little things like logic and character consistency have no place in this one. Oh, and then there's the trend of each hand motion, nod, and head-turn being accompanied by a whooshing sound effect, like in "Power Rangers".



But let's forget about that - who watches action movies for that stuff, anyway? If you can endure two rather silly shootouts, you're treated to a half-dozen weapon-based fights that completely put to shame everything that Hollywood has done for the last half-decade. In addition to tang soo do expert Michael Worth, Karen Kim (The Silent Force), Sophia Crawford ("WMAC Masters"), Andy Cheng ("Rush Hour 2"), Mitch Gould ("Ultraviolet"), Dan Southworth ("Power Rangers Time Force"), Marshall Teague (Road House), and Hakim Alston (Mortal Kombat) light up the screen with their amazing talents that have yet to be realized by image-obsessed big-name studios. Imagine a battle royal between Jean-Claude Van Damme and Jeff Speakman on a caffeine binge, Tony Jaa following a Bruce Lee movie marathon, Lucy Liu's and Cynthia Rothrock's love children, a young Chuck Norris had he grown up watching Jet Li, and Donnie Yen if he traded in his wushu moves for ninjutsu: that best describes film's action content for those of you who don't know what to expect. Seriously, the DTV stigma of shoddy fight scenes does not apply here: while the cinematography slightly hampers some of the spectacle, the fighting itself is on-par with any big Hong Kong picture, with plenty of sword-, staff-, and chain-fighting and a reduced amount of slow motion and wire-fu.



I wish I could do better justice to the fighting, since it's literally all there is keeping the film afloat. This certainly isn't director Isaac Florentine's (Undisputed II - Last Man Standing) strongest film, but nonetheless a strong showing of both what he's good at and what he's not so good at. Rest assured, this is a film for serious action fans only, for folks who care about awesome martial arts and not much else. Take it or leave it, but don't complain."

Better Among The Best

BO BO BOB | JACKSON, MS | 01/12/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I am a huge Michael Worth fan. This was not just one of the best karate movies I have ever seen, but it also had a very good story to it. The only thing that would have made it better is if the nuke that exploded had caused casualties. The amount would not have mattered, but the point of the threat would have been better emphasized. The action sequences were very good. Excellent choreography. Mingling in a little more romance for Worth's character would have been nice. If you want action from beginning to end, with a very good storyline that keeps you on your toes , this is the movie for you. Yes, there are about a 75 people who get killed, but not grotesquely, expect for the main antagonist who deserves his manner of death. Would recommend to any karate, action fan.



I have watched many karate movies. This one is one of the better among the best."