"Damage" to Arnold's Career - Mike Schorn - APO, AE United States
At the time of the release of "Collateral Damage", director Andrew Davis had a pretty good career behind him: between 1985 and 2002, he had done good things for the careers of Chuck Norris (Code of Silence), Steven Seagal (Under Siege), Harrison Ford (The Fugitive), Michael Douglas (A Perfect Murder), and had even directed Tommy Lee Jones to his Oscar. Needless to say, the man knows how to bring out a lot in movie stars, so there were few reservations about his teaming up with the number-one action hero of our time, Arnold Schwarzenegger. Surprisingly enough, the film flopped and threatened to end Schwarzenegger's acting career on a low point before Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines came out. Folks tend to write off the film's lack of success due to the fact of it being released only five months after the real-life terrorist attacks of 9/11, but I consider it a simple matter of Schwarzenegger having played too many characters, having been in too many life-threatening situations, and having acted under too many good directors for Davis to have any kind of moving effect on his style at that point.
Oh, and it's not too great of a movie to begin with.
The story: Gordy Brewer (Schwarzenegger) is a fireman whose family is killed in an explosion orchestrated by Colombian terrorist Claudio Perrini (Cliff Curtis, Sunshine). When the US government fails to dispense justice, Brewer travels to South America to exact personal revenge on the terrorist.
For the most part, the plot is as straightforward as abovementioned, but like many Davis films, it gets political as the film progresses...and this is where I first begin to find fault with the film. Forgive me if I seem less-than-patriotic in this statement, but I am thoroughly tired of the one-dimensional and overgeneralized approach that Hollywood has taken towards terrorism for the past decades: for the most part, "Collateral Damage" is a throwback to the days in which we liked to assume that all terrorism was fueled by blind, unexplained, and unwarranted hatred towards America by faceless devils who hid their horns under berets or turbans. The ideology that American lives are more precious than those of people in foreign countries is strongly enforced here, with only the lamest of attempt of political correctness there to try and balance out the ethics.
As far as action goes, the movie is fairly bland: Schwarzenegger doesn't even fire a gun as he flees from bad guys throughout the jungle and avoids missiles. As a matter of fact, besides throwing a few grenades and engaging in a couple of gritty brawls, he doesn't get in on the action at all, which is limited to run-of-the-mill shootouts and explosions; this qualifies the film as more of a thriller than an action title - something I wish I could have known before purchasing it. Then again, ten minutes into the movie, it didn't really surprise me too much: Schwarzenegger looks much older and greyer than he did as recently as The 6th Day, and were it not for his return to form in "Terminator 3", I would have figured that he was over the hill by the time this film rolled around. Also, there are no witty one-liners or much humor of any kind to fall back on, leaving Schwarzenegger looking less vengeful and more tired than he ever has.
The rest of the cast performs fairly well, though they comprise a less-than-original ensemble. Cliff Curtis is merely decent as your stereotypical Latin military-type, but luckily his prominently-featured wife (Francesca Neri, "Hannibal") is there to cover as a deeper and more complex character. Elias Koteas ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button") has an unadmirable role as an underhanded government agent, but John Leguizamo (Executive Decision) and John Turturro (O Brother, Where Art Thou?) have likable parts to keep the movie afloat during their screentime.
I wish there was more to say, but "Collateral Damage" may just be the most toothless Schwarzenegger vehicle ever. I really don't know how the Arnold/Davis team went wrong, but it's almost for sure that fans of The Terminator will not be fans of "Collateral". Schwarzenegger fans will probably already have this as a part of their collection, but non- die-hards should treat this a rental the first time around.
A Good One for Schwarzenegger and Other Action Fans - drkhimxz - Freehold, NJ, USA
One more for the fans who can count on no new ones until the Governor leaves office.....if then. It has what his fans want, plenty of action with the good guys winning, and a decent story of a fireman who seeks revenge for the murder of his wife and child by Colombian terrorists. No doubt it will satisfy action fans with other heroes besides "The Big Guy". Not at all bad.
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