Hunt to Kill

Steve Austin multi-picture deal with Anchor Bay films has resulted in another direct to DVD feature here in "Hunt To Kill." Austin stars as a Jim Rhodes, a U.S. Border Patrol agent in Montana, who has his daughter with him on Winter vacation with them having a strained relationship. She gets caught shoplifting & is being held in the local sheriff's office for him to come pick her up. Meanwhile a band of robbers in Las Vegas were betrayed by one of their own members of the team who takes off with all the loot leading the head villian Banks (Gil Bellows) to the same Sheriff's office where Rhodes & his daughter is. From there, Rhodes is forced to lead the band of criminals throught the wilderness with so many issues being dealt with such as the villians turning on each other, his daughter being held hostage while she's still having issues & conflict with him, and just trying to survive in the wild.

Most of the action in this movie consist of using weapons (shooting weapons like guns & a crossbow) along with an explosion & some stunts but there are two fights with one being between Rhodes & Banks along with one of two mini reunions from the "Expendables" movie with Austin's character fighting Gary Daniels' character of Jensen. Your also treated to another "Expendables" reunion in the beginning of the movie between Steve Austin & a cameo made by Eric Roberts. Overall I enjoyed this more than his previous DVD flick "The Stranger" but that doesn't say much as the plot was very basic but some of the characters were too "cartoonish" for my taste & none of the action here really got an emotion out me unlike Austin's previous roles in "The Expendables" , "The Condemded", or "Damaged." In the end, I would only recommend renting this if you have around 90 mins. of your life that you won't miss but besides that...you can pass on this too.

I wasn't terribly impressed with the last Anchor Bay DTV action flick starring former wrestler "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, THE STRANGER, but as I'm always up for some testosterone-fueled cinematic mayhem, I decided to give the latest Austin vehicle, HUNT TO KILL (2010) a spin anyway.

I'm glad I did.

Austin plays a Border Patrol Agent named Jim Rhodes. After a bitter divorce that leaves him raising his teenage daughter Kim (Marie Avgeropoulis) alone and the brutal murder of his partner (Eric Roberts, picking up a check for a quick cameo), Rhodes accepts a promotion that finds him stationed in Northern Montana. But his quiet life in the woods is upset when a band of ruthless heist artists led by a sociopath named Banks (Gil Bellows, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, LOVE & A .45) roll into the neighborhood with a fortune in stolen bearer bonds. They take his daughter hostage, and coerce him into leading them through the wilderness and over the Canadian border. Of course, it isn't long before there's conflict and falling outs among the crooks, and the opportunity for a little random Rambo-styled mayhem on Stone Cold's part.

HUNT TO KILL, despite the blandly generic title and somewhat over-familiar plotline, is a terrific low-budget B-action film. Austin is surprisingly effective in the lead role, exhibiting some unexpected bits of human emotion along with the expected brute force. The cast is better than average for the genre, with Bellows turning in a fine, sly turn as the leader of the crooks, and British martial arts star Gary Daniels (THE EXPENDABLES, BLOODFIST IV) making a formidable physical opponent for the hulking Austin. BATTLESTAR GALACTICA vets Michael Hogan and Donnelly Rhodes appear in brief cameos, while Emilie Ullerup of SyFy's SANCTUARY (and a few GALACTICAs) portrays a sexy, felonious femme fatale.

The direction by Keoni Waxman is well-paced and engaging, and he makes good use of his cast and locations. The gorgeous, dangerous Canadian wilderness is captured in all its majesty by cinematographer Tom Harting and the score by Michael Plowman is excellent. The script isn't particularly original, but there are a few good twists, a couple of interesting characters, some intentional humor, and plenty of action set-pieces.

The stuntwork is excellent, and the action is extremely well-shot and edited. The standout scene is the inevitable throw-down between Austin and Daniels, and when it finally occurs, it proves to be worth the wait. The fight is well-staged and clearly photographed, without the now-passe shaky camerawork, rapid editing and MATRIX-y computer crap that is usually employed to obscure bad choreography. No, this is a duel of mock-combat titans and truly a joy to behold.

Anchor Bay's DVD of HUNT TO KILL sports a pristine, razor-sharp 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and a very robust Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. The only bonus features are an audio commentary by director Keoni Waxman and actor Michael Eklund, a "Behind the Scenes" featurette, and a trailer.

HUNT TO KILL isn't an action classic, but it's a damned good manly entertainment, with plenty of thrills, spills and a couple of big explosions. Fans of B-action flicks should definitely give it a spin. Recommended.

Another fast action pack movie by Steve Austin.Well written story and produce.Secondary cast members played there parts well.Steve was great in this movie.