Dir: Andrezj Barkowiak
Starring
Steven Segal
DMX
Tom Arnold
Jill Hennesy
2001
R, 117 m
RATING: 7 out of 10
Exit Wounds brings back the whispering Segal as a cop who's demoted from big city police work to urban peacemaker after a botched-up attempt on the Vice Preident's life. There, he discovers a ring of corrupt cops involved in a bevy of shady dealings with a reputed drug lord, played by DMX.
The cast has fun with the material, and it's actually very entertainint to see Segal actually make light of his own tough guy persona, as when his character is required to take anger managment classes - self-mocking humor is always a plus in any movie in showing it is not supposed to be taken seriously. DMX's performance really showcases no acting prowess for the rap star, as his role is underwritten and he does nothing more than look rough and cute (this was probably a smart move on the screenwriter's part, since his line delivery at times borders near B-movie grade.)
Action is by far the most frequent genre in which story takes a backseat to action sequences, and sometimes, it works, as it does here. The action sequences are also well-orchestrated and sometimes over-the-top, but the opening scene is so well executed with a storm of bullets flying and tearing through cars that it matches Michael Mann's bank shootout in Heat in ferocity. The screenplay may sometimes step in a quagmire of cliche, but at other times actually breaks them, especially the standard love-interest cliche. Here, that device is curtailed quite violently and effecively. The ending also is a nice twist that the audience probably won't see coming.
Exit Wounds is not only Segal's best action film to date, it's also a grand collection of exciting shootouts, breathtaking stunts, and very entertaining if somewhat lacking in character development and originality. Still, it's a much more vibrant work of chaotic action than some of the lifeless junk produced by so called action mavens (see Mission Impossible 2).
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