Randall’s unlikely romance with Terry is also harpooned in to raise the stakes, giving his character a deeper, more personal reason to stop Al Rahim. That lack on inspiration weighs heavily on the film as it inevitably moves to a predictable finale. Yet the script, which had input from Sherman as well as Michael Patrick Goodman and Brian Taggert, is as tired as some of the dialogue. Looking like a bronze-coloured smiley-face ice cream that has begun to melt, Gene Simmons might be able to play a bass guitar like few others but when it comes to acting, he knows only one note. There’s also a wonderful shot of Randall disappearing down a drainage tunnel, lit only by his torchlight, while evading a police tail. Early on Al Rahim’s calculated bombing of a movie theatre is undeniably haunting, perfectly setting the stage for a showdown between villain and hero. It’s no surprise that Wanted: Dead or Alive is therefore at its most entertaining when the action’s on screen. Aside from an irritating obsession with a harmonica and an unconvincing subplot involving love interest Terry ( Mel Harris in her first feature film role), Randall needs nothing more than for Hauer to look mean, unstoppable and ready to kick ass.ĭirector Gary Sherman who released cult favourite Dead & Buried in 1981 as well as serviceable horror sequel Poltergeist 3 in 1988, is no stranger to visceral thrills. Conversely, the Dutch actor, who rolls out his vulnerable tough guy routine, is far more watchable. The moody Kiss bassist, sticking out his lower jaw like a toddler who has just had his favourite toy taken away, plays Middle Eastern terrorist Malak Al Rahim who begins a destructive and bloody bombing campaign across Los Angeles.įearless loner and bounty hunter Nick Randall ( Rutger Hauer), who had previously crossed paths with Al Rahim during his former years with the CIA, is acquisitioned by a desperate police force to apprehend him. And that relentless noise is played incessantly in Gary Sherman’s dated eighties action-thriller, Wanted: Dead or Alive.
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