Counterstrike (2002)

Truly Dreadful Film

Did you people see the same film I saw?

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Essentially a made-for-TV film masquerading as an actual film. The story is silly, the characters are weak, and the plot points will only make sense (or work) if you have undergone a lobotomy, and even then you might still scratch your head and wonder who thought this movie was a good idea.Let's see: A historical summit set on a cruise ship. Oh yes, makes perfect sense. After all, why go to Camp David, what with its complete defensive systems, when you could just hop on a cruise ship with a movie star to teach you Tai Chi. Oh sure, why not. If the whole idea of a cruise ship as the setting for a "historical summit" that might just bring about nothing short of world peace doesn't make you roll your eyes, how about the notion that the ship will be "blacked out" from the rest of the world during its voyage. Oy. And to think, this started out as a book that was translated into a movie script!!A poor movie, especially since it had the enticing Ms. Marie Matiko. Laughably bad, but not as laughably bad as the people who actually considers the film to be worthwhile.

It seems that the main criticisms of TV action films are that they are predictable and made on lower budgets than theatrical releases. These criticisms are moot since you can always count on the good guys to win and one shouldn't expect big screen budgets on television movies. One must view the piece knowing these facts going in. This movie totally succeeded in providing enjoyable, escapist, action viewing. You could tell from the opening scenes that this would be a cut above the rest. It was the best original movie I've seen on TBS. If I had to find an area of criticism it would be to the director and teleplay for a couple of scenes that could have been deleted and a couple that needed some extra development. Now, the most enjoyable part of all was the super performance by Rob Estes as ATF agent Thomas Kellogg. Estes is a fine actor and he brought charisma and style to the role. Athletic and nimble he made the action scenes look easy. He was totally convincing. Joe Lando was fine as the older brother and there was a believable sibling dynamic between the two. The U.S. submarine crew also was very good and deserves mention. A very watchable and enjoyable film loaded with action. Hey TBS, how about some further adventures with the Kellogg brothers? Really enjoyed Estes and the film very much.

This movie is an excellent vehicle for Joe Lando, who does action like no other . If he only had some romance to go along with the thrills and spills, I would rate it a 10.

This was billed as "Counter Strike" and it more than likely will be called that as the title on the IMDB is similar to a Sinatra film of quite a few years ago called "Assalt of a Queen".Anyway this is quite a good action film, there are some nifty Kung Fu bits in it, the story line is also good not to convaluted, and the fact that 99% of the actors are little known makes it better, if you see a "star" running round you loose a bit because you know who it is...#Steven Segal did it better in "Under Seige"...but l thought it was an ok film and recommend it... Marks out of 10.....7 Zorro