No Way Back (1996)

Uhhhhh.....Yakuza Hijacking....Mob kidnapping FBI Agent's son for Yakuza bad guy unthriller

Did anyone beside me notice in the beginning of the movie, when Saiko (the FBI UC woman) blew away the bad guys, her semi-auto's slide never recoiled back? Okay, small detail. Did anyone notice Russell Crowe (Zack) using the same gun on the airliner that John Malkovich used, to attempt to assassinate the President in Clint Eastwood's film "In The Line Of Fire?"

Well, gee, Helen Slater (she was Super Girl, remember?) was pretty entertaining as Mary, the airline stewardess/hostage. On the other hand, Crowe's superior (whoever she was) was one terrible actress. The Mob father; Serlano (Michael Lerner) of the son who was killed (scrotum and testicles no longer attached) by Saiko (who kills herself, soon after), kidnaps Crowe's son; Eric, until he brings the Yakuza dude - Yuji,(Etsushi Toyokawa) to him.

Uh.. Crowe, the FBI guy, and the Yakuza dude go on a desert hike after the Yakuza dude hijacks the plane they're on, on their way to FBI headquarters....and uh, the bad guys take the Yakuza guy from Crowe in the desert and Helen Slater goes along for the ride. Never mind. The Mob lackeys are also low-class actors. I.....just don't know what to say about this movie. It was pretty bad. Oh, the desert showdown between the FBI guys, the Mob guys and the Yakuza helicopter dude; was pretty sad (as in pretty bad).

Anyway, Yuji, Zack and Mary join forces to rub out Serlano and his flunkies in a trap to save Zack's son. There, I spoiled it for you. So the ending was good, but the movie as a whole, wasn't(?)

All in all, I think Helen Slater was the star of the movie. She's a real jewel. (Her conversations with the cop in the car, and with bad guys at the lake are priceless). Maybe I'm wrong, but it's possible that this movie was supposed to be funny. FASTEN YOUR SEAT BELT, PLEASE. August 23, 2008

One of the OK Crowe movies before he got into doing really good stuff

When FBI Agent Zack Grant, played by Russell Crowe (Cinderella Man, Heaven's Burning), loses his partner Seiko Kobayashi, played by Kelly Hu (Scorpion King, X-Men2:X-Men United), in a blown up operation, a Neo-Nazi son of a mafia man named Victor Serlano, played by Ian Ziering (Beverly Hills 90210, Domino) also dies and his father Frank Serlano, played by Michael Lerner (The Mod Squad, Godzilla (1998) with a not so believeable mustasche, kidnaps Zack's son Eric, played by little Andrew J. Ferchland (Tv's Buffy The Vampire Slayer) and so Crowe goes all gung-ho renegade, so Lerner wants Yakuza member Yuji Kobayashi, played by Etsushi Toyokawa (Love Letter, Dog Star), and he wants Crowe to bring him back to him and Crowe will get his son back. But things get complicated along the way, and Crowe's prisoner is making him tick along the way. Crowe and Toyokawa are joined by airplane stewardess Mary, played by Helen Slater(Supergirl, The Legend Of Billie Jean) who is also a hostage in the whole mix. This Action Thriller goes like this, good moment, boring moment, good moment, ok moment, boring moment, good moment, ok moment, boring, boring moment, good moment and so on. One of the OK Crowe movies before he got into doing really good stuff...here he saves this from being a total disaster....him and actor Etsushi Toyokawa make this worth the watch. Christian Slater's Sister, Helen Slater has some funny oneliners and is sexy holding a gun...that's basically it and Ian Ziering was wasted in a small role. If you're a fan of Crowe like I am, I recommend this but to those who dont like Crowe, well...just watch it once. October 25, 2005

Crowe acting like himself or is he REALLY acting?

I like this movie simply because it was entertaining. There's no deep drama, brainiac prose or intense emotional scenes here. It's just a story about your average cop with a major attitude problem who has a somewhat strained relationship with his 7(?) year old son. The reasons as to why there's a seeminly lack of affection from this single father to his son is explained through poignant flashbacks. The movie is LA Confidential meets Rush Hour. I found Crowe's character humorous, simply because he's so grumpy and prickly, one wonders if it's possible for anyone to be that rude! The ending is uncharacteristically endearing for a movie of this genre. Definitely a must see for Crowe fans. March 25, 2003

If collecting the lot...

While I am a huge fan of Crowe's... this was NOT one of his better performances.

There is plenty of action, more than average suspense but the dialogue is lacking greatly.

Phrases and sentences that just don't make a lot of sense permeate the entire script. More specifically, I found myself saying "would they REALLY say that in this situation???".

Russell drops in and out of his "American" accent, which is a painful reminder of the fact that this is one of the earlier films in his now stalwartly coral of films.

STILL, that all being said... if you are collecting the lot of them... it is worth the purchase if not for anything other than to be able to see just how far he has come.

Enjoy! November 26, 2002

There is "No Way Back"... unless you return it

From the typical action movie title that slips out of your memory within days to the typical overused clichés, I felt like I had seen this one before. Surely Crowe is a good actor, but he isn't exerting himself in this blah flick, and he definitely can't save it from the suspense B-list (at best). There is really no reason to buy this DVD, even with the one talented actor in the cast. June 30, 2002

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