DIRECT ACTION (2005) **

Dolph Lundgren stars as a cop who is breaking in a new partner, played by Polly Shannon.  Some of his colleagues learn that he is about to blow the whistle on their dirty dealings and they try to silence him.  Knowing he’s in constant danger, Dolph advises his new recruit to steer clear of him.  She of course sticks around long enough to save his bacon.  From then on, the duo tries to stay alive long enough to bring down the dirty cops. 

Directed and co-written by Sidney J. (Iron Eagle) Furie (who also directed Dolph in Detention), Direct Action is a by-the-numbers and uninspired vehicle.  The plot is standard-issue and the action is lackluster.  The biggest problem is the crummy camerawork that hampers many of the action scenes.  There’s a lot of jittery movements, unnecessary zooms, and awkward camera placements that undermine what could’ve been solid sequences.  The editing leaves something to be desired too. 

Direct Action (which shouldn’t be confused with the similarly-titled Dolph flick, Direct Contact) benefits from a strong performance by Dolph.  He has a reasonable amount of chemistry with Shannon, who does a fine job as his feisty, naïve partner.  While it’s far from Dolph’s worst, it never really distinguishes itself from the glut of actioners found in his filmography.   

I did like the scene where Dolph beats up a guy wearing a Punisher T-shirt.  He of course played The Punisher in the 1989 movie.  That’s about the only memorable part though.  Too bad there wasn’t a scene where he beats up a guy carrying a He-Man lunch box. 

AKA:  Black Scorpion.