The Sweeper

The very sadly missed PM Entertainment......Without a doubt, they consistently delivered some of the best and most OTT action sequences ever filmed and for proof one need look no further than this testosterone oozing, car exploding, crazy stunt filled effort starring C Thomas Howell as a bad ass cop with a proclivity to kill the bad guys. Yes, you did indeed read that last part correctly, C Thomas Howell does indeed (against all odds!) make for a great action star in this typically exhilarating action offering brought to us by the consistently superb Joseph Merhi.

Howell's no nonsense approach to law enforcement stems from a childhood trauma wherein he witnessed his entire family murdered and was himself left for dead by a sadistic team of hit men. Back to the present and now a highly loose cannon, our hero's habitual excessive use of force finds him in constant hot water from his superiors and has inevitably cost him his marriage. Matters take a strange turn one day however when he is initiated into a clandestine organisation calling themselves Justice Incorporated, a sanctioned group of law enforcers who operate a zero tolerance policy above the usual constraints of the law system. Yes, it's shades of the Dirty Harry outing, Magnum Force here. All seems to be going well for a while with the bad guys getting their just deserts.......that is until our hero discovers that the organisation sanctioned the execution of his family years previously...... Revenge is now on the cards.

Well, if you can overlook the highly derivative storyline and a particularly rushed conclusion then you'll find much to enjoy in this little gem, not least of all the absolutely incredible action sequences and stunt work on display throughout. Most notable is the introduction which features an absolutely crazy car chase down a pier in which literally scores of people are getting run over left right and center(!!!!) Truly an incredibly staged scene. Also of amazing note include a truly scary looking roof top dive wherein our hero simultaneously manages to hang a bad guy(!) and a particularly explosive and thrilling freeway chase that would surely make even Michael Bay jealous. Add to this a whole load of bloody shoot outs and fights and a sadly somewhat out of place but nonetheless exciting grand finale with our hero dangling perilously off of a bi-plane(!) (with the stuntman scarily close to the propeller throughout!) and you have a wondrously entertaining one hundred or so minutes.

Simply tremendous stuff......it's such a true shame that PM Entertainment are no longer making films these days.

Having a past that involves his whole family getting killed and his wife leaving him (granted MANY years apart),an undercover cop is recruited by a secretive vigilante organization, after he proves to be a loose cannon.These are the times that I'm glad to have premium cable channels, as this film has no right to be this good. C. Thomas Howell is NOT a movie actor I particularly like. The writers were responsible for such crap-fests as "Direct Hit", "T-Force", and the Anna Nichole Smith travesty "Skyscraper". The I wouldn't give any of the Director previous movies the time of day. Long story short if I passed it upon a video store self, I'd keep walking, but one restless night when there was nothing else on TV & so I watched it. Was really surprised to find a pretty damn good action movie. Even Mr. Howell is pretty good in it.

My Grade: B+

Where I saw it: Showtime too

Eye Candy: Kristen Dalton as Rachel shows breasts in a shower/sex combo scene

THE SWEEPER is another solidly enjoyable action flick from PM Entertainment, made at the height of their powers when they were churning out one action-packed bit of spectacle after another. This one has a great opening car chase involving supporting actor Jeff Fahey, before the plot moves on to maverick cop C. Thomas Howell (virtually unrecognisable behind long hair and a beard) and his efforts to get revenge on the gangsters behind his father's death. The plot is nothing special here, but there are a couple of familiar faces in the supporting cast (Ed Lauter, Fulton Perry) and the action comes thick and fast, with all of the hand-to-hand combat, shoot-outs, vehicle chases, explosions, and big, slow motion crashes that PM used to shoot so well.

Why is it that a lot of low-budget, direct-to-video action movies are more fun that big-budget theatrical films? Take all the action in "The Rock," pump it with 2 trillion CCs of adrenaline, cast one of the boys from Spielberg's "E.T.," toss in a prologue with Jeff Fahey, and you've got "The Sweeper," a hard-charging crime drama with an action sequence occuring nearly every seven minutes. With everything from foot chases to violent shootouts, explosive car chases to a fight on a bi-plane, "The Sweeper" has got more action than most Hollywood films claiming to be action movies. Granted, it's not necessarily a well-written film (then again, there's hardly a film that is), but when it's got as much action and excitement as this film has, darn it - you just don't care. C. Thomas Howell is good, and you're bound to be fighting to catch your breath by the time the credits start rolling. Enjoy!

Here we have a movie that carries on screen explosions to new lofty levels. Chase scenes with exploding propane tanks and gasoline trucks, create almost continuous mayhem. So what's not to like about "The Sweeper"? Quite a bit actually, starting with a most unlikable performance by C. Thomas Howell. Long boring diatribes about things as mundane as breakfast cereals permeate this disjointed, loosely connected mess of a film. In addition, continuity problems distract, such as where broad daylight suddenly turns into the blackest night. I say this, the stunts are definitely worth checking out, so simply fast forward between fire balls, and avoid the in between. - MERK