By Malice Intended

Special Ops CIA agent Marcus (Wesley Snipes) is given his latest mission: infiltrate the inner circle of arms-dealing diplomat Smith (Robert Davi) and take him out when the time is right.  Marcus earns Smith’s trust, becoming his bodyguard.  When Smith suffers a heart attack in the midst of an ambush, Marcus drives him to an area hospital.  While there, the team of CIA operatives that are supposed to be backing Marcus turn on him and take Smith hostage.   They hope to ransom him off for a considerable payday.  The situation becomes a cat and mouse game with former special ops teammates Marcus and Zander (Gary Daniels) facing off against each other.

Game of Death (not to be confused with Bruce Lees posthumous film) is one of the final films completed by star Wesley Snipes before he began his three year stint in prison.  It is very much in line with the prototypical Wesley Snipes action vehicle from his 1990’s heyday, with many of the same strengths and flaws.  How you’ll take it will largely depend on how you feel about these kinds of movies.

The technology on display is crisp.  Director Giorgio Serafini and Cinematographer Erik Curtis give the film a very basic color palette, where lights and darks are harshly contrasted, resulting in dream like quality.  This is fitting as the story is told almost completely in flashback.  Though stylish, the camerawork isn’t fancy.  The setups are basic.  Dramatic scenes consist of medium shots where the camera doesn’t move very much.  The camera mostly pulls back during the action.

The fight scenes, of which there are many, are much more concise than anything we’ve seen Wesley in outside of the Blade series.  A variety of angles are used, and the camera never becomes intrusive.  The action is clear and easy to follow.  “Kill moves” and deathblows are emphasized in a novel way.   When Marcus does a finishing move, the screen goes into black and white,  similar to the technique used in the “House of Blue Leaves” sequence in Kill Bill volume 1, but produces a decidedly different effect.

The plot is sorely lacking.  The first half, set entirely in a Detroit hospital, plays like a deadly serious version of Passenger 57.  This makes Game of Death feel like one of the many Die Hard rip-offs released in the 1990’s and used as crossover vehicles for B-level action stars.  Though the fights are well-staged, the way they take place makes everything seem like a less energetic run through of Hard Boiled.

The clichéd story wouldn’t be an issue if the characters were more fleshed out.  While B-movies don’t necessarily need layered characterizations or complex plotting, the actors in Game of Death are given the absolute sketchiest of characters to work with, hampering their ability to infuse the characters with any life.  Not having a back story doesn’t help matters.  The usually cocky Snipes is neutered and reserved as Marcus and sleepwalks through the role. Action star Gary Daniels has a few moments as the heartless villain Zander, but the character feels wooden overall.  Character actor Robert Davi provides a much needed dose of energy.   

Game of Death shows that Wesley still has the physical skill and presence to pull this stuff off convincingly.  Unfortunately, instead of adding some new shades to his persona he’s flying on autopilot.  At a time when action films have become much more tightly choreographed and technically adept, that is career suicide.  Tax problems or no, Wesley was the biggest black action hero of the 1990’s.  He held it down for a considerable amount of time on his own.  He should be much further along than this by now.  Game of Death’s only redeeming quality is the action, which should never be the case for a quality action film.

  2.75 out of 5

Follow Us on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/planetill

Follow Malice Intended on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/renaissance1977

Join Us on the Planet Ill Facebook Group for more discussion

Follow us on Networked Blogs