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SYNOPSIS:
A rogue American Special Forces unit schemes to smuggle $35
million worth of heroin into the United States, and all that
stands in its way is border patrol agent Jack Robideaux (Jean-Claude
Van Damme), an ex-homicide cop with a hidden agenda. Taking
on suicide bombers, sadistic torturers and traitorous officials
on both sides of the border, Jack show no mercy as he single-handedly
attempts to destroy the cartel in this explosive action thriller.
MOVIE
REVIEW
Let’s face it, Van Damme isn’t going
to win an Academy Award for his acting career anytime soon
and I’m not going to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature
for writing movie reviews.
Thus
with this mindset, we shall get on with the review of the
latest straight-to-DVD (STD) title, "The Shepherd: Border
Patrol" starring the great Jean-Claude Van Damme.
Unlike
his fellow counterparts such as Sylvester Stallone and Steven
Seagal, the muscles from Brussels still cut a pretty lean
figure, not really a drastic difference as compared to his
heydays. In "The Shepherd", Van Damme plays border
patrol agent Jack Robideaux, an ex-homicide cop who hailed
from New Orleans but has a hidden agenda for accepting the
new post. Across the border, a group of disgruntled mercenary
soldiers are smuggling heroin through illegal immigrants for
obvious monetary gains. By now, you should know who is going
to take on the thankless task of kicking the rogues’
asses.
I
doubt your initial intention of switching on a Van Damme movie
is to see him getting cosy with the female lead or watch him
being melodramatic or spouting pages of dialogue. We shall
leave that to Daniel Day-Lewis. We want to see Van Damme kicks
ass, pull his punches, does his splits and 360 degree kicks.
It’s
a relief to know that "The Shepherd" doesn’t
disappoint in the action department. There’s the obligatory
pub brawl, an exhilarating bus chase sequence in the middle
and a climax which unfortunately ends with an anti-climax
with its jarring, abrupt editing. But the finale fight proves
that the 48 year old man can still convincingly stretch his
leg and gives it a high kick!
This
STD title is definitely not for the snobbish film appreciation
group and there will be people waiting to crucify me when
this review is out (Couldn’t believe MX have the nerve
to recommend such shows!). Once a while, it’s not really
a sin to indulge yourself in some crazy, no-brainer explosive
action thriller. Too much fine wine can be a bore, do alternate
with some fizzy drinks.
Damme!
For the record, he didn’t do his trademark splits this
time.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
There’s no extra features only the trailers
for Hancock, Zombie Strippers, Missionary Man, Pistol Whipped
and a Blu-ray promo reel is included.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
"The
Shepherd: Border Patrol" is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic
widescreen. Not really a top-notch transfer but passable on
the small screen. The DVD comes with Dolby Digital 5.1 so
you can get all your adrenalin pumped up during those action
sequences.
MOVIE
RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Linus Tee
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