Very disappointing...

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

I go into this review admittedly having not watched a lot of Seagal's DTV stuff, which there are hundreds of, but I have watched a few as well as all his theatrical releases so I think I'm pretty clued up on what to expect by now.And for the most part, Born to Raise Hell fulfills the expectations you have of a Seagal movie - Seagal plays his usual role as a cop or some other sort of government/military official, some bad guys pop up, Seagal chases them down and deals with them. Usually, this combination of factors leads to a good watch where you can just sit and enjoy without thinking too much, but there are a few things that pull this film down from the usual Seagal standards.Firstly, the cinematography and camera work is pretty terrible - unnecessary shaky camera and slow motion effects, freeze frames on really ridiculous moments (such as one on the main villain's face in the middle of raping a woman), the lot. It reminded me of that "you wouldn't steal a car" anti-piracy advert, except imagine that for whole action/dramatic sequences.Another issue is that there is pretty extensive dubbing over of Seagal's voice - it's there from the very start and happens every so often throughout, always reminding you that it's there, that ol' Steven just can't deliver his hard-hitting lines anymore (if he ever could). One fairly hilarious example is near the end when Seagal says a line "I'll be out in 10, 15 minutes" with the word "minutes" dubbed over. Did they really need to dub over the word "minutes" to give it that extra authority it needed? There usually is always a little bit of dubbing in Seagal DTV flicks and it's fine but there's just way too much here.The other main criticism is the other characters - one of whom, a Russian drug lord living in Romania, is originally pursued by Seagal and his team but then Seagal sees fit to make a deal with this drug lord who has killed or ordered the killing of multiple people throughout the film, in order to pursue the main drug lord villain. There is a scene at the end where Seagal is talking to this morally reprehensible guy like they're friends. According to the film's logic it's OK because the other drug lord does home invasions where he murders people and rapes the women while the other one isn't as bad.There is also one of the most cringeworthy scenes I've seen in a Seagal movie yet, where the overweight, ageing Seagal "makes love" with his young Romanian girlfriend. The shoddy camera-work with Seagal wearing clothes while his girlfriend is basically naked and quick cuts to make it look like they're having sex but not really just makes this scene unintentionally hilarious.Overall, Born to Raise Hell is a less than passable Seagal DTV flick. Don't get me wrong, it's still enjoyable to watch, and Seagal's usual action sequences with martial arts are as good as what you'd expect from the guy's DTV movies. But poor directing, dubbing and some choice plot scenarios let this one down.

Another Steven Seagal straight-to-DVD movie . Another forgettable one . This one not only has Seagal as the star , but also as the producer and writer . The story isn't complicated – what did you expected ? The action and dialogues aren't amazing either. It's another action movie for Seagal fans and action junkies.What will I remember from this one ? There is quite a lot of sexy ladies here . Hell , Seagal even has a sex scene ! Thank God he wears his clothes during that one … The movie also seems to have kinda decent budget – it doesn't look as bad as other Seagal efforts .Anyway , this is one strictly for Seagal fans . I give it 1/10.

The once glorious (well I'm sure some still believe that to be the case) Steven Seagal might be lingering in direct-to-DVD haven, but these enterprises sometimes provide the goods, that's if you're not expecting much. But then again there are some just plain and dull outings and for me this European stint "Born to Raise Hell" fell in to this group. Seagal feels like nothing more than a bit player and a bored one too. Spending more time sitting about, pondering, having a heartfelt chats or if he has to - walking from 'a to b' to shoot someone or casually crack some bones. So when it comes to the explosive bursts, they do lack any sort of punch or adrenaline despite the seedy scene. Here he plays a streetwise American Interpol agent assigned to a drug / weapon trafficking task force in Eastern Europe. This is one rather generic action drama, which thinks it's tough, but comes across as violently spiteful and sluggishly paced with a bogged down script. The director keeps it rather kinetic with the filming techniques, being slickly dressed up with sped up visuals, slow motion and titled camera angles. The performances are nothing to write home about, but the cast do acquit themselves well enough. Not terrible, but a very ho-hum Seagal vehicle."I like your style".

Just watched BORN TO RAISE HELL, and i've got mixed feelings about it. I won't bore you with the plot (partly because they wasn't much of one, anyhow)But first off, let me say the cinematography was good. The locations and camera work were crisp, sharp and better than most DTV releases. It could have done with less of the (as VERN calls them) "Avid Fart" technique (of jump-cuts, speed-ed up, slowed down shots)Seagal was OK (extremely foul-mouthed, i might add) but (and as usual, with these Eastern European releases) he only had about 70% screen time (as the rest was filled up, with either semi-naked female dancers, "Avid Fart" stuff, or other character plots)The dubbing (as previously mentioned) is rife throughout (not as bad as ATTACK FORCE, but almost near enough) The doubles are also there, in the movies 4 (or so) fight scenes, not particularly noticeable, but for nearly every shot of Seagal fighting, there's another 'Below the neckline' or 'From behind' to match it. And it's all the more infuriating, because Seagal does some fast handy-work, punch kick and flip combos himself, in this movie...so the doubles weren't really needed. The fight scenes also consist of a lot of fast (close-up) edits also.The plot is (like i previously stated) wafer-thin....which consists of Seagal leading a strike force police unit in Romania...getting the drop on some drug dealers, who rat out an even bigger criminal (not to mention psychopath) to get a lighter sentence. This Psychopath likes to commit 'home invasions' on rich couples, and rapes the wives before killing them both.Then Seagal teams up with another mobster, and they both go after the psychopath.......The end.Despite the fact, that this is a by-the-numbers Seagal effort (nowhere near as good as A DANGEROUS MAN, URBAN JUSTICE or DRIVEN TO KILL) it does have a few interesting points. The plot (however slim) has parallels to early 70's Italian 'Polizia' movies (in that it shows the Law teaming up with the lesser evils to bring down the greater ones)And Seagal adds real police procedures to the 'raid' and 'arrest' sequences (probably picked up from his stint as a real life deputy) A mixed bag for sure, but not without interest....but a step back from A DANGEROUS MAN. The one good thing about a less than memorable Seagal movie, is that, when i watch it again (in about 6 months time) i'll barely remember a thing about it (thus, it's like watching a new movie) and chances are, i'll either see something i didn't notice before, or it'll just plain grow on me. Either way, it's far from the turkey it could have been, but could have been better. I suppose it's A DANGEROUS MAN's fault, for being so good