By Robert Scucci
| Published
Steven Seagal’s days as the “damn, he’s good” action hero may be long behind him, but the man who brought us Besieged, On deadly groundAnd Hard to kill deserves credit where it’s due for actually performing roles that fall into morally gray territory. Direct-to-Video from 2013 Execution force is one of those films in the sense that Seagal doesn’t play a highly decorated right-wing war hero with an ax to grind, but rather a cold and calculating crime lord named Jason Alexander who makes dirty deals at behind closed doors. with the end goal of leaving his life of crime behind.
While the usual Steven Seagal trappings are found in Execution force, like his unbreakable (albeit evil) moral code, the film ultimately fails because his ethics are trapped beneath his cruelty when he so clearly wants to be the good guy.
Force of poor execution
Execution force introduces us to Roman Hurst (Bren Foster), a freelance mercenary who carries a gun for protection despite being led to believe his hands are deadly weapons in their own right. After a failed prison assassination attempt in which Roman takes out the wrong target under the direction of an incarcerated gang leader named Ice Man (Ving Rhames), John Alexander (Steven Seagal) has no choice but to force Roman into early retirement by having his hands broken. In John’s mind, Roman has been a loyal employee for 15 years, but he still has to pay the price for his serious miscalculation, which damaged the reputation of all parties involved.
Upon his release from prison, Ice Man immediately clashes with John, and a gang war develops for control of Albuquerque, New Mexico’s underground criminal ring shifts into high gear. John makes a peace offering to Roman in the form of enough money to disappear and start a new life, while subtly hinting that he could use his help to ease the growing and ongoing tension between him and Ice Man. Roman finds himself conflicted as he wants to return to work with John, but his hands are damaged beyond repair.
Danny Trejo elevates the premise
Roman has a few brief encounters with a deli owner named Oso, played by Danny Trejowhich only makes you wonder how many minutes of execution time will take place in Execution force before Danny Trejo does what he does best: die on screen. I’ll spare you any spoilers, but Oso has a much-quoted scene in which he attacks Roman with poisonous scorpions and a hammer in a misguided attempt to repair his hands.
No clear good or bad guy
Despite Steven Seagal’s best efforts to play some sort of villain in Execution forcehe still can’t help himself and delivers his iconic monologues about pride, his super secret past which vaguely explains how he accumulated his skills and wealth, and his personal code of ethics in order to justify his actions, no matter how ruthless and moral as they may be. they can be doubtful.
Continuous execution force
This direct-to-video action flick is a far cry from Steven Seagal’s ’90s blockbuster heyday, but it’s not without its charm. At the very least, it’s refreshing to watch Execution force because Seagal is trying to turn heel this late in his career by taking on a character who isn’t the action hero with a heart of gold that we all know. Execution force is a ramshackle affair at best, but effectively captures Seagal’s willingness to try new things even as he unconsciously tries to relive his glory days in every scene.
As of this writing, you can stream Execution force for free on Tubi.
