Mean Guns [Special Collector’s Edition]
(Ice-T, Christopher Lambert, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, Thom Mathews, et al / Blu-ray / NR / (1997) 2024 / MVD Rewind Collection)
Overview: The world’s most dangerous criminals are summoned to a new prison on the eve before its grand opening by Moon (Ice-T, New Jack City), the ruthless leader of the world’s most powerful crime syndicate.
Chaos ensues when weapons and ammunition are passed around and the group, including Lou (Christopher Lambert, Highlander), begin their fight to survive. The last three men standing by midnight have been promised $10,000,000 in cash by Moon, who watches from his surveillance camera as gunfire and bodies fly.
Rivalries develop between friends and the lines of loyalty are crossed as each criminal attempts to outwit, outrun and outlive the other in the action packed game of elimination.
Blu-ray Verdict: I mean, for all intents and purposes, and just taking it for face value, Mean Guns is a great movie [as far as action goes]. Christopher Lambert and Ice-T are really the only two big names in the movie with the rest of the cast either virtually unknowns or relatively inexperienced in the action movie genre, but that’s ok.
So, what happens when you dump a load of guns into a roomful of killers? Well, you get this OTT movie! As action as action can get, the confines of an empty prison makes for the perfect setting for the mayhem and murder of the contest that will leave only a certain lucky few alive - as per rules of the contest. Kill or be killed, the movie follows around a handful of central characters as they attempt to make it through alive.
The soundtrack, the majority of which is Perez Prado, makes for the perfect background for the beautiful symphony of destruction and death throughout the movie. The acting leaves a bit to be desired, of course, given it is, after all, a B-movie from the late ’90s, and some of the characters give very wooden and monotone performances (specifically that of D and Cam), but most of it is pretty decent overall.
In truth, most of the action is on the more realistic side of the spectrum, going against many modern action movies in which the bad guys fly back 10 feet when they’re shot with a small-caliber pistol! It tried to lessen the comedic death scene ensuring that, for the most part, the deaths are fairly realistic. [I mean, you don’t get everyone being shot 14 times and then giving a long speech before finally doing a 540-backflip off a roof to their death!]
Thus, and in conclusion, and as far as action movies go, this is a good one. Now, please don’t expect any academy award-winning acting here (at any time), but it is definitely an enjoyable movie and one to watch on a wet Sunday night with nothing on TV to entice you into visual comfort.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Main feature presented in 1080p HD in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio
Audio: LPCM 2.0 Stereo
Optional English, Spanish and French Subtitles
Audio Commentary from Director Albert Pyun
Introduction by Director Albert Pyun (HD, 00:39)
NEW! Interview with Producer Gary Schmoeller (HD, 28:57)
NEW! Interview with Executive Producer Paul Rosenblum (HD, 23:41)
NEW! Interview with Composer Anthony Riparetti (HD, 18:31)
Original Theatrical Trailer
Reversible artwork
Collectible Mini-Poster
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