Theo Robertson
***** MILD SPOILERS *****Suppose you were in a gang of bad guys and saw an undercover cop snooping around and he made a break for his car . What would you do ?A ) Shoot the cop ?B ) Not shoot the cop and let him escape in his car then give chase throwing sticks of dynamite ? The logical answer is A but for some reason the producers chose B so they could stick in a pre title sequence completely stolen from LAST ACTION HERO. When I say stolen I don`t mean they`ve stolen the idea , I mean they`ve stolen the entire clip of bad guys chasing after Arnie throwing sticks of dynamite at him . Why the producers did this I`ve no idea because it must have cost a fair bit of money for copyright and the sequence is rather unnecessary , it could have easily have been referred to onscreen with one of those " You goddam idiot , you`re off the case , get yourself another job " type scenes . Oh and the director is Jim Wynorski and the screenwriter is Steve Latshaw a couple of gentlemen who have done this naughty trick before which is why their movies like RANGERS and MILITIA have totally failed because they`ve constructed their own movies around other peoples movie clips Thankfully with the exception of a couple of short clips of PREDATOR the duo have decided to make more or less their own movie this time . The central plot revolves around a TV reality show called TREASURE HUNT which sees the former cop and a bunch of other people trying to find 10 million dollars in hidden treasure on a tropical paradise only to find that the people guarding the loot aren`t what they appear to be - They`re serious criminals who want the ten million bucks for themselves so the premise is a bizarre mix of SURVIVOR meets THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME The film has a strange feel since the first half is slightly light hearted and there`s a few digs at the reality TV craze but when the criminals appear on the scene things start getting a bit violent which jars with the first half . There`s also a rather unnecessary plot device of an unexpected hurricane wreaking havoc on the island and a massive tidal wave which for some reason is quickly forgotten about ie The treasure hunters hide in a coastal cave but for some reason they don`t get drowned !
I have to admit for a film made direct to video GALE FORCE is above average. It`s obvious that the cast had a great time making this movie and their enjoyment comes across so well it`s almost infectious . It`s a dumb movie but not unlikable and hopefully Jim and Steve will soon come to the conclusion that films work best when they`re 100% original
movieguy1021
There are two reasons why Treat Williams is a B-movie king. First is he is not that good of an actor, and second is he always gets roles like his in Gale Force. Campy B-movie actors are usually ok as long as they don't try to become `real' actors, which is something that Williams unfortunately has tried to become. Although he can portray his campiness well in such movies as Hollywood Ending, he's better suited in his direct-to-video type movies, such as Gale Force, in which he's the best part.In Gale Force, Williams plays Sam Garrett, a cop who breaks all the rules, according to an unintentionally hilarious opening scene. Due to that, he's on suspension, and to get back on the force, he has to go on a new reality show called `Treasure Hunt.' The host has ulterior motives, and there's a giant storm (a gale force
get it?) that threatens everyone. Whatever is Treat Williams to do?I understand that this is not a movie to be taken seriously, and the first half or so actually wasn't that bad; it was cheesily good. The acting was horrible, and so was everything else. However, it was entertaining, and, in some ways, an eye opener to reality shows. Once the storm came, that's when everything fell apart. A new subplot came in and anything enjoyable from the first half went away. It wasn't cheesy, it was just stupid.Although this is a minimal budget movie, you would at least think they could get better special effects. In the opening scene, at one part Williams is being chased by the bad guys. He has to go around a truck, so he goes on two side wheels. How this happens is randomly he just tilts to one side with the most obvious backlighting I have ever seen. It was more obvious than those `special effect' rides at Universal Studios. The hurricane looked extremely fake; yet again, just something out of an amusement park ride. I would expect something more from Artisan and Phoenician Entertainment.Adding to the fakeness was also in the opening scene. When Williams is being chased by the bad guys, they throw dynamite at him (of course). The dynamite explodes at various times, but never the same, especially when Williams would be killed. Another time, Williams shoots someone who flies out of his car (did I mention that he is also being chased by a minivan?) at a 90 degree angle and then flies into an ice cream truck which immediately explodes. It's so bad it's good, which is something I can't say about the abysmal second half.Williams is actually quite good when he isn't required to act. Sometimes the script by Steve Latshaw throws him some one-liners, which are pretty funny. When someone asks him, `Who do we have to f**k to get us out of here?', he replies, `Probably the pilot.' This, of course, leaves the second half, which is so bad it makes me want to go up to Artisan (who has made quality projects like Terminator 2) and yell in their face. If you wind up watching Gale Force, only watch the first half. I guarantee you'll be in convulsions in the second half.My rating: 3/10Rated R for violence and language.
liammurphy1
This movie is great This movie is supposed to be over the top and tongue in cheek your not supposed to take it seriously like most of the other reviewers have done, just sit back and enjoy - it's mindless ecapism as intended.The plot line was original, the actors were'nt oscar winners but they did very well, the special effects were excellent if on the cheap side.9/10
Movie Nuttball
This Treat Williams film was good but most of it is scenes from other films such as Predator and Last Action Hero.The original scenes are good but the film is just an entertaining action film.If you like Williams then I recommend you to see Deep Rising as I think it is his best film.