Blu-ray Review: Driven to Kill

When Steven Seagal appears in a film, fans can expect two things: bad acting and an overdose of glorious bone-bashing action.

“Driven to Kill” brings back to life the glory days of American martial arts movies that were dominated by Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme. Seagal stars as Ruslan Drachev, a former Russian mobster who has given up crime to become a writer. But, you can only escape a life of crime for so long when you try to bury the skeletons of the past. When the Russian mob targets Drachev’s daughter, Ruslan bursts into action to take vengeance against the mafia.

Unlike Van Damme, who would get beaten and battered before coming back to save the day, Seagal returns in this Blu-ray release unscathed after countless mob fights. The plot is contrived the start with Drachev’s daughter marrying into the crime family he left behind. Luckily, this doesn’t take away from the abundance of fighting and bloodshed inherent to a Seagal flick. Unlike Marked for Death, which used the unique backdrop and nuances of the Jamaican mafia, “Driven to Kill” is more of a “turn-the-sound-off-and-watch-the-action movie.” The cinematics are amazing and look superb in High Def. This film is probably one of Seagal’s best when it comes to the photography and final edit.

What stood out in this release is the use of 80s kung-fu flick blood spurts. There’s a strip club scene where you’ll see blood gush like Shogun Assassin. It’s actually quite hysterical. Also, you’ll have to accept that the film is filled with sloppy mob work. The Russian mafia should writer a letter to the producers for defamation. The mob boss makes so many random moves to stop Seagal it makes you wonder how the heck he earned a position of power being so foolish. Yes, I said it. Foolish.

“Driven to Kill” is still a fun action movie, which is entertaining despite the lack of plot. If you’ve missed seeing Seagal in action, check this out just don’t expect the uninspired cookie-cutter plot to overwhelm you. There are no special features on this Blu-ray release which is a definite thumbs down.