The Asian Connection (2016) Reviews

• Easily Seagal's poorest film....he needs to give it up now.

  FlashCallahan2016-05-26

  There was a time when Seagal was a big hitter in Hollywood. Back in the early nineties, his films would always debut at number one at the American box office, and you could tell he actually cared about what he was doing, despite appearing slightly larger in each film. This year has seen him at his laziest. Sniper: Special Ops had him sitting down for the majority of the film, and Code of Honour didn't even have speak until 48 minutes into the film. Now whilst he does stand and speak in this film (he must have been paid well), it's the fact that the rest of the cast and the narrative are just handled so poorly, it makes Seagal look deceptively on form, but if you are/were a fan of his, it's clear he isn't bothered about the film in the slightest.. When two American robbers, Jack and Sam, embark on a series of heists in Southeast Asia, they run into more trouble than they bargained for when they steal money from a ruthless drug lord. A fight for riches turns into a fight for survival as Jack and Sam become the target of the drug lord and his gang's vengeance....... The girls narration throughout the film makes it feel like a cross between a lifetime movie and a really bad reality TV show (aren't they all?). It's soulless, poorly executed and her voice is just so mundane, it makes you feel sad. The 'hero' of the film looks like a cross between Evil Ed from Fright Night and Bill Paxton (he ironically played his part in Terminator: Genisys), and dresses up like Brad Pitt in fight club. He's highly unlikable, and the fact that his partner is a cockney geezer with name calling issues, just makes matters worse. Seagal spends the film in his Bandana, shades and ball gown, doing gentle martial arts, by waving his hands in front of the camera, and showing the lady of the film, what appears to be Madonna's Vogue dance. It really is a terrible piece of work, and a thankless cameo from Michael Jai White doesn't add anything to the film. An ordeal to get through, it's the cinematic equivalent of a Buffet owner seeing Seagal walk in with a knife and fork...........horrifying.

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• Everything you would expect and nothing more.

  dtwine2016-05-13

  I really thought that the inclusion of MJW would hopefully lift this slightly higher than expected. Sadly he is unseen but for a fleeting scene in which his role could have been played by any random crackhead. The whole thing is so poorly acted and scripted not to mention directed that it really comes down to a D grade action flick built around Sensei Seagal playing patty cake in his pj's (yet again) and delivering even worst dialogue than usual. Even giving him the opportunity of playing a bad guy for a change seems too much like hard work for the Sensei who dials in one of the lamest performances from him yet. Maybe his lethargy is a result of being squeezed too tightly into his Spanx. Perhaps the worst offender in this mess is Director (and I use that term very loosely) Daniel Zirilli. He continues his rise towards mediocrity with another typical example of his very obvious limitations. Watch only if you absolutely must, but don't say you weren't warned.

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• So bad!

  popnruss2017-03-18

  First of all, I turned the film off. I simply could not watch the entire fiasco. The acting was so amateurish that it was laughable. How old was Jack's girlfriend? All of seventeen? Where do they find the actors for these disasters? But to make matters worse, the three minute segments with Steven Seagal who is way too old and out of shape to be in all these action films he so call stars in. I watch these films to see just how much worse they can get. This one certainly met my expectations.

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• About As Bad As You're Going to Get

  Michael_Elliott2016-07-03

  The Asian Connection (2016) 1/2 (out of 4) Jack (John Edward Lee) and his buddy are in Asia where they rob a bank. Jack plans to use the money on his girlfriend (Pim Bubear) who he loves very much. However, what he doesn't know is that he is actually robbing from Asian crime lord Sirankiri (Steven Seagal). Soon Jack is forced into robbing even more banks and now the police are after him as well as Sirankiri. This is the first Seagal movie I've seen since his 1997 film FIRE DOWN BELOW. I knew that the actor had gone into the direct-to-video craze but I honestly just wasn't big enough of a fan to check out all of these movies. THE Asian CONNECTION grabbed my attention because I read some really negative reviews on it so I decided to check it out myself. There's no question that the awful reviews were right on the mark because this is a pretty darn bad movie no matter how you look at it. Obviously it was done on a very low-budget but the problem is that it's so poorly made that you just get bored by all of it. The direction by Daniel Zirilli is certainly a major issue because the action scenes all look horrible and there's not a single moment where the film contains any energy or excitement. Another problem is that you certainly don't care about any of the main characters. The love story subplot between Jack and his girlfriend is laughable at times and even everything with Seagal is pretty bland and boring. John Edward Lee's performance is also quite bad and it appears Seagal is just picking up a paycheck as he does very little with his role. THE Asian CONNECTION is a really bad movie that doesn't have a thing going for it.

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• An Okay Watch!

  namashi_12016-05-17

  'The Asian Connection' is An Okay Watch, despite a few arresting moments & a top-billed Steven Seagal. I liked the attempt, but the execution isn't foolproof. 'The Asian Connection' Synopsis: Two American expatriates, Jack and Sam, unwittingly steal a drug lord's money when they rob a series of banks in Southeast Asia and become the target of the gangster's vengeance. 'The Asian Connection' begins well, but the narrative falls short as its progresses. The characters appear lethargic, although the villain has his moments. Also, the pace is inconsistent. The Writing needed to be stronger, crisper. There was great potential here, but it only utilizes only half of it. Daniel Zirilli's Direction is passable. Cinematography is standard. Editing lacks sharpness. Action-Sequences are very okay. Performance-Wise: Steven Seagal is on a roll. 'The Asian Connection' is his 3rd release in a span of just a month, first Sniper: Special Ops, then Code of Honor & now this. He's seen in a negative role here & he does his best. Michael Jai White is wasted. John Edward Lee is a loose leading man. Byron Gibson is efficient. Sahajak Boonthanakit is ordinary. On the whole, 'The Asian Connection' is fair.

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