Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

Under Siege (1992)

This movie is the one that gave Steven Seagal his credibility in a glossy format but in further film outings he has hardly lived up to the promise he showed as the galley cook who ended up thwarting the hijacking of the old battlewagon (BB-63) USS Missouri, honorable veteran of the Gulf War and wars past.

Steven Seagal is Chief Casey Ryback, apparently a cook aboard the USS Missouri, on its final cruise heading for the mothball fleet in Pearl Harbor. But when terrorists, led by Tommy Lee Jones and turncoat ship's XO Gary Busey, try to hijack the Missouri and steal the cruise missiles it's hauling, Seagal drops his spatula and goes balls to the wall, suitably assisted by stripper Erika Eleniak who adds a welcome bit of cheesecake to the testosterone heavy production.

OK, there are no surprises here. Seagal turns out to be a disgraced SEAL operator, as related by the captain (Patrick O'Neal) and is more than equal to the baddies thrown against him, as is usual in his movies.

All the bullets miss Seagal and the good guys win, but it's all good fun and exciting, which is a lot more than can be said for most of Seagal's rather forgettable oeurve. Erika Eleniak after the obligatory blouse shucking consistent with her rather thin role proves a good sidekick to Seagal and even does a turn as heroine similar to Grace Kelly's parting shot in High Noon.

The real news here are the creative villains offered up by Mssrs Busey and Jones who manage to amp up the nastiness just short of camp level.

Gary Busey plays a frustrated senior naval officer who sells out his captain and country to aid the terrorists. His initial clash with Seagal gives him a laid open cheek that would decommission a normal guy so we know Busey is super mean even though he is not much into fisticuffs. Tommy Lee Jones, on the other hand, is a frustrated CIA operator who believes the government doesn't appreciate his covert efforts during the 60s and 70s. He and Busey therefore team up to steal the missiles to get the payback they feel they deserve. When they are pressed up against the wall by Ryback's attacks, they decide to erect a launch rail and make Honolulu glow with the nuclear tipped Tomahawks, sort of revenge - if they can't escape with the booty, they will leave a smoking crater as their epitaph. Each of these guys chews the scenery and Seagal gives Busey his comeuppance by smashing his head through a computer monitor.

Great action sequences featuring the USS Missouri including the Phalanx anti aircraft gun taking out a helicopter bringing in SEAL Team 6 to rescue the ship. As a point of trivia, filmmakers used the USS Alabama anchored at Mobile to double as the Missouri. Action sequences were CGIed with the familiar landmarks masked off.

The Warner Bros DVD is presented in color, in 1.85:1 theatrical format, and running 103 minutes.

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening