The Perfect Weapon (2016) – Review

Where to watch The Perfect Weapon

1 Star

The Perfect Weapon is the latest film, to purportedly star, faded headliner Steven Seagal. Once again the former icon is relegated to a brief cameo in a picture that carries his name above the title, and his image front and center on the marketing materials. In actuality this is a starring vehicle for lead actor Johnny Messner, who I typically enjoy, but is devoid of presence in his claustrophobic role. The Perfect Weapon is so opaque in its narrative construct that it’s almost like watching an art-house tome poem that forces you to work in connecting relevant themes and storylines.

Condor (Johnny Messner) is an out of control assassin for his Controller (Richard Tyson). When the dependable killing machine grows a conscious he becomes a target of The Director (Steven Seagal), a egomaniacal oppressor who runs the state controlled society of the dystopian future circa 2029. When Condor makes a merciful decision based on emotions he finds himself the target of those he once served. Now, he’s fighting back with the help of a slippery femme fatale (Sasha Jackson), and the support of someone on the inside of The Director’s inner circle.

The Perfect Weapon has the distinction of being the first science fiction flick to feature Seagal. This genre has proven fruitful for many of his contemporaries (especially during the 1980-2000s), but the embarrassingly lazy performance of Steven Seagal makes this minor time-waster an unsatisfying experience. Messner, who is typically watchable, is a too stiff in a role that seems to have originated for someone like Vin Diesel. Messner is a hot-head live-wire and dimming his energetic magnetism is one of the films’ disastrous flaws. The Perfect Weapon is on the low-end of the already under-whelming and ever-expanding Seagal filmography.

Director: Titus Paar
Stars: Steven Seagal, Johnny Messner, Richard Tyson

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