Raw Deal

Growing up in the 80's, one name stood above all others in the action genre: Arnold Schwarzenegger. To my surprise I found one of his early action movies that I had never seen so I sat down and watched:

Raw Deal (1986).

Arnold plays Mark Kaminski, a former FBI agent forced to resign after being too brutal with a child murderer. His old boss Harry contacts him after Harry's son (also an agent) is gunned down on a protection detail. Harry wants Mark to infiltrate the Chicago mob that killed his son and bring them down from within. What follows is a lot of awkward conversations and lots of good action.

Raw Deal was made after The Terminator and Conan, and between Commando and Predator so the action is fine, but there is something odd with how the movie is made. The director, John Irvin, had previously made the amazing spy drama series Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but he clearly wasn't as comfortable in Hollywood as he was in his native UK. Raw Deal has some amazing shots, really nice ones, but those are few and far between, while the rest of the movie feels oddly amateurish. Schwarzenegger said he liked working on the movie since he could finally wear a wardrobe that was both comfortable and stylish. He also liked working with Irvin as he felt he became a better actor in the process. Raw Deal also stars Paul Shenar and Robert Davi, both veteran bad guy actors who effortlessly play their villainous roles. Honestly all the actors are good.

Raw Deal flopped pretty badly in cinemas upon release. It made a modest profit of $16 million which is embarrassing for a Schwarzenegger action piece, but I get it. As famous film critic Roger Ebert said: "This plot is so simple (and has been told so many times before), that perhaps the most amazing achievement of Raw Deal is its ability to screw it up. This movie didn't just happen to be a mess; the filmmakers had to work to make it so confusing."

I think he's being too harsh here, but Ebert isn't far from the mark. Some of the way the story is told needed a lot more space, so there are scenes that lead nowhere and make no sense. In a series these plot points and characters would make sense in a way they can't without more time. Example: early on we meet Mrs. Kaminski who is depressed and drinks too much, but she is never seen again. Why include her at all? Stuff like this makes the film weaker and the arguably competent action scenes can't make up for the stuttering pace.

So, do I recommend this movie? Yes and no. Raw Deal is by no means a bad movie, lets get that straight, but it is far from great either. Had they chosen a newcomer instead of Schwarzenegger, no one would ever have seen this movie. I guess it is best watched like I did, because I just wanted an 80's Schwarzenegger experience. I didn't have a bad time, but I'm also glad it wasn't longer.

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great week!