Exit Wounds (2001)

Hitmakers Joel Silver (The Matrix) and Andrzej Bartkowiak (Romeo Must Die) joined forces to resurrect Steven Seagal in this oddly witty, entertaining movie. Exit Wounds slyly helps the aged, slow Seagal ease right back into the action genre. Orin Boyd, Seagal's maverick police tough guy, is pigeon-toed, double-chinned, and more than a little over-the-hill. He is repeatedly chastised. He is perennially demoted. He is ordered to take an anger management class with other cynical, irascible, underappreciated white males, and forced to obey a sassy lady commander. He is simply a grown-up, beat-up, grumpier version of all the iconoclastic bone-crushing heroes of Seagal's past. While fondly remembered for beating a suspect unconscious with a cat, Orin is really just a rebellious pain in the rear. However, when a jolly red helicopter marked "Have a Nice Day" starts gunning down half the police force, it becomes apparent that Orin's pessimism is not so unfounded. He eventually hones his anger and impudence into great aikido, satisfying sarcasm, and everything else for which Seagal is famous. Look for when Seagal as Orin interrupts his commander's romantic dinner, banishes her boyfriend, and then brazenly eats from his plate -- only eliciting a coy, aroused smile from the lady. Seagal is back, baby, and no one's complaining. ~ Aubry Anne D'Arminio, All Movie Guide