Above the Law (1988)

Director:

Andrew Davis

Writers:

Andrew Davis (story) &
Steven Seagal (story) ...

Release Date:

8 April 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

He was a covert agent trained in Vietnam. He has a master 6th degree black belt in Aikido... and family in the Mafia. He's a cop with an attitude.

Plot:

Nico Toscani is a martial arts expert who was recruited by the CIA when he was in Japan, he would be sent to Vietnam...

Plot Keywords:

CIA | Drugs | Martial Arts | Vietnam | Explosive

Cast

Steven Seagal	...	Nico Toscani
Pam Grier	...	Delores 'Jacks' Jackson
Henry Silva	...	Kurt Zagon
Ron Dean	...	Detective Lukich
Daniel Faraldo	...	Tony Salvano
Sharon Stone	...	Sara Toscani
Miguel Nino	...	Chi Chi Ramon
Nicholas Kusenko	...	FBI Agent Neeley
Joe Greco	...	Father Joseph Gennaro (as Joe V. Greco)
Chelcie Ross	...	Nelson Fox
Gregory Alan Williams	...	FBI Agent Halloran (as Gregory Alan-Williams)
Jack Wallace	...	Uncle Branca
Metta Davis	...	Rosa Toscani
Joseph F. Kosala	...	Lieutenant Strozah (as Joseph Kosala)
Ronnie Barron	...	CIA Bartender

Also Known As:

Nico (UK) (cable TV title)
Nico: Above the Law (Australia)

Runtime:

99 min | Germany:93 min

Country:

USA | Hong Kong

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

West Germany:16 (cut) | Finland:K-16 (cut) | Finland:K-18 (cut) (1989) | Netherlands:16 | USA:R (Certificate #29113) | Argentina:18 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:R (original rating) | Canada:18A (re-rating) | Australia:R | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Norway:18 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Buck Town, Lincoln Square, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Ron Dean and Joseph F. Kosala, whose play Detective Lukich and Lieutenant Strozah, were together in other film previously, Code of Silence (1985). They should meet again in The Fugitive (1993).

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Nico hits in wall with Fox's car we can see stunt driver inside.

Quotes:

Nico Toscani: What's happening brother?
black man on street: What it be like, homey?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Miss March/Race to Witch Mountain/Sunshine Cleaning (#1.3)" (2009)

Seagal Unfairly Criticized As Actor

This was Steven Seagal's first movie and pretty much summed up the way his films were going to go: marital arts-crime stories with overly despicable villains and our hero saving the women by out-fighting everyone. Jean Van Damme and others followed with the same recipe which, by and large, has been pretty successful.

Before I saw this, I had read national critics blasting Seagal's acting talents but that was unfair; he's not a bad actor. It was also a surprise to see Sharon Stone playing a nice role and without makeup! That certainly changed quickly with her Basic Instinct-type persona.

It was fun to see Henry Silva again. As a kid growing up in the '50s and '60s, I used to see Silva on television a lot. He always played a bad guy, and played the part well....as he still does.

Overall, a decent action flick but not one of Segal's more memorable films. He make a big upgrade with his next film, "Hard To Kill."