Lethal Tender (1997)

Bad guys are poisoning drinking water, and there is only one man who can stop them, Jeff Fahey.

Director:

John Bradshaw

Writer:

Tony Johnston

Stars:

Jeff Fahey, Kim Coates, Carrie-Anne Moss

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeff Fahey	...	Det. David Chase
Kim Coates	...	Montessi
Carrie-Anne Moss	...	Melissa Wilkins (as Carrie-Ann Moss)
Gary Busey	...	Mr. Turner
Denis Akiyama	...	Det. Peter 'Playdo' Ota
David Mucci	...	Wally
David Fraser	...	Ed 'Smarty-Pants' Williams
Martin Roach	...	Sammy
Jonathan Potts	...	Pogo
Karyn Dwyer	...	Sparky (as Karen Dwyer)
Chris Pickle	...	Banjo
Linda Barnett	...	Lizzie (the tour guide)
Chris Gillett	...	Lt. Rogers
Bill Lake	...	Lt. Wilson
Emily Merryn	...	Sarah (as Emily Roberts)

Storyline

All out action film as a team of terrorists/robbers seize a water purification plant and threaten to pollute a city's entire drinking supply. However, the attack is in fact a cover-up of an in-progress robbery. Kim Coates plays the over-the-top genius leader of the gang at the plant, while Busey is a double-crossing leader of the burglary.

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Plot Keywords:

catfight | die hard scenario | independent film

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Taglines:

Money is the most explosive element.

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Genres:

Action | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 March 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Alerta Geral

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Deadly Current Productions, Le Monde Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Carrie-Anne Moss and Kim Coates previously starred in the pilot episode of F/X: The Series together.

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Quotes

Montessi: Do you have any last words?
Det. David Chase: I just happen to have some for just such an occasion but I left my sheet at home, I'd be happy to go back and get it for you.

User Reviews

Boring Die Hard rip off

When terrorists led by Montessi (Kim Coates) take over a water plant they set the system in motion to shut down and poison the drinking water. Luckily cop David Chase (Jeff Fahey) is locked within the plant and sets about freeing the hostages with worker Melissa Wilkens (Carrie-Ann Moss).

In a world of many many Die-Hard inspired movies you really need to do something special to make sure that it stands out. Unfortunately this doesn't do anything to make it stand out from the raft of other DTV movies. The plot here doesn't inject any type of excitement into the film - for most of it the idea is that in 4 hours time, the water system will shut down releasing bacteria into the drinking supply. Well - why not just issue a public health warning to not drink the water rather than send in the SWOT team straight off? A later sub-plot comes in that has to do with stolen USA bonds but for the most part this lacks an sense of urgency.

The action doesn't really help inject urgency. Fahey just sneaks around the place without being believable - Willis looked trapped in Die Hard, here Fahey just looks like he's out for a walk. There are no exciting scenes and no tension, it all makes for a boring 90 minutes. However the problem doesn't stop there - the performances are a poor beast as well. Fahey is a nice enough actor, but only when he's playing it tongue in cheek. Here he doesn't have the ability to play a man under pressure and hence fails to pass on any tension to us. Coates and Busey play the villains as a mixed pair. Coates plays the villain with too much comedy - he's not funny and he doesn't provide menace. On the other hand Busey (in career freefall) plays it too psychotically, he isn't believable either as he just kills people every two minutes. Carrie-Ann Moss is OK but, as the Matrix showed, she better than this.

The only nice touch is Busey's little spiel over the opening credits - it's a nice touch but it lacks style. Overall however, this is yet another unwanted Die Hard clone with nothing new worth watching.