Counter Measures (1999) (V)

User Rating:

3.6/10   

Director:

Fred Olen Ray

Writer:

Steve Latshaw (writer)

Genre:

Action | Thriller | Drama

Tagline:

Search, Rescue And...Destroy

Plot:

US Navy medical officer Jake Fuller is detailed for a goodwill visit aboard a Russian submarine. But he and his companion...

Plot Keywords:

Submarine | Sex | Die Hard Scenario | Independent Film

Cast

Michael Dudikoff	...	Capt. Jake Fuller
James Horan	...	Capt. Petrov
Alexander Keith	...	Lt. Swain
Scott Marlowe	...	Ambassador Silver
Lada Boder	...	Nishka
Robert Donavan	...	Commander Gregori
Rick Cramer	...	Lt. Slavin
Tracy Brooks Swope	...	Capt. Blake
Francine York	...	Pamela Silver
Cliff Potts	...	Admiral Harrison
Robert F. Lyons	...	Commander Larkin (as Robert Lyons)
Victor Raider-Wexler	...	Minister Shikov
Eric Lawson	...	Capt. Donner
Alex Veadov	...	Lt. Daninski
R. Lewis Brahtz	...	David Fuller

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and a scene of sexuality.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Certification:

Iceland:16 | USA:R | Germany:16 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Royal Oaks Entertainment Inc.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Agent Red (2000)

one of Dudikoff's worst

Having already seen the superior CRASH DIVE, I wondered how another Dudikoff movie set aboard a submarine would be. Well, it wasn't that good. It's really the production values that sink this movie. Exterior shots of the sub were filmed on board the WWII sub U.S.S. Pomponito in San Francisco Bay (a great attraction to visit, by the way), while underwater and interior shots reveal a sub and a sprawling interior that looks like he came from an episode of SEAQUEST. A lot of scenes look rushed, like the filmmakers were running out of time and said, "Let's finish so we can return the equipment before it's overdue." As a result, performances are lackluster, scenes are choppy and seemed unfinished, and just the overall production looks bad. The sub-plot that runs throughout the film, set in Russia, always confused me. I could never tell what the purpose of it was, what relation it had (or may not have had) to the events occuring on the submarine. The climactic fight on the deck of the sub, between Dudikoff and bad guy James Horan, is probably the best moment in the whole film, though even it could have been better. But the way the bad guy gets it is actually one of my favorite climax moments from a Dudikoff film. But it's really not enough to save the film or make it recommendation-worthy. The Dudikoff/Fred Olen Ray (director) team faired better with FUGITIVE MIND and THE SHOOTER. If you want a see a good movie about terrorists seizing a nuclear submarine (and really the only movie so far to feature that concept, that I know of), Dudikoff's CRASH DIVE is much better.