Armed Response

My review was written in October 1986 after a screening at UA Twin theater in Manhattan.

"Armed Response" punches up a mundane action-revenge film plotline with above-par casting and enough style to make the formula work for genre fans L. A.-lensed opus was filmed early this year under the better title "Jade Jungle".

Instead of his real-life acting clan, David Carradine here is surrounded by a dissimilar dad (Lee Van Cleef) and brothers (Brent Huff, David Goss) in a simple tale out of the "Maltese Falcon" bag. Youngest sibling Goss is a private eye hired with his partner Ross Hagen to retrieve a stolen jade antique for Japanese gangster Mako, who must get the object and save face before a war with the Chinese Tongs breaks out. Greedy Hagen executes several double crosses, with Goss ending up dead and his family now at odds with Mako, who kidnaps Carradine's wife and daughter.

Papa Van Cleef is an ex-cop and Carradine a war vet plagued with recurring nightmares (weak flashback footage) of Vietnam, so both grab their weaponry and lurch into action. Helped by some effective car stunts and pyrotechnics, plus several allusions for film buffs to catch, pic delivers the action goods.

For his sixth feature film, director Fred Olen Ray steps up to a bigger budget with some stylish compositions and a few elaborate setpieces. Cast is adequate, overcoming some cory dialog, with Ross Hagen as the double-dealing bad guy making a strong impression resembling the late Gig Young.