John Henry Irons designs weapons for the military. When his project to create weapons that harmlessly neutralize soldiers is sabotaged, he leaves in disgust. When he sees gangs are using ...
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Title: Steel (1997)
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1 nomination.
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Shaquille O'Neal | ... | John Henry Irons / Steel | |
| Annabeth Gish | ... | Susan Sparks | |
| Judd Nelson | ... | Nathaniel Burke | |
| Richard Roundtree | ... | Uncle Joe | |
| Irma P. Hall | ... | Grandma Odessa | |
| Ray J | ... | Martin (as Ray J.) | |
| Harvey Silver | ... | Lamont | |
| Charles Napier | ... | Col. David | |
| Kerrie Keane | ... | Sen. Nolan | |
| Eric Pierpoint | ... | Major | |
| Tembi Locke | ... | Norma | |
| Thom Barry | ... | Sgt. Marcus | |
| Gary Graham | ... | Detective | |
 |
Eric Saiet | ... | Young Cop |
| Hill Harper | ... | Slats | |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Plot Synopsis
See All (102) »
Storyline
John Henry Irons designs weapons for the military. When his project to create weapons that harmlessly neutralize soldiers is sabotaged, he leaves in disgust. When he sees gangs are using his weapons on the street, he uses his brains and his Uncle Joe's junkyard know-how to fight back, becoming a real man of "steel." Written by Thomas Pluck <stripey@winternet.com>
Plot Keywords:
female soldier | terrorist | explosion | reference to shaft | reference to james brown |Taglines:
Heroes don't come any bigger. See more »Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
Rated PG-13 for some superhero action violence | See all certifications »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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See more on IMDbPro »
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
15 August 1997 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Shaq Steel See more »Filming Locations:
Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USAEdit
Box Office
Budget:
$16,000,000 (estimated)Opening Weekend USA:
$870,068, 17 August 1997, Wide ReleaseGross USA:
$1,710,972Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
Edit
Written by Marvin Young, Matt Dike and Michael Ross
Performed by Marvin Young (as Young MC)
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
Producers couldn't find a 7ft. 1in. (216 cm) stunt double for Shaquille O'Neal. He had to do all of his own stunts. See more »Goofs
Steel's armor is supposed to be made from steel, which he forged himself. Throughout the film, his armor and helmet flex as if they were made of painted rubber. See more »Connections
Referenced in Best of the Worst: Pocket Ninjas, Cyclone, and Dangerous Men (2016) See more »Soundtracks
Bust a MoveWritten by Marvin Young, Matt Dike and Michael Ross
Performed by Marvin Young (as Young MC)
See more »
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Steel is one of those films where you constantly have to keep telling yourself "this is NOT a TV movie". A cheap, outrageously bad superhero vehicle for the acting... er... talents?... of 7'1 basketball player Shaquille O'Neal.
Commendably, the film does actually have three clear acts, and Steel's emergence, though underplayed, doesn't happen for over forty minutes. In-jokes are a-plenty, as it mentions Batman, Superman, Jerry Maguire ("show me the money!") and three instances of John Irons (O'Neal) having to net basketballs. The final time sees a life-threatening toss of a grenade. A lousy basketball player throughout, Shaq gets to quip "I never make these". Or would you prefer Richard Roundtree as Uncle Joe, who designs Steel's hammer for him? "I did the metalwork," he explains, "I especially like the shaft." Cue lots of double-takes and knowing glances, with Roundtree looking round, hands in the air, proclaiming "what?"
The special effects are reasonable for tv movie land, but, as this is (pinch me, I must be imagining it) a real cinema movie, they're quite cheap. Steel is badly written, contains atrocious dialogue, is poorly acted, shabbily directed and with an overbearing, repetitive musical score. It is, of course, tremendously entertaining.