Bad Movie Beatdown: Half Past Dead (REVIEW)

[@FilmBrain]

This review was originally posted in July 2011, and is the final episode of Seagal Month, which also include Out of Reach, Mercenary for Justice, Shadow Man, and Against the Dark. This re-edited version runs 3m 20s, with heavy edits to the film clips, which accounts for much of the missing time, although I've also cut a few references to how supposedly implausible Seagal's recovery is, as I did a bit of research that showed it wasn't as far--fetched as first thought. I've also upscaled the review to HD, and applied noise reduction to reduce the camera and tape noise. Hope you enjoy!

[@scatterbrainpictures1790]

Honestly, the behind the scenes troubles were a bit more fascinating than the movie itself.

[@alienboy1322]

@Film Brain Please upload Half Past Dead 2.

[@TevyaSmolka]

interesting

[@classyredneckcinema9327]

Dude do out for justice

[@DarthVaderReturns1]

Mathew im sorry my former best friend hates you he hates people who are from overseas I told him to stop talkin to me hes a Seagal fanboy he loves movies that suck I had to tell him to stop bitchin at me over youtube reviewers he hates the nostalgia critic the most and everybody that's still or former members of channel awesome he whined to me when the nostalgia critic bashed his favorite film the master of disguise im sorry im telling you all this I just needed to explain this to you and Mathew keep up the good work I love your projects of projector and bad movie beat down I hope you and your friends get into film making and I wish you success in the future

[@KirkApril]

This is when Seagals career was half past dead

[@scottylewis8124]

Lol!

[@veronicasilk8429]

I'm pretty sure his career started going downhill with On Deadly Ground.

[@a.k.a.theruggedmanchild9685]

his career is all the way dead

[@franksavage8031]

And his cholesterol level.

[@wjzav1971]

And yet, this film is still more dignified than ALL the direct-to-video shit he has been in later.

[@JenMistress]

I still remember, the Blockbuster dad use to work at, the joke among the employees was that Steven Seagal's ultimate goal was to have a movie that started with every letter of the alphabet. 😉😂 Anyways, I enjoyed this video. Thank you, Matthew! 👍

[@xRaiofSunshine]

Pfffft 😂

[@wjzav1971]

Not gonna lie, the way how Ja Rule gets thrown around with him showing no injuries and just being annoyed about it is pretty funny. Its almost as if a poor cartoon character had walked into the real world.

[@scottylewis8124]

Nicolas cage saving a prison was far better. He even killed The Candyman!

[@justinhunt4767]

😂😂😂I would of walked off the movie set

[@CyberkillGames]

Apparently the reason that this is PG-13 is because Franchise Pictures thought that no one wanted to see R rated movies after 9/11. As such there were heavy edits to the film to make it PG-13. And people wonder why Franchise Pictures went bankrupt. (Aside from the artificially inflating the budget of Battlefield Earth, Battlefield Earth itself and Ballistic Ecks vs Sever.)

[@TommyDeonauthsArchives]

Fun fact: Half Past Dead was one of few Franchise Pictures movies that wasn't by Warner Bros.

[@devinharbert2245]

Don't forget Driven, Get Carter, and Avenging Angelo were Box Office Bombs including The Whole 10 Yards, Sound of Thunder, The Art of War, and FeardotCom

[@scottylewis8124]

@@devinharbert2245 and the company filed for bankruptcy afterwards.

[@devinharbert2245]

@@TommyDeonauthsArchives Yes Screen Gems and Sony

[@wjzav1971]

To be fair: 9/11 made things weird in a lot of departments

[@ralang999]

R.I.P. Fat Guy with The Big-Ass Gun. The most likable character in the movie

[@akildukes7499]

My sister and I intentionally went to see this just to make fun of it.

[@mesousagaby740]

The funniest thing about this review is that not once does Matthew call Segal's character by name, which is Sasha Petrosevitch. Yes, he's supposed to be foreign in this.

[@wjzav1971]

He never calls Segal by his character name. Because Segal always plays the same character: Segal Honestly, there is so little difference to what little character he has, you can pretend that all his movies happen in the same continuity with the same man. Casey Ryback used to be a Navy Seal and stopped two terrorist attacks on a ship and on a train, not to mention he survived falling from an airplane. He then worked for AEGIS in Alaska where he uncovered their shady businesses and destroyed a massive oil rig. Then his wife was killed by some mobster and he worked undercover for the FBI. And from then on, he became a mercenary/vigilante with a dark past (not that far off from the illegal shit he has done in his other films, maybe even realizing how he spread conspiracy theories about oil companies). But all this darkness finally broke him and he succumbed to it and began a career as a drug lord in Mexico.

[@davidjames579]

Funny how this prerecognizes Seagal becoming a Brand Ambassador for Russia and friends with Putin.

[@chrisg5219]

Ik someone who saw this being filmed. He said Ja Rule was constantly screaming at the Pa's demanding a COLD DIET COKE. Seagall is apparently, something else. They filmed most of this in Berlin despite it being set int Alcatraz lol

[@dvass7253]

I'm a little late to the party on this one, but congratulations on 25 000 subscribers, Film Brain!

[@magnos_decimus]

wait a minute at 8:50 the gun shot goes off before the actress moves her gun below frame, essentially shot herself in the foot.

[@blapis-blazuli]

An apt metaphor for this movie then?

[@wickedlateok1697]

One day, Don Michael Paul WILL be considered one of the worst directors of the modern era. For those who haven't heard of him, this is probably the best film he's ever made.

[@scottylewis8124]

Uwe boll level bad!

[@veronicasilk8429]

Considering that his later movies are DTV cheapquels, I'm not so surprised.

[@jamesatkinsonja]

He wrote the script for this too...

[@christinawilkephillips7684]

I think I've seen this review 3 times lol, I still find it funny 😂

[@ShiddyShad808]

Christina Wilke 3x’s and I still find it funny alright? No it’s not alright! Izz aiiight...😋

[@GTAGodfather420]

Only three times? Those are rookie numbers!

[@devinharbert2245]

I had fun watching Half Past Dead it's not good but it's more Enjoyable then the Terrible Sequel

[@Alucard-A-La-Carte]

Rifftrax recently blessed us with a riff of "A Dangerous Man," starring, oh hey, Steven Segal! In which he does this exact same "'hood accent," only without a black co-star to sign off on it. He literally calls a Russian teenager "white boi" throughout the whole movie. Oh, and because it was made fairly recently, the Russian gangsters are the GOOD GUYS. Yes, really.

[@timothypierce5303]

I got a question. How do you fatally wound Nia Peeples when she is standing behind the warden, who is clearly bigger than her?

[@veronicasilk8429]

Guess this is the movie than landed Seagal into DTV-hell...

[@jamesatkinsonja]

7:25 That's because they used stock footage from Navy Seals [which was also featured in the Marksman] for the jump and they couldn't be bothered to re-tint it.

[@T5ComixCartoonz]

4:00 Oh My God! It was less cringeworthy when Warwick Davis played the Leprechaun in "Lep in the Hood"! But then, Warwick Davis can act circles around Steven Seagal, so I guess that's not saying much. XD 20:15 That's what the bad guy gets for taking a clearly suicidal hostage! XD

[@scottylewis8124]

This made me want to see leprechaun in Alcatraz

[@TommyDeonauthsArchives]

The Adventures of Fat Segal and his Stunt Dou- oh wait, he isn't doubled as much in this film?

[@jamesatkinsonja]

Well the double count still gets up to 7...

[@mesousagaby740]

At least Nia Peeples looked cool in this.

[@RickJankowski92]

Super hot

[@KhayJayArt]

Y'all need glasses

[@benjaminjones2185]

You forgot to comment on the fact that after the bad guys land the whole thing turns into a music video fallowing Ms Peebles almost dancing in slow motion.

[@skylx0812]

Bruce Weitz played a wild undercover detective in the long running highly regarded 80's series "Hill Street Blues". There was an episode where he goes undercover in a supermarket working the meat counter. There was this old lady scrutinizing the chicken in a very long bizarre examination that ends with her spreading its legs wide open, shoving her nose inside the cavity and taking a huge whiff. She complains it isn't fresh and Weizt says, "....lady, do you think _you_ could pass a test like that??" How the mighty have fallen. I noticed Stephen J. Cannell is in this dud also. Cannell was a prolific writer and producer of many hit action dramas from the 70's, 80's and even up to recently. He worked on shows like "The Rockford Files", "The A-Team" and other testosterone laden series featuring hard edged loose cannon types. They must have brought him in to try and revive that tub of goo Sea Gal's ailing career.

[@miraculousismyguiltypleasu9372]

7:26: If you're wondering about that, the reason is that the jump is stock footage from the movie Navy Seals (1990).

[@FilmBrain]

Yeah, I've noted that in my review of The Marksman, which also used it.

[@scottylewis8124]

At least it wasn't Active Stealth.

[@bthsr7113]

13:33 This movie fails its action cred by gross misunderstanding of launchers. One, there shouldn't be at a prison. Especially not an anti-armor design on an island prison. Two, that looks like an RPG-7 round loaded into an M72 LAW, and while I could be mistaken on that, three, launchers don't send people flying. They are fairly low recoil, and even if they weren't, no military would field something that prone to causing chaos and collateral damage among their own forces as a man-portable munition.

[@blapis-blazuli]

I've waited so long to see the Seagal Month videos uploaded on here, and they're all still as funny as they were the first time.

[@ElReydenada56]

I like the "weeee" sound from Kung Pao, which BTW, is a better movie than Seagal's last 20.

[@slambangaction]

After buying The Patriot (1998) a couple weeks ago, I now own every theatrical Seagal film on DVD. So far, I'm inclined to think that Half Past Dead is the worst of them all. Sure, On Deadly Ground was a hilariously overblown, ego-driven mess, but at least it felt like it was made for a theatrical release. If Half Past Dead had been Seagal's first direct-to-video flick, it might have been acceptable (because those only got worse from then on), but as something that was intended for the big screen, it's an absolute joke, and it's inferior to nearly every other action film made around that time. Well, if I do think of something worse, I'll retract that last part. P.S. I surprised you didn't mention that the helicopter explosion at the end is stock footage from the first Charlie's Angels movie with what looks like a sepia tone filter over it!

[@jamesatkinsonja]

The fact there is copious stock footage [according to IMDB] in a theatrical release is shocking enough

[@deltacharlie1234]

By the way, does anyone knows what is the soundtrack when the shooting started after exchanging the hostages?

[@bthsr7113]

Walking into CiC naked is more dignified than Seagal.

[@tassadarc8069]

Oh hey, it's Dixon from Renegade! Does Lorenzo Lamas cameo in this too?

[@tjjordan4207]

I remember finding movies like this at Blockbuster back in the day. While this isn't a good film, I miss the days when I could walk down a row of movies and judge by the front cover. Although, having a name like Steven Seagal on the front cover was usually a bad sign, unless if the film happens to be Under Siege.

[@scottylewis8124]

14:50 the music in this scene sounds a lot like drowning pool.

[@nitromagilou597]

4:18-4:32 Damn... That actually got a laugh out of me.

[@scottylewis8124]

I don't blame you dude.

[@quiettimegaming3642]

12:27 why is there a professional cameraman? Or did he accidentally get caught in the shot?

[@christopherclack660]

This one's a classic episode.

[@ExplorerDS6789]

Good ol' "See-gowl" Month.

[@lotsoflogos]

F R A N C H I S E P I C T U R E S

[@supernerd6567]

Hey, Mathew, luv your stuff. When are we going to see some fresh new bad movie beat downs

[@FilmBrain]

Sooner than you might think.

[@thronezwei4412]

@@FilmBrain Excellent news. Anything in particular?

[@FilmBrain]

More Seagal.

[@scottylewis8124]

@@FilmBrain *gulp* God help me and Raven both.

[@jessaminehaak8253]

Weirdly I think the title font is the same as the title font for the original Fast and Furious, so the car-stealing scene gave me serious flashbacks.

[@doriangreen3231]

Luckily, this movie marked the last time Steven Seagal spoke in ebonics. Right? _RIGHT?!_

[@scottylewis8124]

Ummm...

[@wjzav1971]

Rumor has it, Seagal is working on a third installment of Under Siege.

[@FilmBrain]

That rumour has been around as far back as these reviews. I doubt it will happen.

[@markelijio6012]

@@riokamichika1101 I don't think so.

[@wjzav1971]

@@riokamichika1101 Under Siege 3 is no longer in his IMDB. But Above the Law 2 still is ^^

[@jamesatkinsonja]

@@wjzav1971 It's been on his IMDB for years but will never happen [he's not actually made anything since 2019 thankfully].

[@RickJankowski92]

only reason why i kept watching till the end was because of Nia Peeples :D Her outfit is the coolest female outfit ever

[@scottylewis8124]

12:20 we never see six again, so I'll just assume she was killed or captured by the feds offscreen. Edit: nevermind. She's dead.

[@devinharbert2245]

I agree and all though Half Past Dead has it gas its flaws I think its an Enjoyable Action Movie and I feel like the PG 13 Rating hurts the film because it can't have Brutal Violence

[@ExplorerDS6789]

We a'ight!

[@KhayJayArt]

No we ain't.

[@darrenclements6028]

This movie torpedoed Steven Seagulls career Box office Career dead

[@scottylewis8124]

I'm planning on re editing this to make an R-rated cut. Adding extra blood, more swear words.

[@scottylewis8124]

2018 had a bunch of stinkers. Ttgttm, peppermint, The Predator... The horrors man! So much shit.. The horror!

[@theleaderturtle]

Mathew, have you ever seen The Boondock Saints.

[@Timelord007]

Great hilarious review of a crap Seagal movie.

[@ashdoglsu]

"Hey doll gimmie one of dem pistols man"

[@leonardoantonio8756]

Let's be clear about something, Seagal's character death in executive decision was a cheap shot, at that time was a terrible thing, people expected watch Seagal kicks some ass in the movie, he could die in a better written scene more ahead in the film or simply hire another actor for that purpose but honestly that was shit, although the movie was good the Seagal character handling in the script and by the producers was stupid. I don't know why they gave him that (almost like a cameo) short stupid role..

[@jamesatkinsonja]

I'm sure it was mean to be to surprise the audience as Seagal dying early on is not something the audience would expect and 'anything could happen'.

[@benjaminjones2185]

The stand in is what happens when you make no effort to work out for almost 15 years.

"How are they getting these weapons, considering they can't go anywhere?" You ask that like everyone's in quarantine. Oh, wait... I joke, of course, but a simple rewording would've sufficed. Also, #ReleaseTheUncutHPD

[@whoisyouranime]

Your best review in my opinion, FilmBrain.

[@Tatertot01]

If you don't take this movie seriously but treat it as a comedy it is hilarious and fun.

[@mrmysterious8124]

Can you look at Godzilla Planet of the Monsters???????????

[@JanetStarChild]

The best thing I've seen Steven Seagal in lately is the _Steven Seagal Show._ Look it up!

[@veronicasilk8429]

That was a real thing? I think the one show I've seen him on was a COPS-wannabe called Steven Seagal: Lawman.

[@JanetStarChild]

@@veronicasilk8429 The Steven Seagal Show is an Internet cartoon. As far as I know, there's only two episodes, but worth watching.

[@admiralswallower1882]

I'll never understand how Exit Wounds revitalized his career. It was horrible. His pistol sounds like a machine gun when he shoots down the helicopter in the beginning.

[@theitfactorjameswheezer2852]

Admiral Swallower exit wounds was far from “horrible”

[@Straywolf514]

I think their might of been a porno version of this movie as well called Half past head.

[@andrewaarons5058]

I laughed all the way through this thanks man

[@matthewgiese7811]

Is that Claudia Christianson?

[@markelijio6012]

That's Claudia Christian of the Babylon 5 fame in this underrated action flick from 2002.

[@shadowleon659]

Worst Seagal Movie Ever!!!

[@scottylewis8124]

Under siege was better.

[@scottylewis8124]

Btw, love your Shadow the hedgehog pic.

[@TheSkully343]

Somebody hasn't seen Mercenary for Justice.

[@ArcaneOmen2041]

SeaGAALLLS

[@ElRixSape]

thank you

[@TheSkully343]

Considering the sequel is far far worse than this I can't really bring myself to hate Half Past Dead. Its not alright, its just A'IGHT! #NotSorry

[@scottylewis8124]

Wow. You're a'ight!

[@jamesparker8134]

The term is action/comedy, "Brian." Next time you visit Channel Awesome in Chicago hang out with the homies... On 2nd thought don't do that. Too many bad movies left for u 2 beat down for us to lose u now 😂😂😂

[@devinharbert6071]

Review 5 awful chuck Norris films like missing in action, missing in action 2, missing in action 3, invasion USA , and silent rage.

[@theitfactorjameswheezer2852]

Devin Harbert missing in action 1 is pretty good. The sequels suck though

[@devinharbert6071]

@@theitfactorjameswheezer2852 Yah actually have guilty pleasure for Missing in Action, Silent Rage, and Hellbenders

[@devinharbert6071]

@@theitfactorjameswheezer2852 Silent Rage was good though

[@paulmajano]

Who’s nick? You mean Ja Rule? 😂

[@oliverhernandez1236]

This movie was trash

[@atravesdemisluceros]

Empower the womyn! 😃

[@jojosthlm]

Segal is No 2 after Bruce Lee when it comes to martial arts skills. In due time his work will be respected and haters will regret their venomous words.

[@VonWenk]

If you're complaining that much about a movie being PG-13 rather than R, maybe you're not mature enough to be watching R-rated movies.

[@FilmBrain]

Or maybe the criticism is that the editing for PG-13 is laughably cack-handed, on top of being a bad movie generally.

[@VonWenk]

@@FilmBrain At that point, maybe it comes down to the studio interfering where it shouldn't having instead of making a decision in the planning stage prior to filming on what rating the movie was aiming for. But I find the idea of someone blowing himself up in a heliocopter in mid-air kind of gruesome without actually seeing anything.