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Review: Steele Justice (1987)
Steele Justice continues the pathetic trend of suggesting many a Vietnam War veteran is a burned-out loser or a loose cannon unable to find his way back into society. In all likelihood, the studio sought to ride the coattails of such efforts as Lethal Weapon, Rambo: First Blood Part II and Missing in Action. Steele Justice is a would be/ wannabe Lethal Weapon and one could rightly accuse the producers of making a Rambo rip-off.
Martin Kove, who essayed the role of a sinister sensei in The Karate Kid films, did appear in the Sylvester Stallone box office juggernaut of 1985. Here Kove plays the titular protagonist of John Steele: a cop who has proven himself to be a problem to his superiors time and time again.
More than a decade following the conclusion of the conflict in Southeast Asia, Steele’s war is nowhere near a coda. His long-suffering wife Tracy (the alluring Sela Ward who played Tom Hanks’ business colleague and would-be bedroom conquest in Nothing in Common), a music video director who has all but abandoned him. Of course, she still has a soft spot for her hard-shell of a husband; hoping against hope many a time that he will change.
A shady Asian businessman (Soon Tek-Oh, Chuck Norris’ nemesis from 1985s Missing in Action 2: The Beginning) who worked with—and against—Steele in Vietnam finds himself battling the cop stateside. Steele’s police colleagues have not come to the realization that the often insubordinate officer is right. Like Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Chuck Norris, Kove takes on the bad guys virtually single-handed. Though there are some instances—like the climax—where he gets help from Tracy, who proves herself to be quite a trooper. And Ward looks like she has the stuff to be a Bond girl.
The supporting cast is comprised of some good actors (Joseph Campanella, Bernie Casey, and Ronny Cox) who can make dull routine material somewhat interesting. They do not get the chance to do so in this film. No doubt they were doing it for the paycheck, hopefully they were well-compensated for their time wasted. Soon-Teck Oh is reliable enough. Here he seems to be playing the sort of role he do on an episode of “Hawaii Five-O” or Magnum P.I.”
Kove makes for a decent tough guy in supporting roles (The Karate Kid, Rambo: First Blood Part II). As the star he is rather unimpressive and dull. But he is not helped by a script and direction—both courtesy of Robert Boris whose resume includes co-writing the 1983 Dan Aykroyd vehicle Doctor Detroit and writer/ director of 1984s Oxford Blues). Very few thrills are found in this action thriller though the poster art would suggest it is such a film.
Robert Baum is Currently a Bryn Mawr, PA-based film afficanado and pop culture junkie.
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