''One Tough Bastard'', also known as ''One Man's Justice'', is a 1995 American

action thriller film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed by

Kurt Wimmer Kurt Wimmer (born 1964) is an American screenwriter, film producer and film director. Biography He attended the University of South Florida and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, BFA degree in Art History. He then moved to Los Angeles, wher ...

in his feature film debut, and starring

Brian Bosworth Brian Keith Bosworth (born March 9, 1965), nicknamed "The Boz," is an American former football linebacker and actor who played in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. A two-time Dick Butkus Award winne ...

Bruce Payne Bruce Martyn Payne (born 22 November 1958) is an English actor, producer, screenwriter, film director and theatre director. Payne is best known for portraying villains, such as Charles Rane in ''Passenger 57'', Jacob Kell in '' Highlander: End ...

and M.C. Hammer. It premiered in the United States on

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

Plot

Karl Savak, a "rogue FBI agent", is attempting to steal and sell military weapons. When stealing weaponry, one of Savak's henchmen, Marcus, kills Darlene and Marianne North, the wife and daughter of Army Staff Sgt. John North. North himself is shot and lapses into a coma for eight weeks. When he regains consciousness he discovers that Savak has put Marcus onto a witness protection program. As a result, North decides to enact his own justice and seeks revenge on Savak and his henchmen. At the end, it's revealed that Savak was the one behind the murders of North's family and he avenges them when he throws him off a roof and onto a piano, killing him.

Cast

as John North *

as Special Agent Karl Savak *

Jeff Kober Jeff Kober (born December 18, 1953) is an American actor, known for his television roles as Dodger in ''China Beach'', Jacob Hale Jr. in ''Sons of Anarchy'', and Joe in the fourth season of '' The Walking Dead''. He is also known his movie role ...

as Marcus * DeJuan Guy as Mikey Adams *

MC Hammer Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), better known by his stage name MC Hammer (or simply Hammer), is an American rapper, dancer, record producer and entrepreneur. He is known for hit songs such as "U Can't Touch This", "2 Legit 2 Quit" ...

as Dexter Kane *

Neal McDonough Neal McDonough (born February 13, 1966) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Lieutenant Lynn Compton, Lynn "Buck" Compton in the HBO miniseries ''Band of Brothers (miniseries), Band of Brothers'' (2001), Deputy District Attorney ...

as Agent Ward *

M. C. Gainey Michael Connor Gainey (born January 18, 1948) is an American character actor best known for his appearances in ''Lost'', ''Con Air'', ''Sideways'', ''Tangled'', and ''Django Unchained''. Early life Gainey was born in Jackson, Mississippi. In the ...

as Hank *

Angelle Brooks Born in 1967, Brooks was the youngest of four children. Since the mid–1990s, Brooks has guest-starred in such television shows as ''NYPD Blue'', ''The Young and the Restless'', ''The Sopranos'', ''The Larry Sanders Show'', ''Strong Medicine'', ...

as India Adams * Robert Kotecki as Agent Klark * Leo Lam as Agent Tam * Deborah Worthing as Darlene North * Rachel Duncan as Marianne North *

Robert LaSardo Robert LaSardo is an American character actor. Early life LaSardo was born in Brooklyn, New York. He began his career studying at the High School of Performing Arts in New York City where he became an honors student, before attending the St ...

as Tattoist * Bruno Marcotulli as Colonel Allen Cornstead *

Clifton Collins Jr. Clifton Craig Collins Jr. is an American actor. After starting in 1990, with small roles in film and on television, Collins gained attention for his performance as Cpl. Ramon Aguilar, a prisoner "serving" under an imprisoned general played by R ...

as Jarhead

Reception

The Bosworth vehicle has received mixed reviews. Christopher Armstead stated that one problem with the film was that 'the story they...was all over the freaking place'. Nonetheless, Armstead thought that '

was in his element playing a slimy, no good, back stabbing villain' and that

's character, Karl Savak, is one of the most 'entertaining movie villains in low budget action flick history'. Armstead stated that 'so awesome is Karl Savak that some lunatic has created a

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

page in his honor'. Another reviewer stated that '' Stone Cold'' 'may be

’s finest hour, but ''One Man’s Justice'' is a fitting encore' and that '

, with his

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entit ...

hair and nose ring is slimeball perfection as the villain'. A different reviewer described the film as a 'slice of red-blooded American Macho' and stated that it 'is the finest hour of Payne’s storied career, and he dutifully gives ''One Tough Bastard'' an energising kick to the Boz'. Another reviewer stated that the film contained some good performances, with 'Bosworth kicking some ass and showing some maturity in his second acting gig' but that 'when it's all said and done, it's

's villain that really makes the film what it is'. Jedadiah Leland stated that the film was 'a dumb but fun movie that’s enlivened by three actors osworth, Payne and Koberwho know how to be convincingly tough on camera'. Robb Antequera stated that 'while the plot is standard action movie plot, the well handled/fast paced action, the compelling story, and the great cast & characters really help elevate the movie beyond its low budget origins'. Antequera also commented that the movie was a 'must watch' due to Payne's performance as Savak, which he stated deserved to be mentioned among other great villainous performances in action movies, such as

Gavan O'Herlihy Gavan John O'Herlihy (29 July 1951 – 15 September 2021) was an American actor. He was known for playing Chuck Cunningham in the first episodes of ''Happy Days'', as well as his appearances in films such as ''Never Say Never Again'', ''Death W ...

's portrayal of Manny Fraker in ''

Death Wish 3 ''Death Wish 3'' is a 1985 American action thriller film directed and edited by Michael Winner. It is the third film and the last to be directed by Winner in the ''Death Wish'' film series. It stars Charles Bronson as the vigilante killer Paul Ke ...

'',

Vernon Wells Vernon Michael Wells III (born December 8, 1978) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and the New York Yankees. Wells ...

' portrayal of Bennett in ''

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'',

Alan Rickman Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman (21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016) was an English actor and director. Known for his deep, languid voice, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and became a member of the Royal Shakespe ...

's portrayal of Hans Gruber in ''

Die Hard ''Die Hard'' is a 1988 American action film directed by John McTiernan, with a screenplay by Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza. Based on the 1979 novel '' Nothing Lasts Forever'', by Roderick Thorp, it stars Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Ale ...

'' and

John Lithgow John Arthur Lithgow ( ; born , 1945) is an American actor. Lithgow studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his work on the stage and screen. He has been the recipient of numerous ...

's portrayal of Eric Qualen in ''

Cliffhanger A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode or a film of serialized fiction. A cliffhang ...

''.

References

External links

* * {{Kurt Wimmer 1996 films 1996 action thriller films 1996 directorial debut films American independent films American action thriller films American films about revenge Films directed by Kurt Wimmer Films scored by Anthony Marinelli HBO Films films American exploitation films American vigilante films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films