''Out of Reach'' is a 2004 American

action 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

Po-Chih Leong Leong Po-Chih (born 31 December 1939) is a British-born Chinese film director from Hong Kong and United States. Early life On December 31, 1939, Leong was born in England. He has two siblings. Leong attended the London Film School, before em ...

, written by

Trevor Miller Trevor Miller is an English screenwriter, author and playwright who the ''Record Mirror'' joked "is hailed by some as the voice of a generation". The ''London Evening Standard'' called his debut novel '' Trip City'' "an ''On the Road'' for the po ...

, and starring

Steven Seagal Steven Frederic Seagal (; born April 10, 1952) is an American actor, screenwriter and martial artist. A 7th-dan black belt in aikido, he began his adult life as a martial arts instructor in Japan and eventually ended up running his father-in-l ...

and

Ida Nowakowska Ida Victoria Nowakowska-Herndon (born December 7, 1990) is a Polish-American actress, dancer and television presenter. Early life and career She studied in New York City at the Professional Performing Arts School and Steps on Broadway and perfo ...

. The film was released on

direct-to-DVD Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, TV series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strategy was p ...

in the United States on July 20, 2004. Seagal plays William Lansing, a former covert agent turned survivalist, tracking a human trafficking ring and trying to rescue his pen pal, a thirteen-year-old orphan from Poland whom he has taught to use secret codes.

Plot

Vietnam veteran and retired CSA agent William Lansing works on a wildlife refuge in

Northern Alaska Arctic Alaska or Far North Alaska is a region of the U.S. state of Alaska generally referring to the northern areas on or close to the Arctic Ocean. It commonly includes North Slope Borough, Northwest Arctic Borough, Nome Census Area, and is ...

, and has been exchanging letters in a pen-pal relationship with Irena Morawska, a 13-year-old orphaned girl in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, Poland that he's helping out financially. When the letters suddenly stop coming, Lansing heads to Poland to figure out the reason. He discovers that the orphanage that Irena was staying in, which is financed by honest – and unsuspecting – good intentioned Samaritans, is a front for a human trafficking syndicate run by a notorious crime boss and freelance terrorist named Faisal. The operation is worth billions and all the girls are sold and traded to the highest bidders from all over the world. Through his letters to Irena, Lansing has taught Irena how to use secret codes, which she uses to keep him updated on where Faisal is taking her to. Lansing stays on Faisal's trail, teaming up with Polish police detective Kasia Lato to rescue Irena and the other girls, and bring down Faisal's human trafficking network.

Cast

as William Lansing *

as Irena Morawska * Agnieszka Wagner as Kasia Lato *

Matt Schulze Matthew Steven Schulze (born July 3, 1972) is an American actor and musician. He is known for his role as Vince in ''The Fast and the Furious'' and ''Fast Five''. Early life Schulze was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He grew up in St. Louis an ...

as Faisal *

Krzysztof Pieczyński Krzysztof Pieczyński (born 27 March 1957) is a Polish actor. He appeared in more than fifty films since 1979. Filmography References External links * 1957 births Living people Polish male film actors Polish male television actor ...

as Ibo *

Robbie Gee Robbie Gee (born 24 March 1970) is a British actor, best known for his ''Desmond's'' character "Lee Stanley", for appearing in Guy Ritchie's crime caper '' Snatch'', and for his comedy roles in TV series like ''The Real McCoy'' and ''The Crouc ...

as Lewis Morton * Murat Yilmaz as Azimi *

Nick Brimble Nicholas Brimble (born 22 July 1944) is an English actor whose long career has spanned theatre, television, film, and voice work. Early life Brimble was born in Bristol. His father was a schoolteacher who was also a keen amateur actor, an activ ...

as Mister Elgin * Jan Plazalski as Nikki * Shawn Lawrence as Agent Shepherd * Hanna Dunowska as Rosie * Frank Hildebrand as Postmaster * Klaudia Jakacka as Petra * Jan Janga-Tomaszewski as Uncle Pawel * Maria Maj as Mrs. Donata

Production

The film was shot in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland. Production began in August 2003. For large portions of the movie, Seagal was dubbed over by a voice over artist. So at certain times during the movie he speaks with his own voice, but then at other times with a dubbed voice which can be detected very easily as being dubbed. The reasoning for the dubbing of Seagal and other actors in the film was that changes were made in the storyline after most of the film was already shot.

Home media

Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment released the DVD in Region 1 in the United States on July 20, 2004, and Region 2 in the United Kingdom on August 23, 2004.

Reception

Robert Pardi of ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' rated it 1/4 stars and wrote, "Seagal's declining career found him making low-rent thrillers like this awkward, European-financed mix of social causes and unconvincing kickboxing sequences". Beyond Hollywood called it the strangest and most unintentionally funny Seagal film, in part due to the dubbing. Carl Davis of

DVD Talk DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman. History Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...

rated it 2/5 stars and wrote, "''Out of Reach'' isn't a bad waste of time, but it is a bad waste of talent." Mitchell Hattawa of

DVD Verdict DVD Verdict was a judicial-themed website for DVD reviews. The site was founded in 1999. The editor-in-chief was Michael Stailey, who owned the website between 2004 and 2016, and the site employed a large editorial staff of critics, whose reviews ...

called the film too confusing to understand. Daniel Bettridge of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' included the film in his list of Seagal's silliest roles.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Out Of Reach (Film) 2004 films 2004 direct-to-video films 2000s action thriller films American action thriller films Direct-to-video action films Films about terrorism Films scored by Alex Heffes Films shot in Poland Franchise Pictures films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films