Ultimate Target (2000)

I waited for years for this movie, only to discover that after a decade it got uploaded to youtube, where I was eager to watch it. I am a hardcore fan of Gary Daniels and various of the action actors is in this film. I waited years for it and finally got to see it, hoping for some amazing action.But I have to be honest, it sucked. Almost as if it was filmed with a handycam and there was no post production. Even for the genre, the movie, story, camera work and editing were pretty bad and the whole thing felt as if it wasn't really finished. It'll be fun if you waste 5 minutes while forwarding to the action scenes, but if you have seen any Gary Daniels movie, than this one is no different.Watch it out of curiosity and because you're a GD/action fan, but nothing more.

IDES OF MARCH (A.K.A. ULTIMATE TARGET) has yet to see an official release – at least in North America – and it's not difficult to see why. Since it was produced, other films have taken several of its tactics and executed them much better, to the point that if this were released today, viewers who didn't know better might assume that it's a cheap homage to KILL BILL. It's an interesting film, though not nearly as much now as it may have been 15 years ago, and is only worth hunting down online for hardcore fans of Gary Daniels.The story: A brotherhood of elite assassins turns against one of its own (Daniels) when an underhanded deal threatens to expose them.Part of what probably stood against the film's release was its rough presentation. As is, the movie gives the impression of being incompletely edited: there's nothing wrong with the audio or video quality, but the narration, the flashback-laden structure, and the frequent use of paused footage looks like something that would be handed back to post-production with a list of things to change. Then again, I have seen plenty of vehicles for Daniels that look a lot worse than this but have actually gotten proper releases, so these imperfections should not make a difference to fans.The screenplay and the performances it inspires make for a very mixed bag. Both offer amusing highs and embarrassing lows on an even scale, making for a thoroughly B-grade presentation. I'm a fan of the varied cast and the fact that almost all supporting characters enjoy a decent level of exposure, weird as they can be. Overacting is the name of the game, and some performers handle it better (e.g. Michael Madsen) than others (e.g. George Cheung). Daniels himself is relatively low-key, which is fine because this goofy, postmodern script needs at least one straight man.Daniels' frequent collaborations with the Alpha Stunts team often disappointed me, and even this movie makes me wish they had done more. Most of the action is martial arts-related, though the film doesn't reach the brunt of it until its final third. Though the five fights have a very pleasing pace and nice choreography, they're oftentimes too short for my liking or have unrelated scenes edited into them. Two good fights – involving John Koyama and a couple of masked ninjas – help keep things bearable, but I was hoping for more than just that.This one may remain simply another casualty of the direct-to-video recession, but no one should feel heartbroken that it never got a release in the Americas.

I saw the trailer for this on You Tube, it looks fantastic, Does anyone have a copy on DVD, I"ll even take a copy from another region besides the USA. Its the only Gary Daniles film I don't have yet. The acting and the fight scenes seem really good, I also see that it has a been given another title in the USA, COuld this mean they are getting ready to release it somewhere? Seems to me it has some names in it people will recognize and will want to see, plus Gary Daniles seems to have a pretty good following already here in the USA and in Europe, Does anyone know who owns the rights to this film or how we can get it released?Ron

For the genre this is a very good movie. The story and script are quite strong but somewhere along the way it gets lost. It is almost as if someone took over the film as it went on. It is worth watching for the very good acting by Michael Madsen and the strong script with crisp dialogue and character development by Jim Chadwick, (has he done anything else?) This movie is a notch above the typical film in this genre and my guess would be a director's version would be great, if the original director (Darren Doane?) did it. Worth the time to watch if you can find a copy.