This middle chapter of the James Braddock trilogy is a prequel to the original Missing In Action that traces the origin of Chuck Norris's not-quite-iconic franchise player. The film is centered around Braddock's detention at a Vietnamese prison camp with several other American POWs, who are held at the mercy of a malevolent colonel who subjects them to a variety of cruelties. Of course, Norris is never one to sit idly by while injustice is being done, and he soon navigates a daring escape, blowing tons of stuff up and gunning down dozens of bad guys in the process.
Though The Beginning boasts all of the hallmarks of an enjoyable B-action flick (slow motion explosions, liberal use of machine guns, a hero seemingly impervious to damage, etc.), Missing In Action 2 spends a lot more time developing the characters and the scenario than fans of the genre may be used to. While this relegates most of the action to the third act and slows the pace a bit, the film benefits from the more immersive approach, and delving deeply into the horrors of the POW experience brings home the real-world resonance of the piece while simultaneously bolstering the pay-off when the guns n' grenades portion of the plot gets underway.
The dramatic emphasis also allows the usually stone-faced Norris to showcase his acting chops a bit, and even when he's called upon to express actual emotions, he does a capable job of humanizing Braddock beyond the scope of an interchangeable action hero. I'm keenly aware that most people curious about the Missing In Action series aren't all that interested in seeing Norris cry, so I should post-script that endorsement by adding that even though this outing is a bit more serious-minded than some others you'll encounter from the era, Chuck still doles out plenty of vengeance upon his captors with flame-throwers, Uzis, explosives, and good old-fashioned karate leaps out of trees.
Your basic good-vs-evil movie is only as strong as its villain, and we get a suitably malicious match for Norris in Soon-Teck Oh's Colonel Yin, who notches up serious baddie points by burning people alive, tormenting Norris with news from the home-front, and humiliating one prisoner by having the least attractive prostitutes you'll ever see strip him naked and mock his genitals. In adherence to the sort of muddled logic you only find in '80s action films, Colonel Yin is a rare breed of Vietnamese overlord who speaks perfect English and is proficient in advanced martial arts.
The presence of veteran henchman Professor Toru Tanaka is a welcome addition, and always entertaining character actor Steven Williams lends his services as a conniving turncoat, who, in true Williams fashion, fights valiantly to steal the movie by taking big meaty bites out of every scene he's in.
Most of the shoot 'em up aspects of the film are fairly standard, but MIA2 does boast a few truly memorable scenes during the extended prison camp segments, the most effective of which is the "rat in a bag" sequence. Though the majority of Colonel Yin's tortures aren't all that creative, when he orders his men to stuff Chuck's head and an agitated rodent into the same burlap sack, it becomes impossible not to recognize his ingenuity.
Though The Beginning dramatizes the true fates of some American soldiers left behind in Vietnam, any parallels to reality are readily negated by Chuck's propensity for invincibility. He does get kicked around a bit as a prisoner, but once he assumes the mantle of heavily-armed liberator, his (we assume) highly-trained captors suddenly forget how to aim their weapons, and Norris is able to elude even the most voluminous volleys of gunfire by simply rolling out of the way. The absurd apex of Chuck's super hero capabilities arrives when he opens a hatch to free some of the prisoners, only to discover that he has been lured into a trap. Instead of POWs, the compartment is filled with a dozen enemy soldiers, who immediately open fire with their machine guns inches from our sturdy protagonist's face... and somehow miss him entirely.
Of course, such silliness is to be expected from a film like Missing In Action 2, and when the result is a fun and entertaining 90 minutes, it seems beside the point to complain about the improbabilities. Judged against the other work being churned out by Norris and his contemporaries during the era, The Beginning is a surprisingly thoughtful offering that balances its heart and its gonads rather adeptly. Above average is definitely good enough in this case.
Though The Beginning boasts all of the hallmarks of an enjoyable B-action flick (slow motion explosions, liberal use of machine guns, a hero seemingly impervious to damage, etc.), Missing In Action 2 spends a lot more time developing the characters and the scenario than fans of the genre may be used to. While this relegates most of the action to the third act and slows the pace a bit, the film benefits from the more immersive approach, and delving deeply into the horrors of the POW experience brings home the real-world resonance of the piece while simultaneously bolstering the pay-off when the guns n' grenades portion of the plot gets underway.
The dramatic emphasis also allows the usually stone-faced Norris to showcase his acting chops a bit, and even when he's called upon to express actual emotions, he does a capable job of humanizing Braddock beyond the scope of an interchangeable action hero. I'm keenly aware that most people curious about the Missing In Action series aren't all that interested in seeing Norris cry, so I should post-script that endorsement by adding that even though this outing is a bit more serious-minded than some others you'll encounter from the era, Chuck still doles out plenty of vengeance upon his captors with flame-throwers, Uzis, explosives, and good old-fashioned karate leaps out of trees.
Your basic good-vs-evil movie is only as strong as its villain, and we get a suitably malicious match for Norris in Soon-Teck Oh's Colonel Yin, who notches up serious baddie points by burning people alive, tormenting Norris with news from the home-front, and humiliating one prisoner by having the least attractive prostitutes you'll ever see strip him naked and mock his genitals. In adherence to the sort of muddled logic you only find in '80s action films, Colonel Yin is a rare breed of Vietnamese overlord who speaks perfect English and is proficient in advanced martial arts.
The presence of veteran henchman Professor Toru Tanaka is a welcome addition, and always entertaining character actor Steven Williams lends his services as a conniving turncoat, who, in true Williams fashion, fights valiantly to steal the movie by taking big meaty bites out of every scene he's in.
Most of the shoot 'em up aspects of the film are fairly standard, but MIA2 does boast a few truly memorable scenes during the extended prison camp segments, the most effective of which is the "rat in a bag" sequence. Though the majority of Colonel Yin's tortures aren't all that creative, when he orders his men to stuff Chuck's head and an agitated rodent into the same burlap sack, it becomes impossible not to recognize his ingenuity.
Though The Beginning dramatizes the true fates of some American soldiers left behind in Vietnam, any parallels to reality are readily negated by Chuck's propensity for invincibility. He does get kicked around a bit as a prisoner, but once he assumes the mantle of heavily-armed liberator, his (we assume) highly-trained captors suddenly forget how to aim their weapons, and Norris is able to elude even the most voluminous volleys of gunfire by simply rolling out of the way. The absurd apex of Chuck's super hero capabilities arrives when he opens a hatch to free some of the prisoners, only to discover that he has been lured into a trap. Instead of POWs, the compartment is filled with a dozen enemy soldiers, who immediately open fire with their machine guns inches from our sturdy protagonist's face... and somehow miss him entirely.
Of course, such silliness is to be expected from a film like Missing In Action 2, and when the result is a fun and entertaining 90 minutes, it seems beside the point to complain about the improbabilities. Judged against the other work being churned out by Norris and his contemporaries during the era, The Beginning is a surprisingly thoughtful offering that balances its heart and its gonads rather adeptly. Above average is definitely good enough in this case.