User reviews

Some movies just don't give a $#!+ They hit your screen kicking, punching, shooting and sleasing....just the way I like'em. It has its flaws and inconsistencies, like failing to look futuristic especially, in the car department. This movie excels in the action department though, with fantastic martial arts on display by people who actually know what they are doing on or off screen. The late wrestling star The Ultimate Warrior is the menacing bad guy and he plays his part well by breaking bones, sword slashing, and headbutting all the while looking like Dee Schneider from Twisted Sister. Chad McQueen, only son of the late great Steve McQueen plays the dutiful cop well enough but I was unconvinced by his performance in this movie's version of the Thunderdome. 6 stars Check it out late at night when you are looking for an escape from reality.

Man is Gary Daniels' acting bad! But man is he a great athlete! They should have given him less dialogue and let him speak more with his body. They did that with Jim "The Warrior" Hellwig, and that guy comes across with a frightening physical presence; however, his long-awaited fight scene with Daniels is short and disappointing. Apart from that, the fight scenes are where this movie shines: the choreography is fast, brutal and well-executed by guys who know what they are doing. It's when the action steps out of the ring that it becomes generic and uninteresting (there IS one plot twist that you won't see coming, but it doesn't really help the film in any way). In my opinion, "Firepower" should have been titled "Death Ring", and should have spent more time in it. (**)

Typical Pepin/Merhi B-Action Flick. Chad McQueen and Gary Daniels were definitely not hired for their acting talent, but at least they prove physical presence. Overall, though, the film is shot without much passion. However, "Firepower" has one highlight to offer: The superfighter Swordsman is portrayed by wrestling icon Jim "Ultimate Warrior" Hellwig! Apparently this is the only real appearance of the Warrior in a real - non-wrestling - movie.

Firepower is the kind of film that fits right in with the wrestling crowd. It's story is average but the action is top notch. You even have an ex-wrestler in the film. The fights are well done and Chad McQueen does an OK job in his role as does the rest of the cast. It is definitely for late night crowd.

Chad McQueen and Gary Daniels star as 21st century cops (This was obviously made in the 20th century) who fight a giant lummox who is the king of cage matches, also on hand is a fake AIDs cure and science fiction elements which make NO sense at all. One of the great things about my PM binge is that i'm revisiting movies from my past that have long vanished from my void I call a memory, of the last four movies i've reviewed it's only one that I saw for the first time. (The Underground) However this Chad McQueen/Gary Daniels dud is a movie that I wish I could forget. I seriously don't remember this movie being so awful. The fight sequences in particular are terrible beyond belief. Chad McQueen is so slow and lackluster as a martial artist that he looks like he belongs in a Road House sequel, it's hard to believe the man was trained by Chuck Norris. Steve McQueen's son also has marginal charisma, lacking most of his father's screen presence. Thesping-wise, he's only slightly better than Gary Daniels. However there is no question who outshines McQueen on the martial arts side of things, Daniels has fast reflexes,stylish kicks and great technique. McQueen looks slow and so it's contrived that he's the main martial artist. In the end this is just a very dull exercise in low budget science fiction and a prime example why Chad McQueen is lower on the action food-chain than even David Bradley. Avoid it, unless you're a huge Gary Daniels fan.

* out of 4-(Bad)

literally it's painful to watch this drivel no story the acting is Beyond sub par i thought i was having a heart attack while watching this movie come to find out it's just my gag reflex working overtime. i love The ultimate warrior as much as the next guy.........come to think of it i don't like him nor his performance in this total Crapfest. This Movie is Mind numbing and Stupid. it's nothing but badly choreographed fights and very bad acting. I love bad movies i mean they make you laugh cause their so bad but not this piece of crap all it makes me wanna do is drink so i can kill the brain cells that contain memories of this movie. In Final never watch this movie people it's like the video in the ring only instead of you dying, you kill 95 minutes you could have spent doing something Else, like reading or drinking lmao 0.11111111/10 this movie is a 100 on the jobber scale

This movie delivers the goods if you're a true, hardcore action fan. It has lots of flexing, brutal violence, really cool fighting scenes and a typical straight-to-video story. The plot was somewhat interesting, even though it's a typical "dark future"-plot that was so normal for the 80's and early 90's. Gary Daniels is great in this movie. Of the people involved in this movie, he performs the best fighting of them all. I wonder why he isn't more well known among people. He should be right up there with van Damme (and far above Chuck Norris). The story in this movie also has a huge surprise to it, but I won't reveal it here. Watch the movie for yourself instead. Oh, how I just love fighting tournament movies!!

The casting is my first concern with this. I didn't care for Chad Mcqueen as the lead in this as I felt Gary Daniels was the better of the two. Chad was just too dull. Casting the Ultimate Warrior which I heard was an absolute diva to work with on set was a mistake too as all he did was let out a few grunts here and there. If you're going to make a bad guy, make us hate him. Perhaps if the casting was a bit different and a different director this could have had potential.

This was one of the other 9999 dystopian movies, it had this Mortal Kombat like feel to it which certainly helped. Most of the fighters didn't look legit enough so it took away from the immersion but if this movie was shot in the states I can only imagine how little the budget was. The music for the most part minus a cool rock guitar part or two was incredibly dull and didn't suit certain scenes.

By the end of the movie I didn't care and just wanted it over.

The idea of keeping all criminals in a haven where police are restricted and crime is legal is not new and had made some pretty good stories. I can think of "Fortress" or "Robocob" that have been created at the same time. But this movie has nothing to compare with. There is no real story to follow and the direction is very poor. While the two cops are fighting in the electric cage, their first goal (Chasing criminals) is lost. There is also a lot of cliché like the wife of one of the cops arguing with his man for spending too much time at work.... This movie is not much than wrestling. If the idea of fights to death with no limits drives you crazy, then you can make an attempt. Otherwise you will spoil your evening.

This movie is a masterpiece. Truth be told the reason I latched onto it was because Gary Daniels was in it and I've been a rabid fan of his for a while. That coupled with a ravaged near future (borderline post apocalyptic) setting and the ULTIMATE WARRIOR as one of the greatest villains to ever grace an action film, makes this a movie to flock to.

The story has been summed up enough and basically rings true and delivers what it promises. The only problem I had with this movie was that Daniels wasn't' the lead actor and was overshadowed by Chad McQueen. McQueen gives a good performance, but watching Daniels in full on action hard-ass mode is one of the greatest cinematic guilty pleasures of all time ( check out Rage, Cold Harvest and Blood Moon for a sample of awesome Gary).

Regardless of my obviously biased review (I can't help it Daniels is an action Icon for me) this film contains enough standard action film fodder to please pretty much anyone. It has car crashes, laser gun fights, CAGE FIGHTING, future wastelands and pretty much anything else they hoped they could squeeze in there. If you're ever lucky enough to happen upon this do yourself a favor and pick it up, you won't be disappointed. MASTERPIECE.

After hearing about James Hellwig's (a.k.a THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR) untimely death, I kept thinking about it not believing he was actually gone. But while going through my DVD collection I spotted this film and suddenly it hits me. James Hellwig played the villain in this movie and he was awesome. I remember when I first saw this film in the early nineties, the scene where Hellwig steps into the death ring to face Gary Daniels, I was so afraid for Daniels's character that I just kept saying, "please let him get out of there alive." That's how scary Hellwig's portrayal of The Swordsman was to me.

The film itself is actually very entertaining and a bit fun. I kind of thought of it as a MAD MAX meets BLOODSPORT type of film. The two lead characters played by Chad McQueen (the son of Steve McQueen) and Gary Daniels are quite likable and do grow on you after a short while. The film's only less impressive sequences are the two car chase scenes, but the majority of the film mainly consist of a reasonable number of fight sequences all well choreographed and directed.

As far as recommending it goes, I'm not entirely sure what audiences today might think about it, although if someone is curious enough to see it then I would strongly recommend it. As well if the person happens to be an early nineties "B" movie enthusiast.

I had never heard about the 1993 movie titled "Firepower" from writer Michael January and director Richard Pepin prior to stumbling upon it here in 2024. But having been a teenager in the 1990s, of course I enjoyed the wave of martial arts action movies back in the day, and needed no persuasion to sit down and watch this movie.

Right, well I have to say that writer Michael January came up with a thin, so very, very thin storyline and plot here. I mean, two police officers in the near future having to go undercover in an underground martial arts death match ring in order to find a cure for AIDS. Wow, seriously? Talk about being a thinly stretched narrative here.

Of the entire cast ensemble in the movie, I was only familiar with Chad McQueen, Gary Daniels and Jim Hellwig - aka The Ultimate Warrior. The latter was in the movie solely for his size and to fight, because there was no acting talent being displayed.

"Firepower" was carried only by the abundance of fighting sequences. But there was no contents in the movie to support a second viewing. And truth be told, there are far better 90s martial arts movies readily available.

My rating of director Richard Pepin's 1993 movie "Firepower" lands on a four out of ten stars.

What can a say. Firepower is the personification of B grade action that is very entertaining. For lovers of the action genre this movie is a must have for your collection, especially if you are a wrestling fan also.

I stumbled across the movie whilst researching Gary Daniels filmograghy on this site. After reading on fans review of the movie and its villain I knew I had to buy it.

Chad McQueen is OK in the leading role and while he comes across as a poor mans version of Tom Sizemore, he does a solid job which his father would be proud of.

Gary Daniels as always come to the table with a great physique and good fighting sequences. HOWEVER, the show is stolen by one man...The Swordsmen. Without doubt The Sworsdmen (Ultimate Warrior) is the greatest villain to ever grace an action movie. While his only words throughout the film are 'Arggghhhh' he delivers them better than anyone and his on screen presence in undeniable and rivalled by none.

The only bad thing about this movie as that the The Swordsmen wasn't in more scenes. When the Swordsmen is not fighting in the 'deathring' and decapitating others with his fists and blade, he is walking around the 'Hellzone' shirtless, only wearing an apocalypitic leather trench coat. Sooo intimidating and cool it has you screaming for more.

Go see this movie now...Arggghhh

Imagine if certain parts of a city, called the Hell Zone, were set aside for criminal activity. Every bad guy could set up shop and rape, murder and steal to his heart's content. The frustrated cops could only stand and watch. If that weren't enough, inside the Zone is the Death Ring, where the baddest bad boys fight to the death while the crowd screams for blood. That's the future in L.A.(2007!) the way this movie sees it and the Hell Zone is where all the action takes place. Into this brutal world comes Chad McQueen (son of the great Steve McQueen) and martial arts muscleman Gary Daniels, as two undercover cops that have to infiltrate the Death Ring and fight their way out.

Like his father, McQueen has a hard bodied physicality and genuine star quality. Playing a cop and a fighter in the ring, he sports the athletic build and macho ink that makes him a believable badass. His fights are exciting and realistic. He is the movie's focal point and, along with showcasing his lethal talents, he's featured in some steamy love scenes with Alisha Dal. In the sack, he's a chip off the old block and that smoldering McQueen sexuality has Ms. Dal purring.

Gary Daniels is a reliable component of any action flick and in this one he plays the crazy sidekick and frustrated cop who relishes the freedom to snuff out criminals at will once he's in the Hell Zone. After dispatching one hulking loser, Daniels gives a bloodthirsty grin to McQueen, saying "I wish we could do this in the real world." Though he's not the star, the bare-chested Daniels really shines in every fight he has. He's in superb shape – almost competition quality – and his rock hard physique is on display throughout the movie.

Two other fighters standout in the casting of this movie. Art Camacho plays a strong young latino fighter trying to feed his family and make a name for himself. He befriends the two cops and together they take out their share of goons. The real bad guy is the Swordsman, played by pro wrestling's Ultimate Warrior. Unbelievably buff - but given no lines to deliver - the Swordsman is left to do his communicating in the ring where he slays grungy lowlifes in some awesome action scenes. Between Daniels and the Swordsman, both of whom take turns flexing and strutting around shirtless in the ring, it begins to resemble a Mr. Olympia contest, with the chiseled Camacho and McQueen not far behind.

There are a few surprises along the way, and it's fun seeing cops suddenly free to make criminals pay the ultimate price for their misdeeds. Even the good guys get off on a little payback when they slash and burn some tough outlaw in the Death Ring. The movie rips off everything from "Escape from New York" to "Thunderdome," but it doesn't matter since the plot exists only to let guys battle it out in front of a screaming crowd. When those guys are prime muscle like Daniels and the Swordsman, or young lions like McQueen and Camacho, this movie rocks.

Strange title for a film that's mostly full of kickboxing, but there you go. It's (kind of) post-apocalyptica time again! This time we've got Gary Daniels and a guy that looks like Adam Richman from Man Vs Food as two cops who go undercover as kickboxers in the death ring, which is situated in some sort of lawless zone where anything can happen for some reason. They're either there to track down some huge criminal(played by the Ultimate Warrior) or find the location of some sort of medicine, or maybe both. Really, when you're watching a Gary Daniels film, do you really care about the plot? When starting out in the Death Ring most of the matches aren't that deadly, but the further up the ladder you go, the more serious it becomes until you fight the big criminal guy, who usually has some remote computer guy rig the matches just in case he loses. It's believable enough when Daniels is in the ring because the guy is that supple he could probably fold himself into a suitcase if he felt like it, but the other guy looks like he would have trouble lifting his leg to fart let alone kick someone's teeth out of their heads.

There's a twist or two along the way and a couple of firefights at the beginning there, plus a bit of drama here and there. It's good when Daniels is around because he's basically playing an over-violent super confident cop but I have to admit the end seemed a wee bit on the rushed side. Still worth your time if you see it cheap enough.

This movie is all about hand-to-hand fighting... you can see in it nice moves and combos. it's mainly about the fighting at the "Death Ring" so if you don't like combats and hits (and some action) this movie is not for you. The story is not strong.. kinda weak i can say, but this wont bother the 'hand to hand combats' fans. Alltrough, i gave it a 9/10 just for the combat scenes.. if to aspect it about the storyline, i'd give it a 5/10.. Anyway a good fighting movie! The actor 'Gary Daniels' shows in this movie one of his best fighting scenes.. If your a Gary's fan this movie is definitely for you. This movie will improve your will go for a work-out at the Gym definitely.. you might wants to learn some martial arts too.

Two cops go undercover in a tournament?! Yeah sounds like enter the dragon, mortal kombat or even the tekken flick. Its story isnt why you go into this flick.

Its B movie action to the max, plenty good fighting. Especially from Gary daniels👊 and jim hellwig💪 they are awesome in this flick.

In the end a silly good time

This is one of those films that falls under the category of "so bad it's good". This is a piece of pungent cheese of the sort that shows up regularly on MST3K, rife with laughable acting and wafer-thin plot. It takes place in not-so-distant future Los Angeles, where a desperate metropolis has tried to deal with rampant crime by creating a "Zone of Personal Freedom" in the middle of the city, where basically anything goes. Of course, this doesn't work, and a shipment of AIDS vaccine is hijacked and taken into the Zone. Two tough LA cops go undercover to find it, and the plotline is quickly lost as they become fighters in this weird Thunderdome-like gladiator tournament run by the guy who (surprise) stole the vaccine. Terribly bad, but a whole lot of fun to watch and laugh at. Two bright spots are martial arts action hero Gary Daniels as the only cop in LA with an Australian accent, and Jeff Hellwig (pro wrestling's Ultimate Warrior) as a tournament combatant. He's only got two lines in the whole movie ("Get me out of here now!" and "Arrrrrgh!") but he delivers them better than anyone else in the film.

So directors, explain yourself. Why did you call this movie firepower when the story has NOTHING to do with firepower, huh???

With that out of the way, this movie sux. The basic story is that the cops have made a 'zone of personal freedom' in the middle of LA, where there is no police assistance provided. But, those crafty criminals (i thought it would have been pretty obvious), they commit crimes and then run and hide in hellzone. So anyway, one time, the most feared gang leader, the swordsman (ooooohhhhh) is arrested and then his crooks break him out of jail in a bloody attack on the police station. Then, these two cops decide they have no choice but to go in after them.

This is where the movie loses it completely. Why the hell do they need to go in after the crooks into hellzone? Basically, they arrive, see a fighting ring, watch for 10 minutes (the audience is treated to the whole 10 minutes of fighting), and then completely forget about their mission of revenge and decide that their only option is to enter the death ring competition and FIGHT! Apparently this is to infiltrate the baddies (like ANYONE cares, its actually legal anyway), but they achieve nothing as they have numerous oppurtunities to get the baddies. So basically, the ENTIRE movie is fighting. Yep, they soon jettison the story and have non stop death ring matches. I guess i should have seen it coming with a WWF wrestler, but still.........

Anyway, to sum it up i wrote a haiku:

This movie sux hard It has no story and that what a crap movie.

I hope this assists you in making the decision not to watch it (not that you'll be able to find it anyway........)

`Yeah, well keep your ‘stick' in the ring. Don't practice on my girls. I need them to concentrate on their jobs, so my business doesn't suffer...'

In the year 2007, crime has risen at an exponential rate. Once highly populated metropolises such as Los Angeles are no longer inhabitable. These cities have transformed into `Hell Zones,' ruled by violent street gangs. Talk about Y2K!

Two brave cops, Braniff (Chad McQueen), and Sledge (Gary Daniels) must risk their badges...and their lives when they enter Los Angeles's `Hell Zone.' Entering the Hell Zone is insanity...escaping from it is impossible. The Hell Zone, formerly called the `Zone of Personal Freedom,' is a safe-haven for criminal warpaths everywhere. This Hell Zone in LA is controlled by a criminal mastermind named Drexal (Joseph Ruskin). For the sake of entertaining his crowds of decadent losers and underlings, Drexal has staged a series of lethal, no-holds-barred matches in the `Death Ring,' where the winner takes all of the glory...while the defeated one shall lose his self-respect (or maybe just his head).

Meanwhile, Braniff and Sledge are obliged to go undercover in a clandestine mission as Death Ring fighters themselves. Sledge is actually having fun roughing up his Death Ring rivals while Braniff finds his martial vows in jeopardy as he himself becomes attracted to a beautiful woman named Lisa (Alisha Das). However, this married cop must remember his priority. Braniff, along with his robust and agile partner, Sledge, must fight for their lives in order to expose an alleged `black market' involving the sale of counterfeit AIDS vaccines. Will these two men triumph against all odds in the Hell Zone alive or will they pay with their very lives?

FIREPOWER is probably one of the most ridiculously contrived thrillers ever. This film is completely inept, with terrible acting and an incoherent plot. The script, full of pathetic one-liners and inane drivel, is also embarrassing enough. Incidentally, to make everything worse than it already is, this film is not quite as exciting as the title promises. For instance, the action scenes lack that poetic style. Sure, we have the heroes and the villains shooting at each other and trying to beat one another, but all of these action scenes lack that flair. There is no sense of excitement involved when viewing these action sequences. Also, the fight scenes lack the brutal realism; instead, they just seem like child's play. The fighters constantly beat, maul, maim, and mutilate each other, yet not a single fighter (save for the ones who are murdered in the Death Ring) seems to be displaying any severe injuries. The one-on-one death matches as well get repetitive. Listless action scenes are just part of this movie's innumerable problems. The dearth of both an intense musical score and smooth camerawork only injures this movie even more substantially...

Although FIREPOWER is an appalling movie, I found one factor which almost redeems this whole unpleasantness: The fact that this movie is amusing, whether it wants to admit it or not. The acting especially is funny. The main adversaries, Drexal and Mendez (Pablo Marz) are more asinine than frightening. You would expect Drexal to be insidious and sinister, but he appears to be more of an ersatz Vincent Price. Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs provides some amusing commentary as a ring announcer. Chad McQueen lacks the appeal and charisma of his father, the late (and terrific) Steve McQueen, but you will chuckle at how he tries to develop his relationship with Lisa. As for Gary Daniels, I must attest that he is one of the most impressive fighters ever. Granted, Daniels does have a thick accent, but after seeing this guy showcase his martial arts skills, you would not even want to comment on his accent! If you do, then prepare to defend yourself! (By the way, his accent does happen to distract from the impact of his one-liners.)

The best acting though, is displayed by Jim Hellwig (known to professional wrestling fans everywhere as the `Ultimate Warrior') as the Swordsman, a barbaric character who yells as if he was raised in the jungles. The Swordsman himself, a formidable opponent, only understands the language of violence. Also, I must comment that a lot of these fighters featured in this movie DO NOT know how to fight! As for the action scenes, it is just awesome how the car crashes and explosions can be seen from different angles in this movie! It is just brilliant! The (mostly unintentional) humor keeps FIREPOWER from becoming too lackluster.

It is a complete shame that FIREPOWER could not be a better movie. The special effects looked silly, but they worked, and the plot too held some potential. The sub-plot in particular, about a counterfeit AIDS vaccine seems very promising. It is quite sad that the filmmakers did not take advantage of that opportunity; it would have given the film more substance. Unfortunately, the anemic direction by Richard Pepin and the mediocre cinematography are unacceptable as well. Anyway, FIREPOWER is not worth the time if you happen to watch it by yourself. Instead, gather a group of friends, sit on a cozy couch, and prepare to have fun. Trust me, your colorful comments for this movie will be uninhibited!

RATING: ** out of ****. (For a high amusement factor.)

This is one of those actions that is hardly heard of at all, it's very low budget and is below the likes that B-grade actioners like Olivier Gruner, Lorenzo Lamas and Billy Blanks, it is more like a Z movie but is suprisingly entertaining. The plot is average for an action film but there are some good sub plots like the search for an AIDS vaccine. The acting is poor, Gary Daniels sporting a Status Quo like hair do and putting on a ridiculous Aussie accent, as for Chad Mcqueen( yes son of steve) he puts on a good performance and almost looks worthy of an upgrade to the Seagal,Lundgren and Van Damme B movie categary. The real star of the show was Jim Hellweg (WWF Great the ultimate warrior) who although has about 2 or 3 lines, one of which is a grunt,he really does have a powerful onscreen presence and looks very menacing. At least the writers didn't make the same mistake other's have done when casting wrestlers in films by giving them, too much dialogue. Another good thing about the Ultimate one is he does all his own stunts and fighting in this which Hulk Hogan does'nt in his films, and for a laugh i urge you to watch some of the Hulksters films to see the amount of work is done by a stunt double some of which was pathetic and which a one legged 80 year old arthritic would probably have done( Hulks film Secret agent club is the best example, for example blokes with rubber bald patches put on their head just to collide with a wall or do a kick with just a bit of agility needed). Any way firepower is average by B-action standards and the fights are pretty good.

ps: i apologize to all hulk-a-maniacs( he did throw himself about in the wrestling)