Steven Seagal is relentless, churning out movies regularly. Attrition is one of his better ones, and I enjoyed it thoroughly (relative to his other movies, not Hollywood). The brutality is visceral and Seagal fights a lot in this movie. No poor body doubles or screen splicing. It’s really A Seagal-fest.
The story takes place somewhere in China or Thailand, it’s not clear. Some people speak Mandarin while the villagers look Thai. It doesn’t matter as Seagal owns everyone everywhere. There is a crazy monologue by Seagal at the start on the burden of war and another at the end on the correct use of martial arts to help the weak. It reminds me of his earlier movies where he drones on about environmental care and how no one is above the law. Classic.
Seagal is the main hero and the rest are all cardboard characters. Interestingly, his partner, Louis Fan has acted in many Cantonese movies, notably the Ip Man franchise. As usual, the baddies pose no threat him. He easily disarms (literally) the bad boss of sex trafficking and leaves him wallowing in a pool of blood. The weirdest part is Seagal’s dream of the captured girl where she’s barely clothed. So many Seagal elements to pique one’s interest.
Overall, I enjoyed the movie as Seagal truly acted most of it and the fight scenes were pretty solid. His mastery of weapons and Wing Chun is limitless. However, his Buddhist quotes don’t really vibe with the level of violence he dishes out to random folks. Oh, did I mention Seagal played a blues rock song during the credits? This guy is talented.
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