X
- 1986
- R
- De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG)
- 1 h 46 m
- 1986
- R
- De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG)
- 1 h 46 m
Summary A former FBI agent turned small-town sheriff agrees to help the FBI chief infiltrate the Chicago mafia when the FBI chief's son is killed by them.
Directed By: John Irvin
Written By: Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Donati, Gary DeVore, Norman Wexler
- 1986
- R
- De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG)
- 1 h 46 m
- 1986
- R
- De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG)
- 1 h 46 m
Raw Deal
44
6.7
Where to Watch
Summary A former FBI agent turned small-town sheriff agrees to help the FBI chief infiltrate the Chicago mafia when the FBI chief's son is killed by them.
Directed By: John Irvin
Written By: Luciano Vincenzoni, Sergio Donati, Gary DeVore, Norman Wexler
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 12 Critic Reviews
44
17% Positive
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
58% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
25% Negative
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 12 Critic Reviews
44
17% Positive
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
58% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
25% Negative
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
Both Cobra and Raw Deal are designed primarily to get the audience off on violence, and both are successful; what makes Raw Deal marginally preferable is not only the bizarre charm of its star, but the fact that the filmmakers are honest about what they're up to and do not unduly exploit the hostility of the audience.
John Irvin has a nice eye for irony and for the larger- (and funnier-) than-life trappings of the genre. He doesn't have enormous opportunities to exercise this bent, since Raw Deal is constructed like a serial bomb: It goes off roughly every 12 1/2 minutes, littering the landscape with corpses. But you can detect an adult hand at work here, which could never be said for Cobra's arrogant and inept childishness.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 20 User Ratings
6.7
50% Positive
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
45% Mixed
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
5% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 20 User Ratings
6.7
50% Positive
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
45% Mixed
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
5% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
Raw Deal is a 1986 crime action thriller starring Arnold Schwarzenegger... After his friend in the burea has his son killed by a mob boss named Patrovita (Sam Wanamaker), Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) is reassigned to the burea to infiltrate the mob and if he succeeds his reward is permanent reinstatement at the F.B.I again and reunited with his wife... Raw Deal is full of violence, fights, chases, explosions, shootouts including a bloodbath at a bar scene at the end... Arnold Schwarzenegger wears a leather jacket at the end and has shotguns, Uzi's, pistols, just basically a huge arsenal of weapons to kill the badguys. The gravel pit shootout is impressive and so is Schwarzenegger in general. Very violent with some witty humour thrown in I'd say Raw Deal does deliver in terms of violence and entertainment so great film. Yes Raw Deal is violent but Schwarzenegger is more cooler here than usual and wears flashy suits and smokes a cigar and has a few romantic moments. Also stars Paul Shenar, Ed Lauter, Robert Davi and Kathryn Harrold
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John Irvin's action crime thriller, Raw Deal was made in 1986 by John Irvin who was on director duties. Raw Deal followed the year after Commando (1985) was made and Arnold Schwarzenegger returns but not as Matrix but some small town sheriff... Raw Deal is a simple story that basically begins with some character named Kaminski having to resign from the FBI and is demoted to sheriff in a small town but a friend of his, FBI chief "Harry Shannon" played by Darren McGavin has his son killed after a witness is killed who was going to testify against some mob boss played by Sam Wanamaker. Chief Harry Shannon (McGavin) wants revenge for his son so hires Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) to infiltrate the mob. Sheriff Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) fakes his own death at a petrol storage yard facility by causing a huge explosion and riding away on a motorbike leaving his police car blown sky high then sends his wife Amy (Blanche Baker) somewhere safe until the job is completed. Kaminski stays in contact with Harry Shannon (McGavin) and looks like some business man with gelled hair as he roams the casino's and various buildings and meeting the criminal organisation run by mob boss Patrovita (Sam Wanamaker) who's responsible for the death of the police chiefs son. Kaminski is hired into the criminal organisation by Rocca (Paul Shenar) and Kaminski also meets Max Keller (Robert Davi) who's not impressed with Kaminski walking around smoking a big cigar lol. Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) gets romantically involved with Monique (Kathryn Harold) but doesn't sleep with her. Kaminski tears up Lamanski's (Steven Hil) business who's not liked by mob boss Patrovita (Wanamaker) and Raw Deal is a very intelligent movie and stylish and glamouros compared to most Schwarzenegger films and we see casino's, bars, a vending machine bombed at a Chicago police station because Patrovita wants his money and drugs back. Anyway Raw Deal moves along very stylishly and feels well acted all the time but most of the action is at the end but we do see alleyway fights and a few other interesting scenes especially a car chase and Lamanski's death and guns going off. Kathryn Harold who plays Monique is gorgeous and sexy but fails to seduce Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) in the movie which is pretty sad because that would have been great to see but nevermind. The criminal organisation and mob boss (Patrovita) find out Kaminski is not who he says he is at the end of Raw Deal because Joseph P. Brenner is somewhere else probably in the Caribbean so Max Keller (Robert Davi) knows Schwarzenegger isn't who he says he is... Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) is lured to a cemetery by the criminal organisation and his friend, FBI chief Harry Shannon is shot so Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) kills the badguys including Max Keller (Robert Davi) and dresses in a black leather jacket, has a shower at a hotel, gets bags of shotguns, ammo, pistols and weapons out and kills the whole mob and criminal organisation following a shootout at a gravel pit then a bloodbath in a bar with bullets flying around and dead bodies and broken glass everywhere. Mob boss Patrovita (Sam Wanamaker) is also killed but killed last. Then Monique is sent somewhere to start a new life and Kaminski (Schwarzenegger) gets his old job back at the FBI after accomplishing his mission to start a better life for him and his wife.... Raw Deal has a great plot and storyline and is full of action, violence, blood, great acting, explosions, the odd humour and romance... One of Arnold Schwarzenegger's best movies. As far as action sequences go the action scenes in Raw Deal are between fairly decent to downright over violent and excellently done because it has some of the most decent and best action scenes ever in the history of film making. RAW DEAL is a must see!
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It's reprehensible and enjoyable, the kind of movie that makes you feel brain dead in two minutes--after which point you're ready to laugh at its mixture of trashiness, violence, and startlingly silly crude humor.
Raw Deal is not as reactionary as Cobra but it's just as violent, maybe even bloodier, with its graphic gun fights and bullet-spattered, shattered bodies blasted before our eyes. Still it's also a quality project -- the look and sound of the film are first rate.
John Irvin's direction is rudimentary for an action film and adds little excitement to the proceedings. There's not much suspense, with good guys and bad guys clearly drawn, and the final shootout is all too routine.
You want to see guys with muscles shooting machineguns at guys without muscles? These are the movies for you. You have more than muscles between your ears? Try something else.
The film's biggest continuing laugh is the very idea that Arnold Schwarzenegger, with his thick accent, could infiltrate the upper echelon of the Mafia. I could see him catering a German mob dinner, but a trusted ally? Never.
I read this is underrated, with Arnold thats a must see. Photography is pretty good, decent action right away. Darrin McGavin, always a plus. Pretty good stunts. This movie is hilarious, Arnold goes undercover by dying his hair a shade darker, fakes his own death by setting his car on fire. "if you're the best there is, the wheel would never have been invented."
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There is no way reviewers actually think this better than COBRA. If not by arnold this would be a disaster....
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The first 2 thirds are very good: The story has more importance and the action scenes are realistic. But in the end the action is getting more and more dumb until it gets ridiculous. Commando from 1985 was similar btw..
The characters... There are some things I dont understand. The wife of Arnie is horrible and selfish. This was unacceptable and Arnie was supporting this. So stupid. And what about the other woman Monique? Alcohol problem, a slut and a spy. And Arnie was buying her expensive clothes and gave her a quarter million dollar in the end. and even didnt sleep with her Ridiculous, I would enjoy her great body and kick her butt after that. Who wrote these characters? Feminists?
So the beginning and the middle were good: 8/10, but the end was miserable 3/10.
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'Raw Deal' is for me somewhat of a tough film to rate and review. It is not a great, or even a good, film and is as close to ridiculous as Arnold Schwarznegger films get. At the same time, it's difficult to be too hard on 'Raw Deal' because there is some entertainment value.
Let's start with the good things. Schwarznegger is not the greatest of actors and never has been, but he has always had a hugely charismatic screen presence, a larger-than-life likability and a knack for action sequences. One gets all of this from his performance in 'Raw Deal', even with some expressionless and moments where he does struggle with lines he is immensely watchable and it is very vintage Schwarznegger. Generally it is the cast that come off best. Robert Davi is a rightly hiss-able bad guy and Kathryn Harrold has charm and sass. Sam Wanamaker and Paul Shenar make much of relatively little, they bring colourful menace to their stereotypical roles despite (particularly Shenar) being underused.
There are a few fun one-liners here and there and some excitement in the action. Can't say that on the whole as individual components the script and action were great, but the entertainment was there. The soundtrack is cool too and the scenery has atmosphere.
On the other hand, the story is not just ridiculous (even by Schwarznegger film standards) and generic but has too many scenes that feel like filler and either drag the story out or confuse it. A few nice one-liners here and there, but the script is quite weak and there is a lot of unintentional humour and next to no care developing the characters in a film littered with stereotypes (only Kaminski has any kind of development).
Action-wise, 'Raw Deal' is hardly amateurish and has some exciting moments but too much of it is too routine and a huge amount of suspension of disbelief is needed. Although the ending is certainly memorable, more so than most of the stuff before it, it's for all the wrong reasons. Visually, it has a low-budget made-for-TV-production-like look to it. Ed Lauter is pretty wasted and while the direction is competent it's never more than that.
In conclusion, watchable but doesn't feel cooked all the way through. 5/10 Bethany Cox
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Undoubtedly a bad movie. But pretty watchable. Arnie's charismatic if typical performance saves the movie from being an absolute snooze-fest.
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