Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

KnotStronger This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

Derry Herrera Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Scott LeBrun You're often taking a risk with Steven Seagal cinema, ever since his hubris got the best of him with "On Deadly Ground". Here the veteran action star plays a typical Steven Seagal character, in a formula-bound plot that attempts to travel far on the odd-couple pairing of Seagal and the usually comedic actor / filmmaker Keenen Ivory Wayans. The two make for a generally agreeable team, even if the movie overall is pretty forgettable.Seagal and Wayans play Jack Cole and Jim Campbell, L.A. homicide detectives working the case of a particularly sick serial killer dubbed The Family Man. Jack is a New Age, spiritual type who frequents a Chinese restaurant and wears beads, Jim is a wise cracking sort who tears up whenever watching "Casablanca". At one point during the murder spree, there are killings that don't quite match up with the rest of them, making Jack think that they're actually the work of a professional; there's more going on here than the actions of one lone maniac. Things get personal for Jack when his ex-wife is one of the latest victims, and he is suspected of the crime.The script by Kevin Brodbin fluctuates between dialogue that is amusingly dumb and dialogue that is just plain bad. Some modest chuckles are generated, but no real comedy fireworks. This contrasts with some slasher movie type killings, and the standard one-sided fights we come to expect from a Steven Seagal joint. Director John Gray tries to inject some style here and there, such as a fight sequence staged inside a burning apartment.There are some first-rate character actors here: Bob Gunton, Brian Cox, John M. Jackson, Stephen Tobolowsky, Peter Jason, Richard Gant. Sexy lady Michelle Johnson of "Blame it on Rio" fame is completely wasted in a nothing role, and Jason is seen much too briefly. Wendy Robie of 'Twin Peaks' has a cameo, and the delectable Nikki Cox turns up as Jasons' daughter. The assemblage of talent does keep this watchable enough.Overall, the story is pretty silly, although I guess Brodbin deserves some credit for trying to make this a little more than the usual "cop vs. killer" thriller scenario.Five out of 10.

Leofwine_draca Steven Seagal went back to his roots with this action thriller, which harks back to his early work, much of which was city-bound and also dealt with conspiracies and violence on the 'mean' streets (his acting debut, NICO: ABOVE THE LAW, in particular). In fact, this film is quite surprising, as Seagal had apparently turned into an ex-military guy who killed hundreds of baddies and set traps to kill people, but not so in this film. Here he's a cop with a suspicious past, which even leads to him being blamed for a series of murders (a first, Seagal is usually the 100% clean good guy). Of course, we all know he's a goodie after all and he shows this by exposing police corruption all around, and beating up a healthy number of bad guys.The film is refreshingly free of the environmental stuff that Seagal has insisted on dolloping in his 1990s actioners (ON DEADLY GROUND being the worst offender). However, he's cast as a Buddhist in this film, and someone who dislikes resorting to violence (although, as you might be able to guess, it's not long before he does). What makes this film different from Seagal's other work is the relatively complex plot, which twists everywhere so that you don't know who's killing who. Thankfully, everything sorts itself out after half-an-hour of this headache inducing stuff.Another difference is that this time, Seagal has a partner (and it's not some woman who hides in the background either). Keenen Ivory Wayans is likable and friendly as a homicide cop, and he's not a bad fighter either. There's a brilliant fight in Wayans' apartment which ends with him being blown out of his window by a gas explosion! Seagal basically plays himself again (what else but the whispering hard man?), but he's even cooler and smarter this time around, always one step ahead of the enemy. The rest of the cast give solid support too, especially the believable killers (who turn out to be just doing their jobs). This time around, the killer is a sadistic serial killer too, something which brings back shades of OUT FOR JUSTICE.A Seagal film wouldn't be a Seagal film without some violent fight scenes, and this film doesn't disappoint. While there aren't a great deal of enemies for Seagal to fight in this film, the ones there are always team up, so there are some fast moments with Seagal killing loads of people at once. Expect lots of smashing windows and tables too, as Seagal chucks people around and breaks the odd arm or two (what a surprise!). He even has a trick up his sleeve in the form of a credit card with a razor blade, which he uses to kill three men in one extremely cool scene.Other show stoppers include Seagal rolling out of the back window of an upside down car, and the final fight between him and the main baddie, which is one of his best. There's quite a bit of blood in this fight, and even Seagal gets whacked on the nose and bleeds (a rare occasion, for someone to land a punch on Seagal). It's definitely a climax worth waiting for. With a higher humour content than before (mostly in the form of Wayans), a plot which actually requires you to think, and the expected action and fight scenes, THE GLIMMER MAN is nothing amazing but it's solid entertainment and a bit better than some other action films of today.

Python Hyena The Glimmer Man (1996): Dir: John Gray / Cast: Steven Seagal, Keenan Ivory Wayans, Michelle Johnson, Brian Cox, Stephen Tobolowsky: Pointless bag of trash that uses creative expressions of violence as entertainment. One particular gruesome scene regards someone's throat being slashed with a credit card. That is about the height of creativity in this piece of sh*t. Steven Seagal stars as a bead wearing Buddhist cop called the Glimmer Man, and Keenan Ivory Wayans is his partner. They investigate murders where victims are hung upside down in crucifix fashion. I guess posters are not a decent enough decorating tip. Seagal is relieved of his badge when his ex- wife and boyfriend are murdered. Wayans gets back together with him after he is nearly torched in his apartment. Director John Gray does his best but Seagal is embarrassing. He should take those beads door to door selling arts and crafts. He spends the whole film fighting with bad guys and inventing methods of killing people. Wayans, Michelle Johnson, and Brian Cox…well…forget them. Wayans is the standard unlikely partner that we have seen in countless other action films even though few are as stupid as this one. What this film needs is to be placed on a slab of concrete and bashed repeatedly with a sledge hammer. It is about as exciting as watching your neighbor's vacation slides. Score: 1 / 10

Wuchak Released in 1996, "The Glimmer Man" is a cop thriller starring Steven Seagal and Keenen Ivory Wayans as a detective team in Los Angeles, the former recently transferring from New York City. As they get to know each other they're simultaneously tracking a serial killer called "the family man" who kills whole families and crucifies his (or her) victims on the walls. Will they catch the killer and who is it? This is a competent buddy cop thriller in the mold of the Dirty Harry flicks, the Lethal Weapon films and even "Se7en," but with Seagal and Wayans. If you like those films and Seagal or Wayans you might want to check this out. The movie's decent with a few quality Seagal fight sequences, but something holds it back from greatness, like the Dirty Harry flicks. The serial killer who crucifies his victims on the walls seriously stretches realism. How exactly does he lift the victims up on the wall to stake their hands into it? Wouldn't that take a lot of extra time after murdering a family? What about the noise? Would a killer seriously stick around to do this? I just didn't like the complexities and contrivances of the serial killer subplot, particularly as it developed in the final act. Moreover, the constantly raining weather of dead-of-Winter Los Angeles makes for a gloomy cinematic palate. However, everything else clicks for a quality cop thriller, except that there are no prominent female roles.The movie runs 91 minutes and was shot in Los Angeles.GRADE: C+