Everything Action Theater: Blackjack

John Woo makes his big return to Hollywood cinema this weekend with the high-concept action thriller Silent Night and we’re featuring one of the legendary director’s deep cuts for the latest Everything Action Theater, Blackjack.  Airing on the USA network on September 15th, 1998, the movie was intended to be a backdoor pilot into an ongoing TV series but it wasn’t picked up, so Blackjack exists as a one-off.  Dolph Lundgren stars as retired US Marshal Jack Devlin, who takes a job defending an old buddy who runs a casino from Russian mobsters.  Jack defeats the mobsters but takes a flashbang at close range, temporarily blinding him and giving him leukophobia or the fear of white objects.  When his buddy and his wife are killed, Jack is left as the legal guardian to their daughter Casey while also getting dragged into another protection gig for a model with a deranged stalker.   If the show had actually been picked up, it’s easy to see Dolph taking on a new bodyguard job every week and juggling his home life with an adopted daughter.  The movie has all of John Woo’s trademarks, including over the top shootouts full of slow motion, dual-wielding pistols and doves along with over-the-top characters and operatic moments (the main villain for instance learns of Jack’s fear of white and stages an entire scene with white curtains and he’s dressed in a white tuxedo). You can watch the entire movie below thanks to YouTube.