Tough and Deadly

"Experts with fists and guns and not afraid to use them."

1995 1h 32m EN

😐

5.5

MID

★5.5TMDB · 25

ThrillerActionDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A private eye helps an amnesiac CIA agent elude mobsters who don't want him to regain his memory of their drug operation.

“Experts with fists and guns and not afraid to use them.”

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Cast

Billy Blanks
John Portland
Roddy Piper
Elmo Freech
Richard Norton
Agent Norton
Charles Kahlenberg
William Helms
James Karen
Winston Briggers
Gary Kasper
Cowboy
Sal Landi
Milan
Phil Morris
Trekkler

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Steve Cohen
Writers: Otto C. Pozzo, Steve Cohen
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Steve Cohen, shot by James W. Roberson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by William Kidd. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Billy Blanks and Roddy Piper and Richard Norton carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Experts with fists and guns and not afraid to use them.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0114706 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

Only 25 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Steve Cohen directs. James W. Roberson behind the camera. William Kidd scores. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

131 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Directed by Steve Cohen, shot by James W. Roberson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by William Kidd. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Billy Blanks and Roddy Piper and Richard Norton carry the top of the cast.
5Marketing tagline: "Experts with fists and guns and not afraid to use them.".
6IMDB entry: tt0114706 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
7Only 25 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: James W. Roberson
Original score: William Kidd
Runtime: 92 min · 1h 32m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Tough and Deadly (1995)

Also by

Steve Cohen

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Community reviews

What people are saying

tmdb280390232022-09-10
★ 1/10
Tough and Deadly loses many tough points when we consider that Roddy Piper’s character’s name is Elmo Freech (doesn’t quite have the same ring to it as Sam Hell or John Nada, does it), or that his co-star is Billy Blanks, whose last name accurately describes his personality — or lack thereof. The movie itself doesn't leave a very lasting impression, because anything resembling a logical plot has been eschewed in favor of a string of fight scenes one after another. I mean, there’s both a bar fight and a pool hall fight, and when the heroes aren’t fighting the bad guys, they’re fighting each other. Moreover, an inordinate number of people fall to their deaths in the course of these fights; they fall off ledges, over railings, and through windows. Remember how Scott Pilgrim said he once kicked a guy so hard he saw the curvature of the Earth? Something kinda like that is going on here; Elmo punches this one guy so hard that the dude not only lands quite a ways away, but then continues gaining yardage, so to speak, by rolling over on the ground. Through events not worth recounting, Elmo takes in an amnesiac Billy Blanks, who chooses a new name by throwing a knife at a map; the knife lands on Portland, to which Billy adds the first name John. John Portland. Why not Cleveland Brown? It hadn’t been taken yet. Elmo and John then proceed to prowl the city streets kicking asses and taking names — well, not so much taking names, but you get the idea. The random fighting scenes are only interrupted when the film cuts to a bunch of CIA agents (one of them played by Jackie Chiles), who have no problem identifying themselves as such and generally drawing attention — at one point even driving with a siren on — and behaving in manner uncharacteristic for an agency accustomed to operating covertly. On the other hand, they do like to meet in pitch-dark rooms; however, this is probably just to save money on sets. Tough and Deadly is perfect for people who can’t get enough punching and kicking, which is so abundant here that it leaves no room for a Romantic Interest for either hero; then again, they have their little own bromance going; furthermore, methinks the filmmakers find violence itself erotic, and in that sense, this movie is a veritable orgy.

Production companies