The Protector (1997 film)

The Protector is a 1997 American action film written by Jack Gill, Dee McLachlan, Stuart Beattie and Andrea Buck, and directed by Gill. It stars Matt McColm as Kenneth James Conway, an ex-commando and a private detective investigating the disappearance of a virologist. Supporting cast includes Ron Perlman, John Rhys-Davies, and Carol Alt.

The Protector
Directed byJack Gill
Produced bySteven Paul
Written by
Starring
Music byMark Holden
CinematographyRobert Hayes
Edited bySteve Mitchell Beebe
Production
companies
  • Crystal Sky Worldwide
  • Krago's Island Inc.
Distributed by
Release date
  • December 23, 1997 (1997-12-23)
(United States)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1 million

Cast

Production

In 1996 stuntman and actor Matt McColm has been labelled by Los Angeles Times as "Hollywood's next generation action star," following in the footsteps of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone.[1] His previous entries in the action genre included Red Scorpion 2 (1994) and Subterfuge (1996). The Protector gave McColm a chance to impress the audiences with both his perfect musculature and martial arts skills—since he has a black belt in Kenpo Karate.[2][3][4][5][6] Prior to the filming director Jack Gill worked primarily as a stuntman, stunt coordinator, and second unit director.[5]

Release

A-Pix Entertainment released the movie in the United States on VHS in 1997.[7] The following year the film was released in Canada by Coscient Astral Distribution, under the title Conway.[8]

Reception

Douglas R. Pratt reviewed The Protector in his 2004 guide Doug Pratt's DVD: Movies, Television, Music, Art, Adult, and More!, Volume 1, noting that "the story is an adequate backdrop for the gunfights, car crashes and other activities this sort of movie can be depended upon to deliver."[9] In a journal for Dammaged Goods—a cinema-related website—The Protector was called a "quasi exploitative action film" that "makes good use of its resources, has some fun in the process and doesn't try to be something it's not."[5] Furthermore, the central performance is praised: "Stunt performer turned leading man Matt McColm plays Conway with rogue charm while flexing his muscles and martial arts prowess. Ruggedly handsome, McColm doesn't take things too seriously and is a likeable enough hero."[5] Yippee-ki-yay! editor Albert Nowicki complimented McColm in his leading role, calling his character a "convincing cinematic tough guy", with a "stunning musculature" and good magnetism. He went on to berate other cast members, though, and called Carol Alt an "expressionless beauty".[10]

Cinema.de provided a negative note, giving it one star out of five.[11] Movies Room described the movie, along with Subterfuge, as "tacky and second-class" but also "enjoyable".[12]

References
  1. "MOVIE TRENDS / What's happened to all the shoot-'em-up films? Who's the next Sly or Jean-Claude?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  2. "MATT MCCOLM IN THE CANNON FILMS-WORTHY 'SUBTERFUGE' (1996)". Ultimate Action Movies. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  3. "ACTION REWIND: Matt McColm Delivers the Fisticuffs and Firepower in the 90's Actin Gem BODY ARMOR!". Action-Flix. Archived from the original on March 16, 2020. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  4. "Movie-type who shuns partying". New Straits Times. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  5. "Crappy + Action Movie = Craption! Body Armor". Dammaged Goods. Archived from the original on March 22, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  6. "Body Armor – The Unknown Movies". The Unknown Movies. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
  7. "Body Armor – VHSCollector.com". VHSCollector.com. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  8. "Conway – VHSCollector.com". VHSCollector.com. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  9. Pratt, p. 178
  10. Nowicki, Albert (March 12, 2015). "Bad ass protector, czyli kaskader w natarciu". Yippee-ki-yay!. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  11. "Virus Attack (1997)" (in German). Cinema.de. TV Spielfilm Verlag GmbH. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  12. Nowicki, Albert (December 6, 2015). "Ranking. Gwiazdy kina akcji, które zgasły prędzej niż rozbłysły". Movies Room (in Polish). Retrieved November 4, 2020.

Bibliography
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