Eraser 1996, Rated R Warner Brothers Home Video

Buy it from

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Vanessa Williams.

This movie, directed by Charles Russell (The Mask), is the slick, high budget, action flick people have come to expect from Arnold. It is obvious that money was poured into Eraser in every conceivable fashion from special effects to actors, with the exception of the screenplay. The story, something about a private corporation selling guns the size of Toyotas to a guy in the Russian mafia, is passable, the dialogue acceptable in places, retched, like two month old milk, in others.

It is particularly appalling during the first ten minutes of the movie as Arnold's character, John Kruger, is introduced by different characters as "a legend", "the best in the field", and as someone you don't want to get angry. Frankly, the fact that a character is being played by Arnold, or Steven Seagal, is enough of a clue to me that he is the best in whatever he does. If Arnold were a baker in some movie, let's call it, I don't know, True Pies, his blueberry muffins would be the best blueberry muffins in the world, bar none.

The following bit of dialogue is also included in the movie, "I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you." I do recall Tom Cruise saying something (exactly) like this in Top Gun, eleven years ago. We should model our recycling efforts after the Hollywood screenwriters. Think globally, steal locally. But the moldy and recycled dialogue is all forgivable as we watch Arnold kick tail in the air, on the ground, and kill computer generated alligators while uttering his trademarked one liners. This movie is pure mindless fun.