Review of Armstrong

Armstrong (1998)
5/10
Armstrong strong-arming the mob in a weak action film
22 July 2004
****SPOILERS**** The Russian and US Mafia's get together in the movie "Armstrong" in an alliance to take over the new Russian Nuclear Agency. The two gangster organizations plan to sell the dangerous and deadly nuclear weapons to the highest bidders who for the most part are terrorist-type groups in the Middle-East and Africa who have the millions to buy them. Bob Zorkin, Charles Naper, a former Navy Seal instructor is sent by the US government on a secret mission to Russia using the cover as an American tourist. Zorkin's job is to find out and report back to his bosses in the US Pentagon and State Department who's involved in the Russian government and military in dealing with both the Russian & US Mafia. Told that if the Russian government can't stop the gangsters, American & Russians, from selling the nuclear material It's his job to use his skills as a Navy Seal to take them out.

Zorkin and his wife Susan, Kimberley Kates, are followed to Moscow by two mobsters from the US Ponytail & his bumbling assistant Eric, Joe Lara & Igor Porshev. Bob then goes to the hotel room where Rod Armstrong, Frank Zagarino, a former student and good friend of Zorkin is staying at.

Armstrong is training the Russian secret service in the art of modern combat methods that he learned from Zorkin with the Navy Seals. Before you know it Zorkin is killed and later his wife Susan is kidnapped by the US/Russian Mob. The murder and kidnapping of Bob and Susan gives Armstrong the opportunity to show his stuff in taking on the two mob organizations and at the same time saving the world, or the city of Moscow, from nuclear annihilation.

The two mob organizations , US Mafia & Russian, are trying to find out from Susan why her husband was in Moscow, as if they couldn't figure it out all by themselves. But the mobs main reason is to get Armstrong out of the way before he stops them from getting their hands on the nuclear weapons and also find what was on a tape that her husband Bob gave him.

"Armstrong" really makes no sense at all with the US mobsters, for reasons known only to themselves, trying to trick the obviously drunk and naive Russians to get them to blow themselves up with the nuclear weapons that they were going to sell them? The movie never takes the time to explain why?

Armstrong takes care of the both US & Russian mobs and the corrupt Russian military men single-handedly wearing a tuxedo that he had on when he attended the Russian Opera. Armstrong also saved the Russian president from being assassinated by Ponytail with his tuxedo not having as much as a tear or even a as much as a smudge of dirt on it after he took care of business. Armstrong's fight with Ponytail is also ridicules when after it looked like Armstrong killed him, by sticking a knife in his chest, Ponytail pulls it out and is even stronger and almost beats Armstrong with half of his blood supply drained out of his body.

The reason for Ponytail & Co. being so eager to find the tape that Bob Zorkin gave Armstrong was also nutty when you finally saw the tape it. The tape showed what you and Ponytail and his mob cohorts should have already known. The secret tape showed that the US government was investigating the Russian/US mobs who it suspected of working with corrupt elements in the Russian Army to get their hands on Russia's nuclear weapons. Shouldn't they have know that just by Zorkin being sent to Moscow by the US State Department?

The action scenes in the movie were about the only thing worth watching, there was also a very explicit nude scene of Kimberly Kates going out of the shower, but for a plot and story that makes any sense at all, forget it.
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