A dirty cop, turns on his own partner, Roland (Steven Seagal), shooting him for not agreeing to take some drug money during a bust, not knowing that the bullet to the chest wouldn't in fact kill him, returns to the hospital to finish the job and isn't successful. With help from his girlfriend Regina, Roland will have to recover from his injuries. Forced into a police mandated retirement, an old friend, Conner Wells(Stephan Duvall) from his past(both were cop partners in Texas) calls on Roland to protect his daughter, Nikita(Liezl Carstens) from a rival, Jason Cross(Luce Rains)who is after his land's rich uranium. Cross attempted once before to kidnap Nikita, failing after she narrowly escapes so Conner calls upon Roland's services to help keep her safe. When, after much in the way of security fails, Nikita is finally captured by Cross, Roland will go after all of them, with a little help by chauffeur driver Manuello(Johnny Hector)and his two cousins. Detective Simon Pacheco(Kevin Wiggins)hopes Roland will allow him to do his job and finally put away Cross for good..it's all the dead bodies Roland leaves around that bothers Cross.
While not exactly the most original or imaginative storyline for an action film, there seemed to be more budget for THE KEEPER in that we get plenty of blood shed, shootouts, and an entertaining car chase with plenty of gunfire involved. And, Seagal does have two instances where he engages in hand-to-hand fisticuffs with Cross' men, not to mention he shoots a hell of a lot of people..plenty of squibs put to good use in THE KEEPER. While I'm not sure if the opening twenty or so minutes was really needed(seems like a slight rehash of HARD TO KILL), with a wasted Trine Christensen as Roland's confident, Regina, there to provide comfort and support after his being injured by his SWAT partner, THE KEEPER does show Seagal in a different kind of role, as a security bodyguard, albeit with special training in combat techniques. Carstens is a knockout as the daughter Roland must protect. Arron Shiver is the slimy boxer, Mason, boyfriend to Nikita, and actually working for Cross behind trainer Conner's back. It's too bad Roland couldn't kick Mason's ass at the end for his betrayal of Conner.
While not exactly the most original or imaginative storyline for an action film, there seemed to be more budget for THE KEEPER in that we get plenty of blood shed, shootouts, and an entertaining car chase with plenty of gunfire involved. And, Seagal does have two instances where he engages in hand-to-hand fisticuffs with Cross' men, not to mention he shoots a hell of a lot of people..plenty of squibs put to good use in THE KEEPER. While I'm not sure if the opening twenty or so minutes was really needed(seems like a slight rehash of HARD TO KILL), with a wasted Trine Christensen as Roland's confident, Regina, there to provide comfort and support after his being injured by his SWAT partner, THE KEEPER does show Seagal in a different kind of role, as a security bodyguard, albeit with special training in combat techniques. Carstens is a knockout as the daughter Roland must protect. Arron Shiver is the slimy boxer, Mason, boyfriend to Nikita, and actually working for Cross behind trainer Conner's back. It's too bad Roland couldn't kick Mason's ass at the end for his betrayal of Conner.