Night Vision stars Cynthia Rothrock and Fred Williamson as two 'Cop's on the Edge(tm)' on the trail of a serial killer who stalks his victims using high tech surveillance equipment. Of course, Fred Williamson's character, Dakota Smith, and Cynthia Rothrock's character, Kris O'Connor are rogue cops who are looked down on by the department.

As with Guardian Angel, Night Vision is more of a straight action flick rather than a martial arts showcase. This is good and bad. Good, because Cynthia Rothrock gets to show she can do more than just kick. Bad, because Cynthia Rothrock's talents are wasted in this film.

Night Vision is a fun film. Mostly because it's so formulaic it becomes unintentionally funny. If you were to actually think about the plot for more than a minute, you'd be hard pressed to explain how it all fits together. Throw in a crooked cop, the mob, multiple shots of Fred Williamson in underwear, a reporter, and a mini mart, and you can't help but to giggle.

There are a few bright areas, though. Robert Forster(Teak Taylor) easily gives the best performance of the film. Unfortunately he only has a supporting role. Cynthia Rothrock also does a stand out job of portraying her character even if it was a little inconsistent. For example, Kris is introduced as a ultra tough cop, but she gets taken hostage by a goofy thug(twice!). The final fight sequence is very well done. It pretty much consists of Dakota Smith shooting at stuff, and Kris O'conner beating the crap out of criminals.

Night Vision falls into the same area as other films that suffer from CR+MASS (Cynthia Rothrock + Male Action Star Syndrome). It would have been a lot better with more CR and less Fred Williamson. In keeping with CR's current trend of reminding audiences that she has a feminine side, there's a hint of a romantic relationship between Kris and Dakota. Lot's of flirting going on here. Plus, I think Night Vision beats out Guardian Angel as the film with the most number of different hairstyles for Cynthia.

Overall, Night Vision isn't nearly as good as Cynthia Rothrock's last few films. On the other hand, it lets her do more actual acting and portray a different type of character. It's a case of one step forward, two steps back.

Best Fight Scene

The final big fight has CR just pummeling a nameless thug. Over and over and over.

Best Quote (tie)

"I can't have a partner, I'm a psycho cop!" - Dakota Smith
and
"I got brains all over me!" - Kris O'Conner

Last update : 07-06-2006 19:24

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