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Out for Justice

year 1991decade 90sdirector John Flynngenre crime action

91

IMDb
Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Steven Seagal Det. Gino Felino
William Forsythe Richie Madano
Jerry Orbach Capt. Ronnie Donziger
Jo Champa Vicky Felino
Sal Richards Frankie
Gina Gershon Pattie Madano
Shareen Mitchell Laurie Lupo
Ronald Maccone Don Vittorio
Anthony DeSando Vinnie Madano
Dominic Chianese Mr. Madano
Vera Lockwood Mrs. Madano
George Vallejo Picolino
Jay Acovone Bobby "Arms"
Nicky Corello Joey "Dogs"
Jerry Clauri Bennie "The Book"
Jorge Gil Chas "The Chair"
Thomas F. Duffy Det. O'Kelly

Out for Justice | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Kyle Brandtproducer Craig Horlbeck theme Three-Word Titles
Explore episodeClose episode

Did This Movie Need a Random Sports Scene?

The abandoned father-son baseball scene is judged an unnecessary tease.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:24:04Read transcript
  • The abandoned father-son baseball setup is judged an unnecessary tease because the movie never shows Seagal playing.
  • The panel imagines that a police softball game would have improved the movie.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

The panel asks whether Steven Seagal had ever held or thrown a baseball.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:25:29Read transcript
  • The panel asks whether Steven Seagal had ever held a baseball or thrown one before filming the scene.
  • A police softball game with Seagal is imagined as a scene the film should have included.

Roger Ebert's review

Rating not yet verified

Ebert did not publish a review; a television discussion was negative.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:43Read transcript
  • The panel reports that Roger Ebert did not publish a written review of the movie.
  • A Siskel and Ebert television discussion is recalled as negative toward the film.

Most Rewatchable Scene

The pool-hall fight wins over the opening, murder scene, dog chase, and deli fight.

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 00:35:22Read transcript
  • The opening pimp confrontation and title-card freeze frame are praised as an immediately rewatchable introduction.
  • Gino's unrestricted response to Bobby's death and the police force's deference are treated as part of the film's appeal.
  • The Arthur Miller epigraph is contrasted with the violence that follows seconds later.
  • The puppy rescue and car chase are nominated while the panel questions the dog's safety.
  • The Italian-store fight is discussed as another rewatchable action sequence.
  • The pool-hall confrontation is selected as the movie's best scene and Seagal's best fight.
  • Gina Gershon and Shannon Whirry's information-giving scenes are praised for their colorful dialogue and supporting performances.
  • Richie's bar rampage and the final shootout are the remaining scene candidates.

The most "year the movie came out" thing

A Joe Montana billboard at Bobby's murder scene is selected as the defining year marker.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:00:39Read transcript
  • The Joe Montana LA Gear billboard over Bobby's murder scene is selected as the defining 1991 detail.
  • Young Shannon Whirry and the early-1990s rap cues are proposed as alternatives.

Steven Seagal shitting on himself award for most unbelievable anecdote from the actual film shoot

The Gene LeBell story about choking Seagal unconscious is discussed with uncertainty around its most notorious detail.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:43Read transcript
  • The story begins with Seagal allegedly claiming that his martial-arts training made him impossible to choke unconscious.
  • Stunt coordinator Gene LeBell is reported to have accepted the challenge and choked Seagal unconscious.
  • The story further claims Seagal lost bladder and bowel control, a detail that Seagal denied and LeBell did not directly confirm.
  • Another stunt performer reportedly confirmed a confrontation and described LeBell sweeping Seagal after Seagal struck toward his groin.
  • The panel repeatedly distinguishes the likely confrontation from the unverified defecation claim and ultimately chooses to believe the story.

What’s Aged the Best?

Margulies, the supporting cast, Orbach's career, and the director's blunt Seagal assessment have aged best.

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:50Read transcript
  • Julianna Margulies is praised for conveying fear and talent in an early film role.
  • Director John Flynn's blunt account of Seagal's lateness and production delays is quoted as durable production context.
  • The supporting cast, including Jerry Orbach and the actors around the mob family, is praised as unusually strong for the vehicle.
  • Orbach's run across Dirty Dancing, Crimes and Misdemeanors, Someone to Watch Over Me, and Last Exit to Brooklyn is discussed as career context.
  • Orbach's move from Out for Justice and Toy Soldiers into Law & Order and Beauty and the Beast is credited as evidence of his standing.
  • The line describing Richie as killing people as if it were free is praised as a memorable piece of dialogue.
  • Gino's warm access to mob boss Don Vittorio is praised as an entertaining relationship.
  • Seagal and the actress playing Vicky giving flat reactions to Bobby's murder are cited as inadvertently durable comedy.

Is There a Better Title for This Movie?

The rejected title The Price of Our Blood is discussed but the three-word Seagal branding wins out.

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:22Read transcript
  • The director's preferred title The Price of Our Blood is rejected as incompatible with the established three-word Seagal title formula.

The Butch’s Girlfriend Award for the Weakest Link in the Film

Gino's wife and the unexplained handling of the puppy are the chief weak links.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:14:09Read transcript
  • Gino's adoption of the puppy is criticized because the film ignores its safety, care, feeding, and medical needs.
  • Gino's thinly written wife is selected as the other weak link.

Steven Seagal Hard to Kill Award: Did This Movie Need a Better Intimacy Coordinator?

The Polaroids and Seagal's earlier screen behavior produce another yes.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:16:08Read transcript
  • The posed Polaroids prompt questions about who took them and whether a camera timer was used.
  • The scene with the nude dead dancer is said to warrant an intimacy coordinator because of concern about Seagal's conduct.
  • A prior Hard to Kill scene in which Seagal appeared to improvise intimate contact is given as the reason for that concern.

What’s Aged the Worst?

Seagal's later reputation and Richie's crew's period fashion have aged worst.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:18:05Read transcript
  • Seagal's later reputation and allegations are identified as the most poorly aged aspect of the film.
  • Richie's crew's mall-derived early-1990s clothes are proposed as a lighter alternative.

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

An alternate career casts Seagal as Tony Soprano or the lead of a Brooklyn CSI spinoff.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:24Read transcript
  • A hypothetical more-collaborative Seagal is proposed as Tony Soprano, with his physicality and screen presence cited.
  • James Gandolfini is proposed for Johnny Sack in the same alternate casting.
  • A second proposal imagines Seagal carrying a Brooklyn CSI spinoff built around unintentional one-liners.

Best IMDb Stat Padding

The episode examines actors whose credits or brief appearances pad the cast.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:22:02Read transcript
  • The cast listing is said to look stronger because Julianna Margulies, John Leguizamo, and Shannon Whirry appear only briefly.
  • Whirry's subsequent run of Animal Instincts, Body of Influence, Mirror Images II, and Animal Instincts II is cited as career context.
  • Margulies later recalled that Seagal demanded respect when they crossed paths at Warner Bros.

Half-Assed Internet Research

Research covers the dog's name, Richie's inspiration, deleted scenes, rough stunt work, and a Shannon Whirry anecdote.

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:29:35Read transcript
  • The German Shepherd puppy's name Coraggio is translated as courage or bravery.
  • Richie is reported to have been inspired by Bonanno associate Gus Farace, who was pursued in a manhunt and killed by a mob hitman.
  • Trailer footage is reported to show deleted clothing-store and police-captain scenes that explain Richie's shirt change and Gino's body count.
  • Further deleted footage is reported to show Richie breaking into Gino's wife's house before neighbors arrive.
  • John Leguizamo and William Forsythe are reported to have said Seagal hurt performers by working rough in fight scenes.
  • An anecdote recounts Shannon Whirry answering Seagal's question about her ribbon with a joke about directing his eyes upward.
  • Whirry says she and Seagal got along after he appreciated her response.

Apex Mountain

Forsythe reaches his apex; Seagal is close but Under Siege is judged his higher point.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 01:31:25Read transcript
  • Seagal's apex is deferred to Under Siege because it was his next and biggest movie and received a sequel.
  • William Forsythe is placed at his apex here as his profile rises after Dick Tracy.
  • Gina Gershon is rejected because later work including Face/Off and Bound is favored.
  • Brooklyn as a movie location and mob movies are both rejected as being at their apex here.
  • The pool-hall fight and improvised weapons are each proposed as being at their apex.

Picking Nits

The unsearched desk, widow's Polaroid, undersized baseball glove, and child-level sword are criticized.

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:34:38Read transcript
  • The panel questions why no one searched Bobby's desk before Gino found drugs, money, and Polaroids.
  • The widow's choice to carry an intimate Polaroid in her purse is criticized.
  • The undersized baseball glove is recalled as another objection before the sword is discussed.
  • A samurai sword stored at a child's eye level is criticized as unsafe.

Is This Movie Better With…?

Daniel Plainview and Doris Burke are inserted into the Richie hunt.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:36:03Read transcript
  • Daniel Plainview is proposed for Gino's pool-hall confrontation and search for Richie.
  • Doris Burke is proposed to narrate Richie's rampage and set the scene around the supporting characters.

Just One Oscar

William Forsythe gets the Oscar for supporting actor.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:26Read transcript
  • William Forsythe is selected for the film's single Oscar in supporting actor.
  • The panel notes that he would have competed with Jack Palance and the supporting nominees from Bugsy.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Richie's motive for killing Bobby remains unresolved.

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:37:44Read transcript
  • The panel cannot determine whether drugs, an affair, childhood resentment, or missing footage explains why Richie killed Bobby.

What Piece of Memorabilia Would You Want From This Movie?

The beret and the cue ball wrapped in a towel lead the choices.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:38:02Read transcript
  • Seagal's baseball glove is proposed because it may be the only one he has used.
  • Gino's beret is a leading memorabilia choice.
  • The cue ball and towel used in the pool hall are selected together as another leading choice.

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Unchecked movie-star control should return because singular stars can create unusually memorable movies.

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:42:39Read transcript
  • Craig argues for restoring singular movie-star control because it can create memorable unintentional comedy. — Craig Horlbeck
  • He contrasts that approach with market-tested films whose failures feel polished and predictable. — Craig Horlbeck
  • The panel imagines giving Jason Momoa a blank-slate police movie with no notes or audience testing.
  • The opening beret, freeze frame, and hot dog are cited as choices that modern focus groups would likely remove.

More from the conversation

The episode positions this as the least restrained Seagal vehicle and compares it with the previously covered Hard to Kill and Under Siege.
Approx. transcript time · 00:02:35Read transcript
The movie's clipped running time is attributed to studio pressure, explaining montages and visibly deleted Forsythe material.
Approx. transcript time · 00:30:47Read transcript
The hosts repeatedly distinguish admiration for the supporting craft from criticism of Seagal's ego and offscreen conduct.
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:50Read transcript