Counterstrike

I found this movie in a thrift store, where it had been renamed "Attack on the Queen" for the Dutch DVD release.

It's a pretty suspenseful direct-to-TV thriller that scores undeservedly low here on IMDB. Sure, the story isn't very realistic, plot and character choices are predictable and obviously there wasn't a lot of budget. But still, I've seen much worse movies with higher scores!

The acting is excellent, the action scenes are neat and if you as a viewer can put aside the absurd premise - the president of the USA and China who want to negotiate world peace at sea on a cruise ship but are hijacked by the entourage of an actress from Taiwan - then you have a thrilling, realistic 90-minute action thriller.

For fans who couldn't get enough of Under Siege.

I actually enjoyed this movie much more than I thought I would. Action. Adventure. Romance. It's all there.

The two males leads are, indeed, handsome and have an interesting back story but it was Australian Rachel Blakely, playing the ship's British head of security, who really shined. She's not only a talented actress but she really lightens up the screen when she walks or rides into a scene. We really do need to see more of her in American television.

There are many familiar faces in this movie and it's fun to point them out to friends and loved ones.

Once again, I liked it.

Well, it's not the deepest or most thought-provoking movie ever made, but one very big reason to see it, is to watch Rachel Blakely (Australian actress probably best known to U.S. fans, for her, in my opinion, terrific portrayal of adventuress Marguerite Krux, in "The Lost World") totally rock, in her role! She has got the action-heroine part down cold, and she even looks fabulous while she's kicking the bad guys' butts, in an evening dress and heels!! I hope this role gives her a higher profile, and more visibility... and will lead to further roles in movies and TV, that will be seen more widely in the U.S. She deserves it!! This actress made "Counterstrike" worth viewing, for me.

This was billed as "Counter Strike" and it more than likely will be called that as the title on the IMDB is similar to a Sinatra film of quite a few years ago called "Assalt of a Queen".

Anyway this is quite a good action film, there are some nifty Kung Fu bits in it, the story line is also good not to convaluted, and the fact that 99% of the actors are little known makes it better, if you see a "star" running round you loose a bit because you know who it is...#

Steven Segal did it better in "Under Seige"...but l thought it was an ok film and recommend it...

Marks out of 10.....7

Zorro

The movie is weak and contrived but this lady shines! Not only is Rachel Blakely gorgeous to look at as Brittany Cooper but she's quite a wonderful actress and sometimes, this critic feels, overlooked. Hope to see her again in better material and, hopefully, with someone like Will Snow, her co-star in THE LOST WORLD television show.

It's also interesting to see a great many unknown and known Australian actors in the cast which may be familiar if you ever watched HERCULES, XENA. BEASTMASTER or even THE LOST WORLD and TALES OF THE SOUTH SEAS. I think spotting the talent in COUNTERSTRIKE was even more fun than the actual movie!