Chuck Norris and Louis Gossett, Jr. Play Max Donigan and Leo Porter, two bumbling adventurers (described in press material as "soldiers of wacky misfortune") hired by the lovely but kooky Patricia Goodwin (Melody Anderson of "Flash Gordon" fame) to venture into Mexico in search of a major cache of gold. Naturally, they run into danger almost all the time, but usually find a way out of it; pursuing them will be a scary, eyepatch-wearing Indian known as "The Coyote" (Sonny Landham of "Predator").
At the time, this was at the least a respectful attempt by Norris to do something different. Although a positively goofy movie (that sometimes plays rather flat), it's hard to truly dislike. It is fun seeing Norris try his hand at comedy, in a story that is a combination of humour, adventure, travelogue, and Indian mysticism. What makes the difference is the ever-reliable Gossett, who's very good as a "straight man" who helps to bring out the best in his co-star. Anderson is appealing as the gal who gets the plot rolling; solid co-stars include Will Sampson ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest") as a wise old Indian / exposition provider, John Rhys-Davies ("Raiders of the Lost Ark") as a jovial former comrade of Max who's built his own little empire in the wilderness, and Ian Abercrombie ("Army of Darkness") as a money-hungry barfly who provides information.
The movie gets off to a really, amusingly dumb start as Max and Leo, on the run from bad guys, manage to find the one body of water in a desert - into which they crash their vehicle. The scene sets up this supposed nemesis of theirs (Richard Lee-Sung, "Armed Response") whose role never amounts to much. One hilarious highlight has Max, Leo, and Patricia masquerade as two priests and a nun, who bungle their way through trying to give a wounded person the last rites.
Excellent on-location shooting in Mexico and a decent score by Gary Chang help to make this mildly enjoyable overall. Of course, this being a Chuck Norris movie, it wouldn't be complete without at least one major scene of him using his famed martial arts skills.
Six out of 10.
At the time, this was at the least a respectful attempt by Norris to do something different. Although a positively goofy movie (that sometimes plays rather flat), it's hard to truly dislike. It is fun seeing Norris try his hand at comedy, in a story that is a combination of humour, adventure, travelogue, and Indian mysticism. What makes the difference is the ever-reliable Gossett, who's very good as a "straight man" who helps to bring out the best in his co-star. Anderson is appealing as the gal who gets the plot rolling; solid co-stars include Will Sampson ("One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest") as a wise old Indian / exposition provider, John Rhys-Davies ("Raiders of the Lost Ark") as a jovial former comrade of Max who's built his own little empire in the wilderness, and Ian Abercrombie ("Army of Darkness") as a money-hungry barfly who provides information.
The movie gets off to a really, amusingly dumb start as Max and Leo, on the run from bad guys, manage to find the one body of water in a desert - into which they crash their vehicle. The scene sets up this supposed nemesis of theirs (Richard Lee-Sung, "Armed Response") whose role never amounts to much. One hilarious highlight has Max, Leo, and Patricia masquerade as two priests and a nun, who bungle their way through trying to give a wounded person the last rites.
Excellent on-location shooting in Mexico and a decent score by Gary Chang help to make this mildly enjoyable overall. Of course, this being a Chuck Norris movie, it wouldn't be complete without at least one major scene of him using his famed martial arts skills.
Six out of 10.