Above the Law: Andrew Davis

Do you know why I love early Steven Seagal movies? It's not because they're full of action and great fight scenes. It's because they are some of the only films of its kind from the late 80s, early 90s that prominently feature minorities as more than just villains or love interests. These films dive into the American immigrant experience of the late 20th century. Seagal and his co-stars delve into ethnic slums, ghettos, and neighborhoods even when there aren't action beats planned. Seagal is frequently multilingual, speaking both English and a handful of other languages used by immigrant communities. It's a fascinating development in the action film hero archetype: foreign villains (particularly from Europe) were everywhere, but they always spoke English and interacted with American culture, at least to a certain extent. But the Seagal persona realized that to truly bring justice to foreign communities, he needed to approach them on their terms: learn their language, learn their customs, learn their struggles. Nowhere is this better demonstrated than in Andrew Davis' Above the Law, Seagal's debut film. Sergeant plays Nicolo "Nico" Toscani, an ex-CIA agent who now works for the Chicago Police Department. When a drug ring (led by one of his former CIA superiors) starts bombing Catholic churches to kill priests and congressmen who could harm their business, Toscani snaps into action. There are two scenes in particular that really drive home the progressive nature of Above the Law: when Toscani and his partner, Detective Jackson (Pam Grier in a chameleon-esque performance), are asked by a local Catholic priest to help a group of illegal South American refugees living in their church's basement, they agree and don't turn them in to the authorities. They recognize the struggle these (illegal) immigrants are facing. The second is when Detective Jackson is inevitably shot by a criminal near the end. In a regular film, the ethnic partner would be dead meat. But Jackson reveals that she was wearing a vest and will be alright. Let me re-iterate that: in an 80s action movie, the ethnic partner isn't killed to create dramatic tension. Don't let the presence of Seagal confuse you: Above the Law is more than just a great action film.

8/10