Matty gets a kick out of Jeff Wincott’s sturdy Die Hard knock-off.

The final action romp Jeff Wincott headlined for producer Pierre David, OPEN FIRE is a more stripped back affair compared to their twistier previous pairings, Martial Law II: Undercover (1991), Mission of Justice (1992) and Martial Outlaw (1993). Not to be confused with Paul Greengrass’ edgy telepic of the same name and year, this Open Fire is Wincott’s Die Hard (1988), the Nakatomi Plaza replaced with a recycling facility and Alan Rickman switched for Patrick Kilpatrick. The location is presumably a nod to the plot’s recycled nature, and Kilpatrick’s character even gets an Aldi’s own version of Hans Gruber’s name, staying just the right side of copyright with “Stein Kruger”. Competently scripted by David regular Thomas Ritz (Martial Outlaw, Marked Man (1996)), the stakes include: Kilpatrick and his heavies threatening to unleash homemade nerve gas on Los Angeles; the plant boss held hostage (Lee de Broux) being Wincott’s estranged father; and Wincott’s hero — a former FBI man haunted by the death of his partner — quietly healing as he beats the snot out of Kilpatrick’s rent-a-goons.

While not as dramatically weighty as his similarly-minded role in Mission of Justice, Open Fire still affords Wincott — a performer always quick to note he’s an actor first, martial artist second — plenty to sink his teeth into. Of particular interest are the McClane-esque one-liners. They give the usually rather stoic star the chance to throw quips as well-timed as his kicks. The always menacing Kilpatrick (cf. Death Warrant (1990), Class of 1999 (1990)) puts in a good showing [1], and Mimi Craven — ex-wife of fright meister Wes — does alright in her Bonnie Bedelia bit. David totem Christopher Kriesa also appears as a doomed highway patrol officer. 

As with Martial Law II, Martial Outlaw and, indeed, Mission of Justice’s second unit, Open Fire is helmed by Kurt Anderson. Though never the flashiest director on David’s Image Organization payroll, Anderson is the most consistent. He has a great sense of pace. He can shape a set piece. And he has a feel for suspense and physical impact. Anderson and David’s magnum opus is the excellent psychodrama Dead Cold (1995). The exciting and attention-holding Open Fire, however, is a decent enough appetiser. 

Like a lot of David’s wares, Open Fire was acquired for U.K. distribution by First Independent, who issued it on tape in September 1994 through their offshoot, Reflective. The film hit U.S. video via co-producers and frequent David collaborators Republic Pictures on 4th January 1995. Tragically, co-star Anthony Dean Fields — best known for playing vengeful undead rocker Sammi Curr in cult horror flick Trick or Treat (1986), and cast here as one of Kilpatrick’s lackeys — died a month and a half later, on 27th February, aged thirty-six, due to HIV-related cancer. Another of Fields’ final works, romcom Across the Moon (1994), was released exactly one month after that, on 27th March.

USA/Germany ● 1994 ● Action ● 88mins

Jeff Wincott, Patrick Kilpatrick, Mimi Craven ● Dir. Kurt Anderson ● Wri. Thomas Ritz

[1] Kilpatrick went on to inhabit the eponymous villain in David’s subsequent production, Scanner Cop II: Volkin’s Revenge (1995), directed by Mission of Justice’s Steve Barnett.