In Japan, the Sicilian martial arts expert Nicolo "Nico" Toscani is recruited by the CIA Special Agent Nelson Fox to join the Special Operations Forces in the border of the Vietnam and Cambodia. In 1973, Nico witnesses the torturer Kurt Zagon interrogating prisoners of war and he is disgusted and quits the CIA, returning to Chicago. Fifteen years later, Nico is married with a baby with his wife Sarah and they live in the same house of his mother. Nico is a tough and incorruptible narcotics detective of the Chicago Police Department very close to his partner and friend Delores 'Jacks' Jackson and his friend Detective Lukich. When Nico and Jacks investigate a drug traffic operation, they arrest the gang of the drug dealer Tony Salvano but they find that they are smuggling the plastic explosive C4 instead. However there is an interference of the FBI and Salvano and his partner are released by FBI Agent Neeley (Nicholas Kusenko) and the detectives are forbidden of proceed with the investigation. But Nico does not stop and is suspended from the police force. But when there is an explosion in the church of his neighborhood and his friend and parish priest Joseph Gennaro is murdered, Nico chases Salvano and discovers a corruption ring that is planning to kill the American Senator Ernest Harrison that is investigating the involvement of the CIA with drug traffic. A former Special Operations Vietnam vet works as a Chicago cop, and uncovers C.I.A. wrongdoing. Essentially, if you have watched the Lethal Weapon series, you have witnessed character Sergeant Riggs using some black-bag martial arts techniques. If you like this black-bag action, you will adore Steven Seagal's martial arts acting in "Above the Law".<br/><br/>Like similar action movies like "Batman Begins", "The Blues Brothers", and "Code of Silence", "Above the Law" is shot mostly in Chicago. So I can recognize some of the Chicago sights like the elevated tracks and the Pilsen neighborhood.<br/><br/>One scene where a lady in a black robe carries a hidden bag containing a bomb in front of the pulpit in a big Catholic church, leaves the bag in front of the priest, runs away–-tells you what is going to be the outcome. You see the deadly explosion afterward, which kills the priest on arrival at the hospital. Seagal realizes that the explosive in the hidden bag was C4, because he had been involved in this explosive during his Special Forces duty in Vietnam. <br/><br/>Seagal tries to find out what caused the church bombing. The Chicago police and FBI find out that the ringleader was Nelson Fox with the help of agent Silvano….Seagal tries to figure out by meddling into the police investigation. He finds out that the C4 explosive was also bought by Nelson Fox. But he finds out that he gets penalized for interfering with the investigation. Seagal gets harassed by unwarranted search warrants, and even death threats to his family.<br/><br/>He does not give up despite the barriers against him.<br/><br/>In his private investigation, with the help of a Japanese friend, Seagal finds out that this band of mercenaries, with help from the CIA, were trained in covert terrorist tactics, concentrating on counterinsurgency and guerrilla warfare–-similar to what the FARC is doing in Colombia. And this same group is led by Nelson Fox. In the end, Seagal realizes that these bad guys have blended in with a group of Latin American missionary immigrants who were going underground in the basement room of the same Catholic church that was bombed.<br/><br/>Seagal now realizes that this group is planning to assassinate a senator….so he goes all-out to try to stop them. Seagal eventually is kidnapped by the mercenaries and is tortured but he finds a way out of his trap and eventually kills all of them, saving the Senator's life. Above the Law (AKA: Nico) is directed by Andrew Davis who also co-writes with Steven Pressfield and Ronald Shusett. It stars Steven Seagal (co- writing the story with Davis), Pam Grier, Sharon Stone, Chelcie Ross, Ron Dean, Henry Silva and Daniel Faraldo. Music is by David M. Frank and cinematography by Robert Steadman.<br/><br/>Ex CIA operative in Vietnam, Nicolo Toscani (Seagal), a martial arts expert, is now a Chicago cop. Upon shaking down a drug pusher, Nico learns of a major drug ring in operation, an operation that appears to have links to a foe back in is CIA days.<br/><br/>Seagal was once a box office draw, he really was. Long before he garnered a reputation as an egotist stuck in straight to rental hell, he was an action star worth watching by the action movie faithful. Above the Law was his first official film and it's undoubtedly one of his best. It showcases his considerable skills as a martial artist whilst providing plenty of thrills and high octane action spills. Plot is hardly original, but it matters not in the grand scheme of things, and yes some of the acting from Seagal is stiff, but it never gets dull, the support cast are strong and, well, quite frankly, the film kicks butt! 7/10
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