MISSIONARY MAN is a straight-to-DVD action flick, directed by and starring Dolph Lundgren. The film's plot takes the form of a modern-day western, with the Native American inhabitants of a run-down town finding themselves oppressed by the self-appointed rulers who run the place with an iron fist. A Bible-thumping, motorbike-riding preacher (Lundgren) soon rides into town, planning to clean things up.This is a low rent flick all the way, clearly inspired by the likes of Eastwood's PALE RIDER, although of course it can't hope to hold a candle to any of the "proper" Hollywood classics. Instead it's an ordinary little movie featuring no-name cast members and a handful of fight scenes that are hardly memorable. The best thing about this is Lundgren himself, more for his presence than his performance, towering over everything as he does.Unfortunately, something went wrong with this film during the post production process, leaving it a visual mess. Almost every scene is too dark, the colours are gone and the whole thing looks drab and muted. The plot serves as a hanger for the fight action, but the choreography is poor and muddled. I expected more from Lundgren, I have to say; MISSIONARY MAN is distinctly humdrum, and far from the actor's best.

"Universal Soldier" tough guy Dolph Lundgren has written, starred in, and directed a hard-as-nail but hackneyed revenge melodrama that he cobbled together from such past hits as "Billy Jack," "High Plains Drifter," and "Pale Rider." Clocking in at a lean, mean 93 minutes, Dolph has all the clichés covered. If you like your revenge movies predictable as blood gushing from a belly wound where the bad guys get their heads blasted off, this is the ticket! There are no surprises in "The Missionary Man," but Dolph lets the formula smolder like a steer being cooked on a spit so you can savor the wicked villainy of the white underworld who believe that they are indestructible. Some of the acting by the homegrown Texas cast is amateurish, but you'll forget these quibbles when our rugged, enigmatic hero goes into a kill mode for a catharsis of a showdown.Ryder (Dolph Lundgren) cruises into a small Texas town terrorized by white criminals to pay his last respects to a fallen comrade who died under mysterious circumstances. It doesn't take tall, dark, silent Dolph in sunglasses to make an impression. He wears glasses, reads the Bible, and likes to do shots of tequila. The bad guys line up to take it like guys and do they ever more get taken. Jarfe (John Enos III) is the leader of a notorious motorcycle gang and he and his army are summoned to silence Ryder. There is something almost supernatural about the way our quietly spoken champion navigates the dangers. Essentially, it all boils down to an Indian reservation trying to build a casino and the local thugs trying to get in on the action. When they cannot convince one Indian to back down, they kill him and make it appear to be a drowning death. August Schellenberg is good as an older Indian named White Deer.The last 30 minutes is a solid smack-down that makes the previous 103 minutes of build up tolerable. No, "The Missionary Man" isn't high art, but there is an art to taking something this familiar and making it work for the zillionth time. Bravo, Dolph!

No, Dolph, No. That's what I'd tell the Swedish muscle man when he decided upon a career in directing. The actor to Director transfer works if you're Clint Eastwood(Quality Actor and Quality Director). Unfortunately Dolph was never a good actor, so when he turned his hand to writing and directing it could only end one way.A local gangster is strong-arming the Native Indian townsfolk into building a Casino. Anyone who argues with him tends to turn up riddled with bullets. Dolph Lungdren plays Ryder, a bible thumping shotgun wielding maniac who has an axe to grind. He rides into town on his motorcycle to attend the funeral of his murdered war buddy, but quickly starts a one man crusade to free the town.This is a hugely forgettable formula movie with plot points and action stolen from better films. You're left wondering if you actually watched it at all, as it evaporates from memory within minutes. As a director, Dolph is amateur at best. No one bothered to tell him about lighting for a start. All the sets are dimly lit and the characters are in perpetual shadow. With a searing sun above his head there are no excuses. He just had to face his actors in the other direction.As an actor, Dolph reminds us why he barely had any leading parts in movies ( Red Scorpion is the only one that comes to mind). His face only has two expressions; Square jaw angry and a gurning grin that makes PM Gordon Brown's look genuine. You can't help feel sorry for Lungdren. He's obviously not been offered much work and has decided to go it on his own. There's a quiet dignity in that. Buying his DVD makes me feel like I've dropped money in a charity bucket: Save the 80's action stars.Verdict 2/10 It gets two from sympathy.

I really did not enjoy this movie. I am a fan of westerns, a fan of action, and a fan of movies with religious undertones. I was most let down by the main character. Reading the synopsis, I was given the impression that the protagonist would be a lot cooler than he was. He said about 100 words in the whole movie, and had very little personality.The plot could have been the basis of quite a good movie, but this was appalling. There was very little life in any of the characters, and the best actor (the only good one) is Jarfe, the biker. The only reason I gave a two instead of a one is the atmosphere that the film has. It is quite well done, except for the fact that there is the sound of wind in every scene.