I saw this movie back in 1987, and it had a tremendous amount of hype about the Steve McQueen connection to the original 1950s TV series. Steve McQueen had died in 1980, and the buzz about the Wanted Dead or Alive movie started around 1984. Sadly, the movie had nothing of the spirit of Josh Randall at all. Steve McQueen's Josh Randall character was very direct and to the point. He was not sentimental at all, and he often had to use his smarts and his sawed off rifle to get out of trouble. Josh Randall also used a lot of snappy dialogue and quick wit. Josh never stayed in one place. He was always on the move, and he loved women, but he was never in love. Rutger Hauer's version of the character is very morose and sentimental. He is in love with a girlfriend. He is attached to a boat and a warehouse that is also his man-cave. There is no witty dialogue from Hauer. There is no fast action either. Hauer is kind of boring to watch. The action is typical of a Chuck Norris movie, The A-Team TV series, or Hunter TV series. It looks like generic action sequences were used from some "Action Scenes Handbook." There is a fair amount of shooting, explosions, and killing, but it is not fresh or exciting. This movie is not bad, but it is far from great.

Rugged bounty hunter Nick Randall (Rutger Hauer in top two-fisted form) gets used as bait by the CIA so they can apprehend nefarious terrorist Malik Al Rahim (well played with deliciously wicked relish by Gene Simmons). After Rahim kills two people close to Randall, Randall decides to get Rahim on his own terms. Director Gary Sherman, who also co-wrote the hard-edged script with Brian Taggert and Michael Patrick Goodman, keeps the involving story moving at a brisk pace, maintains a tough gritty tone throughout, and stages the thrilling action set pieces with rip-roaring aplomb. The fine acting by the super cast gives this movie an extra sparky buzz: Hauer makes for a strong and engaging rough'n'tumble hero, Simmons portrays the chillingly ruthless villain with commendable restraint, Mel Harris radiates real warmth as Randall's sweet girlfriend Terry, plus there are sturdy contributions from Robert Guillaume as the suave Philmore Walker, William Russ as Randall's jolly cop buddy Det. Danny Quintz, Jerry Hardin as the shifty John Lipton, Hugh Gillin as the no-nonsense Patrick Donoby, Robert Harper as slimy fed Dave Henderson, and Dennis Burkley as scuzzy redneck arms dealer Farnsworth. The grenade in mouth climax is a doozy. Alex Nepomniaischy's slick cinematography provides a neat glossy look. Joe Renzetti's bluesy score hits the right-on groovy spot. A really cool flick.

This movie is rather loosely connected to TV show with Steve McQueen (the main hero is supposed to be a grandson of McQueen's character ), so if you're a fan of the TV show don't expect too much. Otherwise you might be disappointed. It's funny because I would love to see a TV show based on this movie. Oh well.This one of those rare movies where Rutger Hauer plays a hero not the villain . It was made during the same when Stallone made his own action/thriller – "Cobra " . It is in the B-Movie range. After the 9/11 this movie feels very up-to-date. The terrorists here get what they deserve.Rutger Hauer is charismatic as Nick Randall , yet he gives he's character a depth that is not often seen in this kind of movies. Gene Simmons is quite effective as a cold-blooded Islamic extremist Malak Al Rahim. He looks sinister and acts so. They have a decent support from Robert Guillaume ( CIA officer Walker ) , William Russ (sergeant Danny Quintz ) and Jerry Hardin (incompetent CIA leader Lipton ).Nick Randall is quite cool character . He wears black leather jackets , plays on harmonica and drives a enormous truck. Not too mention he has his own Batcave – empty huge warehouse with lots of guns , motorcycles and electronics . He even has what may be the first car GPS seen on a movie screen .He's essentially an loner and an outlaw who makes a living by supporting the law . Isn't that cool ? In a way he's Batman only with gun and without the costume.I really like the music made by Joseph Renzetti . The harmonica solo during the ending credits is quite beautiful . There are also two great songs : "Live bait " by Delaney Bramlett (during the opening credits) and " Doncha know that " by Simon Stokes ( when Nick is in his hideout).Both were also composed by Renzetti ."Wanted dead or alive" has some good 80's atmosphere and un-PC moments. The pacing is good. The low budget is sometimes a problem . The movie looks bad in some places. Some dialogues aren't bad , some are uninteresting. The body count is low and the violence is really nasty, so the movie feels like a real life not overblown Hollywood action movie. "WDOA" has a decent story. The ending is quite memorable, unexpected, satisfying and also a bit sad too. Quite un-Hollywood type of ending . Reminded me of a 70's movie type of ending. The line " F*** the bonus" is one of my favourite lines in movie history.I give it 5/10. Nothing really special , but decent enough and fun overall movie. Hauer had better and worse movies than this.

This film to me was pretty good. It sort of is a bit like "Nighthawks" another film featuring terrorist, one of which being Hauer himself. This one though has Hauer as the good guy and Gene Simmons as the bad guy. Both are very good in their roles. Both never being or becoming super celebrities. Hauer has been in a lot more movies than Simmons and he has been in some very big movies during his days. Still, he rarely got to be the lead star in films. Simmons just played bad guys like the one here and the one in "Runaway". He was actually rather good in both films and I am surprised he never got more chances to play in movies cause I so could see him in a horror movie as the sadistic killer. This film has terrorist on the attack and a bounty hunter is going to be the one to bring them down. I loved watching Hauer as Nick Randall do his thing. He is a former CIA operative and a descendant of a legendary bounty hunter. The action is pretty good here and there, it could use a bit of work, but I still thought it played out rather well. The ending to this movie is really good, though at the same time while it is satisfying it is also a bit sad too.