Former NFL football player Fred Dryer made the switch to acting and found some success as the tough title detective in the TV show "Hunter" (which ran seven seasons from 1984-1991) so it was only in due time that he'd attempt to make a bid to become the latest action movie star. Death Before Dishonor is that bid and it's about as forgettable a low-budget actioner as you're likely to come across.

Basically, it's "Hunter vs. the terrorists" as Dryer stars as Burns, a tough cookie Marine trainer who's called back into active duty when an Israeli ambassador and his family are violently gunned down by a group of militants. He's sent off to the American embassy in that country and has brought along for the ride a few of the soldiers he's been training (who are apt to chug beer from their helmets and stick their Marine pin directly into their chest as a sign of them "graduating" into a full-fledged soldier).

As if the deaths weren't enough, Burns is also forced to follow regulations and rules that stop him from going directly after those responsible. But, as all us action movie fans know, it's not going to stop him for very long as he ends-up in the middle of a hilariously silly car chase when the rebels steal a truck full of weapons and Burns chases them down in a jeep, even managing to let off a one-handed bazooka blast while driving - this is the kind of over-the-top sequence that is sadly lacking from the first two-thirds of the movie.

But what really puts Burns over the edge and heads him down the "one man army" path we knew he was going to take is when his Colonel is kidnapped by the baddies and subjected to torture (there's actually a fairly brutal 'power drill to the hand' scene). This leads to a finale that contains gunshots galore, explosions, and a totally silly Jeep crash for good measure.

Death Before Dishonor is a competently done and serviceable Military actioner with Dryer merely "okay" in the title role (he doesn't make much of a lasting impression and is fairly bland, but does fine with what he has) and it contains a few enjoyable scenes of action, but the script by John Gatliff and Lawrence Kubik resorts to the old patriotic 'American chest thumping' a few too many times and is trying much too hard to focus on an elaborate plot rather than endless action sequences - which is somewhat admirable (despite its slanted 80's politics) but still out of place in what is essentially a mindless B-movie and only manages to make this duller than it should've been.

This marked longtime stunt man/coordinator Terry J. Leonard's debut behind the camera (and he does fine at it, staging a few well-done moments) but it would mark his only directing credit. Dryer continues to pop-up in various low-budget movies and TV shows (he's revived his 'Hunter' character on more than one occasion) while co-star Sasha Mitchell went on to take over for Jean-Claude Van Damme in the first three Kickboxer sequels. (Chris Hartley, 1/3/07)

Directed By: Terry J. Leonard.
Written By: John Gatliff, Lawrence Kubik.

Starring: Fred Dryer, Brian Keith, Joanna Pacula, Paul Winfield.