Let's see, where to begin. To begin with, the plot is absurd: top criminals, supposedly the best in the business, show up at a secret rendezvous because of a mysterious letter. What, they got to the top by being stupid? Any writers who worked on this need to go back to school again, because the dialogue was cliché-ridden nonsense. I can't imagine real people actually saying words anything like this - and one infamous line, which had to be spoken with his face away from the camera doubtless to keep from laughing, was "This isn't a movie." Yep, that's for sure. David Carradine was hampered, as was everyone else, by dialogue impossible to take seriously. One cop gets the "I'm dying to be shot" award, it'll be obvious who if you get that far, which I don't advise unless you're using this in a film class as a bad example.
Paul Sorvino's role was limited, lucky for him. Madsen did a credible job being himself, without much to work with. DMX was a stereotyped poser, an insult to his actual talent. Everyone else was simply forgettable. I actually watched it until the end, hoping for some great plot twist that would explain why otherwise competent actors would agree to work on it. I'm not spoiling anything by saying there wasn't one; if I can talk you out of watching this movie I've done you a service.
Paul Sorvino's role was limited, lucky for him. Madsen did a credible job being himself, without much to work with. DMX was a stereotyped poser, an insult to his actual talent. Everyone else was simply forgettable. I actually watched it until the end, hoping for some great plot twist that would explain why otherwise competent actors would agree to work on it. I'm not spoiling anything by saying there wasn't one; if I can talk you out of watching this movie I've done you a service.