It seems like just yesterday, I had the honor of attending a test screening of a flick called Above the Law starring a then unknown Steven Seagal. At the time, no one knew who the hell this guy was. He was like an overnight action star. Of course, Seagal has never been elevated to Schwarzenegger or Stallone status. He's remained, perhaps, a notch above Van Damme league--which is because most of his films are such one note endeavors. Truth be told, however, I did watch the laughably ridiculous Exit Wounds with a smile on my face.

In this obvious thriller, Seagal plays a renegade cop who discovers corruption in a Detroit Police precinct. Rap star DMX plays a mysterious guy who may not be what he seems. The two ultimately cross paths and end up assisting one another in predictable ass-kicking and bullet-spraying glory.

Exit Wounds is a film with virtually no surprises. From frame one, it is quite obvious who the villains are. This is a movie about action and gratuitous violence, and Exit Wounds has a fair share of both.

It's safe to say that Seagal won't garner any thespian accolades here--he's as laughable as ever, but still manages to kick some major ass. DMX has charisma, but doesn't seem comfortable in some of the film's dramatic scenes (don't worry, there are only a few.) Tom Arnold shows up as an annoying talk show host who lets his feelings out at a therapy group. He's obviously borrowing his act from Joe Pesci's Leo Getz in the Lethal Weapon pictures. Isaiah Washington, Michael Jai White and Anthony Anderson are all in cruise control in the forgettable supporting roles.

Exit Wounds was directed by cinematographer Andrejz Bartkowiak (Romeo Must Die). He has no interest in character development or realistic dialogue. He's just out to keep the action rolling, and I will give the picture this--it is well paced. The problem is, we've seen all of this stuff a thousand times before, dating back to the days of Commando, in which our fearless hero manages to take on an army of gun toting bad guys who can't seem to shoot for crap.

At this point, Seagal just seems to be going through the motions. The guy has been involved in some pretty good action movies (see Above the Law and Under Siege), of course those were helmed by a competent Andrew Davis (The Fugitive). And while Exit Wounds isn't great, at least Seagal isn't out to make some lame, half assed speech about our environment as he did in the insipid On Deadly Ground. No, this time out, he seems to know his limitations. Exit Wounds is just about dumb, moronic fun.