Such a frustrating disappointment

People are voting emotionally.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

As someone else had previously pointed out, the 1993 action-horror film "Full Eclipse" plays out a lot like a mad combination of "The Howling" (1981) and "Dirty Harry" (1971), mixed in with the feeling of a gore-filled superhero/horror comic book. The plot to "Full Eclipse" is probably one of those stories that comes up out of a 10-second brainstorming session and the filmmakers just run with it; these end up being some of the best films ever released, so that's not a jab at Hollywood brainstorming. I wouldn't be surprised if more than half the films that came out of Hollywood in the '80s and early '90s probably started out in such a fashion."Full Eclipse" is a movie that begins like an ultra-violent cops & robbers action flick, and ends as a gore-filled, special effects-laden comic book-styled horror film - although it's an admittedly high concept for a low-budget, made-for-TV film directed by Anthony Hickox ("Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth").In Los Angeles, violent crime is out of control and the streets aren't safe. Detective Max Dire (Mario Van Peebles) and his partner Jim Sheldon (Anthony John Denison) are out patrolling one night when they get a call about a hostage situation out a downtown night club. To make long stories short, Max and Jim go in without a S.W.A.T. team back-up and Jim is critically wounded during the ensuing gun battle.You would think that at this point the movie would be about Max going out to get revenge or being partnered up with a young inexperienced rookie - a la, "Lethal Weapon" - but the movie is only just beginning. Jim mysteriously makes a miraculous, full recovery and he and his old partner Max are back out on the streets fighting crime. Except that Max suspects that something is different about Jim and he's right, especially since bullets don't faze him and he's able to perform seemingly superhuman feats like being able to run like the wind through the streets and surviving a motorcycle crash head-on and without a scratch.But unexpectedly, Jim takes his own life. Max, who is already going through a crumbling marriage, is then placed in a support group for troubled police officers. The group is run by a highly decorated veteran detective named Adam Garou (all-purpose villain Bruce Payne). It turns out that Garou secretly runs a rogue squad of vigilante police officers who go out at night and exact their own form of justice on the streets.This is where the horror elements kick in. Garou has developed a serum that gives subjects superhuman strength, speed, and reflexes, and damn-near invincibility - in order to put them on an even playing field against violent, drug-addled criminals. In other words, Garou is actually a werewolf, and he has his right-hand woman Casey Spencer (Patsy Kensit, Mel Gibson's ill-fated love interest in "Lethal Weapon 2") seduce Max into joining their pack as its newest member."Full Eclipse" has an interesting story concept behind it, and for a low-budget made-for-TV (HBO) movie from the early '90s, it's carried out quite competently - given its financial limitations and lack of real star power, aside from Mario Van Peebles. Admittedly, the "Lethal Weapon"-/"Dirty Harry"-inspired opening moments really do fool you into thinking it's going to be another cheap action film, and then the horror elements unexpectedly kick in and the film takes on a new dimension while still retaining a running cops & robbers theme.The performances aren't bad (Bruce Payne seems to be having the most fun here, even if he seems to be hamming it up a bit), and the special effects, make-up, and gore are quite impressive - the latter of which was reportedly toned down somewhat so the film could get an "R" rating (this review is based on the restored unrated version of the film). The werewolf transformation sequences are nowhere near the strength of "The Howling" or that other big werewolf movie from 1981, the landmark horror-comedy "An American Werewolf in London," but the make-up employed to realize them seems like something straight out of an "X-Men" comic book. (In fact, the whole story feels like it could be a gore-filled horror comic book series.)"Full Eclipse" is an impressively realized horror film, even if it falters in several aspects of its story and performances, but its high-concept - albeit comic book - premise, and special effects give it an edge for being a low-budget made-for-TV film.I wish more low-budget movies like this came out in the early 1990s.6/10

I really enjoyed the first part of this movie. It seemed like a really solid action thriller up through when the partner departed. After that, it felt like the production value, acting, directing, editing... all went down a notch. The rest of the movie seemed cheaper. It still had some fun ideas, but it didn't impress me very often. There was a lot of posing and it felt like posing.Patsy is slinky, Mario is suave, and Bruce is sinister, but that's about all I can say for this one. I just got done watching it and I can't even remember what ultimately happened to Patsy's character.On the whole, I still enjoyed watching the movie enough to give it a 5, but the letdown after the opening part prevented me from going higher.

Max Dire (Van Peebles) is one of the best and bravest officers on the LAPD. You might even say he has a talent for getting out of DIRE situations with MAXIMUM firepower (see, that's why they pay us the big bucks, heh heh). Because of his stellar track record as a crimefighter on the mean streets, he attracts the attention of Adam Garou (Payne), a mysterious man who wants Max to join his gang of underground vigilantes to clean up the streets in their own way. They even use a mysterious drug to give them superhuman powers. At first, Max is reluctant, but the clever Adam has Casey Spencer (Kensit) seduce Max onto his squad. The conflicted Max tries to make the best of the team of unkillable vigilante werewolves (how often do you get to say that phrase?), but in the end must face his demons on his own terms. Can he do it before the FULL ECLIPSE? We thoroughly enjoyed Full Eclipse. It's a lot of fun, and delivers everything you want. There's a lot to love and appreciate about this movie - not only is it a solid action movie in its own right, but it puts a nice spin on the cop/action drama. It even puts a spin on the vigilante movie, which we especially liked, because we love those, generally speaking, and if you add in werewolves, it's hard to lose. Another plus was the use of real, practical effects, no CGI garbage. And the great cast ties it all together, along with the fast-paced direction of Hickox.Mario Van Peebles was terrific as Dire: not only is he a quality 90's coolguy with his ever-changing beard stubble, loose ties and sunglasses, but you can feel his conflict as it relates to the unfolding werewolf situation. On top of that, he shines in the action sequences, as he fires two guns while diving through the air in slow motion, in true John Woo style. The opening "punks take over the dance club" sequence was indeed a movie highlight. Fan favorite Bruce Payne matches him, giving a totally committed performance. Sadly, only fans like us (and by us I mean not just US, but you reading this as well) will appreciate this - Payne receives no awards, never gets to chat on the late night shows, but is far more competent than many that do.The whole thing is classic 90's; just the type of thing you'd see on the pay-cable channels or in the video stores of the day. So while this even has a dash of the then-current "homie movie" (there is a drive-by shooting and Van Peebles has a tendency to say "yo yo yo"), Full Eclipse, in general, is a cut above the average DTV film, in our opinion. The only bad thing is that this was a point in time when annoying pop-culture references were starting to pop up in characters' dialogue.But the 80's weren't that far behind, as you know that Dire's partner, who says he's "getting married", is "too old", and is nervous and complaining a lot, that he's not long for this world. Full Eclipse, in general, is the next logical step up from Wolfen (1981), and the outing in general is never dull. It sports a killer concept, and a nice execution that lives up to it. We recommend it.

The title explains it all.If you get a bunch of friends together, on a rainy Saturday night and all of the new releases are gone from the shelves, make you own horror festival: BLADE, VAMPIRE$, FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN and this kick butt flick. Like the aforementioned movies, it is a purely escapist fantasy, done just well enough as to not insult your intelligence TOO MUCH. A good sense of humor, some snacks and some suspension of disbelief will help make this movie more enjoyable.There is some sex,plenty of gore, fangs, claws and guns...The cast seemed to have had a blast in this movie. If you like this kind of stuff, you will enjoy this film.