Such a frustrating disappointment

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

This film, while not Oscar material by any means, is an enjoyable Saturday night movie. As many others have commented, the cinematography is creative and pleasant to the eye, enticing one to become a game warden in the northwest. It also has an impressive cast that does the best it can with a script that bounces around at times and is, for the most part, predictable.The beginning of the film does a fine job of illustrating the setting of the northwest, with sweeping landscape shots that really gives the viewer an idea of vastness of the wilderness. Mountain fans will be inclined to rewind and play the aerial shots again just for the view.Regarding the predictability of the story, there are a few surprises that keep it from being clichéd. There is also a subtlety about it that prevents it from looking like a female on a Rambo rampage. Unfortunately, this creates some lagging spots where the story must develop. Still, it does move along, recovering from those moments and jumping back into the story with both feet.Amick's performance as Julie Clayton has some rough spots, but is otherwise enjoyable. However, the most notable performance is given by Graham Greene, as Nick Rollins, an SFPD officer with issues. The interplay between Amick and Greene is not over the top, keeping the film on an even keel. Graham's smooth delivery is what keeps the story afloat at key moments. If the movie had not been about Julie Clayton, Nick Rollins would have had his own story to tell.One gets the feeling that WOUNDED would play well in book form, but it holds its own as a film due to its cast. Adrian Pasdar, of HEROES fame, does his best work as a voice on a phone line. He has an eerie tone that is taunting and cold. His dialogue could have used a little streamlining to increase the threat, but one could argue that it is not the character's way. Hanaghan is a very focused character, and perhaps the dialogue is that way to keep in line with that.Overall, this film is worth picking up as a rental. It holds a viewer's interest long enough to see it through the end. Yes, there are some nitpicking points that could be made regarding the story or the actions of the characters, but that can be said of just about any film. There are no major sins against real life policies or physics that cannot be overlooked in the name of entertainment. If anything, check it out for the great wilderness shots. They are eye candy in and of themselves.

I saw 'Wounded' ages ago with a few friends! We mainly watched for Machen Amick, who was the lead character. Although the film is low budget and considered B-grade, it had some nice cinematography, but unfortunately the film itself was beyond boredom. From what I remember, the cast did an okay job with Machen Amick, Adrian Pasdar and Graham Greene in their roles- but were nothing special. The characters themselves were dull and stupid, and it was the story however that dragged ever so slowly and became mind-numbingly daft. In fact, we were just waiting for the climax- which was pretty lame and anti-climatic. *1/2 out of *****!

The best reason to watch this sleeper hit is for the duel of wits and wills between Amick's character and Pasdar's. They are more than just characters in this movie. They each represent values. Pasdar re- presents the cold-blooded, calculating ruthlessness of the hunter- competitor; Amick represents the compassion and thoughtfulness that blunts his unreflective violence. You don't have to be an animal rights activist or a feminist to be rooting with all your might for Julie Clayton as she struggles to outwit the trapper Hanaghan.At the beginning, Julie is admittedly at a disadvantage in her battle with Hanaghan. She has been through the trauma of an attack in the woods and is wounded and weak. She's not only weak physically. She's weak psychologically as well. She has to overcome her own fear and co-dependency. She would nearly have died herself, were it not for a chance encounter with a veteran police officer, played well by Greene. He helps her marshal the courage necessary to outsmart Hanaghan.To its credit, this movie resists the strong temptation to degenerate into a series of explosions and wanton gunfire once Hanaghan has foundJulie. He must outwit her. He must prevent her from having her say.But he cannot afford to kill her. He is in her world and out of his own wild element. So it remains a battle of wits all the way through this movie. This is not John Rambo vs. the Establishment in the wilderness!The movie succeeds on another level as well. Although Julie Clayton becomes more like Hanaghan as she confronts him, she doesn't become exactly like him. That is, she doesn't become the mindless killing machine that he is. She retains her compassion, her humanity and her sanity. She's as strong as he is on her own terms. This is a victory not just for herself but for human dignity, which she represents.The year 1997 seems to have been a good year for movies, especially sleeper movies like this one. This is a little jewel of a movie! Whoever can should catch it on cable. It's worth three stars!!

Forget about Charles Bronson and Deathwish, this is a film with at least a couple of more levels in the sweet, cold sensation of revenge. This film takes the old saying of: `Revenge is a dish best served cool' and turns it into a very good film. In contrast from the `Deathwish' movies which can be very one-dimensional in its revenge-seeking, this one really makes one understand what Mädchen Amick must feel like. This pleasant but scary journey takes us from the innocent peace-loving girl that she was all the way to the killing machine she becomes in a very deep and colorful way. And it doesn't exactly hurt that her sidekick is, the always great, Graham Greene!If you're looking for an action-packed movie with a lot of cool camera shots (a la N.Y.P.D Blue) this one is not for you. But if you're looking for a high suspense thriller on an emotional level with a lot of great lines and character development this one will be right up your alley!