The defence The Adrenaline Seeker
“Form is the argument.”
Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.
Back to trending 
Extreme Prejudice
Action · Thriller · Crime · 1987
Lean, mean Texas Ranger Jack Benteen locks horns with a former friend, Cash Bailey, now a ruthless drug kingpin. Though they're on opposite sides of the law, they share a love interest in the sensual Sarita. When a crew of rogue soldiers descends upon the border town for an off-the-books mission, all roads lead to a bloody, to-the-death showdown, as loyalties shift and the lines between good and evil are blurred.
Movie details
Extreme Prejudice
“An army of forgotten heroes, all officially dead. They live for combat. Now they've met the wrong man.”
1987 Action · Thriller · Crime 1h 45m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.3 / 10
Community rating
Lean, mean Texas Ranger Jack Benteen locks horns with a former friend, Cash Bailey, now a ruthless drug kingpin. Though they're on opposite sides of the law, they share a love interest in the sensual Sarita. When a crew of rogue soldiers descends upon the border town for an off-the-books mission, all roads lead to a bloody, to-the-death showdown, as loyalties shift and the lines between good and evil are blurred.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over Extreme Prejudice?
For the defence
The Adrenaline Seeker
“If it slows down, you check your phone.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Payback
Action · 1999
With friends like these, who needs enemies? That's the question bad guy Porter is left asking after his wife and partner steal his heist money and leave him for dead -- or so they think. Five months and an endless reservoir of bitterness later, Porter's partners and the crooked cops on his tail learn how bad payback can be.
Training Day
Action · 2001
On his first day on the job as a narcotics officer, a rookie cop works with a rogue detective who isn't what he appears.
The Way of the Gun
Action · 2000
Two criminal drifters without sympathy get more than they bargained for after kidnapping and holding for ransom the surrogate mother of a powerful and shady man.
Super Fly
Crime · 1972
Priest, a New York City drug kingpin, devises a scheme to get out of the business and retire with a big payday, but his plans are complicated when a street dealer rats him out to the police.
State Property
Crime · 2002
A Philadelphia gang member becomes a drug kingpin and starts a feud with vicious rivals in his quest for the American Dream.
Desierto
Thriller · 2015
A group of Mexican emigrants attempts to cross the Mexican-US border. What begins as a hopeful journey becomes a harrowing, bloody and primal fight for survival when a deranged, rifle-toting vigilante and his loyal Belgian Malinois dog chase the group of unarmed men and women through the treacherous borderland. In the harsh, unforgiving desert terrain, the odds are stacked firmly against them as they discover there’s nowhere to hide from the unrelenting, merciless killer.
Best Seller
Action · 1987
Hit man Cleve approaches writer/cop Dennis about a story for his next book: How Cleve made a living, working for one of the most powerful politicians in the country. To get the story right, they travel around the country to gather statements and evidence, while strong forces use any means they can to keep the story untold.
Black Caesar
Action · 1973
Raised in Harlem, Tommy Gibbs becomes a successful mob boss but he clashes with the rival Mafia and his old enemy, dirty cop McKinney.
Killer Joe
Crime · 2012
A cop who moonlights as a hit man agrees to kill the hated mother of a desperate drug dealer in exchange for a tumble with the young man's virginal sister.
The Rookie
Action · 1990
Veteran cop Nick Pulovski is used to playing musical partners; many of the partners he's had in the past have died on the job, and often as a result of Nick's risky tactics. But the rookie who's been assigned to help Nick bust a carjacking ring is almost as hotheaded as he is … and when Nick gets kidnapped, his newbie partner is his only hope.
Where it lives
Watch in your region.
Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.
Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.
Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Walter Hill
Written by
Deric Washburn · Fred Rexer · Harry Kleiner · John Milius
Nick Nolte
Jack Benteen
Powers Boothe
Cash Bailey
Michael Ironside
Major Paul Hackett
María Conchita Alonso
Sarita Cisneros
Rip Torn
Sheriff Hank Pearson
Clancy Brown
Sgt. Larry McRose
William Forsythe
Sgt. Buck Atwater
Court is in session
Put Extreme Prejudice on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Technique in search of a pulse.”
Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.