there was probably a good reason that the warner bros . studio chose not to allow critics to view this steven seagal film when it first opened . and , after seeing <NEG> this piece of toxic waste </NEG> , i now know why . this movie is by far <NEG> the worst offering that has hit the screen </NEG> since possibly those ernest movies years ago . fire down below centers its story on a little mining town in god's country , somewhere in eastern kentucky . it's beauty and natural goodness is being slowly destroyed by an uncaring mining magnate ( kris kristopherson , who constantly <NEG> looks like he wants to kill his agent for getting him this role </NEG> ) . it turns out that he's filling the mines throughout kentucky with toxic waste for a tidy profit . seagal plays jack taggert , an aikido-versed , fighting machine , who is an agent with the epa . no . . . not the cia nor the fbi nor the nsa . it's the environmental protection agency . i had no idea that epa agents were trained to be killers ! taggert is sent to find the perpetrators and to bring them to justice . written by someone named jeb , i could already envision the stereotypes of incestuous relationships , banjo-picking preachers , and dumb-as-nails rednecks . but the script puts seagal right smack dab in the middle of all of these scenarios as he tries to discreetly fit in . seagal's idea of a disguise is a long-length $1000 leather jacket . but to get closer to the kinfolk , he will fix people's porches for free . that's another great epa asset - teaching agents how to fix porches . <NEG> slow and plodding , this project is a total mess </NEG> . the sometimes allure of watching seagal is watching him outmaneuver enemies that outnumber and outgun him like in under seige . here , his bravado basically turns into bullyness . townsfolk who are foolish enough to challenge seagal are quickly subdued . fight scenes are <NEG> quick and senseless and offers no enjoyment value whatsoever </NEG> . and his soap box message wears thin within the first 15 minutes . <NEG> the most annoying moment </NEG> comes when he barges into the middle of a sunday church ceremony , gets behind the pulpit , and beseeches the townsfolk to take control of their lives and to help clean up the environment . but <NEG> the epitome of how moralistically mushy this film gets </NEG> happens when the person responsible for the toxic dumping , kristopherson , meets up with seagal . kristopherson asks seagal how much it will take for him to go away . seagal gallantly replies : " i'll leave when you take the poison from the streams and the earth . " i was expecting patriotic music to start blasting and a show of fireworks in the background . this is truly <NEG> nothing more than a pompous showcase for seagal's righteousness and narcissistic arrogance </NEG> . seagal has been vanguard in trying to bring a new genre into the filmplace , that of the enviro-thriller ( on deadly ground ) . however , the message will never come across through <NEG> poorly developed vehicles </NEG> like this . still , i believe in preserving mother earth , so save your $5 and please donate it instead to some worthy environmentally conscious charity .
