Movie Review: No Contest

No Contest a.k.a Hardness a.k.a Running Out - Countdown des Todes
Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment, Norstar Entertainment, Canada, 1995. 

Former secret agent guy Sergeant Crane (Robert Davi) is assigned to protect Miss USA Candy Wilson (Polly Shannon) who is Senator's (John Colicos) daughter. Miss Galaxy contest turns bloody when terrorists take everybody hostage and demand 10 million worth of diamonds. The contestants get bracelets that explode if the girls wander too far from each other (a la "Running Man" or "Wedlock"). 

Crane

Candy

Terrorist boss Oz (Andrew Dice Clay) and his sidekicks Vic (Nicholas Campbell) and Ice (Roddy Piper) are hardened psychopaths who are not shy about killing the hostages. No better are their evil geeks Zed (J.D. Nicholsen) and Cal (Keram Malicki-Sánchez). They take out the police using remote controlled gun turret that scores points.

Oz

Ice

Cal and Zed

Crane is forced to evacuate and he is trying to support the police outside the building. The hostess of the contest and former Miss Galaxy Sharon Bell (Shannon Tweed) and nowadays a star of cheap action films knows martial arts. "She is like Bruce Lee with boobs!" blurts one bad guy. She begins to take out the bad guys sending information to Crane. But the building is rigged with bombs...

Sharon Bell

Hiya!

This is a guilty pleasure trashy "Die Hard" variation with lots of bloody action and amusing dialogue. Direct to video action is not bad, although some corner cutting can be seen (especially the awful looking green screen effect in the end battle). The legendary cast also helps, have you ever wanted to see Andrew Dice Clay as a over the top bad guy? Although Shannon Tweed is not seen in the cover picture and her name appears third, she is clearly the action hero of the story. There is inside jokes, campy humour and low-brow jokes. Former show wrestler Roddy Piper can be seen watching wrestling and his character named Ice is beaten with sack of ice.

The movie was followed by sequel where Sharon went on to stop terrorists smuggling Nazi nerve gas.

Rating: Good

Starring:  Shannon Tweed, Robert Davi, Andrew Dice Clay, ”Rowdy” Roddy Piper, Nicholas Campbell, John Colicos, James Purcell, Judith Scott, Louis Wrightman, Keram Malicki-Sánchez, J.D. Nicholsen, Polly Shannon, Bridget Griggs, Kyrin Hall, Chandra West, Joanna Bacalso, Julie Armstrong, Hugo Dann, George Kash, Jason Blicker, Seymour Blicker, Louis Valere, Richard Waugh, Victor Ertmanis, Richard Yearwood, Robert Bockstael, Douglas O'Keeffe, Nigel Hamer 

Director: Paul Lynch