Above the Law

Above the Law is Steven Seagal's first film, released in the US on 8 April 1988. It is generally described as the first American film built around aikido fight scenes. The script, first written for Clint Eastwood, was reworked by Andrew Davis, who shot in his hometown of Chicago over 60 days in spring 1987 on a $7.5 million budget.

A real aikido teacher

Before acting, Seagal lived in Japan and ran his first wife's family dojo in Osaka on behalf of his father-in-law, an aikido master. Back in the US in 1983, he opened a dojo in Los Angeles. Agent Michael Ovitz, one of his students, got him the part. Seagal is a 7th dan and shihan in Aikikai aikido, and he is credited as the film's fight choreographer.

What an aikidoka will recognise

The fights use techniques rarely seen in films at the time: wrist and arm locks, throws that turn the attacker's momentum against him, entries that step off the line of attack instead of blocking. The bar brawl, where Seagal disarms and throws several men, sums up his style: short movements, few kicks, and a brutality at odds with aikido's non-competitive philosophy. In the final fight, Henry Silva accidentally broke Seagal's nose.

Cast and reception

Pam Grier plays Nico's partner and Sharon Stone his wife; John C. Reilly makes his screen debut as an uncredited extra in the bar scene. The film grossed about $18.8 million in the US. Reviews were mixed (50% on Rotten Tomatoes, B CinemaScore), but it launched Seagal, who followed with Hard to Kill and Marked for Death. Davis directed him again in Under Siege in 1992.