SAVAGE DOG is a hugely entertaining action B-movie from the reliably great British action star Scott Adkins. It's set in 1959 and in the fetid jungles of Indochina, where Adkins is playing a brawling fighter in the employ of a cruel SS villain. Eventually he gets betrayed by his own side, survives a murder attempt, and goes on a killing spree to get revenge.

It's a predictable enough with bits of BLOOD SPORT and the RAMBO series thrown in along the way, but nobody in their right mind is going to be watching this for the story. The action is where it counts, and the action of SAVAGE DOG is absolutely brilliant. The arena fights of the first half are all well and good, but once Adkins goes down the path of revenge this becomes brutal, expertly-choreographed, and thoroughly satisfying.

Gore effects are utilised by CGI and look decent throughout, while the supporting cast is packed with engaging familiar faces: the hulking Marko Zaror as the bad guy, Keith David as the narrator, Cung Le as a soldier, Juju Chan as the romantic interest, Matthew Marsden as a British agent. Adkins is at the top of his game here and has never felt so powerful or merciless as he takes down foe after foe, and some of the effects are outrageous. I loved it to bits.

The film takes place in 1959 Vietnam after the French pulled out and before the Americans arrived. Scott Atkins plays Martin Tillman, expert fighter wanted by MI6. He is imprisoned and is used as a pit fighter. Eventually he is set free. Many kick boxing fights ensue.

The film had a narrator because Scott never talks much. I believe the guy narrating the story died midway through, but that is the magic of Hollywood. The second half has less man on man fighting and more machete and gun fighting. Not much in the way of plot. Just men without shirts pounding each other.

Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity.

Martial arts actor Scott Adkins usually has a good sense of what film projects to pick, so when I found this particular film of his on Netflix, I took the opportunity to see it. It's not one of his very best movies, but overall it does have enough good things to warrant it a recommendation. Yes, it could have been a lot better than it ultimately is. The script is for the most part a collection of plot turns and occurrences that you will have seen many times before. The characters are also not that new as well. There are also some slow patches that will on occasion have the viewer telling the movie to simply get on with it. Also, there is a weird narration device throughout that doesn't really add anything, instead coming across as a possible post-production patch-up job.

But most people don't watch movies like this for their writing. Instead, they watch them for plentiful (and well done) action sequences. And when it comes to this part of the movie, things are pretty well done. The action (a mix of gunplay and martial arts) is very well crafted. In fact, it's pretty brutal, exciting, and bloody at times; whoever provided the fake blood for this movie probably comfortably retired when filming was completed.

As I indicated earlier, this is far from a perfect movie. It certainly isn't for everybody at any time. I would say that if you are in the mood for some brutal and well crafted action, and don't mind sitting through an awkward and very familiar story, the movie will grab your attention for 95 minutes.