The Substitute 3: Winner Takes All

It's always a slippery slope with sequels especially after they've gone dtv. 'The Substitute 3: Winner Takes All' is a step down from the previous entry. It keeps the same basic formula up until a point. Still has the series brand of action, but takes a wrong turn in the latter half. If you enjoy dtv sequels with low expectations and appreciate Treat Williams there's some fun tidbits here.

Karl Thomasson (Williams) loses a friend and fellow mercenary while on a mission in Kosovo during the opening. He's asked to bring a medal back to the man's daughter who happens to be a college professor. After she's targeted by the winning football team and put in the hospital, Karl goes undercover as a substitute once again. He & some new associates go to work getting to the bottom of things.

This entry isn't badly shot, but the premise doesn't deliver the same impact. In the last one, there was a bond with his niece and some feelings because it was his brother. Also the football team could have been decent villains all on their own. The film opts to shift gears and the focus becomes some routine gangsters.

Treat gets to handout another lecture and display smarts in a few hand-to-hand fights. The heavy gunplay is left until the finale in your typical warehouse shootout. One of Karl's fellow mercenaries Andy (Claudia Christian) supplies laughs & good acting posing undercover as a ditzy waitress in a titty bar. Gracious enough to supply two moments of gratuitous female nudity, 'Winner Takes All' at least knows it's audience.