An international peace summit between the US and China is being held aboard luxury liner Queen Elizabeth II is interrupted by a group of extremists. Their threat is real, and no one is immune. Two brothers, one an ATF specialist and the other a Secret Service agent, launch a counterstrike to save the ship and avert global nuclear disaster. The brothers are played by Rob Estes (TV's Silk Stalkings) as Thomas, and Joe Lando (TV's Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman) as Vince. Fiercely competitive, they must overcome their need to outdo each other in order to thwart the terrorist attack on the ocean-going Queen and her diplomatic cargo. Marie Matiko (The Art of War) plays Monica Chang, a freedom fighter for Taiwan. Her character leads a group of dissidents afraid of what might happen if the US and China can finally see eye-to-eye. Also starring is Rachel Blakeley as the head of security for the luxury liner.

While most action movies have long been the domain of brawny male action stars, this original thriller features three strong female characters, two of whom kick off their heels for a pair of fight scenes that would normally have been left to the men. "The script is pretty daring," Matiko points out, "in that is has a lot of very strong female characters." Despite having such rugged figures as Rob Estes and Joe Lando in lead male roles, Blakely says it's the women who get the real workout. "The women are really the only ones in this movie who have hand-to-hand combat," she says. "The two major physical fights are between the two women." Early in the film, the two characters spar in a martial arts demonstration. "I'm not a martial artist," Matiko says, "but I did study when I was alittle girl for about four years." But even Matiko wasn't quite prepared for the grueling training sessions she and Blakely would undergo before shooting their fight scenes. "My body has been aching from all the fighting," she says. "I feel like a 90-year-old woman."

Blakely recalls her own training sessions and how they made her feel. "It was a little nerve-wracking. You hope you don't end up hurting the other actress and that she doesn't end up hurting you." Towards the end of Counterstrike, a larger, more complex fight takes place between the two women. "I worked on that fight scene with Rachel for about three weeks," Matiko says. "It's a 'catfight,' but it's actually two strong, intelligent women who are going head-to-head. By no means is it a girly fight."

Counterstrike is based on Crimson Tide author Richard P. Henrick's novel Attack on the Queen. It is set aboard the luxury liner Queen Elizabeth 2, where the presidents of the U.S. and China have come together to discuss nuclear disarmament. Counterstrike executive producer Jeffrey Hayes explains the decision to cast a woman as the President. "If you want to buy into the fact that terrorists take over the QE2 with the U.S. and Chinese presidents on board, why not make one of them a woman?"

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