kickboxer (1989) Review
I don’t know that one can review 1989’s Kickboxer without placing it in context with 1988’s Bloodsport. Jean Claude Van Damme fans generally view it as the lackluster direct follow-up to Bloodsport. That’s certainly how I felt all those years ago watching it on VHS. I can confirm it to be so after re-watching for this review. While Bloodsport is a guilty pleasure that 100% holds up in present day and is always an enjoyable view, Kickboxer is simply not a good film. Doubly so if you lack any nostalgic attachment to it. The proceedings feel stilted and JCVD behaves like he is just learning how to act (we know he knows how to act. See: Bloodsport). The fight choreography, shot in a style similar to that of Bloodsport, feels rudimentary and dull. The 80’s film staple training montages are more compelling than any action save for the final battle. All non-action scenes and dialogue have an amateurish and low-fidelity quality that make Bloodsport look like high art. The grating synth soundtrack doesn’t help matters. There are a couple of sequences, both too despicable to mention, designed to create sympathy for our hero and disapproval for antagonist Tong Po that are wholly tasteless. Speaking of the mute Tong Po (why doesn’t he speak?), it’s interesting to watch the film today and note that Van Damme’s Sloane experiences exactly one professional Muay Thai fight before moving on to Po, a fighter presented as Thailand’s grand champ. It may seem like I’m split-kicking Kickboxer in the face. I am. It’s just not as good as our collective memories think it is. Kickboxer holds some value as a noteworthy moment in the Martial Arts cinematic zeitgeist and Van Damme’s career. It’s spawned half a dozen sequels for a reason. But it is an absolute mess of a film. I challenge anyone to re-watch it and provide a compelling case otherwise. Don’t go off of memory.
Kickboxer is bad. Just watch Bloodsport.