Change Your Image
theduke_87
Reviews
Lionheart (1990)
Van Damme's Best
Probably Van Damme's best movie ever. (The acting performance and emotional drama is probably 2nd only to "Legionairre" - Debatable)
I have watched this movie over and over for the passed 15 years, and it is Flawless. Van Damme gives probably his Best performance ever, as does all the co-stars and extra's of this film. At no point does the film seem slow or the acting seems wooden. It has a nice, continuous flow of drama, action and comedy.
The fight choreography is excellent courtesy of Frank Dux, Michel Qissi, and of course JCVD. Each fighter has his own persona, style and awesome look, making each battle interesting and fun to watch.
The soundtrack is superb thanks to conductor John Scott and the Munich Symphony Orchestra; Bill Wray's "No Mercy" is probably 2nd only to Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger", (very similar I grant you). The plot is simple, but at least veers more towards the importance of Lyon (Van Damme) raising money to help his sister-in-law and niece, which gives the film a more family feel, rather than the story typically being about him tracking down his brother's killer(s). In fact, I would recommend this movie to the entire family, if it weren't for the foul dialog and graphic physicality; but then again, it is these traits which give the film it's authenticity.
There are hundred's of JCVD critics out there, only to willing to disagree with me, but they don't take the movie for what it really is, a decent action flick which can make the audience laugh, cry and cheer; and to me, that deserves a perfect 10.
10/10
The Shooter (1995)
One of my favourite Dolph movies...
Though this film would be classed as mediocre by most, I rate this movie fairly high. The scenery is fantastic, the soundtrack is interesting with its combination of suspense and smooth jazz, and with Dolph Lundgren side-kicked with John Ashton you get a smooth, even dose of action, adventure and comedy.
Though the movie does seem slow at times, and you tend to forget the characters names or the reason why Dolph is actually there in the first place, the movie does provide decent suspense and action throughout.
I didn't like the fact that Dolph's main wound (his arm) was self-inflicted and rather, well... pointless. However, the rooftop-gunfight scene (end) and the part where Dolph takes out a sniper with a handgun are simply a must see! (Believable? It is within Dolph's power, ha-ha!)
The ending is simply awesome. Enough said.
This movie is fantastic, you'll either rate it as a masterpiece or just a decent, action flick; but nothing lower.
Droid Gunner (1995)
If only Matthias Hues had a bigger role...
With Matthias Hues on the cover and only $3.00, i had to buy it. I enjoyed some moments, like Hawks annoyance with the pleasure droids, but i only really watched to see Matthias Hues' scenes. I particularly enjoyed the showdown at the end. It was a cross between Clint Eastwood's "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" and "For a Few Dollars More" (a 3 man quick-draw showdown, with a musical pocket watch used as the countdown timer). Apart from that, there's really nothing more I can add. The actors gave good performances, (all except the "Assassin Droid" whose performance was nothing outside of comical) but the movie really lacked depth and purpose; simply not enough to fill up 1hour and a half of standard movie time, so we're stuck with the main characters aimlessly wondering around from place to place for an hour or so, until the ball gets rolling. For example, the main character returns to the same strip club about 4 times, taking up two-fifths of the movie.
The scenery really lacked depth and creativity, probably due to the films budget. I don't think we ever did get to see this "perfect city" of New Angeles that was always talked about, in fact, when the main characters finally reached New Angeles, its set in a factory or warehouse full of pipes and walkways; hardly the kind of "kingdom" the owner/creator of an entire city would dwell in. The "super-high security" of New Angeles was also always talked about, but only a total of 15, maybe 20, security guards were counted, even when the alarm went off; not even close to Matthias' approximation of "at least a hundred men out there".
If you are a fan of any of the actors/actresses in this film, then you may want to watch it, simply to "add it to the list". However, if you value 1 and a half hour of your time, or $3.00 of your money, you may want to give this one a miss.
Undead (2003)
Still haven't seen the ending yet
To give you an idea of how good this movie is, I switched it off about three-quarters of the way through and still haven't seen the ending.
The movie doesn't offer much and it doesn't really go anywhere, though plenty of gore, there's too much comedy in it to be classed as a horror and it's too boring to be classed as a comedy. The score is probably the shame of the movie as the music sounds like it was composed for a children's cartoon.
Marion's (the main character) spurs, gun fighting techniques and, most of all, his triple-shotgun is what gives this movie its bonus points and saves it from a miserable 1 star rating. His horrible wardrobe minuses points. I understand that he is dressed like a fisherman mainly because he is a fisherman, but "DarkMan" style clothing would suit his "strong and silent" type character better, and suit his weapon better as well.
In all the movie is pointless, but maybe one day I'll watch the ending.