Standard revenge film with a fantastically violent climax

Rating: 8/10 (10 August 2016)

This simplistic yet effective exercise in action from Jean Claude Van Damme offers up pretty much everything you could want from such a film; there's drama, tension, romance, some really sleazy bad guys, a cruel, frightening villain and, of course, oodles of macho violence to enjoy. It plays a bit like BLOODSPORT, but with added plot which gives the film a better structure. Less fight scenes and more character development make this the better film.
Okay, so it has dated badly. Being a late '80s film, it's full of cheesy pop songs which pop up at every opportunity, as well as the expected leotards and track suits. Van Damme is probably the best actor in the film, giving you some idea as to the depth of the acting talent on display here. The older actors are more likable and the chief villain, Tong Po, looks extremely menacing, but everybody else is forgettable. Van Damme struggles with a thick accent but is on top form in terms of physical fitness.
Up until the last twenty minutes, this is pretty bland stuff. Some amusing training scenes showing Van Damme being exerted to the limit and a couple of fight scenes break up the momentum but it's standard all the way. Then the final battle commences and the film becomes superb. Just after you hear the line "...hands soaked in hemp and resin and dipped in broken glass" do you realise that this is going to be something good, and it doesn't disappoint. Exciting, adrenaline-pumping, and very extreme, it's a shame the rest of the film doesn't live up to this climactic showdown. Tong Po really does get his just desserts here as he faces a brutal pummelling from Van Damme before getting his skull cracked against a stone pillar.
Apart from the final fight, this is average Van Damme, with little in the way of budget or story to help out. In itself, the climax would rate a 5/5, but unfortunately the rest of the film drags the score down. Definitely worth seeing for fans of the genre though.