Kickboxer: Vengeance Blu-ray Review
Chances are, if the movie has KICKBOXER in the title, you know pretty much what to expect. That went for 1989’s original, 1991’s KICKBOXER 2: THE ROAD BACK, 1992’s KICKBOXER 3: THE ART OF WAR, 1994’S KICKBOXER 4: THE AGGRESSOR and 1995’S KICKBOXER 5: THE REDEMPTION. This reboot/remake/retread, KICKBOXER: VENGEANCE, follows suit.
Kurt Sloane (Alain Moussi, the web miniseries STREET FIGHTER: RESURRECTION, in which he played Charlie Nash) arrives in Thailand with only a backpack. He reaches a building and asks to train with Tong Po (former WWE wrestler Dave Batista, also featured in the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY movies), a renowned martial artist. This doesn’t go exactly as planned, as Sloane is attacked and challenged to a combative fight against two men (one of whom is played by UFC icon Georges St-Pierre). Soon enough, though, Sloane counters Tong Po, who has the physical strength to destroy structures with fists and feet. It is also revealed in flashbacks that he killed Sloane’s brother, Eric (Darren Shahlavi, 2010’s IP MAN 2), who Tong Po deems a “warrior” while calling Sloane a “coward.” Can you spot where the “vengeance” comes into play?
Eric’s death at the hands of Tong Po provides all of Sloane’s drive and offers him the chance to confront and encounter several other characters, like fight promoter Marcia (Gina Carano, a former MMA fighter herself; she has also appeared in Steven Soderbergh’s HAYWIRE and Marvel’s DEADPOOOL), who is named responsible for Eric’s death, and Master Durand (Jean-Claude Van Damme, who appeared in the first KICKBOXER as Kurt Sloane), Eric’s former trainer.
The story itself is simple, perhaps just enough to maintain the target audience’s attention in between fight sequences. This won’t be much of a problem to them, who are there more for the combative scenes than character depth. As for these scenes, there are somewhere around maybe a dozen of them, utilizing various forms of punches and kicks to deliver bruises and cuts.
Such scenes work best when they’re well-choreographed and have charismatic subjects. Moussi has served as a stuntman and trained in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, but doesn’t bring much to the table in terms of performance. So many of the moves seem too rehearsed, like he’s waiting for the cue for the baddie to charge. This, despite some quick cutting and hyper music, hurts many of the fights. Van Damme, on the other hand, is still interesting to watch in action (especially when easily taking on his protégé) even nearly three decades after first appearing in the series.
KICKBOXER: VENGEANCE isn’t quite the mess many may expect, but it certainly lacks the energy that it needs, particularly during the action sequences. Too much relies merely on guys showing up with muscles escorted by heavy drumbeats on the soundtrack. Fans will get what they expect, and the same will surely go for the sequels, KICKBOXER: RETALIATION and KICKBOXER: SYNDICATE, scheduled to begin filming next year.
BLU-RAY REVIEW
Video: 2.40:1 in 1080p with MPEG-4 AVC codec. Details are strong and colors appear accurate.
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Subtitles in English, Spanish and French. Dialogue is clean but it’s the punches and kicks of the fight scenes that stand out.
Behind the Scenes: KICKBOXER: VENGEANCE (6:11): This featurette uses interviews, clips and on-set footage to give a brief overview of the movie.
Photo Gallery