Jean-Claude Van Damme is an odd duck. He started out as probably the cheesiest action star (we all loved him and grew up on those films but let's be honest), then got somewhat of a superstar in the early to mid nineties, then developed a huuuuge coke addiction as well as a worsening onset of extreme bipolar disorder and finally he crashed and burned completely. He then lingered in DTV obscurity (from the mainstream audiences, that is. He still had a dependable fanbase built up) for years and years. During those years he started to mature and develop as an actor. We could see signs of that in Ringo Lam's "In Hell" where he acts his socks off and is very good. Still, a mainstream return seemed highly unlikely before a little film called "JCVD" hit the scene and became sort of a critical darling. Especially for the wonderful and heart breaking monologue he delivers to the camera at one point in the film. Suddenly people started to see that there is actual talent there except just roundhousing fools in the face in slo-mo while screeching like a banshee. Even still, mainstream acceptance eluded him, so he kept toiling in the DTV world. Except for the odd Expendables he seems destined to remain there. This film is no exception. This too, is an odd duck. It feels like a melodrama with some moments of action sprinkled in here and there. It's nowhere near bad and is very competently made and mostly well acted. Van Damme also doesn't say a word in the whole film (he plays a mute war vet with PTSD and a pill addiction). I like this film and JCVD is very good in it but I can't shake the feeling his character belongs to a different film. It feels a little off. It's hard to explain. Anyway, his character lives in a rough neighborhood where he keeps mostly to himself. The MS 13 affiliated kid he buys his pills from tries to keep his little brother from getting sucked into the gang lifestyle while at the same time performing his cartel duties such as drug running and collection of protection money from the terrified citizens in the neighbourhood. Things go sideways and all hell breaks loose. JCVD feels compelled to come to the rescue. He made a mistake in his soldier days and perhaps he can be here for these troubled kids. Like I said this is neither masterpiece nor crap. Just a solid JCVD DTV. It's interesting how he came out on top compared to all the other lower level action guys (the king is still Stallone, tightly followed by Arnie) who were around in the 80's and 90's. Several of them are producing mostly dreck. especially Steven Seagal who gives nary a hoot anymore as long as the buffet table is stocked and his check clears. Dolph Lundgren sometimes also dips back into mainstream cinema from time to time (Aquaman and Creed 2 this past year) but is otherwise firmly trapped in DTV-land. Van Damme at least tries, even if he too makes plenty of garbage just to pay the bills (Black Water, Pound Of Flesh, Kill Em All).
Review of We Die Young
