Thoughts on Kickboxer

via Giphy

"Revenge is a dangerous motive."

"It's also a powerful one."

A popular motive, too. Kickboxer is another from the "this time, it's personal" series. Kurt Sloane (Jean-Claude Van Damme, who contributed to the story and choreographed/directed the fight scenes) steps into the ring to take on Tong Po (Michel Qissi). Kurt's doing so to avenge his brother, Eric (Dennis Alexio), a cocky American champion who got more than he bargained for and is paralyzed because of it.

I'm not completely opposed to the idea of Kurt fighting on behalf of Eric, but it's an idea that could have been fleshed out better. Prior to the brothers' journey to Thailand, Eric mentions Kurt is considering becoming a veterinarian. Kurt also appears to handle Eric's training and management. The brothers are apparently each other's sole family (sequels would change that), so it's plausible that Kurt would need to be the breadwinner. Instead, his motivation seems to be that he's strong enough to take Tong Po on, so why not? 

"Hey. We're family. Let's kick some ass."

The cliches abound. Kurt receives the best possible training from Xian Chow (Dennis Chan), who's initially reluctant to come out of retirement. Xian's got a pretty but victimized niece whom he treats like a daughter, Mylee (Rochelle Ashana). Corruption spreads deep, from the protection money Mylee has to pay to the crime lords pulling the strings to Tong Po himself, who rapes Mylee. Meanwhile, Eric copes with his own misgivings (although, surprisingly, it doesn't seem to be out of jealousy) and fish out of water Taylor (Haskell Anderson) has to decide if he'll do the right thing.

In addition to Van Damme, the "brain trust" included directors Mark Disalle (who also contributed to the story) and David Worth, plus screenwriter Glenn A. Bruce. MarkInTexas put it best: this is basically Rocky IV in Thailand.

"White warrior!"

Not Recommended.

Thoughts:

-- Box Office: Grossing nearly $15 million domestically on a near $3 million budget, this opened at No. 3 and came in 69th place for 1989.

-- Critic's Corner: "It may not be the dumbest action picture of the year, but it's not for lack of trying," wrote Chris Willman of the Los Angeles Times.

-- Fanservice Junction: Jean-Claude's behind plays peekaboo a few times during the finale. There's also the exotic dancers at the bar Kurt and Taylor visit.

-- Musical Moments: Besides being endearingly goofy, the bar fight/dance number allows the opportunity for music that isn't a power ballad.

-- I wonder if Michael Tolkin ever saw this. Taylor's jokes after kicking ass and saving Eric, "Sorry I took so long. Traffic was a mess. There's a big fight in town," is pretty similar to the happily ever after one-liner in The Player, "Traffic was a bitch."

-- Next Weekend: Sea of Love and Apartment Zero.