Bloodsport Review

Moving away from the horror genre, but I am still stuck in the 1980s! Ah yes, martial arts films, how can you wrong? There are lessons to be learned, teacher-student bonds to be made, and of course, fighting to be had, and sometimes it can get bloody. Well, this film is bloody-tastic! I am of course referring to Newt Arnold's Bloodsport. This film is definitely a gem as far as the shear realistic fighting. The acting on the other hand....well....let's just say that Jean-Claude Van Damme doesn't convince me as an Oscar worthy actor, unless the Oscar is an award given by Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street. Yeah that bad. However, his martial arts skills make up for it somewhat, and I stress the word somewhat!

So, you are probably wondering why I mentioned the director's name other than the fact that it is Newt Arnold's film. Well, I found out a few films that he also worked on. He was an assistant director on movies such as The Godfather Part II, Blade Runner, The Goonies, and The Abyss. I found this very interesting because I am wondering if he really followed any possible advice by his superior directors. So, that being said, while reviewing this film, I will ultimately come up with my own opinion as to if Arnold is a legit director. Now, you are probably thinking, "How can you figure that out from one film?" Well this is one of the three films that he directed, so I think I can manage.
Anyway, Bloodsport was released in 1988. It stars Jean-Claude Van Damme as real-life martial arts legend Frank Dux, who competes in the Kumite, an underground martial arts tournament in Hong Kong, to honor his sick teacher of the Tanaka clan. This film also flashes back to when Dux was a child first learning what his teacher called martial science. After his teacher's son dies, Dux finishes out his teacher's training, and becomes his prized student.
As Dux travels to Hong Kong he is chased by two army officers to get him back to the army. Along the way, he buddies up with a mindless, but friendly American brawler named Ray Jackson, and an attractive reporter. Then, as the competition rolls on, he faces a challenging enemy known as Chong Li, played by Bolo Yeung, who has never lost a match. Dux must defy the odds, and win to honor his greatest teacher.

Chong Li!

LIKES

• The tournament itself is a classic free-for-all filled with bloody battles to the death! I admire this because you pick out characters that you like, and as more and more fighters are killed off, you wonder who will survive, even though Dux is the main character.
• Van Damme is an excellent fighter. You can definitely tell that he is well-trained.
• The final battle between Dux and Chong Li is epic, and shows the best of both fighters' skills.
• There is a guy that hangs around Dux in order to help him fit in among the other fighters named Victor Lin played by Ken Siu, and while his acting is obviously bad, he still cracks me up when he gets mad because you can definitely tell that it is forced. 

DISLIKES

• As mentioned before, Van Damme's acting is horrible! It is not Tommy Wiseau horrible, but you still find yourself wondering where he received his acting lessons. Although, apparently without him the film would not be possible because he played a huge behind-the-scenes role in editing the movie. so he was good at something, but not acting.
• Ray Jackson's character is too tough. He tries too hard. He picks a fight with everyone in the movie, even the army officers, who could easily get him in serious trouble with the law. Take Arnold Schwarzenegger for example, his acting may not be up to par, but he is just a tough guy, he doesn't pretend to be someone he's not in his films. 
• Besides the "Fight to Survive" song, the music is a little too corny for me, and while I realize that a lot of 80s films were like this, some of the songs used for this movie seemed to communicate a pop music vibe than a fighting vibe to me. So, what I am trying to say is, none of the songs made me want to punch something!

OVERALL/DIRECTOR ASSESSMENT
So, does Newt Arnold seem like he really learned by example from his superior directors? I obviously can't know for sure, but I am assuming no, especially for the acting. The action, maybe, but definitely not the acting. This film would have been so much better if the actors knew how to act, especially Van Damme. Even though the fighting almost overshadows it, the lack of acting is distracting. I wish that Van Damme showed more passion in what he was doing for his on screen teacher. He just seemed so fake to me, and I wish that was resolved. Now, I realize that every person is their own individual, but there is something to be said about learning from others to be the best you can be, and Arnold didn't seem to believe in this idea.

RATING 6/10- Great film if you are looking for awesome fights. Just don't expect to be impressed by a Razzie nominated actor for Worst New Star, Mr. Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Well that is it from me! Stay tuned for more from the Movie Maniac! The mania has just begun!