Jean-claude Van Damme Movie:

		List Price: $19.99		Label: Peace Arch Home Entertainment Salesrank: 12187 Released: April 28, 2009
		Our Price: $10.89
		Used Price: $5.25
		MPAA Rating: R (Restricted) Media: DVD

Editorial Review:
Studio: Peace Arch Home Entertain Release Date: 04/28/2009 Run time: 97 minutes Rating: R

JCVD Reviews:
heart-felt Van Damme
2009-11-29 - Rivetting movie, heart-felt story and happy to have bought it. I hope to see Van Damme do more of these types of movies and he deserves to receive great praises!

ZOMG Van Damme!!! Not just an action hero but now a GOOD ACTOR!!!
2009-10-21 - Ok actually i saw his acting improvement before this movie in a movie called "From Hell". The movie sucked, but his acting was superb. Well JCVD he takes it to a new level. I now fully see that his real acting talent is now finally blooming and you can expect Van Damme to be a serious star in the next decade or two. He still looks tough as nails and with his distinguished aging he looks even meaner. Hell i would be looking to cast him in a mob movie (French or Belgium mob of course cuz i dont know if hes worked on a NYC accent :) Anyway back to the movie. Great acting all around, an pretty original situation that i wont spoil here but its not your typical bank robbery. He certainly the underdog in this movie, so much so that early on you start to realize things wont end well but whether they do or dont i wont say, all i can say is that there is a scene in this movie that made me get up and cheer like i havent done since i saw Rocky IV in the theaters towards the end of the cold war.

JCVD, i really hope this means your back. Just please dont be afraid to take action roles, its fine if you continue to do that because your loyal fans will still enjoy that. BUT PLEASE KEEP THIS NEW ERA GOING! Your a serious actor now. Get more serious roles! You will finally put Steven Seagal under your heal, because i never thought he had half the talent you do.

Haoleus

The art of illusion, the illusion of art...
2009-10-08 - "JCVD" spells out the initials of Jean-Claude Van Damme for a reason. He's playing a character who is himself. He's initially spotted by some fans who want his autograph before he's off to the post office to receive some money, but then he inadvertently stumbles upon a heist. Initially it's thought by those outside that Jean-Claude is responsible, and the crowds of gathering fans cheer, but unbeknownst to them Jean-Claude is being held prisoner. What kind of prisoner is he?

At one point the camera focuses on Jean-Claude and he veers off into a monologue about his life as a movie star, his various regrets in life, and why he stopped acting. It's an ironic monologue that turns our expectations upside down. This isn't a typical action film by Jean-Claude, this is a post-modern comedy drama, a sort of autobiography, and a sort of dream or illusion. Jean-Claude mentions that he wanted to become a star, and here, surprisingly, he gives us a remarkable performance worthy of a fine actor. This film playfully intermingles a real life autobiography with the fabricated illusion of film. And like a magician he magically begins to float into the air as he's telling us his life story. Is it true what he's saying, or is it just part of the illusion of a story about him, just as it's an illusion that he's floating up towards the ceiling? We see him rise up to the level of the stage lights, and so the illusion of the room and its kidnapped victims is replaced with this seemingly heartfelt outpouring of emotion by Jean-Claude. He says he regrets that so many others who also have had dreams have never attained them, but he also acknowledges that what he has done is unimportant. He is a star known by millions, but, he says, it is really nothing. There are more important things in life. He had become a prisoner in his own life, which was largely based on people's perceptions of who they thought he was, which were based on the unreal character he played in movies, like "Bloodsport".

When we watch a film we're usually expected to suspend our disbelief, but in this film we are asked to question the very film itself, its fabricated reality, and by association, even our perception of reality. We are not allowed to be passive witnesses to this film, but are instead challenged to questioned everything about it, its truth, its illusion, its meaning. This is a thoughtful film about reality, identity, and perception, and as much as it speaks about Jean-Claude it also speaks about us, the viewer, and how we interpret the world around us.

Okay Movie, Bad DVD
2009-10-06 - I'm gonna give you two reviews for the price of one:
I'll first address the film, JCVD. And then, I'll get into the DVD.

***FILM***
I feel really bad not giving this movie the positive review I want to. Jean-Claude Van Damme gets the kind of dramatic role I always wanted to see him try to tackle. The story is an intersting idea, as our perceptions of a movie star are challenged in the most unusual ways. Quite frankly, this story sounds like a great graphic novel, or even a great news article. It must've been a blast to write this screenplay, and I'm sure it must've been a lot of fun to make the movie.

The problem, though, is that writer/director Mabrouk El Machri isn't up to the task of shooting this movie properly. There are times where his direction is very creative to the service of this unique story, and there are times when his stylistic choices don't do the story justice.

Our story begins with a very funny one-shot sequence, where Van Damme is trying to pull off a grueling action scene. It involves everything from knife-fighting, to grendade throwing, to AK-47 shooting, to hostage rescuing, to hiding in a barrel...all for a faulty set wall to ruin everything. Van Damme is working extra-hard at his craft, but the foreign-speaking director says to assistant, "This guy thinks we're making CITIZEN KANE." Jean-Claude's efforts are all for naught.

It gets worse when his custody hearing isn't going well, mainly because his filmography is a laughing stock to those litigating the case. He has tax issues. And his producing partner doesn't seem interested in finding Jean-Claude a decent script to invest & star in. After a rough couple of days, Jean-Claude gets caught up in a post office/bank robbery gone wrong, and the cops & public think Van Damme is the culprit!

The film is divided into two sections:
One is the robbery hostage scene, spoken in French with English subtitles.
The other is Jean-Claude Van Damme's struggles before the robbery, mostly spoken in English.

Of course, the English-speaking portions were easy for me to follow, because that is my natural language. But I actually find these segments of JCVD more fascinating overall. Hostage scenes in movies become claustrophobic and lacking in scope; after all, they have to be in order to be true to the material. But seeing Van Damme interact with various people in his everyday life allows for more liberating camera shots, and more style. The opening action scene and courtroom scene are great farce, and Van Damme's obstacles in his career must have at least a small bit of truth. Why else would the actor choose to play himself if it were all complete farce?

The robbery sequence in Belgium is where I have the most problems. To be fair, there are some brilliant moments. I love when the sets briefly deconstruct, and when the camera elevates along with Van Damme, so that he can deliver a monologue covering everything from the beauty of life to the sadness of death. This monologue has been criticised from some; I say that it's a glimpse into what Van Damme is capable of acheiving as an actor, and I personally enjoyed it as a sort of Shakespearean monologue. There are some funny moments like when one of the robbers is so honored to be holding Jean-Claude captive, that he asks ridiculous questions about his career and fight choreography. And when the hostage scenario comes to a close, it happens in an unexpected but natural standoff. The aftermath is also quite touching.

But director Mabrouk El Mechri has photographed and framed this whole plot thread in an odd, and ultimately unsatisfying way. The robbers are boring, frankly, with one of them being a shameful ripoff of Sal from DOG DAY AFTERNOON with his straight long hair and cold tendency towards violence. The police officers on the scene are nothing you haven't seen before, with the slight exception of Inspector Bruges, who is trying to respect the successful Jean-Claude Van Damme while saving the lives of the hostages. After all, almost every citizen in this movie thinks the "Muscles From Brussels" is a true success story, unlike the Americans in this movie.

I think it was a poor decision to split this story out of chronological order, especially when the story tries to build suspense when the police think Van Damme has lead the post office robbery. Frankly, I never believed it, I don't think any regular viewer will, and it was a miscalculation on Mabrouk El Mechri's part to present it this way. I don't mind flashbacks, but only if the material demands it. JCVD didn't need to edited this way. Also, El Mechri should've had a longer talk with the cinematographer and music supervisor, because both made some minor missteps. The color of the movie has this sleep-inducing green tone, which gets old real quick. Plus, the use of shadows in the post office is completely unecessary, and actually started to put me to sleep. The music is kinda funny sometimes, like when a piece of jazz plays when Van Damme is trying to stay polite to a cab driver who continues to get on his nerves. But it gets bad when it relies on minimal "tones" when things get rough on the crime scene; it's lazy score-writing, and devoid of personality.

I know I've trashed a lot of this movie, and I know that I loved some of this movie. I was so unsure of how I felt that I watched JCVD a second time. But my response is the same: It's a commendable, ambitious mess. I hope that the filmmakers and Jean-Claude Van Damme can use this as a stepping stone to better things, because the talent is clearly visible. But somethings were lost in translation to the screen, and I felt kinda empty because of it.

JCVD is a movie that intrigued my mind, but didn't rouse my spirits. I believe JCVD is a sign of better things to come for Van Damme, but nothing more.
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*****DVD*****
Alright, so the only thing I want to warn viewers about is the English-language track on the disc. Quite frankly, it's pretty poor overall. I don't expect dubbed movies to have perfect lip-synching, but the voice-casting was not very good this time. The most heartbreaking is that Jean-Claude Van Damme doesn't even do his own voiceover!!! I mean, dubbing should be a workable thing if you can see the screen, right? Some scenes come off alright, but the lack of Van Damme's own voice for his monologue or other dramatic moments is very distracting. I guess JCVD was a movie where I liked reading the subtitles, but didn't enjoy listening to.

huge fan of him but another bad movie
2009-10-06 - horrible camera work good storyline hardly any action worst part is its dubbed cant believe that why didnt they just do it in english why people gave such a good review idk