The Belgian/French movie with an actor people used to know.

JCVD

Story:

Jean-Claude Van Damme, a fading action star fighting for custody of his children as well as dealing with financial troubles and his fading career, becomes a key element in a hostage situation.

Review:

If you remember Guile from the live action Street Fighter movie, or Jean Villain from The Expendables 2, or were just a fan of 90's/80's action movies in general, you've seen one of Jean-Claude Van Damme's movies. So, suffice it to say, if you're a fan of Jean-Claude Van Damme then you're probably a fan of countless other martial artists such as Jason Statham, Jet Li, and Jackie Chan. IF SO, then you won't want to watch JCVD, as it has maybe five minutes of martial arts action. JCVD is more about the issues that Jean-Claude actually had to deal with after his career more or less fell apart. In essence, JCVD is a fictional story set during real events.

What I liked:

1. The story.

As mentioned before, JCVD is a fictional story that occurs during actual events. Jean-Claude was never a hostage in a violent situation in Belgium, but he did have to fight for custody of his children, and his career went down the drain.

2. The humor.

"Steven promised to cut his couette off." Tiny parts like that light up JCVD every now and then, showcasing that even though this is a very depressing movie, it does has some mildly laughable moments.

3. Jean-Claude.

Whenever I watch a Jean-Claude Van Damme film, I always expect a ton of martial arts and a bit of story thrown in every here and there. With JCVD, it's the other way around. Jean-Claude's performance isn't exactly his greatest, but as the story threads along I felt a tiny tinge of sadness as Jean-Claude's situation was more or less explained.

What I didn't like:

1. An intriguing story that doesn't exactly deliver.

What the average viewer is given is a story about Jean-Claude that doesn't exactly deliver. There's backstory, plot, and emotion, but not nearly enough. JCVD ends up feeling more like the first part of a film that never was completed.

2. The lack of intensity.

Each action sequence is short and to the point. There's no build up and there's no big ending. Everything just happens. Even from a realistic point of view it's still kind of lacking.

Who I recommend JCVD to:

People who like the (somewhat) true stories behind struggling actors. Even with it's somewhat lacking delivery, JCVD still manages to be an interesting enough story that people will at least want to finish it once they started it.