You can love him or hate him, but the fact remains: Jean-Claude Van Damme With his appearance on the screen, he became a trendsetter in combat cinematography. Entire franchises have sprung up in his name, spawning countless sequels and prequels for the sake of box office revenue. In the late 80s - early 90s, films in the spirit of "Blood sport"Or"Kickboxer"breathed new life into a genre that had almost died out after the end of the era of Chuck Norris and ninja films.
In those years it was the popularity Van Damme opened the doors of Hollywood to such actors as Don "Dragon" Wilson, Olivier Gruner, Dale "Apollo" Cook and Lauren Avedon. After "Blood sport" And "Kickboxer"Imitation series have become popular in video stores (including "Bloody Fist", "King of Kickboxers", "American Kickboxer" 1-2). Even the famous Roger Corman admits that the "Bloody Fist" series with Wilson was created by him on the wave of Van Damme's success.
Van Damme's infectious effect can only be compared to an explosion of imitations Bruce Lee in the 70s (at that time cheap cinemas were filled with a lot of films parasitizing on the name of Bruce Lee, in which “Bruce Le”, “Bruce Lai”, “Dragon Lee”, etc. were filmed). If the “Bruce style” films used words like “Fist”, “Fury”, “Exit”, “Dragon” or “Game” in their titles, then for the “Vandamme” ones they were “Bloody”, “Kickboxer”, “Target” or "Blow".
Let's not forget about "Double strike" (1991), which became the inspiration for Jackie Chan during the filming of "Gemini Dragons" (1992). Ironically, Gemini Dragons was made during a period when Hollywood studios were actively borrowing ideas from Hong Kong action films. Thus, Van Damme's influence not only changed the rules of the game in the film business, but also became a worldwide phenomenon.
After the middle of his successful film career, Van Damme made his mark by working with eminent Hong Kong directors, before other studios seized on them. With him came John Woo to Hollywood with “Hard Target” (1993), Ringo Lam with “Maximum Risk” (1996) and Tsui Hark with “Double Team” (1997) and “Fuse” (1998). Ask yourself: "Which other Western actors have worked with all these trio of Hong Kong legends? "And that's not counting Corey Yuen (“No Retreat, No Surrender,” 1986). It was also thanks to him that the career of future blockbuster creator Roland Emmerich (Universal Soldier, 1992) took off.
With an unconventional but highly acclaimed film"J.K.V.D"(2008) Van Damme managed to repeat his previous success. Although it was not as impressive as John Travolta's with Pulp Fiction, his career has been fairly smooth over the past five years."The Expendables of 2(2012) gave him the opportunity to star in a major project opposite superstars like Stallone and Schwarzenegger. He also starred in commercials for Coors Light, Go Daddy and (most famously) Volvo. Of course, he's still takes part in low-budget films, but, in the end, so do Bruce Willis and Robert De Niro, for the most part. Van Damme today produces quite a high-quality result on the screen, and his fans can be quite proud of him (just let's imagine that "Derailed" (2002) never existed).
New or old - films with JCVD always attract attention, and this is exactly what the market needs. It is not surprising that many of them got sequels, only without Van Damme himself: "Time Patrol 2", the television series "Time Patrol", "Kickboxer" 2 - 6, "Bloodsport" 2 - 3, "Universal Soldier 2: Brothers weapons" and "Universal Soldier 3: Unfinished Business" - the title alone was enough to collect cash.
Work is currently underway on remakes, reboots and sequels of several Van Damme films. After much thought and careful research, I have come to the conclusion that of all the action stars, Jean-Claude's heroes are the ones who get the most "reboots." Let's see this by looking at the list of films that are or have been in the process of being rebooted:
"Don't retreat, don't give up" (1986): This cult film marked Van Damme's debut in martial arts films. It was directed by Corey Yuen (“Carrier”) presented American audiences with Hong Kong-style fight choreography. The film not only launched Van Damme's film career, but also reignited interest in the hand-to-hand film genre. Although Van Damme appeared on screen for only 20 minutes, the public remembered his role. Keith Strandberg, producer of the No Retreat, No Surrender series, has expressed interest in remaking the original No Retreat, No Surrender. If the remake does get released, it will be interesting to see how the remake will manage to show Bruce Lee as a ghost without getting sued by his heirs. Well, fingers crossed.
"Bloody sport" (1988). Newt Arnold's film marked the end of the shelf life of two N-words - "ninja" and "Norris". At the time, it was a stunning, brutal picture that lived up to its title. Simply put, it was my generation's answer to "Enter the Dragon" (1973) The fact that the film was based on real events (this is a separate story) only made it better.Bloody sport"rediscovered the legendary Bolo Yen to the world, and future Oscar winner Forest Whitaker also starred here. The original film received a sequel: in 1996, 1997 and 1999, three more serial parts were released, cheap sequels with Daniel Bernhardt ("The Matrix Reloaded") in leading role.
In 2013, Philip Noyce (Salt) was attached to direct the remake of Bloodsport, but after some time he was replaced by James McTeigue (Ninja Assassin). According to sources, the new film will follow the lives of mercenaries in the 21st century as they collide with the underground world of Brazil's Vale Tudo. So far, the promised remake is stuck somewhere in the jungle of development.
"Cyborg" (1989). Along with the films "The Sword and the Sorcerer" (1982) and "Nemesis" (1992), "Cyborg" is considered one of the best works of the cult director Albert Pyun. It collected enough money at the box office to ensure the release of a sequel in 1993 (already without Van Damme), which starred Elias Koteas, Jack Palance, Billy Drago, Karen Shepard and an unknown Angelina Jolie. Later, in 1995, “Cyborg 3: Recycler” was released with Christina Haye, Zach. Galligan, Richard Lynch and Malcolm McDowell.
In 2011, it was announced that Pyun was working on a remake of Cyborg. Then for some reason the remake turned into a prequel called "Cyborg Nemesis" (also known as "Cyborg: Rise of the Slingers"). The film, which is currently in post-production, stars Kevin Sorbo, Jay Falco, Dina Meyer, Michael Paré and Sasha Mitchell. Due to the fact that Pyun left the project due to health problems , its release date remains unknown.
"kickboxer" (1989). The film by Mark DiSalle and David Worth holds a special place in my childhood memories. After all, it was the first film with Van Damme, which I watched on the big screen. I remember it like it is now: my friends and I were leaving the cinema hall, trying to use “kickboxing techniques” on each other. It was an exciting moment, comparable only to children imagining lightsabers in their hands after watching Star Wars in 1977. In the future "kickboxer"received a number of sequels, where the place Van Damme Sasha Mitchell took over, and Mark Dacascos starred in one of them.
The main role in the remake"Kickboxer" entitled "Kickboxer: Vengeance" will be performed by a newcomer Alain Moussi. The project also stars WWE star Dave Bautista, UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, former MMA star Gina Carano and the late Darren Shahlavi, and is directed by John Stockwell (Blood Revenge).
In addition to this, Albert Pyun intends to film "Kickboxer: City of Blood"continuation of the saga"kickboxer"with Sasha Mitchell. Indonesian actress Julia Estelle ("Dara"), known mainly for her role as Hammer Girl in "The Raid 2", is invited to play the main female role. Just like in the case of "Cyborg Nemesis", Pyun's problems with health may lead to the suspension of the project.
"AWOL"(1990). There's more to come about Albert Pyun. In 2014, the director announced possible remake "AWOL":
I received an offer from the copyright holder to film a remake of AWOL with Van Damme. I'm not sure I want this because this movie hardly needs a remake. I think I would change the location from Los Angeles to Hong Kong, but I don't know how that would fit into what I'm doing. I told the copyright holder that the decision would depend on how interested J.K.V.D is in this. and will I get the opportunity to do everything the way I see it myself?
The remake never got off the ground, and for good reason: the original"AWOL"Sheldon Lettich is still considered by many to be the best film Van Damme.
A few years after the film's release, Robert Close (Enter the Dragon) capitalized on the success of "AWOL"in a film with a similar title: "Iron Heart" (in the original "AWOL" - "Lionheart"), where Bolo Yen ("Bloodsport") and Richard Norton ("Future Hungters") participated. One can only imagine how many ever since someone's parents brought home this tape instead of a movie with Van Damme, and that’s exactly what the producers wanted.
"Universal Soldier" (1992). Directed by Roland Emmerich ("Independence Day") from a screenplay by Dean Devlin ("Godzilla"), this 1992 sci-fi action film was a response Van Damme "Terminator" 1984. It also stars action star Dolph Lundgren ("The slave trade"). Thanks to the popularity of "Unisol", "Universal Soldier: The Return" was born in 1999 with Bill Goldberg and Michael Jai White, "Universal Soldier: Rebirth" in 2009 with Lundgren and Andrei Orlovsky and "Universal Soldier 4" in 2012 with Lundgren , Orlovsky and Scott Adkins In addition, it is worth mentioning the TV sequels made without Van Damme: 2's Universal Soldier 1998: Band of Brothers and 3's Universal Soldier 1999: Unfinished Business, as well as Asylum's Universal Soldiers (2007).
In 2011, there was talk of a relaunch"Universal Soldier"in the form of a television series (like "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles") under the direction of Allen Shapiro and Craig Baumgarten, who were the producers of the original. This idea was never further developed, but one can always hope for the future.
"time patrol" (1994). Unlike his '90s rival Steven Seagal, Van Damme experimented with different genres and characters, resulting in Peter Hyams' Time Patrol at the peak of his career. This comic book adaptation was a great blend of science fiction and action film, it can be described as "H.G. Wells plus Back to the Future plus martial arts." Thanks to the popularity of the film, it spawned a television series of the same name in 1997 and Time Patrol: The Berlin Solution in 2003 with Jason Scott Lee (Dragon). : The Bruce Lee Story").
The original Time Patrol still looks the part and is considered Van Damme's most professionally produced film. At the same time, it was announced that a remake is currently in development. The names of the director and actors are still unknown, but according to the latest news, the remake's producers have tapped Mark and Brian Gunn (Journey 2: The Mysterious Island) to write the script.
"Street Fighter"(1994). I know this has gone too far, but I can't help but say that Van Damme was the first action star to star in a film adaptation of the series."Street Fighter" from Capcom. Yes, of course, Wong Jing and Jackie Chan first used the images of the "Street Fighter" on screen in "City Hungter" (1992), but it was the film with Van Damme that was the official feature film adaptation. Despite the fact that the script was written talented Steven de Souza (screenwriter of "48 Hours", "Commando" and "Die Hard"), the film was torn to smithereens by both critics and audiences, but this did not stop it from becoming one of Van Damme's highest-grossing films.
In 2003, there were plans for a sequel to Street Fighter, with Jean-Claude Van Damme playing Guile, Damien Ciappa playing Ken, and Byron Mann playing Ryu. Dolph Lundgren and Holly Valance were also invited to the project to play the role of Cammy (instead of Kylie Minogue). However, the sequel never saw the light of day.
Instead, 2009 brought Street Fighter: The Legend of Chan Li, starring Christine Kreuk, Chris Klein, Robin Shue, Michael Clarke Duncan and Hong Kong legend Chen Pei-Pei (Let's Have a Drink with Me). Another film adaptation appeared in 2014 in the form of a web series "Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist", on the basis of which a television series and a film were later made. And with the video game "Street Fighter V" already on the way, we can well expect new on-screen renditions of the Street Fighter series.
That is how it is. Cityonfire.com It's official: Van Damme is the most "rebooted" action star. Of course, we're getting a little ahead of ourselves because no remake of Van Damme's films has ever been released, but I'm willing to delete this article if anyone can tell me another action star who has been the subject of so many remakes, reboots, sequels and copycat films.
Author: Jeff Bona
Translation: Viktor Egorov
Especially for Fight-Films.Info
Thanks for the work.
I love JCVD, and Bloodsport is actually my favorite movie.
Good article, thanks.
Cool article, Van Damme Forever.