Movie Review: "JCVD"

Director: Mabrouk El Mechri
Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, François Damiens, Zinedine Soualem

"JCVD" is unlike any movie Jean-Claude Van Damme has ever starred in before. The film is a fictional biopic where Van Damme plays himself and is portrayed as a down-and-out action star. He is out of money, his agent cannot find him a decent production and he just lost the child custody battle for his daughter. He then returns to his hometown of Brussels, Belgium where he is caught in the middle of a post office heist. Due to a series of misunderstandings, the police believes that Van Damme is the one responsible for heist.

This is by far the most fascinating Van Damme film I've ever watched. The film successfully combines comedy with drama and features very little action. In fact, the only action in the film is the 3-minutes-long opening scene which was captured in a single shot.

The film's highlight is Van Damme's acting ability. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Van Damme can actually act! Some may argue that he is not really acting because he is only playing himself, but in this film we get to see another side of Van Damme we've never seen before. One particular scene to look out for is when Van Damme breaks down as he prays to God and looks back on his life's accomplishments. It also helps that the film's dialogue is in Van Damme's native language of French, which allows him to act more naturally. For his performance in this film, Van Damme was nominated for Best Actor alongside Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke at the 2008 Toronto Film Critics Association Awards. Impressive.

"JCVD" is funny, heartfelt and unconventional. This film reinvents Jean-Claude Van Damme and proves that he can act. I highly recommend it.

Score: 8.5/10


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