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JCVD (2008) 7.2
Ratings:
7.2/10 from 25,969 users
Metascore: 64/100
Reviews: 123 user | 160 critic | 25 from Metacritic.com Between his tax problems and his legal battle with his wife for the custody of his daughter, these are hard times for the action movie star who finds that even Steven Seagal has pinched a ... See full summary » Director:Mabrouk El Mechri |
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Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Jean-Claude Van Damme | ... | ||
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Valérie Bodson | ... |
Veuve Film Budapest
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Hervé Sogne | ... |
Lieutenant Smith
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Rock Chen | ... |
Réalisateur asiatique
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Huifang Wang | ... |
Traductrice asiatique
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| John Flanders | ... |
Avocat ex-Femme
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Renata Kamara | ... |
Juge Tribunal Los Angeles
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Mourade Zeguendi | ... |
Client Vidéo club
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Vincent Lecuyer | ... |
Vendeur Vidéo Club
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Jenny De Chez | ... |
Taxiwoman JCVD
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Patrick Steltzer | ... |
Policier 1
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Bernard Eylenbosch | ... |
Technicien Telecom
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| François Damiens | ... |
Bruges
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Pascal Lefebvre | ... |
Képi 2
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Jacky Lambert | ... |
Képi 3
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Edit
Plot Summary
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Plot Synopsis
See more »
Storyline
Between his tax problems and his legal battle with his wife for the custody of his daughter, these are hard times for the action movie star who finds that even Steven Seagal has pinched a role from him! In JCVD, Jean-Claude Van Damme returns to the country of his birth to seek the peace and tranquility he can no longer enjoy in the United States. Written by Wismerhill & Redking
Plot Keywords:
hit with a car door | character repeating someone else's dialogue | black comedy | brussels belgium | bank robbery |Taglines:
The biggest fight of his life See more »Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
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See full technical specs »
Details
Release Date:
4 June 2008 (France) See more »Also Known As:
JCVD - I huvudet på Van Damme See more »Box Office
Budget:
€10,000,000 (estimated)Opening Weekend:
$20,119 (USA) (7 November 2008)Gross:
$470,691 (USA) (16 January 2009)Company Credits
Show detailed
company contact information
on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Dolby DigitalColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1
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[...]
See more »
Performed by Marie Mazziotti (p2000)
Courtesy of Marie Mazziotti
By Arrangement with The Orchard
Lyrics and Music by David Bowie
Editions: North America: Jones Music Americ (ascap)
adm by Arzo Publishing
Rest of world: Jones Music America / RZO Music Ltd
(All Rights Reserved Globally)
See more »
Did You Know?
Trivia
According to Mabrouk El Mechri in a Q&A on the Toronto International Film Festival, about 70% of the film was scripted, and the other 30% was improvised from the actors. See more »Goofs
In the opening scenes where JCVD is fighting a lot of people, he kicks a guy into the back of a car. When the guy comes back at him JCVD takes a wide swing and drops the guy. But it is very obvious that JCVD's fist comes nowhere near the guy. See more »Quotes
J.C.V.D.: This movie is for me. There we are, you and me. Why did you do that? Or why did I do that? You made my dream come true. I asked for it. I promised you something in return and I haven't delivered yet. You win, I lose. Unless... the path you've set for me is full of hurdles where the answer comes before the question. Yeah I do that. Now I know why. It's the cure, from what I've seen here. It all makes sense. It makes sense to those who understand. So... America, poverty, stealing to eat... ...[...]
See more »
Crazy Credits
The Gaumont title sequence begins with a silhouetted boy picking up a sunflower, but he is met by a silhouetted Jean-Claude Van Damme, who attempts to grab the sunflower from him. When the boy refuses to let go of the sunflower, Van Damme gives him a roundhouse kick before kicking the sunflower up into space, where it grows into the Gaumont logo. See more »Soundtracks
"Modern Love"Performed by Marie Mazziotti (p2000)
Courtesy of Marie Mazziotti
By Arrangement with The Orchard
Lyrics and Music by David Bowie
Editions: North America: Jones Music Americ (ascap)
adm by Arzo Publishing
Rest of world: Jones Music America / RZO Music Ltd
(All Rights Reserved Globally)
See more »
There's some word combinations that you simply can't envisage together. "Jean-Claude Van Damme can act" is one of them. Yet, remarkable as it may seem, the Muscles from Brussels turns in a truly career turning performance in JCVD.
Directed and co-written by Mabrouk El Mechri, JCVD manages to capably straddle art house, action and comedy genres as it captivates the viewer by laying bare the soul of the star of such DVD fare as Bloodsport, Streetfighter, and Universal Soldier, to name only a few.
Largely based on his real life troubles, JCVD unfolds as Van Damme retreats to his native Belgium in the wake of a losing child custody battle in a Los Angeles court.
Mounting financial troubles have left our hero with over-maxed plastic and debit cards that no longer yield ATM withdrawals. Forced to tap into his savings reserves, he makes a pit stop at a post office/bank to arrange a money wire transfer to pay his lawyer, only to discover that the bank is in the process of being robbed and he's stuck in the midst of the drama.
To make matters worse, the manner in which things have unfolded has caused authorities and media alike to believe that Van Damme is the mastermind, orchestrating the heist and hostage taking to pay his legal bills.
Segmented into chapters and shown out of sequence, similar to Pulp Fiction, El Mechri manages to deftly juggle laughs and tension to deliver a film that uniquely straddles several genres, including breaking the "fourth wall" with an eight-minute long monologue in the film's third act that sees the muscle-bound Belgian recap, with painful tear-inducing pain, his life of cheesy movies, women and drugs.
Think of Dog Day Afternoon in which Pacino gets to speak to the audience and lay his soul bare and you've got an idea of what's in store with JCVD, which, if there's any justice, will do for Van Damme's career what Tarantino did for Travolta's. Especially now that we know JCVD can act.