We Die Young

I have to say the gangster casting was very convincing and on point. Lior Geller's story's concept was good, but the screenplay had some issues. His directing was good, but his camera work was poorly captured with the non-stop shaky cam shots. Not sure if he's heard of a gimbal or a cam tripod, but it was really needed in 80% of this film, as I was getting a headache trying to stay focused on the main scenes. The score was decent, but overbearing and unnecessary in some parts. JCVD was great in this, although not much of his martial arts talent was showcased. For a B-grade film, it was decent. Would I recommend it? Sure, if you're a fan of JCVD, as this is better than some of his recent previous work. Would I see it again? Nope. It's a generous 7/10 from me

As a long time JCVD fan, from time to time I look up to see what he has coming out later in the year. I've been waiting to check out We Die Young since I found out about it last year. Since I grew up 20 minutes from Washington D.C. (not far from where the film takes place) I was extra curious about this one. Although not the actionfest I was originally hoping for, it turned out to be a surprisingly good film. Solid directing and acting make this one of the better Van Damme movies of the last decade. Nothing revolutionary, but an entertaining "day in the life" of a teenage gang member who suddenly tries to get his little brother out of the gang life. The films main character is a teenage drug runner for the MS13 gang in a D.C. neighborhood. The same day he is making the biggest "package" run of his life, some gang members decide to "jump in" his little brother. Deciding he doesn't want that life for his little brother, they try to take off, and things get hectic from there on out. Van Damme is a former marine, who was injured and lost his ability to speak (yes, Van Damme has no dialog in the film) and is now a junkie who buys from (and eventually helps) our teenage lead. Don't let that deter you, JCVD is in the whole movie, it follows both characters over the 24 hour period in which the film takes place. There isn't a single martial arts fight, but there is a good amount of violence from beatings, stabbings and shootouts. Van Damme gives a solid performance, especially for no dialog. If you just enjoy gang films it's worth giving it a watch. If you like JCVD movies than definitely check this one out, it's one of this best films in years.

With all the positive reviews on IMDB I thought it was a good movie, but it really isn't. I'm a Van Damme fan, but this movie is just done badly. The camera is all over the place, even when there's no action it just jerks from left to right. The music is bad, the story is dull and there are way to much boring scenes that just don't fit the film and take the pace out of the story, if you know what I mean. All in all it's just a weak movie, that isn't even interesting enough to play in the background. Sorry, Jean-Claude...

This is not an engaging movie at all. It shows some promise at the start and teases, yet never delivers. JCVD is under utilized and does nothing of note. The shaky cam is well noted and just underlines the cheapness of the whole project. It would of been an easy 5* if JCVD just burst out from his passive shell just once.

Everyone remembers Van Damme as the legendary action star of great 80s and 90's genre classics. In the last decade, he's proven he's more than that especially in his post JCVD (2008) career and has shown more depth to the roles he has done. This is more than action, it has a dramatic story with genuinely good performances from the actors which make you care about the characters more than a typical action movie. The story felt realistic, had a good message and was better than expected for a B direct to VOD movie. Overall, the movie may not be as action packed as some of his earlier work, but is still recommended for fans as Van Damme gives a solid performance. Good to see JCVD doing better than Seagal after all these years, and this is one of his better latter career movies alongside his recently released film - The Bouncer.

6/10.