My Review of Bloodsport (1988)

I followed up Gymkata with Bloodsport (1988).

Let me begin by saying that the real life Frank Dux is a delusional fraud, and literally one of the subjects of the original Stolen Valor. For the rest of this review, you can assume that any time I refer to Dux, I am referring to the 100% fictional character, and not the real-life fraudster.

The story of Frank Dux (in one of Jean-Claude Van Damme's first leading roles) is a simple, bloody spectacle. Dux is a young man who was taken under the wing of a world-renowned martial artist and who wishes to achieve the dream of his master's late son to seize victory in the Kumite. The Kumite is an underground, full-contact martial arts tournament held every five years by a clan of ninjas to determine who their greatest fighter is. The Kumite depicted in the film is the first time the event has been opened up to westerners, and fighters from all over the world have flocked to Hong Kong to take part.

Dux is some kind of military badass, and he has to keep his participation in the tournament a secret from the higher ups, who are apparently more concerned with him getting hurt in an MMA fight than whatever it is that he does for the military. Not getting shot at, I guess. Maybe he's a translator or something, and that's why they care so much about him? In any case, he goes AWOL and two agents (one played by a young Forest Whitaker) are dispatched to ineffectually tail him and periodically threaten him with tasers.

On his way out of the country, Dux stops at the home of his aging master, Tanaka (Roy Chiao) and we are treated to a flashback sequence that details all of Dux' history with Tanaka, while occasionally cutting back to Van Damme's impassive face to remind us that there's a present-day narrative that we'll be getting back to any day now. Most of the training montage content of this martial arts flick is also flashback content, like a delicious trope sandwich.

Once he's in Hong Kong, Dux quickly encounters Ray Jackson (Don Gibb), a foul-mouthed and publicly drunken sex pest, but an instantly loyal friend to Dux. Gibb's performance reminded me a lot of Mick Foley's in-ring persona Mankind, and I kind of wonder if he was a fan of this movie. The two men share a strong physical resemblance as well. Leah Ayres plays Janice, a reporter in Hong Kong to uncover the secrets of the Kumite, and to be Dux' love interest.

The Kumite takes place within the Kowloon Walled City, which is a fascinating little bit of geography itself that sadly (or happily, probably, I never had to live there) no longer exists. It is also apparently regulated by the 'IFAA' or the International Fighting Arts Association. It's just so like a sports movie to have an organizing body for an illegal underground fighting ring. With the regulatory body apparently comes a need to demonstrate that you belong in the tournament, which Dux does by performing the Dim Mak, the 'death touch', on a stack of bricks, shattering the bottom brick but leaving the others intact. It's a fun moment.

The tournament makes up most of the rest of the movie, and it's pretty great. Lots of different fighters with different styles get to show off, and despite being coordinated by real-life fraudster Frank Dux, the fight choreography is more than competent, it's flashy and fun. The Heel role is filled by Chong Li (Bolo Yeung) who performs with charm and style. He does the Terry Crews jumping pecs thing a lot too, which is fun. The editors did him a little dirty by not dubbing in any sound for his cheers and celebrations, making him look like a silently screaming weirdo in those sequences. Jackson abuses his opponents on the mat with the drunken grace of a trailer park wrestler, which is a nice contrast to Dux' more refined and reserved style. They both make really wild facial expressions though, which is great. The fights are filled with great moments, like Dux uppercutting a sumo wrestler in the 'nads, and Chong Li snapping a kick-boxer's femur.

The dialogue in this film is serviceable, with some genuinely funny jokes sprinkled throughout, and a lot of line readings that are elevated to unintentional comedy by their scenery-chewing deliveries. Probably the best line is Jackson retorting "I ain't your pal, dickface!"

This movie mostly takes itself very seriously, which is funny because it is a deeply silly premise and the lead actor could barely speak English at the time. The blend of unintentional humor and solid fight sequences make for a thoroughly enjoyable watch, and I feel like this one is a solid 4/5 stars. The end credits begin with a series of title cards claiming a bunch of bullshit about Frank Dux' mythical achievements, but they're worth ignoring because the credits roll to the theme song 'Fight to Survive' which is a fucking banger. I recommend this one if you enjoy martial arts flicks, goofy Orientalism, or want to see Van Damme in one of his first roles.