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Post by boudreaux on Sept 24, 2024 8:24:33 GMT
I just watched the movie. It came out today on demand here in Holland.
I must say I liked it. Of course this is a low budget action movie. But I like what they have done with it. It connects well to part 1. There is a lot of action! Van Damme is doing most of the fighting himself. The only bad thing is that the shaky cam is back. The movie moves well and has a decent story. I also liked the opening 10 minutes. No build up but straight into action mode.
I think its better and more fun then the 1st one. Its more rewatchable. And its good to see a Van Damme that is not depressed. He even smiles sometimes in the movie. Also great to see Peter Stormare and Maria Conchita Alonso back.
Only the acting from the other actors was not so great, but I can live with that.
I liked it.
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ben92
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Post by ben92 on Sept 24, 2024 9:07:06 GMT
so if we summarize well... it's a low-budget film, with a shaky camera and the actors play poorly...
is that it? 😅
are you sure it's really good...? 😅
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Post by Gen. Miro on Sept 24, 2024 13:23:02 GMT
Glad to hear that the movie is a blast, as expected. 😎
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ben92
Junior Member
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Post by ben92 on Sept 24, 2024 14:31:43 GMT
Well I just saw it... are you really serious about encouraging JC in this kind of production?
It's filmed with your feet, the guy doesn't even know how to take a still shot.
JC absolutely does not do his fights, he only does the front view shots but when the camera is behind him (even when he is walking or drinking coffee) it is his double.
the action looks like any low-end Steven Seagal DTV... The special effects (bullet impact, blood, explosion, etc.) are horrible.
The rocket launcher scene is a parody because it is so grotesque.
The actors are all rubbish and the famous ones absolutely don't want to be there.
there are some truly parodic scenes... bad guys in pursuit who do wheelies... JC who slips and puts a bullet back into his magazine with his foot... Kalash in the refrigerator... it's is pathetic.
And some people dare to find this thing "good"...
It's high time he retired because it's becoming embarrassing.
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Post by Gen. Miro on Sept 24, 2024 18:08:42 GMT
Just saw it and absolutely loved, had a blast!
It has a slow middle, but the begining is very nice, connecting it to the first movie and then the action starts.
There are some interesting twists indeed.
We haven't gotten a JCVD movie with so much action since BLACK WATER.
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Post by tylerd on Sept 26, 2024 3:29:03 GMT
Well I just saw it... are you really serious about encouraging JC in this kind of production? It's filmed with your feet, the guy doesn't even know how to take a still shot. JC absolutely does not do his fights, he only does the front view shots but when the camera is behind him (even when he is walking or drinking coffee) it is his double. the action looks like any low-end Steven Seagal DTV... The special effects (bullet impact, blood, explosion, etc.) are horrible. The rocket launcher scene is a parody because it is so grotesque. The actors are all rubbish and the famous ones absolutely don't want to be there. there are some truly parodic scenes... bad guys in pursuit who do wheelies... JC who slips and puts a bullet back into his magazine with his foot... Kalash in the refrigerator... it's is pathetic. And some people dare to find this thing "good"... It's high time he retired because it's becoming embarrassing. Out of curiosity, have you watched any of Van Damme’s last few movies that are direct to video? Lol. Holy smokes. You have some high standards. Clearly you are expecting Bloodsport, timecop, Etc. any true Van Damme fan knows those days are gone. He does low budget movies not filmed in the United States. Take it for what it is! This movie in my opinion is very good for what it is. It’s just like the first one which I also liked. Lots of good action, never boring, and like the original review says. Ties in nice with the first one. I’ll admit , out of any sequel he could do, I was a bit surprised this was the one…. But none the less. After his last few trash movies like Black Water, We Die Young, Darkness of Man. This was a breath of fresh air! (The Bouncer was the exception, I enjoyed that one) it was nice to see Van Damme go back to his roots and do a good martial arts action movie again! I give it a 7/10 for entertainment value Also Ben, Van Damme is in his 60’s. No shit he will have his double do most of his stuff for him. Go back and watch any action star. Chuck Norris, Jet Li, (even seagal who doesn’t even do anything crazy) use a ton of stun doubles later in their career. You are saying this like it surprised you or something. They show Van Damme from the front land a kick, or a punch or a hold or something and zoom out and the stunt double takes over. It’s the way it is with older actors. Always has been, always will be. The special effects are low budget, once again….. how are you surprised by this? lol. Take this movie for what it is. From what Van Damme has released recently, this was a surprise to me in just how much action there was. I enjoyed it just as much as the first one Definitely worth a watch. |
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Post by tylerd on Sept 26, 2024 3:30:02 GMT
so if we summarize well... it's a low-budget film, with a shaky camera and the actors play poorly... is that it? 😅 are you sure it's really good...? 😅 It’s Kill Em All 2. Are you seriously expecting a massive budget, and top notch acting? Is this the first time you have seen a Van Damme movie in the last decade lol? This shouldn’t surprise you at all |
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ben92
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Post by ben92 on Sept 26, 2024 8:45:31 GMT
I watched absolutely all of Van Damme's filmography and being with an independent studio and having a small budget was never a problem in the past (Bloodsport, Kickboxer, Lionheart, Cyborg...) but for 20 years yes as luck would have it .
We're talking about a film produced by the production company "Ilbe" run by Monika Bacardi... find out who this lady is and you will understand that it's nonsense (she just produced the film) Ferrari" and works with Johnny Depp for example)
More or less good projects, he has been doing for 20 years when he was invested:
- Wake of Death
- Until Death
- J.C.V.D
- Universal Soldier 3&4
- Expendables 2
- Welcome To the jungle
- Kickboxer Vengeance
- Jean Claude Van Johnson
- The Bouncer
- The Last Mercenary
not to mention certain legendary advertisements which boosted the turnover (Volvo, Coors Light...) of its film dubs for Kung Fu Panda or Minions... or being one of the reasons for record sales from the last Mortal Kombat with his character.
You talk about Van Damme like you talk about Seagal or Lundgren... He is not in this category of actor but more that of Schwarzenegger and Stallone!
He's a global icon (just look at his number of subscribers on social networks) who still brings in a lot of money...
and what's the most annoying is when you see second or third rate actors have a better end to their career than JC (Mark Dacascos, Daniel Bernhardt...)
Either JC agrees to do supporting roles in big productions because it will necessarily interest any director to have Van Damme in his film... Then he will have an end to his career worthy of the name.
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Post by tylerd on Sept 26, 2024 19:35:22 GMT
I watched absolutely all of Van Damme's filmography and being with an independent studio and having a small budget was never a problem in the past (Bloodsport, Kickboxer, Lionheart, Cyborg...) but for 20 years yes as luck would have it . We're talking about a film produced by the production company "Ilbe" run by Monika Bacardi... find out who this lady is and you will understand that it's nonsense (she just produced the film) Ferrari" and works with Johnny Depp for example) More or less good projects, he has been doing for 20 years when he was invested: - Wake of Death - Until Death - J.C.V.D - Universal Soldier 3&4 - Expendables 2 - Welcome To the jungle - Kickboxer Vengeance - Jean Claude Van Johnson - The Bouncer - The Last Mercenary not to mention certain legendary advertisements which boosted the turnover (Volvo, Coors Light...) of its film dubs for Kung Fu Panda or Minions... or being one of the reasons for record sales from the last Mortal Kombat with his character. You talk about Van Damme like you talk about Seagal or Lundgren... He is not in this category of actor but more that of Schwarzenegger and Stallone! He's a global icon (just look at his number of subscribers on social networks) who still brings in a lot of money... and what's the most annoying is when you see second or third rate actors have a better end to their career than JC (Mark Dacascos, Daniel Bernhardt...) Either JC agrees to do supporting roles in big productions because it will necessarily interest any director to have Van Damme in his film... Then he will have an end to his career worthy of the name. Expendables was the odd one out. He took that as a favor to Stallone. You won’t see Van Damme doing supporting roles ever. I personally don’t want to see it. To each their own, but Daniel Bernhardt is doing it and I think it’s stupid. Yes he was in the matrix, yes he was on John Wick…. But he rarely gets any screen time. Same with the movie NOBODY. Bernhardt just plays a thug in it with about 10 mins of scene time. When I want to see a martial artist, I want to see them in the entirety, not a 5 min supporting part as a bad guy and they get their ass kicked right away. Van Damme would never go for it. Until Death in my opinion was horrific. Wake of Death, I will give you that! That was a great one. Until Death was horribly boring, and just felt like it was a movie filmed in about 4 hours. Kill Em All 2 is just like the first. I guess that’s why I’m not surprised. Storyline is decent, and lots of action. Van Damme unfortunately is at the age where he doesn’t perform all of fight scenes anymore. It’s just the way it is. The camera will catch him in the front doing a nice kick, punch, grab. Whatever. And the stunt double takes over. That’s the way it has been for a while. Go back and look at LAST MERCENARY. Almost his entire fight scene with the girls is played by a double. It’s unfortunate, but I have come to accept it. I guess the movie is what you expect of it. I expected similar to the first Kill Em All, and it was. Therefor I found it entertaining. Especially more entertaining than his last crap projects like Black Water, Darkness of Man, We Die Young, etc. I will give you. It wasn’t on the level of Bouncer, Cyborg, Bloodsport, etc. but I still found it enjoyable. I guess to each their own. |
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ben92
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Post by ben92 on Sept 26, 2024 22:55:54 GMT
Indeed, if you found "Until Death" lame and boring... even though it is for me (and for many) one of Van Damme's best projects in 20 years... the way it is filmed, JC who plays the role incredibly well, the sublime soundtrack and a pleasant storyline.... an excellent film.
Afterwards, yes, if you're just looking for a JC stunt kick and guys who hide their Kalash in fridges... do you a lot of good 😅
I don't really understand your tastes but hey, you have to have everything... 😅
seeing your positive reviews here, I told myself that I must be crazy and become bitter to no longer support this kind of production... I took a look at IMDb and in fact everything is fine for me 🤣
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Post by tylerd on Sept 27, 2024 3:42:13 GMT
Until Death just wasn’t my thing. I found it slow and dragged. Story was fine, but Van Damme seemed uninterested in the entire thing, and barely made a punch in the movie. Lots liked it that’s fair
I am not saying your opinion is wrong about Kill Em All 2. That’s what makes the world good! We all have different opinions. I found it entertaining. The first 20 mins is pretty much pure action.
One thing I’ll say is, I wish they found a better stunt double. Van Damme has had a double for years now, but they picked a horrible one. It was very obvious when the double came in. Also the lead actress was horrible lol I’ll say that. But as far as Van Damme goes, I liked it
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ben92
Junior Member
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Post by ben92 on Sept 27, 2024 16:12:47 GMT
In "Kill em all 2" he doesn't play a role... it's just Van Damme who plays Van Damme... with his mannerisms... his way of touching his face... his walk, his "in the moon" side...
there is absolutely no work done... he came, he didn't even appear his text (and we feel it), he took his money and left.
he has absolutely nothing to do with this type of production, he shoots it as if he were filming in an ad to sell windows (yes, he is currently making adverts for windows in France).
In "Until Death" he plays the character and he is no longer Jcvd but Anthony...
he changes absolutely everything about his way of being, he takes the role to heart... during the promotion of the film in France he explained that it took him more than 2 months after the end of filming to get back into his own skin of Jean Claude Van Damme...
this is the difference between a project that is close to his heart and a project done solely for money and spending 3 weeks of vacation in Italy.
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juv
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Post by juv on Oct 1, 2024 14:49:53 GMT
I finally saw the sequel as well, and I ended up enjoying it a lot more than I expected! I also decided to re-watch the first film before this, so I'll make some comparisons here and there.
The story isn't anything great, but it serves its purpose. Although I personally found the story of the first film a lot more compelling. JC's performance is alright, nothing special. I also prefer the first film's Philip character over the Philip we get here (I actually like he was injured in the first film, and had to lean into that a bit).
As for the action, I think this film wins. It's directed a lot better, and doesn't look as cheap and amateurish. Don't get me wrong, the directing isn't anything special, it's just better than what Peter Malota did with the first film.
Although I enjoyed watching this sequel for once (same goes for the first film). It does leave me wondering where JC is wanting to head with his career now. Films like Lukas, and We Die Young were an amazing step into the right direction. But it was followed by a few years of silence, then we got The Last Mercenary on Netflix. A few years of silence again, followed by this 7 year late sequel. And the passion project with James Cullen Bressack, Darkness of Man.
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Post by tylerd on Oct 1, 2024 16:46:30 GMT
In "Kill em all 2" he doesn't play a role... it's just Van Damme who plays Van Damme... with his mannerisms... his way of touching his face... his walk, his "in the moon" side... there is absolutely no work done... he came, he didn't even appear his text (and we feel it), he took his money and left. he has absolutely nothing to do with this type of production, he shoots it as if he were filming in an ad to sell windows (yes, he is currently making adverts for windows in France). In "Until Death" he plays the character and he is no longer Jcvd but Anthony... he changes absolutely everything about his way of being, he takes the role to heart... during the promotion of the film in France he explained that it took him more than 2 months after the end of filming to get back into his own skin of Jean Claude Van Damme... this is the difference between a project that is close to his heart and a project done solely for money and spending 3 weeks of vacation in Italy. Well there are 4 of us so far that have seen it and all enjoyed it. So you are entitled to your opinion, but so far others disagree with you Until Death was bland, dull and boring. But you liked it and that’s fair. I wouldn’t watch it again personally. Kill Em All 2, his role is a quiet war vet type character. He is very serious just like he was in the first one. You say he came and took his money and left. You’re making out like he was a supporting character in it for a few seconds. He was in the movie through and through and with a lot of action scenes. Yes he relied on a stunt double , but he’s old now. That’s how it is Until Death he didn’t have a stunt double because there was ZERO action. It was dull, so no need for one |
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ben92
Junior Member
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Post by ben92 on Oct 1, 2024 22:02:18 GMT
But you watch a movie just to see your favorite actor's stunt double do a kick?
or do you watch a film because it is well made? that the story is gripping? and that the actor's interpretation is good?
If you see JC's stuntman doing a semi-split on the rearview mirror of a stationary car like in "Pound of Flesh", well, enjoy it.
But if we're looking at least to watch a good film then sorry but no, that's not what people are going to see...
Are only 4 of us watching it? oh I assure you no... go take a look on IMDb and see if people liked it... 😅
In France he is being destroyed... guys who worked with Van Damme recently say that he is no longer even able to last more than 2 hours on a film set because then he is "out of service" and seems to be missing...
Comfort yourself in the mediocrity of this type of production and enjoy its lining but personally (and this is the case for many) they can't take any more of the assumed nonsense.
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