Tuesday 17 January 2012

Hard Target

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Year:1993
Country of origin:USA
Director:John Woo
Genre:Average actioner
Starring:Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lance Henriksen, Arnold Vosloo,
Rating:3/5
IMDB link:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107076/
Tagline:Don't hunt what you can't kill.
Favourite line:"I'll fuck you, then I'll eat you."

Legendary action director John Woo takes the helm for another romp with the hardest man in Belgium, JVCD.

This time round he finds himself embroiled in a plot whereby the super rich pay top dollar to take part in a hunt, only a hunt with a difference - the prey is human. Specially selected individuals are identified as the unwitting hunted, and lured into a deal that will see them earn $10,000 if they can survive, the simple rule being 'Cross the river to win. Win to live, lose and die."

Echoing the plotline of the slightly superior 'Surviving the Game', though this was a year earlier, it is a neat conceit, and entertaining enough.
Woo's trademark slow motion action and projectile tracking direction is in place, but fails to gloss over some fairly average action set-pieces. It's just plain silly in places too, with the camera lovingly picking out every inch of The Damme's features with regularity as he attempts to act super cool. An additional problem is the overuse of gunfire in place of Van Damme's usually well choreographed fight sequences, and this is ridiculous at times as well, as bullet after bullet is pumped into bad guys, before Wham Bamme roundhouses them into submission.
The usually reliable Lance Henriskkson is woeful here, too, as he gurns and shouts, attempting to come over all evil but instead just seeming like a vaguely annoying spoilt child.
With a big gun.
Not rubbish, but just scraping acceptable, one of Long Cord Man Slamme's least enjoyable outings.

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