The soundtrack of Kickboxer is a difficult subject to research online. I've been looking around for a while now and I still haven't found a source for a CD. I know such a thing must exist as I've seen a picture of the CD cover on Youtube. During this post I'll post some links to Youtube videos that play the songs while displaying the cover so you'll get to see what it looks like. I don't particularly like the idea of posting links to video clips from Van Damme films. I'd much rather people purchased the DVD's in order to further fund our hero's acting career. But since the CD seems to be almost completely unavailable I don't mind linking to this content. While I'm on the subject I'd appreciate it if anybody who knows where to find copies of the soundtrack would post a link in the comments section.
The first song to feature in Kickboxer is The streets of Siam as performed by Stan Bush. Stan Bush holds a very special place in my heart which can be traced back to hearing Mark Wahlberg's cover of The touch in Boogie Nights. Stan Bush prattles on about winners, leaders and the sincere duty of following said leaders. It's an inspiring song that fills me with confidence with regard to Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane's chances in his upcoming match. In the film it's combined with an amusing montage that I mentioned in an earlier post.
Next up is Fight for love, again from Stan Bush. This is a melancholic and introspective number. I have no doubt that Kurt Sloane would have gladly listened to this song when searching his soul about whether or not to launch an ill-conceived vengeful and violent crusade against tiger economy gangsters. Again we are treated to an amusing montage where Kurt is inspired by statues of Buddha to launch said violent crusade.
Taylor steps in to re-establish the tempo by taking Kurt to a mellow strip bar. Here Terry Woods is screaming out How do you keep me comin' back. This song warped my childhood brain about what people in Thailand would consider to be sexy music. I've now accepted that this song may not be indicative of such tastes in such parts of the world. This song appears to be misrepresented on the credits as performed by Beau Williams. The singer of this song sounds female and completely different from the Beau Williams who sings later in the film. I'm happy to be corrected on this by anybody who knows better.
After all of the high tempo sexy music the mellow strip bar obviously identifies the need to cool Taylor down and plays Chack's Stew. It's a nice little instrumental number conducive to Taylor's baffling storytelling.
But just in case you forgot that Taylor was a “high-livin', slick-talkin', fast-walkin', cool-drinkin' dude” we are then treated to the harsh tasty beats that he rocks the tape deck in his van with. That is to say Roll with the punches performed by Michael Logan. For nearly twenty years I laboured under the misapprehension that this was actually called “Roll with the parties” and that it was there to make it crystal clear that Taylor was a wild card. All that it really represents is the dangers of an ex-pat falling out of touch with contemporary music trends.
After Kurt trains to some inspiring background music for a while he finds himself in a ghastly Thai bar where somebody saw fit to install a jukebox. The locals are busy brooding about protection rackets and listening to I won't stay performed by the delicately named Lucinda Ramseur. I can't blame them for all looking a bit down when this song is playing. After all it's about a woman who has forgiven her lover's adulterous indiscretions and is promising that she will forgive him again.
Fortunately Xian understands that we need something a bit more up tempo if our hero is going to showcase his dancing skills. Beau Williams, a poor man's James Brown, belts out the split inducing Feeling so good today. This is one of the stand out scenes in the film, if not Van Damme's entire career, and the genesis of his long standing love affair with dancing (if, that is, you don't count Breakin'). Thank you Beau Williams.
Again we are left with some more inspirational training music until the secret underground fight finishes. As you would expect the closing credits roll with some suitably reaffirming music supplied by Stan Bush. But somehow I'm never convinced that the indomitable sentiments of Never Surrender quite fit with the way that Kurt let Tong Po slap him around for several rounds. Nevertheless it is a pleasant high note to finish the film with and when the guitar kicks in and I see smiles creeping out from underneath the Team Kurt moustaches I'm always convinced that I've just seen a masterpiece.
Monday, 26 July 2010
Monday, 28 December 2009
Kurt and Tong Po
Kickboxer features one of the best villains I've seen in any Van Damme film. Despite this Tong Po barely features in the film. He turns up at the start to hand Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane's ass to him and then hardly features until the final confrontation with Kurt. Perhaps this careful rationing plays a part in the success of the character. In the same way that Tong Po is only present to Kurt through flashbacks to the original fight we are left to let our imaginations run riot about him.
The first chance we get to see Tong Po is the best shot of the film. Perhaps even one of the best shots featured in any Van Damme film. Kurt has been sent to get some ice and is wandering around in the catacombs of the Bangkok arena. He happens upon a dark and abandoned corridor with a light just up ahead. The noise of the crowd fades in comparison to an ominous rhythmic series of thuds. We don't know the source of the noise is but it sounds like it could be Godzilla approaching Bangkok to take on Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan. Up ahead we can see a black rope of hair flailing out through a doorway.
At this stage we are still in the dark about the horrors that lie in this room ahead and this fleeting enigma is what makes the shot so good. Even when we are dragged out of our morbid nightmares about what could lie ahead we are not disappointed by what we see. Kurt is met with a real life monster slamming his thigh against a 3ft thick pillar of concrete. The concrete is beginning to give way, debris cascades from the ceiling and Kurt stands there paralysed with fear. The monster Tong Po can sense he is being watched and turns to greet Kurt with a feral snarl and makes the universal snapping gesture with his hands.
A successful villain is the product of careful construction. The first seed is planted here. We have seen him performing an awesome feat of strength. When Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan ignores his brother's warnings a sense of impending doom builds and adds to the picture of Tong Po that we are constructing in our minds. We know how dangerous he is and so does Kurt. We are powerless to do anything other than watch Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan meet his fate and so is Kurt. Tong Po adds to our sense of how dangerous he is by proving to be vastly superior in the ring to Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan.
Kurt is well aware that his brother has met his match and throws in the towel. But in addition to his prowess Tong Po is also a vicious and evil man. He lets us know all about this when he kicks the towel away and smashes an elbow into Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan's spine. Kurt squeals and whines as Tong Po rips the American title belt in half. His heavily accented English is a treat: “HEY ASSHOLL! CAN'T DO THAT!”
Tong Po then disappears for most of the remainder of the film. He turns up later when his henchmen kidnap Mylee. He rapes Mylee and then releases her. This confused me a great deal. I'd noticed that in the credits that the character of Tong Po is listed as performed by himself. It would be a brave and stupid move to play yourself in a film where you are a rapist in addition to committing a couple of other unsavoury acts. Eventually after about twenty years of confusion I discovered that the credits are mistaken and that Tong Po is a fictional character played by Michel Qissi.
Tong Po turns up again later and fights Kurt the ancient way. This gives him a chance to lick some broken glass which looked pretty badass to me as a young boy. Since Tong Po had his henchmen kidnap Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan Kurt is reduced to being slapped around and taunted by Tong Po. This sense of injustice crops up in many Van Damme films. Sure enough when Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan turns up and gives it the white warrior schtick Kurt soon shows everyone who's the top dog. This is the main weakness of Tong Po. The transition from a vicious and powerful villain to a hapless pussy-cat is instantaneous.
The first chance we get to see Tong Po is the best shot of the film. Perhaps even one of the best shots featured in any Van Damme film. Kurt has been sent to get some ice and is wandering around in the catacombs of the Bangkok arena. He happens upon a dark and abandoned corridor with a light just up ahead. The noise of the crowd fades in comparison to an ominous rhythmic series of thuds. We don't know the source of the noise is but it sounds like it could be Godzilla approaching Bangkok to take on Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan. Up ahead we can see a black rope of hair flailing out through a doorway.
At this stage we are still in the dark about the horrors that lie in this room ahead and this fleeting enigma is what makes the shot so good. Even when we are dragged out of our morbid nightmares about what could lie ahead we are not disappointed by what we see. Kurt is met with a real life monster slamming his thigh against a 3ft thick pillar of concrete. The concrete is beginning to give way, debris cascades from the ceiling and Kurt stands there paralysed with fear. The monster Tong Po can sense he is being watched and turns to greet Kurt with a feral snarl and makes the universal snapping gesture with his hands.
A successful villain is the product of careful construction. The first seed is planted here. We have seen him performing an awesome feat of strength. When Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan ignores his brother's warnings a sense of impending doom builds and adds to the picture of Tong Po that we are constructing in our minds. We know how dangerous he is and so does Kurt. We are powerless to do anything other than watch Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan meet his fate and so is Kurt. Tong Po adds to our sense of how dangerous he is by proving to be vastly superior in the ring to Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan.
Kurt is well aware that his brother has met his match and throws in the towel. But in addition to his prowess Tong Po is also a vicious and evil man. He lets us know all about this when he kicks the towel away and smashes an elbow into Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan's spine. Kurt squeals and whines as Tong Po rips the American title belt in half. His heavily accented English is a treat: “HEY ASSHOLL! CAN'T DO THAT!”
Tong Po then disappears for most of the remainder of the film. He turns up later when his henchmen kidnap Mylee. He rapes Mylee and then releases her. This confused me a great deal. I'd noticed that in the credits that the character of Tong Po is listed as performed by himself. It would be a brave and stupid move to play yourself in a film where you are a rapist in addition to committing a couple of other unsavoury acts. Eventually after about twenty years of confusion I discovered that the credits are mistaken and that Tong Po is a fictional character played by Michel Qissi.
Tong Po turns up again later and fights Kurt the ancient way. This gives him a chance to lick some broken glass which looked pretty badass to me as a young boy. Since Tong Po had his henchmen kidnap Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan Kurt is reduced to being slapped around and taunted by Tong Po. This sense of injustice crops up in many Van Damme films. Sure enough when Eric “The Eliminator” Sloan turns up and gives it the white warrior schtick Kurt soon shows everyone who's the top dog. This is the main weakness of Tong Po. The transition from a vicious and powerful villain to a hapless pussy-cat is instantaneous.
Wednesday, 16 December 2009
Kurt and Taylor
I've not posted for a long time but with good reason. I've been dwelling on what to say about Taylor. I find it difficult to sum up what the exact point of Taylor is. He seems to be included as some kind of comic relief but nothing he does is particularly funny. The source of any humour tends to come from imagining if such an individual actually existed. That is to say a happy go lucky arms dealer. What I mean to say is that I imagine becoming an arms dealer is the sort of decision that an ordinary individual would not take lightly. I'd expect a typical arms dealer to be busy, serious and a shade on the grumpy side. But Taylor appears to be happy enough to spend his time running errands with gay abandon for an idiot tourist. Eventually I decided that the only sensible approach was not to take him seriously. He doesn't deserve to be taken seriously. Once I realised this a massive burden was lifted from my shoulders. I have to admit that I'm startled by just how much of an effect this fictional buffoon could have on my state of mind but I suppose that you've got to be willing to suffer for your . . . ahem . . . art. (I was actually concerned that after reviewing the contents of Kickboxer about forty times between my last post and now that I'd never move on)
Kurt and Taylor meet when Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane is getting his ass beat by Tong Po. Despite being busy with two girls and being keen to watch the remaining fights Taylor inexplicably offers to take them to the hospital. Taylor introduces himself in a way that always forces a laugh “My name's Taylor, army special forces, retired, sort of”. Whenever I try to think about what this title is supposed to mean to Taylor I'm left baffled and amused.
Unusual circumstances to form the genesis of a friendship between two men who are like chalk and cheese but I suppose this continues the motif of implausible friendships set in motion back in Bloodsport. Quite why Taylor bothers I have no idea. Fortunately Taylor explains it to Kurt in uncertain terms over a beer in a mellow strip bar. Apparently Taylor is happy to run errands for an idiot tourist because he had a buddy back in the 'nam. Taylor and his buddy were just like brothers (perhaps he means Cain and Abel?) but one day when Taylor had a chance to help him he froze instead. Well it seems that the only way to exorcise his demons is to help a guy help his brother. But of course it's all very silly because Kurt isn't really going to help his brother, he's just going to beat up Tong Po and invite trouble upon a poor young lady and a dog.
Taylor doesn't play too important a role and mainly just runs errands for Kurt for the remainder of the film. One notable moment occurs when he gleefully informs Mylee that he'll make some “Jungle survivor quiche”. It sounds like it might be quite nutritious but when pressed Taylor confesses that he's just going to put some cobra heads in it.
Taylor gets an opportunity to play a significant part later on when Eric is kidnapped. Since Taylor is complicit in the seedy underworld of Bangkok gun running he's well connected and probably sold the villains all their guns. Kurt reckons that Taylor will know where they are keeping Eric but Taylor refuses to do anything about it until the very last minute. Even then he only turns up when the villains have been softened up by Xian. When he arrives he brings a sledgehammer to crack a nut like any good American hero should. He blasts off a few rounds from his cannon, in a fashion that I can only assume was a critical influence on the styling of Thornton Reed, and makes a wise crack about the traffic and the secret underground kick-boxing match.
His final contribution is to undermine Kurt's victory by stealing the mallet for the gong. He then performs a pirouette which is perhaps some sort of bizarre tribute to our hero's spin kicking exploits. I used to think nothing of it but now I understand the meaning of the pirouette. It just doesn't make much sense and neither does Taylor.
Kurt and Taylor meet when Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane is getting his ass beat by Tong Po. Despite being busy with two girls and being keen to watch the remaining fights Taylor inexplicably offers to take them to the hospital. Taylor introduces himself in a way that always forces a laugh “My name's Taylor, army special forces, retired, sort of”. Whenever I try to think about what this title is supposed to mean to Taylor I'm left baffled and amused.
Unusual circumstances to form the genesis of a friendship between two men who are like chalk and cheese but I suppose this continues the motif of implausible friendships set in motion back in Bloodsport. Quite why Taylor bothers I have no idea. Fortunately Taylor explains it to Kurt in uncertain terms over a beer in a mellow strip bar. Apparently Taylor is happy to run errands for an idiot tourist because he had a buddy back in the 'nam. Taylor and his buddy were just like brothers (perhaps he means Cain and Abel?) but one day when Taylor had a chance to help him he froze instead. Well it seems that the only way to exorcise his demons is to help a guy help his brother. But of course it's all very silly because Kurt isn't really going to help his brother, he's just going to beat up Tong Po and invite trouble upon a poor young lady and a dog.
Taylor doesn't play too important a role and mainly just runs errands for Kurt for the remainder of the film. One notable moment occurs when he gleefully informs Mylee that he'll make some “Jungle survivor quiche”. It sounds like it might be quite nutritious but when pressed Taylor confesses that he's just going to put some cobra heads in it.
Taylor gets an opportunity to play a significant part later on when Eric is kidnapped. Since Taylor is complicit in the seedy underworld of Bangkok gun running he's well connected and probably sold the villains all their guns. Kurt reckons that Taylor will know where they are keeping Eric but Taylor refuses to do anything about it until the very last minute. Even then he only turns up when the villains have been softened up by Xian. When he arrives he brings a sledgehammer to crack a nut like any good American hero should. He blasts off a few rounds from his cannon, in a fashion that I can only assume was a critical influence on the styling of Thornton Reed, and makes a wise crack about the traffic and the secret underground kick-boxing match.
His final contribution is to undermine Kurt's victory by stealing the mallet for the gong. He then performs a pirouette which is perhaps some sort of bizarre tribute to our hero's spin kicking exploits. I used to think nothing of it but now I understand the meaning of the pirouette. It just doesn't make much sense and neither does Taylor.
Sunday, 26 July 2009
Kurt and Mylee
Kurt enjoys a romantic liaison with Xian's niece Mylee. This provides a window into the role of women in Van Damme films. Women are typically drawn to the protagonist in a Van Damme and their function seems to be merely to provide further evidence of his alpha male status (as if we needed any convincing). In the case of Mylee the female lead is not portrayed merely as an accessory for our hero. Despite surrendering to Kurt's advances relatively easily she shows some courage later in the film.
Kurt and Mylee initially meet in her grocery store. As we know he is fetching Xian's groceries. After prattling on about his ethnic origins and his brother for a while he proceeds to wreck her store while assaulting two local hoodlums. The two local hoodlums are in league with Tong Po and will no doubt return to cause even more trouble for Mylee as a result. Understandably she is infuriated.
This doesn't seem like a good first impression and you'd be forgiven for being mystified when she lets him kiss her a few scenes later. How could Kurt force such a reversal of fortunes? Well he simply told her about his broken home and then listened for about ten seconds while she mentioned that her parents were dead. Not exactly romantic dynamite in my eyes but Kurt saw it as his opportunity to tell her how beautiful she is and kiss her.
The romance continues to blossom throughout Kurt's increasingly successful training. Unfortunately Mylee ends up getting kidnapped by Tong Po and his goons. Tong Po rapes her to deter Kurt. This is where Mylee moves beyond the typical one dimensional love interest, albeit in a slightly puzzling way. Mylee keeps the rape a secret from Kurt in order to allow him to focus on his fight with Tong Po. This is admirable under the circumstances but a slightly pointless gesture at the same time. Remember that Kurt is motivated purely by vengeance. The poor guy is already pretty angry about his crippled brother. Would it harm him to get any angrier?
When Tong Po spitefully informs Kurt of his actions during the break between rounds Kurt decides to insensitively grill Mylee about the truth of what he has been told. But never mind though because once Tong Po has had his ass handed to him on a plate everyone, Mylee included, seems to forget what the poor girl has had to go through.
Kurt and Mylee initially meet in her grocery store. As we know he is fetching Xian's groceries. After prattling on about his ethnic origins and his brother for a while he proceeds to wreck her store while assaulting two local hoodlums. The two local hoodlums are in league with Tong Po and will no doubt return to cause even more trouble for Mylee as a result. Understandably she is infuriated.
This doesn't seem like a good first impression and you'd be forgiven for being mystified when she lets him kiss her a few scenes later. How could Kurt force such a reversal of fortunes? Well he simply told her about his broken home and then listened for about ten seconds while she mentioned that her parents were dead. Not exactly romantic dynamite in my eyes but Kurt saw it as his opportunity to tell her how beautiful she is and kiss her.
The romance continues to blossom throughout Kurt's increasingly successful training. Unfortunately Mylee ends up getting kidnapped by Tong Po and his goons. Tong Po rapes her to deter Kurt. This is where Mylee moves beyond the typical one dimensional love interest, albeit in a slightly puzzling way. Mylee keeps the rape a secret from Kurt in order to allow him to focus on his fight with Tong Po. This is admirable under the circumstances but a slightly pointless gesture at the same time. Remember that Kurt is motivated purely by vengeance. The poor guy is already pretty angry about his crippled brother. Would it harm him to get any angrier?
When Tong Po spitefully informs Kurt of his actions during the break between rounds Kurt decides to insensitively grill Mylee about the truth of what he has been told. But never mind though because once Tong Po has had his ass handed to him on a plate everyone, Mylee included, seems to forget what the poor girl has had to go through.
Kurt and Xian
After witnessing his poor brother being brutalized by Tong Po Kurt looks for someone to teach him Muay Thai. After getting laughed out of several gyms Taylor agrees to take him to see Xian, perhaps the only man crazy enough to teach him. When Kurt arrives Taylor abandons him outside Xian's house and it only takes him moments to get himself into a pickle.
Kurt is quickly suspended upside down by one of Xian's many traps. Xian comes out to see what he has captured and quickly sets the tone for most of his interactions with Kurt. That is to say mockery and humiliation. As if being suspended upside down wasn't enough Xian begins to mock him for being an American with a swelled head. To be fair though Kurt hasn't had the chance to explain that he was born in Belgium and moved to America as a small boy.
Instantly Xian has a fools errand to send Kurt on. He finds himself beginning his training by acting as an errand boy and collecting Xian's groceries. After his tiring errand Kurt gets some sleep only for Xian to kindly wake him with the help of a bucket of water. The first thing that Kurt must learn is to breath out and in simultaneously. Sounds a bit strange to me but apparently it is important to breath out when hit and to breath in to protect and if you can do both at the same time it is good. Kurt hears this and tries to look thoughtful but of course we all know that the ramifications of such blatantly contradictory nonsense is beyond Kurt. What Kurt should really be worrying about is that this wizened old charlatan is going to be dropping giant coconuts onto his abdomen to test this nonsense with predictable consequences.
But it's not all pain and aberration of logic. No, Kurt also has to endure sheer terror when Xian ties a steak to his shorts and encourages his German shepherd to chase him around the training compound. But once he survives this he can get back to being humiliated as Xian sends him to fetch some firewood and then scolds him for being late for dinner.
Xian soon gets tired of that and returns to muttering gibberish on an excursion to stone city. When they get there Xian decides that Kurt's perfect physique and flexible inner thighs alone won't be sufficient to defeat Tong Po. So he urges Kurt to channel the spirits of dead warriors by listening with his mind, heart and whole being (whatever that is supposed to mean).
Things take a slightly more sadistic turn now. Xian straps Kurt into some kind of medieval torture device and wrenches his legs apart until he screams with pain. The device is designed to help Kurt's inner thigh flexibility thus ensuring that he will be able to perform the splits in any situation imaginable. The strain of this torture calls for some more relaxing activities and Xian prescribes an underwater workout. Generously he allows Kurt a couple of seconds to breath before dunking him under the water so as not to further interrupt his flute playing.
Since Tong Po can shatter columns of third world concrete with his thighs Kurt is going to need some extra fire-power to compete. As you would expect Xian has conceived of the most painful way for Kurt to work on this. Apparently the best way to learn to kick people harder is to break your leg on a palm tree. At first Kurt does not respond well to this task and is mocked in front of his beloved Mylee. Later Xian decides to manipulate Kurt by raising the touchy subject of his crippled brother and watches him lose the plot. Van Damme is great in this scene. The moment that he breaks the tree and falls over in agony should make every one laugh out loud.
Kurt's “victory” over the palm tree serves as the turning point in his training and to celebrate we are treated to a training montage where we see Kurt spin kick some deadly earthenware pots and other inanimate objects. He also returns to the torture device and endures it with perfect calm. Another scene here that raises a smile is the return of the coconuts. This time one is dropped from a great distance but Kurt appears to have mastered the art of breathing in and out at the same time. As such he proudly reports that “I am ok” with a cheesy grin and hand signal before facing the next coconut.
It seems that Kurt is now ready to face the world of Muay Thai and the best way for him to prove this is to go to a local bar and drunkenly fight the hoodlums that he finds there. Of course mild mannered Kurt wouldn't dream of doing something so foolish and has to be tricked into it by his so called friend Xian.
Xian forces shots down Kurt's neck until he is completely wasted and then encourages him to do some American dancing to work on his balance. The results are hilarious. Kurt struts his funky stuff with two young girls. Meanwhile Xian is encouraging the local hoods to teach this cocky young buck a violent lesson. Even while drunk Kurt kicks their asses. Most notable is the moment when Kurt deals with two opponents at the same time with a split kick. Drunken fighting is hard work though and Kurt eventually stumbles outside where his friend Xian is arranging for other people to try to kick his ass. In order to further ridicule Kurt Xian then gets him to pedal a rickshaw home while still drunk.
But despite all of this humiliation Kurt becomes good enough to defeat Tong Po. Is this the message that we are supposed to take from Kurt and Xian? That you can better yourself by permitting a great teacher to humiliate you. Apparently so. This conclusion is consistent with what we can take from Kurt's relationship with Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane. That is to say that his brother failed because he was too headstrong and ignorant. He could never have submitted to Xian's regime of humiliation and thus was destined to fail.
Kurt is quickly suspended upside down by one of Xian's many traps. Xian comes out to see what he has captured and quickly sets the tone for most of his interactions with Kurt. That is to say mockery and humiliation. As if being suspended upside down wasn't enough Xian begins to mock him for being an American with a swelled head. To be fair though Kurt hasn't had the chance to explain that he was born in Belgium and moved to America as a small boy.
Instantly Xian has a fools errand to send Kurt on. He finds himself beginning his training by acting as an errand boy and collecting Xian's groceries. After his tiring errand Kurt gets some sleep only for Xian to kindly wake him with the help of a bucket of water. The first thing that Kurt must learn is to breath out and in simultaneously. Sounds a bit strange to me but apparently it is important to breath out when hit and to breath in to protect and if you can do both at the same time it is good. Kurt hears this and tries to look thoughtful but of course we all know that the ramifications of such blatantly contradictory nonsense is beyond Kurt. What Kurt should really be worrying about is that this wizened old charlatan is going to be dropping giant coconuts onto his abdomen to test this nonsense with predictable consequences.
But it's not all pain and aberration of logic. No, Kurt also has to endure sheer terror when Xian ties a steak to his shorts and encourages his German shepherd to chase him around the training compound. But once he survives this he can get back to being humiliated as Xian sends him to fetch some firewood and then scolds him for being late for dinner.
Xian soon gets tired of that and returns to muttering gibberish on an excursion to stone city. When they get there Xian decides that Kurt's perfect physique and flexible inner thighs alone won't be sufficient to defeat Tong Po. So he urges Kurt to channel the spirits of dead warriors by listening with his mind, heart and whole being (whatever that is supposed to mean).
Things take a slightly more sadistic turn now. Xian straps Kurt into some kind of medieval torture device and wrenches his legs apart until he screams with pain. The device is designed to help Kurt's inner thigh flexibility thus ensuring that he will be able to perform the splits in any situation imaginable. The strain of this torture calls for some more relaxing activities and Xian prescribes an underwater workout. Generously he allows Kurt a couple of seconds to breath before dunking him under the water so as not to further interrupt his flute playing.
Since Tong Po can shatter columns of third world concrete with his thighs Kurt is going to need some extra fire-power to compete. As you would expect Xian has conceived of the most painful way for Kurt to work on this. Apparently the best way to learn to kick people harder is to break your leg on a palm tree. At first Kurt does not respond well to this task and is mocked in front of his beloved Mylee. Later Xian decides to manipulate Kurt by raising the touchy subject of his crippled brother and watches him lose the plot. Van Damme is great in this scene. The moment that he breaks the tree and falls over in agony should make every one laugh out loud.
Kurt's “victory” over the palm tree serves as the turning point in his training and to celebrate we are treated to a training montage where we see Kurt spin kick some deadly earthenware pots and other inanimate objects. He also returns to the torture device and endures it with perfect calm. Another scene here that raises a smile is the return of the coconuts. This time one is dropped from a great distance but Kurt appears to have mastered the art of breathing in and out at the same time. As such he proudly reports that “I am ok” with a cheesy grin and hand signal before facing the next coconut.
It seems that Kurt is now ready to face the world of Muay Thai and the best way for him to prove this is to go to a local bar and drunkenly fight the hoodlums that he finds there. Of course mild mannered Kurt wouldn't dream of doing something so foolish and has to be tricked into it by his so called friend Xian.
Xian forces shots down Kurt's neck until he is completely wasted and then encourages him to do some American dancing to work on his balance. The results are hilarious. Kurt struts his funky stuff with two young girls. Meanwhile Xian is encouraging the local hoods to teach this cocky young buck a violent lesson. Even while drunk Kurt kicks their asses. Most notable is the moment when Kurt deals with two opponents at the same time with a split kick. Drunken fighting is hard work though and Kurt eventually stumbles outside where his friend Xian is arranging for other people to try to kick his ass. In order to further ridicule Kurt Xian then gets him to pedal a rickshaw home while still drunk.
But despite all of this humiliation Kurt becomes good enough to defeat Tong Po. Is this the message that we are supposed to take from Kurt and Xian? That you can better yourself by permitting a great teacher to humiliate you. Apparently so. This conclusion is consistent with what we can take from Kurt's relationship with Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane. That is to say that his brother failed because he was too headstrong and ignorant. He could never have submitted to Xian's regime of humiliation and thus was destined to fail.
Sunday, 14 June 2009
Kurt and Eric
The most important relationship in the film is between Kurt and Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane. They are brothers from a broken home and were raised separately. The result is two brothers who are like chalk and cheese. Kurt is an understated character. He is introduced to us as Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane's cheerful, educated and courteous corner man. Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane, however, is a brash, cocky, uneducated and successful world champion athlete.
This contrast is made clear in the first few scenes of the film. Initially we are treated to a mismatch when Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane knocks out his hapless opponent in what appears to be the poorly attended pinnacle of American kickboxing. Once the fight finishes the press crowd round Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane to ask where he can go from here. After all he has beaten everyone that there is to beat. The press suggest Thailand, the home of kickboxing. Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane eagerly urges his Kurt to book a flight to Taiwan only for Kurt to politely correct him. Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane takes it on the chin and scoffs “Bangkok? Taiwan? Tokyo? What's the difference? I'm kicking ass wherever I go!” I've seen this scene in excess of two hundred times and the exchange still makes me laugh out loud.
This is followed by an even funnier scene that highlights the contrast between the brothers again. Upon arrival in Bangkok the brothers do a bit of sight seeing beginning with a boat trip. Bangkok appears to have some beautiful buildings and Kurt has his camera ready to capture the view for posterity. But the boat rapidly moves upriver through impoverished areas before the brothers depart to go to the red light district. Here Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane finds something that he is interested in and leaves his gentlemanly brother to pick up the cab fare while he picks up a Bangkok bar girl. All while Kurt continues to grin and laugh at his brother's antics. When the level headed Kurt advises his cocky brother to take care of his possessions or prepare for the fight Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane laughs it off.
Apart from showing the contrast between the two brothers this scene is also deeply amusing. There's a playful innocence to the brothers as they cruise down the river in some horrendous 80's clothing. Kurt with his denim waistcoat, displaying his bulging biceps, thinks nothing of putting an arm round Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane who sports a moustache, permed mullet and yellow Hawaiian shirt. They don't even sense that they look odd when another boat approaches and tries to sell them a bouquet of flowers. They don't even seem to think anything of photographing a group of young boys swimming in the river.
Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane ends up paying for his arrogance soon enough. Despite his brother's warnings Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane goes ahead with his fight against Tong Po and ends up paralysed. His confidence is most amusing when demonstrating his speed to Kurt in the Bangcok stadium changing room. “Can he move like me?” Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane doesn't even change his ways after his accident. In the hospital he rolls around sexually harassing the poor nurses with a big smile creeping out from under his moustache.
Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane provides the turning point of the whole film though. His paralysis motivates Kurt to seek vengeance against Tong Po. It is the catalyst for Kurt's transformation from a mild mannered ballet dancer to a dangerous spin kicking badass.
This contrast is made clear in the first few scenes of the film. Initially we are treated to a mismatch when Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane knocks out his hapless opponent in what appears to be the poorly attended pinnacle of American kickboxing. Once the fight finishes the press crowd round Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane to ask where he can go from here. After all he has beaten everyone that there is to beat. The press suggest Thailand, the home of kickboxing. Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane eagerly urges his Kurt to book a flight to Taiwan only for Kurt to politely correct him. Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane takes it on the chin and scoffs “Bangkok? Taiwan? Tokyo? What's the difference? I'm kicking ass wherever I go!” I've seen this scene in excess of two hundred times and the exchange still makes me laugh out loud.
This is followed by an even funnier scene that highlights the contrast between the brothers again. Upon arrival in Bangkok the brothers do a bit of sight seeing beginning with a boat trip. Bangkok appears to have some beautiful buildings and Kurt has his camera ready to capture the view for posterity. But the boat rapidly moves upriver through impoverished areas before the brothers depart to go to the red light district. Here Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane finds something that he is interested in and leaves his gentlemanly brother to pick up the cab fare while he picks up a Bangkok bar girl. All while Kurt continues to grin and laugh at his brother's antics. When the level headed Kurt advises his cocky brother to take care of his possessions or prepare for the fight Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane laughs it off.
Apart from showing the contrast between the two brothers this scene is also deeply amusing. There's a playful innocence to the brothers as they cruise down the river in some horrendous 80's clothing. Kurt with his denim waistcoat, displaying his bulging biceps, thinks nothing of putting an arm round Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane who sports a moustache, permed mullet and yellow Hawaiian shirt. They don't even sense that they look odd when another boat approaches and tries to sell them a bouquet of flowers. They don't even seem to think anything of photographing a group of young boys swimming in the river.
Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane ends up paying for his arrogance soon enough. Despite his brother's warnings Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane goes ahead with his fight against Tong Po and ends up paralysed. His confidence is most amusing when demonstrating his speed to Kurt in the Bangcok stadium changing room. “Can he move like me?” Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane doesn't even change his ways after his accident. In the hospital he rolls around sexually harassing the poor nurses with a big smile creeping out from under his moustache.
Eric “The Eliminator” Sloane provides the turning point of the whole film though. His paralysis motivates Kurt to seek vengeance against Tong Po. It is the catalyst for Kurt's transformation from a mild mannered ballet dancer to a dangerous spin kicking badass.
Friday, 12 June 2009
Kickboxer
Kickboxer is probably the definitive Van Damme film. When I watched Kickboxer it was the first time I had seen Van Damme in action. At that age I wasn't concerned with who starred in the film though. I was just compelled by the story of a man seeking revenge against the wicked Tong Po who had paralysed his brother. In a sense my expectations of other Van Damme films are probably shaped by this initial experience.
There are many different aspects to Kickboxer. For me the most interesting elements of the film are the relationships that the supporting characters have with the protagonist, Kurt, played by Van Damme. These interactions tend to be the most interesting and amusing. The supporting characters do interact with each other but usually in a way peripheral to the plot. The characters that Kurt has significant relationships with are Eric, Xian, Mylee, Taylor and Tong Po. What I intend to do is separate these relationships and dedicate a post to each of them. I'll also be posting about the soundtrack which features Stan Bush. I'll then sum up by dedicating a final post to assessing the themes and motifs present in Kickboxer.
I don't intend to dedicate as much time and posts to any other Van Damme films. I'm doing it here as I think that Kickboxer merits extra attention as the classic example of a Van Damme film.
There are many different aspects to Kickboxer. For me the most interesting elements of the film are the relationships that the supporting characters have with the protagonist, Kurt, played by Van Damme. These interactions tend to be the most interesting and amusing. The supporting characters do interact with each other but usually in a way peripheral to the plot. The characters that Kurt has significant relationships with are Eric, Xian, Mylee, Taylor and Tong Po. What I intend to do is separate these relationships and dedicate a post to each of them. I'll also be posting about the soundtrack which features Stan Bush. I'll then sum up by dedicating a final post to assessing the themes and motifs present in Kickboxer.
I don't intend to dedicate as much time and posts to any other Van Damme films. I'm doing it here as I think that Kickboxer merits extra attention as the classic example of a Van Damme film.
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