It’s nice to know that childhood favorite, 1988’s “Bloodsport” hasn’t aged too much since its initial release. As an artifact of the beginning of Belgium martial arts star Jean Claude Van Damme’s box office reign in the nineties, it’s a fun bit of nostalgia. As an action movie in its own right, it’s a fun thriller and martial arts film that takes a bit from “Enter the Dragon” and feels like what should have been the template for a “Street Fighter” movie. Van Damme plays US Soldier Frank Dux (just go with it), an officer who goes AWOL in order to travel to Hong Kong. After training extensively, he enters a top secret martial arts tournament known as Kumite. Kept hush hush by most of the fighters that enter it, Kumite is a very violent sport that can occasionally end in death.
That is if the fighters don’t submit with the declaration of “matté” when they’ve been beaten in combat. Dux is a mostly humble fighter who finds that there’s so much more going on in the tournament, especially after befriending a local American reporter. Alongside fellow fighter Ray, Dux learns a lot about honor and how deadly Kumite can be, especially when he crosses very vicious competitor Chong Li. Taking off mainly from “Enter the Dragon,” Van Damme mostly carries “Bloodsport,” providing an interesting charisma and chemistry with most of the co-stars and displaying a true flair for martial arts along with some dazzling one on one fights. Newt Arnold’s direction is pretty impressive, displaying a great late eighties grit, as well as staging some very engrossing fights. Bolo Yeung is a stellar villain whose own sense of charisma and energy works well off of Van Damme’s.
What begins as a vary covert tournament turns in to something so much more personal as the film unfolds, resulting in a full on rivalry between Chong Li and Fank that could eventually end in death. If “Bloodsport” has a flaw, and it’s a major one, it’s that the plot is somewhat slim. There isn’t much to go on here and not much characterization or intricate narratives. Frank stream rolls through Kumite, finds an enemy with Chong Li, and outruns the military again and again in somewhat out place comedic foot chases. Along the way there is Forrest Whitaker in a small role, Van Damme kicking ass in a Kumite arcade game (way to keep it secret!), and some really iconic moments in Van Damme’s career, including the climactic moment where he’s blinded in combat, and realizes his skills as a warrior have come full circle.
“Bloodsport” is a great testament to the enduring popularity of Van Damme, and one of the many great tournament action films.