Bloodsport II - Die nächste Herausforderung

After watching "Bloodsport" and enjoying that movie to the fullest, I just had to watch the sequels too even though van Damme has nothing to do with them. Instead, Swiss Daniel Bernhardt takes the role of our fighting hero. In my opinion, he makes a really good replacement for van Damme. The fight scenes are really great in this movie too, and there are lots of it to make every martial arts fan out there satisfied. The villain in this movie, 'Demon', is unfortunately not nearly as interesting as Bolo Yeung's 'Chong-Li' was in the first. But that's a minor detail. But seriously, this "Iron-hand"-stuff should have been removed from the script. It was just too ridiculous in a movie that tries to be a bit realistic. On the upside: It was really cool to see that Donald Gibb returned as 'Jackson'.

No pun intended - I don't know if the honor code and the fighting code even matters to you. It was quite the paper thin string that held the first movie together. Now I can't really say if this is supposed to play in the same universe as the first one. But you do get Jackson back (D. Glib) ... which I guess is a nice touch.

What I do agree with others: the fight scenes are at least as good as the first one. Sometimes probably even better. The main actor (from Swiss) is really good - he is a stunt coordinator or became one if I got it right. So he knows his stuff. And you also get two other greats in this: Pat Morata (Karate Kid/Miyagi) and James Wong - nice touch to say the least.

The story is paper thin - it even copies certain beats (like the last opponent of our main bad guy before he takes on our hero ... and the reaction to it. But even in that moment you can tell what the biggest flaw of the movie is: it does not have a good enough villain ... and by good enough I mean bad enough of course (yes my puns, you know you love them).

And all told like a fairy tale of sorts ... why not? Maybe a cautionary tale even? Who knows ... who cares?

It may have the usual tropes of a martial arts flick, but 'Bloodsport 2' is a decent dtv sequel that stands on it's own without ruining what came before it. I'm really surprised at how competent this turned out to be instead of a drag. The fisticuffs display decent choreography, plus some known faces and a story that traces betrayal, redemption, friendship. This was my first time seeing Daniel Berndhardt too though the man was no stranger to these types of flicks.

Alex Cardo (Bernhardt) a self centered thief steals a valuable katana from wealthy businessman Mr. Leung (Pat Morita) in Thailand. When his partner John (Philip Tan) betrays him, he's caught and sent to prison where he meets Sun (James Hong). A man who teaches him to be a better person and a mystical martial art 'Iron Hand'. He also learns about a Kumite coming up and how brutal head prison guard Demon (Ong Soo Han) has entered. Leung uses influence to free Alex who enters the tourney, but at the price of getting back the katana.

Coming in at a light 80 mins nothing here will surprise a seasoned viewer of b-movies and there's some undeniable weak elements. The Kumite just happens to be taking place there instead of Hong Kong (as before) and you just have to roll with it. Ditto a lone lady fighter which doesn't come off very well. On the plus side, Alex's arc from being an a-hole to trying to atone for his sins comes off well. Morita, Hong are fun to see though the latter shouldn't be in a fight scene. Like the first title, different fighting styles get shown off and it was a hoot to see Donald Gibbs return as Jackson too.

Obviously low budget fare, 'Bloodsport 2' suffers from a scattered story and some suspect editing. Definitely juggling one too many friendly characters by the end. However I was glad it didn't trash the original unlike 'Kickboxer 2'. Demon is shades of Bolo Leung and Berndhardt comes off pretty well. I'll give 'Bloodsport 3' a chance seeing as how decent this turned out.

I just finished watching this movie right now, I've seen it a flew times now, and I like it, its a good martial arts movie, al thogh...it still dosnt come close to the first Bloodsport, which is one of my favorite films of all time. its a classic.....you should see this movie if you like movies like this......but, I gotta say, the guy who plays Alex is the best Van damme rip off I have ever seen!....I think they should make a new bloodsport , and call it, Bloodsport 5: the return of Frank Dux! lol, and have Van Damme fight this guy that trys to imitate him in these movies! That would be funny!

Alex, notorious street fighter and thief, meets the kung fu master Sun in prison, who teaches him the deadliest of all martial arts disciplines: "the iron hand". However, after his release, Alex has to fight in "Kumitte" - brutal full-contact fights without rules. Alex quickly realizes that there is much more at stake. He has to fight for his life...

I didn't expect this to be better than Bloodsport, it's hard to top that 1988 classic, however this sequel isn't too bad. It's watchable at least for the kumite and there's plenty of matches featuring an array of different styles. Donald Gibbs reprises his role as Jackson. Daniel Bernhardt, who resembles Van Damme and Sean Connery, does well as the hero. He fights well, though he lacks Van Damme's unique Belgian charm. The main villain, however, is bland and not as imposing as Bolo Yeung. The bits between the fights are so-so and isn't as interesting. Overall, a passable effort.