Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor

All movies series has to have a really bad entry and this is by far the worst of the Kickboxer series. First of all, how did David Sloan end up working for the DEA and when did Tong Po become a drug lord? This is absolutely ridiculous. Even worse, Michel Qissi is not back as Tong Po. Oh, granted, Kamel Krifa is a terrific martial artist (saw him on an episode of Baywatch) but he just didn't fight the role of Tong Po as well as Qissi. The only thing that's good in this film is the fight choreography, where the fighters use different arts (David and Tong Po are Muay Thai, Thomas is Jeet Kune Do, Megan is Tang Soo Do, another guy Capoeira). That's pretty much it. Other than that, really lame story!!!!

In the annals of the truly great thespians there are names that ring eternal, Dudikoff, Fahey,...and Mitchell. Sasha Mitchell strives and works his butt off for what Keanu Reeves makes look easy. Complete and utter lack of talent. Looking to all the world like a muscular, less talented Boner from Growing Pains, (you remember Boner from Growing Pains don't you? Sure, Boner?), Sasha lurches through his scenes with the single minded determination to show nothing that may be confused with actual acting. He reads his lines like it's the first time he's seen them, emotionless, cold...like Mother Russia. Are you sure you don't remember Vinnie Stabone? Anyway.

You may be asking yourself, "Bob, why start with Kickboxer 4? Why not go back to Kickboxer 2, and watch the hero's journey that Sasha takes. Maybe you're being a little hard on him." Well, first, going back would mean I would have to tender some kind of coin to view the earlier Kickboxer movies, and there are other things I could spend my money on...like a singing Billy Bass. Also, KickBoxer 2 and 4 were directed by my personal nemesis. Pyun...director of the worst movie of all, or any time...Radioactive (shudder) Dreams.

Hey, Fun fact, Tong Po is played by different actors. It's one guy in two, and another guy in 4...and neither one of them were Asian. so you've got those ugly ass fake eye makeup...why not get Bolo Leung to play Tong Po? At least he's Asian. You know, Bolo Leung, big muscular Asian actor from Double Impact? Hey, speaking of Double Impact and Van Damme....the fact that Van Damme wasn't in any of the kickboxer sequels should be warning enough for you. If Van Damme looked at the script and said, "Uh...no, Even I won't stoop thees low." well, it can't get any plainer than that friends and neighbors.

If you must make a sequel to Kickboxer, why not explore the character of his (Boner's) trainer, Xian played with subtle mastery by Dennis Chan. Why not a tender portrayal of Chan returning to Thailand to confront his father's alcoholism and troubled childhood and the girl he left behind AND his dreams of being a flutist in the Thai Symphony Orchestra. That would be bitterSWEET. There wouldn't have to be any kicking in it. NONE. I'm tired of the kicking. I want to see Kickboxer 5: Xian's Homecoming. Peace.

Unlike a lot of people, I thoroughly enjoyed "Kickboxers 2 and 3" and think that K3 was better than all of them. However, they should have stopped at 3 and never tried to do another.

The cast was abominable, with the exception of Brad Thornton as Lando Smith.

Kamel Krifa as Tong Po was terrible and his accent even worse. The makeup job they did on him to make him look somewhat Po'ish was terrible at best. Did the make up artists not bother to look at him under the camera lighting or even face to face to see how their makeup job looked?

The fighting was the only good part about this movie with the exception of the annoying as nails down a chalkboard, Michelle "Mouse" Krasnoo.

I have read that she has won 200 grand first prizes for her martial art and I find that hard to believe unless her competitors were either terrible beyond comprehension, or she had no competition. As a martial artist myself, doing Wah Lum Kung Fu (for those of you not familiar with it, it is the true Kung Fu that they did in China before it was outlawed)and having seen terrible, watered down martial arts from the pathetic "art" they call some forms of Kung Fu that is allowed to be taught in the United States now, (Wah Lum is difficult and taxing at best when done correctly, hence it is not that popular because it actually requires hard work)to musical forms of Karate, I found her forms sloppy, slow and terribly executed. I have seen better from kids in the under 13 divisions at tournaments I have participated in. There is no way she could have beaten any one of those martial artists on even their worst day, as easily as she did, with what she did and the fact that they tried to make it so, was laughable at best.

Other than Michelle's terrible performance, not only in acting but in her martial forms as well, the rest of the fight scenes were well executed and enjoyable to watch.

I was very disappointed that Sasha Mitchell was not able to showcase more of his fighting. He is an accomplished and highly skilled martial artist and the fact that he was not allowed to show more of what he is capable of, alongside some of the great fighters that were in this movie, was regrettable.

However, I still think Sasha Mitchell is far too talented an actor and martial artist to have wasted his time on such a poorly made movie as "Kickboxer 4."

I can't say I watched the whole thing but I caught bits and pieces on TV one day. It was really funny without trying to be. Tong Po is awesome, his face looks plastic or like he's wearing to much makeup and he definitely plucks his eyebrows. If it's on TV, check it out if only for a few minutes for laughs, otherwise stay away.

By the time they get to this film in the franchise, the story gets really ludicrous and over the top, with the main character having been in prison for a couple years and his wife being held captive during that time by the man who framed him, who also hoped to have killed his two brothers (before the film starts). Characters make dumb decisions and the whole plot is pretty ludicrous. About the only interesting part of the film is the Mortal Kombat third act (which is also ludicrous based on how short every match is). Thankfully, this is the last entry with these characters. A film to be avoided.