Hong Kong colpo su colpo

I didn't expect Knock Off to be the film it was. I thought it would be another lame bit of Van Dammage, just like all the others, but wow! This is in a league of it's own. First of all, let me say this: it's not a good film: of course, it isn't! The script's diabolical, the acting is dreadful and the plot has got to be one of the silliest ever written.

Oh yes, but Knock Off works because it is truly bonkers. Truly out of its mind. Tsui Hark is a great director (check out the insane Zu: Warriors of the Magic Mountain, as well as the Hark produced A Chinese ghost Story, which is truly wonderful) and his irreverent approach works wonders here. Some of the camerawork here has to be seen to be believed: here, we have a shot from the inside of a shoe, the camera moving through a wall and through a computer...while, the action is wildly OTT and hilariously preposterous. Rough around the edges it may be, but the action is genuinely imaginative stuff. Like Van Damme's Hard Target, Knock Off has been blessed with a director who can stage great action, but unlike the irritatingly melodramatic john woo, Hark directs as though he's having a great time: even the dramatic (!) scenes border on intentional parody.

And then there's Jean Claude Van Damme, easily the funniest out of all the Schwarzenegger/Stallone/Seagal crowd. Funniest? Why? Cos he really looks like he's trying, bless 'im! The scenes where he gets all emotional (check out the bit when he confronts Hendricks on the roof top: 'YOU LIED TO ME!') are painfully funny because he just can't act at all. And because of his accent, lines like 'Don't you understand what you do....i-fax me?' (the 'i-fax' is supposed to be 'affects') sound highly amusing. Unlike that dullard Steven Seagal, van Damme's limitations as an actor are precisely what makes him watchable. Then there's the deeply stupid Rob Schneider, who plays EXACTLY the same role in everything he's ever done, and Paul Sorvino, who continues to destroy whatever credibilty he gained starring as Pauly Cicero in GoodFellas.

Plus, what's with the green explosions? The walkie-talkie dropping into the gangster's hand from nowhere? The bullet-shot that goes through the can of beans? Rob Schneider whipping Van Damme with a fish? The song at the end of the film? It's a complete mess!

Knock Off is easily Van Damme's best film, without a shadow of a doubt. It's utter rubbish, yet it's one of the funniest films I've ever seen. Of course, you need plenty of irony and an appreciation for stupid action movies to really get the most out of this. there are some people who will think that Knock Off is absolutely atrocious. And you know what, they're probably right too. But what's also correct is that in some deeply disturbing, dangerously perverse way, it is a work of genius.

Most importantly, Knock Off is unlike any other Van Damme movie. It is much more like your Hong Kong action movie, and is actually quite better in the action respect than any of his other movies. Rob Schneider is really funny, and the acting (even from Van Damme) is pretty good. Probably the best thing about this movie is it's cinematography, which has such great shots as the foot-cam, the shoe-cam, and the box-cam, in which a little window opens up so you can see Jean-Claude's hand as it's reaches into a box! This movie is great for one goofy laugh after another, while not beeing too bad to watch. If you see it, rent it! If you like it, buy it!

Wow ! What a movie! Van Damme is at his utmost best and gives one of the finest performances of his career playing a down and out "knock off" jeans designer. This film has it all: action, danger, intrigue, comedy etc. The best of it's kind. It ranks up there with Cyborg and Street Fighter ! The Triple Crown of Van Damme films. IT's a must see !!

Knock Off is a great movie, if you are into Hong Kong action flicks. Because it is an action movie, it does not require any deep thinking, just sit back and watch the action roll.

The movie also seems like an experiment in filmography because the filming is a bit quirky and unusual, but that is what makes this movie such a unique action movie.

If you like action, you have to see this movie. It is one of Van Damme's best movies (which unfortunately doesn't say much for the guy's acting skills).

A jeans manufacturer finds a conspiracy among triads that places micro-bombs in the jeans he sells. Of course the first shipment were slipped with knock offs but now they must make sure that the new shipment of clothes isn't shipped with the micro-bombs. Knock Off is the type of movie that would be right at home in a James Bond thriller. The movie is utterly ridiculous however this makes it strangely watchable and the whole confusing camera angles to which we see the inside of a phone, the inside of the bomb and even Van Damme's foot going into a sock all make this a very strange movie indeed. The action sequences are filmed with such crazy angles once can't tell what the hell is going on and it's not until the movie is over, where you realize what the hell you had just saw. Knock Off is one of the most surreal movies you could ever see, seriously. It's one of those movies that years from now may be looked at as a camp classic due to it's stylish excess. I for one, still can't tell you what the movie was about.

* * out of 4(Fair)