Review of JCVD (2008) by Harry W — 23 Feb 2014

JCVD was said to be a film in which Jean-Claude Van Damme have a performance worthy of an Academy Award. And that as well as the fact that I've never seen a Belgian film before made it obvious that I couldn't miss JCVD for any reason.

JCVD is a significant step down for the scale of a Jean-Claude Van Damme film, but it is a massive step up in quality. Thanks to intense direction from Mabrouk El Mechri, JCVD achieves the success of being a modern Belgian version of Dog Day Afternoon, but substituting its counterculture theme for a celebrity one, since the film serves as a fictionalised story about Jean-Claude Van Damme himself. And in that sense it takes the story quality and modernises it, making it a very interesting crime drama.

JCVD is very thrilling film, and it has a very interesting plot which is written incredibly well, in terms of story and script. The script has a lot of realistic dialogue which gives the actors a lot to work with, and the premise is incredibly original. It is the perfect film for Jean-Claude Van Damme which isn't just a simple action star vehicle and it is intelligently plotted, due to Jean-Claude Van Damme's status and the story structure.

The story structure in JCVD is the best aspect of the writing, because for the first part of the film it is impossible to tell exactly what Jean-Claude Van Damme is doing in the Schaarbeek post office, and when it shows the alternative perspective it sets everything up well. JCVD is able to take place in a realistic movement of time and yet explain a lot and present surprises all at once. JCVD is an intelligently written crime drama which is thrilling and intelligent which makes up for its inconsistent pacing.

And the visual quality of the film is perfectly rough. It has a dry colour palette and the cinematography is a little shaky at times without it being tedious, so it succeeds as intensely atmospheric and appropriately gritty. The powerful musical score manages to achieve the same effect.

But the true heart of JCVD comes from the lead performance from Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Jean-Claude Van Damme's performance doesn't have enough screen time in JCVD, even though his name is the title of the film. This serves as a negative film aspect because his performance in JCVD is unarguably the absolute greatest of his career: I don't know if it's the fact that he's working in less commercialised cinema or if it's because he is back in his Belgian roots, but Jean-Claude Van Damme proves that he has many skills that actors who have won Academy Awards or worldwide recognition simply cannot learn. There is a scene in JCVD where Jean-Claude Van Damme delivers a six minute monologue where he breaks the fourth wall, and the words he says as he speaks to the audience convinced me that for a while he stopped playing Jean-Claude Van Damme, and he stripped himself down to the depressed and lonely person that he truly was, Jean-Claude Van Varenberg. This single scene is one of the most powerful things I've ever seen an actor do, because it transcends the skill of acting. Since JCVD benefits from Jean-Claude Van Damme's status as an out of luck action star, the story is semi-autobiographical, and this hypes the drama of the film incredibly, so when he delivers a six minute soliloquy it is a soul touching journey through Jean-Claude Van Varenberg's mind in six minutes. And it's one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen on film, and arguably the greatest monologue I've ever seen anyone give in real life, on stage or in film. You'd expect it from someone like Daniel Day-Lewis or Jack Nicholson, but actually it is Jean-Claude Van Damme who does it. See, without him the story wouldn't be based off so much and it would just be a generic robbery film, but due to Jean-Claude Van Damme's presence, legacy and dedicated performance, JCVD is unforgettable. Has he been given more screen time, I would not doubt that his performance should have been nominated for an Academy Award.

Really, Jean-Claude Van Damme has clearly never worked with a film director better than Mabrouk El Mechri since the director manages to bring forth the true acting skills that Jean-Claude Van Damme hasn't shown off before, and the effect is shockingly truthful. His performance single handily carries JCVD to victory and makes it an unforgettable crime drama with a near-flawless lead performance, with the only flaw being that he should have got more screen time. Just remember that JCVD has potentially the greatest monologue in cinematic history in one scene.