Van Damme Action Pack Quadruple Feature: Timecop / Hard Target / Street Fighter / The Quest

 

 

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This quadruple feature Van Damme "fight pack" is presented by Universal pictures and features four action flicks(from best downward),Time Cop,The Quest,Hard Target and Street Fighter.Instead of the dreaded double sided disc for these films Universal,thankfully,has placed two films on each disc.All of the films have been transferred nicely,are clear and crisp and they are presented in widescreen format.No extras are available.
"Hard Target"(released Aug/93)concerns the story of a sadistic businessman by the name of Emil Fouchon(Lance Henriksen) and his associate Pik Van Cleaf(Arnold Vosloo).They have been in many locales worldwide where they offer to set up actual hunting expeditions...for humans.They pay off coroners so no questions are asked and hire a local stooge to suss out the people they need;preferably with NO family,usually street people.This time the subject they last hunted HAD a family and now the daughter,Natasha Binder(Yancy Butler),has come looking for her father,a down and out ex vet.She enlists the help of a local unemployed ex vet Chance Boudreaux(Van Damme).At first he isn't interested as he has a job lined up,but when that falls through he agrees to help.Through alot of twist and turns the mystery the two start to uncover gets more bizarre and dangerous until they finally find the truth;and it isn't pretty.Fouchon does everything he can to stop Natasha and Chance and in the finale inside a warehouse filled with Mardi Gras floats and masks,Fouchon finally gets his comeuppance.
A nice story that falls a little flat in execution,but with a solid supporting cast.Henrikson and Vosloo give out some great menacing vibes.I give it a solid three stars.
"Time Cop" concerns the story of Max Walker(Van Damme),a security man who's wife has been killed in an explosion as he leaves for work.One day he is offered a job in a newly created corps of personnel assigned to police time.This is appropriate as he eventually finds his wife's death was not as a result of a robbery but a hit for him.It seems a Senator McComb(Ron Silver)who is on the board over seeing the time police is seeking election as president.To finance his campaign he has enlisted the help of others to go back in time to steal money,such as a gold bullion shipment during the civil war or to make money out of the stock market crash of /29.Walker catches on to his scheme and goes back to stop his various time infractions.At the same time McComb realizes the threat Walker poses(the killing of his wife)and does everything he can to stop him.In the final showdown Walker manages to push McComb into himself,from an earlier time period,and kills him.He then goes back to the day of his wife's murder and manages to save her and his other self.Walker returns through the time portal and to his new life with his wife and a young boy he never had before.
A nice and very intriguing Sci Fi concept and Ron Silver cuts a mean and sadistic figure as Sen.McComb.I give this 3 1/2-4 stars.
"The Quest"(released April/96)is the story of Chris Dubois seen as an old man at the outset.He relates his story in a dissolve to his past in NYC of 1925.Being a deserted child from the streets himself he looks after a coterie of street kids with his job as a street performer;with mime make up walking on stilts.One day he and his charges rob a local thug of some substantial money and the thug comes a calling for it.He is forced to run from him and the police.He stows away on a ship which turns out to be a pirate ship.When they reach the south pacific the ship is attacked and boarded by an English mercenary by the name of Lord Dobbs(Roger Moore).Lord Dobbs in turns sells him to local tribesmen on an island off of Siam(Thailand)who teach him the ways of Muay Thai fighting.When he is ready they enter him in a fight and this is where he again meets Lord Dobbs.Impressed with his skills Dobbs buys him back and enrolls him in a tournament of the best fighters from around the world.Each fighter has a style unique to their training and the country they represent,such as Mongolia,Japan,Germany,Scotland,etc.Dubois faces down all his opponents and just before he fights the last contender,Dobbs tries to make off with the tournament prize;a solid gold dragon.He is caught and sentenced to death.Dubois offers to settle for his freedom instead of the prize.This is accepted and after a harrowing battle,Dubois emerges victorious.
An intriguing plot and story line but which fails to keep a good enough pace consistently throughout.Roger Moore as Dobbs does nice work and the cinematography is excellent.3 1/2 stars.
"Street Fighter"(released Dec/94) concerns the story of the AN(Allied nations)security forces led by Colonel Guile(Van Damme).His United Nations-like forces,complete with blue berets,are up against a local war lord and arms dealer Sagat(Wes Studi)and a crazed man,one self appointed General Bison(Raul Julia)from Shadaloo, who if he doesn't get his billions of dollars worth of ransom,will kill hostages he has taken and hold the AN accountable.Guile enlists the help of two friends Ryu(Byron Mann)and Ken Masters(Damian Chapa)and,working separately,a lady by the name of Chun-Li(Ming-Na Wen),to infiltrate Bison's lair.Through Sagat's domain then into Bison's territory the three manage to throw things off kilter enough so Col.Guile can launch a head on attack at their under ground lair deep in the jungle.The ultimate showdown between Guile and Bison comes and goes and Bison and his hideout are destroyed...or are they?
Based on the old video game Street Fighter 2(which I played alot),the movie is terribly weak in plot.Even though it never takes itself seriously the jokes are more than juvenile.Raul Julia unfortunately was still getting over the effects of food poisoning and looks terribly gaunt in this film.In October of /94 we lost talented Raul when he succumbed to a brain hemorrhage at age 54.The film has a dedication to Raul at the end of the film and it's a shame this was his last film role.I give it 2 1/2 stars.
In conclusion I think this two disc set is a great and cheap way to obtain some of Van Damme's better action films.It's a no extra package of course and "Street Fighter" is the clunker of the pack,but overall you should be pleased with what you see.

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