| Kickboxer 2: The Road Back | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Albert Pyun |
| Produced by | David S. Goyer Tom Karnowski |
| Written by | Screenplay: David S. Goyer Characters: Mark DiSalle Jean-Claude Van Damme |
| Starring | Sasha Mitchell Peter Boyle Dennis Chan Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa John Diehl Michel Qissi Heather McComb Vince Murdocco |
| Music by | Anthony Riparetti James Saad |
| Cinematography | George Mooradian |
| Editing by | Alan Baumgarten |
| Distributed by | Kings Road Entertainment |
| Release date(s) | June 13, 1991 |
| Running time | 89 minutes |
| Language | English |
Kickboxer 2: The Road Back is a 1991 film as the first in what became a series of sequels to the 1989 film Kickboxer
Though Jean-Claude Van Damme was in the original as Kurt Sloan, he was not in this sequel as the action follows Kurt Sloan's brother David (Sasha Mitchell), who had to fight against Tiger Tong Po, the former Thai Champion.[1] In this film, Kurt Sloan and Eric Sloan have already been shot dead at the hands of Tong Po following the events of the first film.
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Several years after his brothers' deaths, David Sloan (Sasha Mitchell), the youngest and last of the great Sloan dynasty, struggles to keep the family kickboxing gym afloat. Although his will to compete has waned since the loss of his brothers, financial problems eventually force Sloan to fight again in a new organization run by a crooked promoter (Peter Boyle). His surprising comeback ultimately attracts the attention of Tong Po who, having been disgraced by Sloan's older brothers, seeks to lure their younger sibling back into the ring. But when Sloan announces his retirement after the bout, Po's manager Sanga (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) hires a group of thugs to burn down the gym, injuring Sloan and killing one of his young students.
While recovering in the hospital, Sloan is visited by Xian Chow (Dennis Chan), who trained his brother Kurt in Thailand. Though David initially wants nothing to do with him, he finally relents and allows Xian to nurse him back to health. Meanwhile, one of Sloan's most promising students (Vince Murdocco) has secured a championship bout and invites Sloan to watch the fight. However, his slated opponent is unexpectedly replaced by Tong Po, who brutalizes the young man and kills him in the ring. Now with no other recourse, Sloan is forced to accept Po's challenge. In a bloody bout reminiscent of the "ancient way" of fighting in Thailand, Sloan exacts his revenge and defeats his rival.
The film was given a limited release theatrically in the United States by Trimark Pictures in June 1991, grossing $1,250,712 at the box office.[2] HBO Home Video released it on VHS and laserdisc the same year.
The film was released on DVD by Lionsgate in 2003.[3]
With comparisons to the 1989 Van Damme original, the film was not initially well received.[4] TV Guide opined, "From its opening moments it's obvious that KICKBOXER 2 is struggling under the leaden weight of humorlessness. This is the movie that absolutely no one wanted to see: a kickboxing movie that takes itself dead serious."[5] Michael Sauter of Entertainment Weekly wrote "...kickboxers have all the right moves-yet as action heroes, they're practically interchangeable. If any of them is serious about filling Van Damme's shoes, he'd better start working on his style."[6] In the Bad Movie Knights review of the film, there was mixed praise of acting and plot, "...the biggest shock about Kickboxer 2 is Sasha Mitchell himself. Not only is he a decent martial artist but he can actually act" and "..there are too many sequences of David soul-searching and way too much padding in the plot which only gives us the required amount of acting. The action, like the original, is exciting, well shot and indeed provide the mediocre rating spelled out."[7] And Matt Cale of Ruthless Reviews was pitiless, "Any hint of a story is mere pretext -- what we paid to see are oily, well-built men inflict a tremendous amount of pain on each other, with the hope that there will be numerous slo-mo sequences where blood and spit fly through the air", and "...Sasha Mitchell gives an unconvincing, mush-mouthed performance as David Sloan..."[8]. Reception as to how a Van Damme sequel was received without Van Damme being in it was summed up by City On Fire, "...Of course the very essence of making a sequel to a Van Damme movie, sans Van Damme apparently pissed off people. I myself am indifferent to the situation but how seriously are we supposed to take a movie, where the main guy's name is Sasha! Especially one who played a pot head on an awful TV show", and "..I for one can say that this qualifies as a guilty pleasure because really, the series is pretty fun".[9]
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