Bloodsport (1988)

****

This film was an absolute classic from my youth, this and The Karate Kid, they were known as the greatest martial arts movies in our household. It was definitely long overdue for a rewatch and I felt in the mood too.

This was even better than I remembered it being, in my opinion Van Damme has never been better. Sure, Kickboxer, A.W.O.L., Sudden Death, Hard Target and No Retreat No Surrender are all excellent films but it's in Bloodsport where he comes to life.
It's short on character development and leaves the film to rest on it's fights which is the greatest thing of all. Bolo Yeung who plays Chong Li is the meanest bastard i've seen in a long time, genuinely terrifying.
I also loved the relationship between him and Donald Gibb even if they do get a little too close for my liking towards the end of the film.

It has been years since I saw this the first time and it has really been an eye opener, it's made me want to revisit Damme's back catalogue for one, and oter martial arts movies for two. I still need to revisit all of the Karate Kid movies and make time for my Enter the Dragon first viewing too.
This is an incredibly pleasing movie and i'm glad to report that it still holds up.