This is one of the great movies of the 80s in MY collection that I think about all the time.

Minor Spoilers

Bloodsport is arguably Jean-Claude Van Damme`s best film next to Hard Target. It begins with such a cool intro with the fighters and cool music by Paul Hertzog. It has a few good songs too! It has very good fighting and it is a serious movie. Here is a brief look at the film`s best competitors that are most likely to win the Kumite.

Bolo Yeung as Chong Li - Chong Li is the undefeated champion that holds many records and will do anything to win a match whether it is to break a man`s leg, knock him out or even kill his opponent. He has huge muscles and there is no telling how strong he is. Every fighter is in trouble when they step in the ring against him.

Jean-Claude Van Damme as Frank Dux - Frank Dux is a great fighter taught by Tanaka. He a hansome,musclar,smart,and kind man that cares. He know just about it all when it come to fighting thanks to his great master. He really cares for his new friend Jackson.

Paulo Tocha as Paco - There is one kickboxer type fighter named Paco. He is a great fighter but he doesn`t block well but he has two advantages. 1. Paco`s opponent`s should not trust him when he reaches out to shake hands because he is a cheater and 2. is when he grabs ahold of his opponent its all over with!

Donald Gibb as Jackson - Jackson is a massive man with a bad attitude but is a good friend to Frank Dux. He is very tuff,strong, and is able to beat up anyone though he fools around too much and that`s his only mistake.

Michel Qissi as Parades - Parades has big thick legs that hits his opponents hard but like Paco he is not a good blocker and that is his only flaw.

Bloodsport has many other great figters but these are top ones in the Kumite. If you like Jean-Claude Van Damme and fighting films then be sure to check this awesome Jean-Claude Van Damme movie out soon because in MY opinion it is a classic!

When it debuted, "Bloodsport" was to have been a story of the famed martial artist and miltary hero, Frank Dux. According to Dux, he won the ultra-secret 'Kumite'...a no holds barred martial arts international competition. He also was a top secret operative for the military and went on all sorts of scary missions in various countries. Unfortunately, pretty much none of Dux's claims turned out to be true! However, I assume no one other than Dux knew it at the time AND the star of "Bloodsport", Jean-Claude Van Damme, was no phony--having been a very accomplished full-contact fighter with championships to his credit. So, while the story turns out to be a load of crap, you cannot fault Van Damme and it's among his best films.

The lead up to Dux (Van Damme) going to the Kumite is confusing....like two separate movies tossed together. One shows him running away from the army to fight in the competition. Another shows him working for years with his Master to get ready for the competition! This was confusing and the chronology made no sense.

Once the film heads overseas to the Kumite, things improve considerably. Dux strikes up a friendship with a nice but dopey lug who is also in the Kumite (Donald Gibb). Ultimately, an insanely sociopathic competitor unleashes EVERYTHING on the lug and leaves him a battered mess. And, ultimately, Dux must also fight this Chong Li. Is such an ignominious ending also in store for Dux as well?

While I am not a huge fan of the Van Damme films, he did make some good ones and his martial arts skills are truly amazing. If you watch "Bloodsport", you'll see what I mean. Van Damme is a very impressive athlete instead of just being some actor....and his athletic skills are far superior to his acting skills. Seeing his splits and many of the action scenes leave you breathless!

So is the film itself any good? After all, we know now that nobody (other than Dux) believes the story to be true. Well, despite the spotty background to Dux and the film, it is a very good film for the genre. Like many 80s films, it has montages, 80s pop music, slow-motion and all the standard cliches...but it does them all so well and Van Damme is so good in the story. Overall, a surprisingly good film that holds up well today.

This title holds the dubious distinction of being the first film that really showcased Jean Claude Van Damme's martial arts. Throughout the film, we are constantly invited to watch Van Damme kick people in the face, spin around and generally do other athletic things, so this can be considered as the first film that broke him into Hollywood. As a film itself, the premise is rather basic and descends into a series of staged fight scenes…the familiarity of the situation comes from the many other films that Van Damme made which were basically just remakes of this one (I'm talking stuff like A.W.O.L., THE QUEST, KICKBOXER, etc.). The low budget is apparent, in that we don't get much in the way of special effects, but the fight scenes are all pretty good. All of these fights looked authentic (apart from the first, I think, where the thrown punches and kicks were too obvious) and kept the attention.

The acting isn't really important in a film like this, but still…the female lead is, as to be expected, an airhead, adding nothing to the film whatsoever. Van Damme was still struggling with his accent at this point in time and he lacks some of the natural charisma which he later conveyed. Yes, his acting wasn't as good here, but he makes an adequate leading man and he's never been in better physical shape. Bolo Yeung thoroughly enjoys himself in the sneering role of the lead villain, and he obviously enjoyed working with Van Damme as he later turned up in 1991's DOUBLE IMPACT, playing yet another villain. It's surprising to see a young Forest Whitaker in the cast (this was obviously before he went "legit"),in the pointless role of a government agent whose job is to get Van Damme back to America. These scenes are added in as mere padding, to add something to the film other than the fight sequences, and consequently fall flat.

The violence level is high, with lots of kicking and punching. We get some broken arms and legs, and plenty of nosebleeds, but I was surprised that the film didn't add more in the way of gratuitous violence…the only actual violence which hit home were the bits involving Yeung. On an simple level, this film is enjoyable, but it lacks the polished veneer and style of Van Damme's later offerings and therefore can't be considered one of his best.