Right, well with the abysmal foray into the "Kickboxer" franchise with the 2016 "Kickboxer: Vengeance" movie, then I didn't really have much of any expectations to this 2018 "Kickboxer: Retaliation" movie.

But I still sat down to watch it, as it is a martial arts movie and Jean Claude Van Damme is on the cast list. And I am actually glad that I did watch this one, because it was such a drastic step up from the abysmal "Kickboxer: Vengeance" movie, and it was much more enjoyable.

Sure, the storyline was very, very simplistic. But hey, aren't they usually that in martial arts movies? It is not like you need to kick butt in order to invent rocket science. This is martial arts, you fight and put on a great display of martial arts skills, that is what these movies is about. And usually about pitting a guy against insurmountable odds and opponents. Yup, that is what they did here too. But it was still enjoyable.

Alain Moussi, playing Kurt Sloane, actually carried this movie quite well, whereas his performance in the 2016 "Kickboxer: Vengeance" movie wasn't as impressive. And he has some pretty impressive martial arts talents, which he definitely gets to showcase in this 2018 movie. Needless to say that it is always a blast from the past to have Jean Claude Van Damme in a movie, just a shame that he didn't get to do a lot more fighting. Then you have Christopher Lambert as the villain and he is just sort of raspy whispering himself through his dialogue and does so without much conviction as a villain. It is simply beyond me why Mike Tyson is in a movie such as this; totally stripped of anything remotely resembling acting skills, but he sure throws a mean punch.

The movie is predictable and generic, true and true. But such are most martial arts movies. And the final fight scene between Sloane and Mongkut (played by Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson) was really impressive and intense. Sure, no one would be able to walk away from taking on that hulking, massive fighter. But of course you know who will win after getting a massive whooping and facing death. Yeah, it is that predictable.

It felt like the martial arts scene with Sloane taking on the two females in the mirror room was just brutally cut short and could have been so much more interesting if they had added to that scene. There was so much squandered potential there. And the way that he defeated these two fighters was so anti-climatic that you just shake your head in disbelief.

"Kickboxer: Retaliation" is a heap of action and good choreographed action and martial arts sequences. This is very reminiscent of the glorious golden days of martial arts movies. And if you enjoy the old martial arts movies from the likes of Jean Claude Van Damme, then you should definitely sit down to watch the 2018 "Kickboxer: Retaliation" movie.

This shot-in-Thailand sequel to the remake offers more of the same as the first and as before comes across as reasonable, albeit unremarkable, fare. The main problem I had with it was the direction, which I found weak throughout; this means that the fights come across as average rather than thrilling. It's also a bit overlong. However, the cast is extraordinary for a B-movie sequel, and it's great to see old-timers like Mike Tyson, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Christopher Lambert up on the screen.

Kickboxer Kurt Sloane (Alain Moussi) is kidnapped by Thomas Moore (Christopher Lambert) and is held prisoner in a Thai jail. He can have his freedom and one million dollars if he fights Mongkut (Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson) sometimes pronounced Mongo as in "Blazing Saddles." Fighting is what Sloane does, so what is the issue? In order to make a film, Sloane must be forced to fight done through the normal film method. Mongkut is chemically enhanced. Sloane is trained by a blind Jean-Claude "don't look in my eye" Van Damme, a meditating Mike Tyson, and a few others.

The plot is thickly cliche. The film ends as we expect with a 30 minute fight of titans, a battle that makes all the Rocky fights look like patty-cake.This is a good action film for those who love well choreographed parkour fighting. Decent sound track.

Guide: No swearing, sex, or nudity.