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I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Without a doubt the most atypical film in the actor's long career, JCVD sees Van Damme playing himself, caught up in an unlikely spiral of events in a small Belgium town. This little, low-budget, self-referencing film ended up becoming a darling of the critics, with many declaiming it as Van Damme's best (they were chagrined when he went back to making action knock-offs straight after). It's a film that fans of the star will undoubtedly enjoy, although others might just find it a little passé.The plot is nothing new: the story of an ill-thought-out post office robbery that quickly turns into a hostage situation, complete with a media frenzy outside, is as old as the hills and has been done better in the past. The low budget is evident throughout and El Mechri's direction weaves between overdone attempts at style and some decent tracking shots (the opening sequence is certainly visually arresting). The music is overblown and the supporting cast do the job without ever being great. Still...This film belongs to Van Damme himself. He's at his best when winking at himself, playing a tired, messed-up star who found himself thrown in at the deep end in Hollywood, blew it all on drugs and fame and is now trying his best to keep clean and make ends meet for his estranged family members. His acclaimed five minute monologue to the camera is by far the best thing in the film and the best Van Damme has been as an actor; he's likable and deeply flawed here, a thoroughly interesting creation. How much of it is what he's like in real life is difficult to say, but it's clear that the version of Van Damme we see on film here is very close to the real one.In terms of pacing, the film starts off very slow and disjointed but hits the mark around the forty-minute mark. There are a few scenes of excitement along the way and a couple of high-kicks from the action hero, but those looking for thrills should go elsewhere. JCVD is as close to an art-house film as the martial arts actor is ever going to get: a knowing, post-modern look at the life of a fallen star.

A very surprising movie by VD. Just came across on the telly and hooked up. The story is one that I have never come across, so full originality. The performance of Van Dam is extraordinary, and unexpectedly it is not the fighting, but acting! It is kind of a testimony if you will that includes serious social messages. I'm totally shocked that such a movie is relatively unknown and didn't achieve much in the box office (probably due to bad marketing). Maybe acting besides VD is a little weak as well, but it is still satisfactory. A better ending would have also done the film more justice. All in all, it shall be a serious cult contender for anyone if you ask me.

It's too bad about ol' John-Claude- all his movies go direct to DVD for release, and when he gets a shot at something edgy, like JCVD, it's so far round the bend that the viewer can't latch on to enjoy the ride.There are more than a few problems with JCVD, starting with a narrative that from the start diverts our attentions and gets us off balance by starting mid-stream in a story involving a post office heist gone bad, and utilizing a Rashomon-like technique, ostensibly to elucidate truth.Other problems involve casting, and story, each of which is sub-par to the extent that the story-telling technique only serves to highlight the problems in the narrative rather than lift it to a higher level.Stories that have no particular depth should not be exposed. Rather than show more of how a bad story functions, it's better to cover up glitches in the narrative with explosions or struggles, or chase scenes. JCVD has little of these to raise the stakes and create tension, and ultimately the dismantling of the narrative into different points of view only serves to show off this deficiency.As far as characters go JCVD stars Jean-Claude Van Damme as a character named Jean-Claude Van Damme, a character with family problems including a custody suit involving his daughter. The problem is that Jean-Claude Van Damme is not as interesting as the characters he plays. Jean-Claude Van Damme the character is not invested in the problems he faces like a bad film-acting career, and custody battle, so the issues involving the heist don't involve us dynamically on an emotional level and this is what the film needs to stay alive.Actors who play themselves are only interesting when they are in interesting stories. Films like Being John Malkovich, or A Hard Day's Night rise above the usual because the persons playing themselves are also interesting people, so their characterization of themselves as iconic figures makes sense as it comments on the cultural aspect of the person. Jean Claude Van Damn has little irony associated with himself.When an interesting dramatic moment arises, ironically as JC himself physically rises to the occasion, we are taken out of the scene and out of the picture, and this breaking of the forth wall leaves us out in the cold. Jean-Claude's big moment is an emotional landmark for the actor, showing him as a performer who can invest himself completely in his craft. The ultimate problem taints his performance however by not allowing the viewer to be swept into the emotional landscape of the actor's craft.The movie leaves a bad feeling in the aftermath of what amounts to the real-life person/character navigating his world, and this fuzziness isn't much of a payoff after 90 minutes of screen time.

Jean-Claude Van Damme is a certain icon and one of the most famous Belgians in the world - even non-admirers should acknowledge this... His start as actor was not very smooth as - for a long time - he seemed stiff and the plots he was engaged were trivial and resembling. But improvements took place and Van Damme became a versatile martial actor and, the older he got, the less influence was on kicking-fighting and more on empathy and protection of the weaker. All this is nicely depicted in the film in question, where he plays a fictionalized version of himself, a burn-out action star whose family and career are at stake as he is caught in the middle of a heist in his hometown of Brussels. In line with several fatal scenes, we can snigger over police bureaucracy, thickheaded loafers and people's attitudes towards famous persons. Definitely one of the best performances by Van Damme - and different in many ways; by the way, Time magazine named his performance in the film the second best of the year.