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How sad is this?

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

Bad acting? Check. Generic plot? Check. "Based on a true story"? Check. Poor character development? Check. Poorly choreographed fight scenes? Check. One dimensional characters? Check. Exaggerated violence that borders on the comical? Check. Good guy always wins and gets the hot chick? Check. The movie takes itself seriously? Check. Disgustingly racial stereotypes? Check. Seriously, does this movie have any redeemable qualities? Okay, it was a box-office hit and Jean-Claude Van Damme made a name for himself with this movie. Anything else? Oh, the involuntary hilarity of the movie because it takes itself seriously and don't have the slightest sense of irony. Okay the movie has some charm I'll give it that; but its "brilliance" is mostly by chance and not because of great directing by Newt Arnold or great acting by Van Damme. I think it has to do with Frank Dux's fantastically, fraudulent fantasy biopic/script. Most people love the story of the underdog who kicks everyone's ass, defies all the odds and gets the hot chick. It also came in in the 80's where Ninjas were the fad and martial arts movies were gaining popularity in the US. Plus Van Damme and Bolo Yeung had big muscles which was also the thing in the 80's.Yes, the movie came in the right time: the 80's. The time of excessive violence, excessive stories and escapist plots where anyone who works hard enough will get all the reward and no silver medal or bronze medal for the rest of the losers. It's the kind of fad where bad actors like Steven Seagal, Chuck Norris, Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Steve Austin, John Cena and Jesse Ventura thrive. In this kind of movie the spectacle and not the story, drives the plot forward. But at least Van Damme had skills when it came to pretty kicks and his good looks probably helped a lot getting the ladies to like him. But that's all superficial and superficial in a bad way because of the reasons already mentioned in the first lines of this review. Chinese/Hong Kong action movies from that period are much better for example. Pick any Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung or Yuen Biao movie and you'll get better acting, better choreographed fights, better directing but varying plots and stories. At least with Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung they knew they were just making movies and mixed in humor with gritty stunts and fight scenes. So yes, Bloodsport falls short in comparison to other action/martial arts movies in its time. Only, Bloodsport gained a cult following.3/10

Halfway through "Bloodsport", I had to be reminded that this is a Cannon movie. Yeah, the movie's got their cheap fingerprints all over it, but very (very) few of their films are this entertaining. The story has the requisite themes of honor, dedication and friendship, but this is just an excuse to watch a wide array of different fighters beat the living hell out of hear other in the ring.You can throw in all of the gratuitous butt shots and Van Damme splits you want, but there is something about that score (Stan Bush for the win)that keeps things chugging along past the ridiculous one-liners and cut-rate acting. But I wouldn't even call this a "bad" movie; it's compulsively entertaining.8/10

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.

'Bloodsport' certainly suffers from all of the problems any movie from this era and of this genre naturally would, but just as Frank Dux triumphs over Chong Li, so too does 'Bloodsport' conquer the cheese factor.Jean Claude Van Damme may not exactly be De Niro, but he has an easy, natural charisma that lifts everything around him. Combined with his impressive physical gifts--here at their absolute peak--and you have a star making turn.Filled with colorful characters, fun fights and a host of awesome 80s trappings, 'Bloodsport' is a genre essential, and a Van Damme classic.