Until Death Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
They put him in a coma, now he's going to put them out of their misery.
It's not the plan, it's the execution.
Vengeance Is His
Jean-Claude Van Damme plays a dirty cop, fighting to capture his ex-partner. His character, Anthony Stowe, is a narcotics lieutenant addicted to heroin, has a bad attitude, and everyone hates him, including his soon-to-be-ex wife. His ex-partner, Gabriel Callaghan (Stephen Rea) is working to become the new leader of the gangsters in local organized crime. Callaghan sends his goons after Anthony, who's shot in the head and comes very close to death, falling into a coma. Months later, he awakens from the coma with the idea of finishing off his former partner and becoming a better person, and better husband.
| Jean-Claude Van Damme | Anthony Stowe |
| Selina Giles | Valerie Stowe |
| Mark Dymond | Mark Rossini |
| William Ash | Serge |
| Stephen Lord | Jimmy Medina |
| Gary Beadle | Mac |
| C. Gerod Harris | Ross |
| Wes Robinson | Chad Mansen |
| Stephen Rea | Gabriel Callaghan |
| Buffy Davis | Jane |
| Alana Maria | Clementine |
| Fiona O'Shaughnessy | Lucy |
| Adam Leese | Van Huffel |
| Rachel Grant | Maria Ronson |
| Paul Williams | Tommy |
| Simon Fellows |
5.90 out of 10 (3726 votes)
Visitor Reviews
A different direction for Van Damme and it mostly pays off.
posted on 20 Jul 2009Always a fan of Van Damme, I have seen every title of his since No Retreat, No Surrender and I can tell you right now, his acting in the 80's and most of the 90's was laughable. You don't watch a Van Damme movie for it's acting, you watch it for the fight scenes right? Not this time around. Until Death strongly focuses on its main characters flawed life. How a man who seemed to have it together at one point has completely lost it and is in a downward spiral full of drugs, hookers and a crooked run as a cop. Wondering if Van Damme can pull it off? He does and continues in my opinion to prove that he is better then the low-quality DTV movies that he has been unfortunately starring in for the past 7 years. Due to that fact, if this movie were made as a theatrical release with better funding and better actors surrounding our star, it would be amazing. Thanks to Van Damme and the director for at least trying to make this movie look the best it could, this movie is very good. Some fans may be disappointed with the lack of martial arts but this movie doesn't call for it. It would actually be out of place and pretty stupid for this guy to be as lethal a martial artist as we know Van Damme to be. Out of all of Van Damme's DTV releases, this one along with Wake of Death are his strongest and I strongly recommend that you check it out.
A surprise
posted on 14 Jul 2009Okay lets just for a second forget that Van Damme is playing here(cause most of the people will thing of me as another JCVD fanatic fan which i am not).Themovie has a killer plot, but a few things missing.So the story goes that Anthony Stowe is a bad cop playing it good.And he is really a hell of a cop except for his drug abuse , which messes everything.He finds out that trying' to fix things after the awakening isn't easy.In the end he not only makes a wrong wright but makes other people see the light as well.The first one was a longer runtime , cause obviously the script was cut or edited to fit the time.Second a little more budget.And third a more dramatic ending.A dramatic ending would have made this movie great.But the movie is better for me than the so haloed "300".So i have an advice for all you good movie lovers(that's wright not action movie lovers)go see this movie.It's not great , it's not flashy but it's never the less a nice movie to watch.
The best of Vand Damme
posted on 04 Jul 2009First of all this movie is not one of vandamme's regular movies, which kicks and stuff, this movie is very different. you will see a new Vand damme in this movie, the movie has a very nice interesting story, the fights are cool as well. I have to say Vand Damme has changed a lot, I think he is just getting better and better. The rest of the actors have done a fairly good job, I think this movie is much better than lots of new movies, but the problem is that it is on DVD so it is not getting as much attention as it should, but I think if vans damme keep coming to movies like this, i am sure he will be back on big screen sooner than we think.
Seemed promising, but failed
posted on 26 Jun 2009I see a lot of positives here about this new Van Damme film. I was really wanting it to be a success but its riddled with flaws that cannot be ignored. the acting is sub-par, even for Van Damme who looks like he's at least trying to be good actor. The writing is just not very good as can be seen by all the little holes in the film. I thought it was a good effort but ultimately it was a bad film that was horribly slow and boring with the same old storyline rehashed and spewed out. And what the hell was Stephen Rea doing in this film? I don't blame anyone for the tragedy that is this film because it is not Van Damme's fault that he is unable to make a good dramatic film. He's only good when he's kicking but.
Until Death is Great!
posted on 10 Jun 2009I think everyone (including me) have got the biggest surprise on Jean-Claude Van Damme. Until Death maybe his first-ever movie which he doesn't show his martial art skill as same as his famous 360 degree karate kick. Likewise, Van Damme radically changed himself from his famous character as 100% handsome and gentle hero to become the narcotic and crooked cop who was too nasty to intimate. Everyone could be shocked about his performance in this movie, but this could be one of his best movie in his life! For the cast, I highly appreciated with Van Damme due to his ability to go on his role in this movie. He has no root of his hero character from many previous movie that he acted, so it could be noted that "No more gentlemen in this film!" It was very interested that Until Death showed the new style of Van Damme. Full dark side character (in the first half time of the movie) and no more martial arts fight, but gun fight instead. You didn't have any chance to watch Van Damme's famous Spinning Kick to anyone in this movie, even he could show some skill in some scene. (liked he show his skill to Van Huffel in the middle of the movie) However, Van Damme could show everyone that he wasn't only good in fighting or he can does only the fighting-action movie, but he could played the drama role too. His character was very amazing, a bad guy was changed himself after the shot to coma. I truly believe that Van Damme is one of the greatest actor in the Hollywood as same as Until Death is one of his greatest film in his acting career.For other one, Stephen Rea did a good job, he looked very nasty for his role as Anthony Stowe's former partner who later became the drug kingpin. His look liked many heinous villain in the movie, motor mouth, ruthless and no mercy. Selina Giles, Mark Dymond, William Ash and other also OK with their role. Although, I think William Ash should have more role because after he helped Anthony Stowe, he didn't have much role and then he was shot during the big police's raid. As of all, I think the cast is very good.For the plot, I think Until Death is the great movie. The plot of the dirty cop who turned later to be the good cop after a shot to coma is very interested, especially when the guy who received this role is the hero-character guy liked Jean-Claude Van Damme. In my opinion, the fast-paced telling of the movie is very clear to understand about what happened with Anthony Stowe at first and after he was shot and recovered from the coma status. Every scene looked realistic and reasonable. I also liked how the crew didn't put some women's hurting by men scene in this movie, I hated that stuff even it had to put in the movie for realistic. It looked nasty. I accepted that several Van Damme's movie had these complement, Strong violence, Mixed Martial Arts, Sexuality, Strong Language and Women's Hurting by men. The last complement made me hated many movie played by him, so Until Death is the very good film to show that some action movie didn't have to put Women's Hurting in their movie. I appreciated it.However, some scene in Until Death was corny. Several black and white scene about the incident occurred during Anthony Stowe's coma is uncleared. What happened? It should have some explanation or talking by some character in the movie because it could make many one confused and it looked like the unnecessary scene. Furthermore, many body maybe not like the climax scene which shown the non-stop action because it didn't get to extreme and looked mediocre. Nonetheless, I think the climax scene could be like that because Until Death wasn't the fighting-action movie. I had a chance to watch both style of ending, North America version or European version. I was OK with both ending because the director and the crew maybe have their reason to make two versions of ending.For the summary, I think Until Death is one of the great drama-action movies you should watch. The new style of Jean-Claude Van Damme's acting and the drama scene are the reason why you ought to find its DVD. Until Death is Great!
So close to being a great flick
posted on 06 Jun 2009This was enjoyable. This film was no small undertaking. It had a complex plot. It had quite decent production values. Plus a genuinely good performance by Jean Claude Van Damme. It just came up ever so slightly short. It almost would have played better with about 10-15 minutes extra of plot exposition. Stephen Rea's character should have been expanded. The exposition of the relationship between Van Damme's character, his wife and her boyfriend was ambitious. All-in-all though, this was an enjoyable DVD rental. A fine way to spend an evening. If it had been handled or marketed well, it should have had at least a $35MM run. Quite frankly, the character development was strong enough to give this a project shot at being expanded into a decent TV series. I'd watch it for sure.
Van Damme finds his character and comes of pretty decent. Script needed a bit more depth.
posted on 21 May 2009Well for once Van Damme's script is not "They killed my brother" and he's reprising the role of the Dirty Lieutenant- a far superior flick about similar issues. He's a cop, with some integrity issues and there's a barely-believable art-heist super villain dude that's out to kill him. Luckily we don't have a ton of screen time with that cartoon. The movie centers on Van Damme's character and him stumbling his way through a lot of pain in his life. Various addictions are involved and the acting is better than your usual Van Damme flick, but do bear in mind this is slightly sub par, this is no Harvey Keitel, this is Van Damme. Some of the plot twists were a bit dopey unrealistic and heavy handed, like they were written by a woman.
Great movie!! Contains spoilers. Plot holes.
posted on 22 Feb 2009I've just watched Until Death. Oh, my God: it's a lot better than I expected!!! I was a bit scared because Simon Fellows is the director, but at last it turned out to be a false alarm. What can I say about this good movie? Van Damme's best acting of all his career. He can be proud of himself. Stephen Rea is there just because our Belgian hero needs a villain to fight with. "Fight" here is a metaphor, 'cause Van Damme doesn't almost use his fists or his legs in this one (if he did, he would destroy the tone of the whole plot). Selina Giles overacts in some scenes. When she is at a party with her new lover, she smiles as if she was thinking "oh, dear, this guy is so disgusting", which I think wasn't what the director really meant. The prostitute... she is just in the movie to prove that Anthony Stowe is a despicable scumbag. She's hot, but nothing else. Adam Leese plays a good role. He's convincing as an honest cop and as a dirty one (a plot twist we find out in the climax). He's a hypocrite, accusing Stowe of being a bad cop when he is, in fact, Callahan's man in the police force. I don't really know what to think about the waitress. What's her actual relationship with Stowe? It doesn't seem to be any kind of romantic (well, if there is something romantic in Stowe before he's shot in the head) affair. This takes me to the: PLOT HOLES. First of all, I'd like to say something that I consider important. There've been some reviews in this board complaining about the holes in this film. Actually, I believe all the flaws have to do with the distributors' wish to cut some of the sequences to make this movie shorter. The reason? Maybe they think a Van Damme movie is too long if it lasts more than 90 minutes. If you pay attention to the promo trailer that has been on the net for several months, some dialogs and scenes are missing in the released version. What a mistake!!! This editing may be to blame for: 1) The unexplained relationship between Stowe and Chad Mansen. Maybe the kid attends Valerie's school? Did the cop and the teenager know each other before their first meeting in the film? 2) The unbelievable return of Valerie to Stowe (I can't believe a couple of compliments did the job) 3) Why does Jimmy ask Stowe "Remember me?" when they meet at the diner in the shooting scene? I can't remember seeing Jimmy earlier in the film. 4) Why is Stowe so obsessed with Callahan? Did Valerie meet Callahan when the two cops were partners? 5) At the final shooting scene, is Van Huffel trying to shoot Stowe or the thug behind him? 6) What's up with the waitress? Does she betray Anthony 'cause she works for Callahan? 'Cause she hates Stowe? 'Cause she is threatened by Callahan? 'Cause she's paid for? When she goes to the bathroom, is her face one of repentance for what she's doing? I'd like to finish with a quote from the movie. Stowe to Callahan: "I was never a bad cop, Gabriel". The best Van Damme movie acting-like. The lack of martial arts is not important. Superb cop drama. I hope Van Damme keeps on like this. Members of the board: take care and don't give up on our Belgian hero.
van damme takes another step closer to being back on form
posted on 31 Jan 2009well I was a bit dubious watching this after watching the hard corps which was not that great really..... But from the minute this film kicked off I could tell it was going to be a good one....The film is pretty much split into two halves first sees jean claude as a violent,dirty cop think vic mackey off the shield on drugs and your almost there...second half sees him as a reformed character desperate to make amends...I wont go into the story as plot wise it isn't really ground breaking, but what films are these days...Now I grew up with van damme after randomly watching kickboxer when I was young and I loved the whole van damme package the fights the van damme noises and the fact that he seemed to use the same moves all the time...CLASSIC...But if that is what your looking for this film will not be it...don't get me wrong the fight scenes are excellent but not martial arts and to be honest martial arts would of looked silly...I would say the fights are more like the style of van dammes character from double impact you know the one who headbutts everyone....But overall this is a very good movie, acting wise van damme is up there with likes of matt damon etc...Hopefully we will see van damme in a big budget movie soon, although I would say do more bad guys van damme as he really pulls it off brilliantly...
A Strange Experience for the Fan
posted on 27 Jan 2009I am not afraid to admit I am a fan of Jean-Claude Van Damme movies. As corny as most of them are, they are usually a pretty good example of the more showy aspects of martial arts. Most of them are simple revenge stories, with Jean losing a loved one (or several) and then relentlessly killing everybody until he gets to the big bad guy.This movie is a different kind of Van Damme vehicle. At the risk of sounding ridiculous, he gives a subtle performance here, even if it is yet another revenge movie. As a broken down cop, addicted to booze, heroin and sex, he's just not the hero. In real life Van Damme has had problems with drugs, and his face is now aged and somewhat tired-looking.There isn't as much physical action (martial arts) as you would expect, but there is significant gun play.While Until Death is a little too long (very common these days), it's a revelation to watch Van Damme actually act. At a few points you still get that feeling that he's overreaching his abilities as an actor, but for the most part his work in this movie is actually pretty impressive. I for one would love to see someone put him in a real A list movie, playing a character role, I really think he could pull it off after watching this one.New Orleans is practically a character itself in this one, with practically every cop corrupted in one way or another. On a side note, they should have gotten another actress to play his estranged wife, as the actress here has marginal talent at best. Recommended for Van Damme fans who want to see him grow up a little.
Anniversaries
posted on 19 Jan 2009Yes, I watch dumb movies, sometimes finding intelligent ones. This happens even in porn, though the slog through is rough going.Violent movies are porn, pure and simple. Segal, Van Damme, Conner, are simply action toys for three and four year old boys and viewers who wish they were. But this is a bit different. No, it blazes no new ground; in fact the notion of a late in life "coming of age" film with little violence has been well plowed. But its something rather important to see someone who we know is actually dumb and violent singularly shift his career path and do one.The story is simple: broken man, broken heart. Very, very bad guys out there that he is singlehandedly battling, over the obstructive but typical black chief. (Is there a more prevalent film type than the honest, caring but tough black police boss?) He nearly dies, then revives, and settles the score. But instead of the simple "good guy is stronger so beats the bad guy's butt," we have a similar dynamic but with presumed growth. That seldom happens. The folding of battling with marriage and battling (the bad parts of) society is clear.Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.
Van Damme's renaissance!!
posted on 10 Dec 2008Van Damme hits form again, big time! Until Death is a dark, dirty, damn nasty and repugnant film, but in a good way. In a Get Carter, Death Wish, Marathon Man kinda way. It's a 70's style thriller with all the grimy darkness, pessimism and degeneracy of so many great flicks of that time. Sure Wake Of Death had that feel, but somewhere along the way with director Phillipe Martinez's unsure hand, it attempted artiness, and relied far too heavily on the editing room, while also playing and drawing out needless scenes. Until Death is honed, grounded and above all consistent. All those who doubted Simon Fellow's because of his previous two films, should note that both were filmed in Romania and that the notoriously iffy company Castel were responsible. Here however, under the guidance of Moshe Diamont, Fellows is given more freedom to express himself, and he keeps things simple, grounded, allowing scenes to play out. He's far more sure of what he wants here, and delivers. He adds in a few touches that feel experimental, and a bit dangerous, and that only adds to the 70's vibe. A 70's vibe does not a good movie make, but it's a welcome part of an overall good movie.Now in my honest opinion, I found this to be Van Damme's best film overall, period! At the same time it's hard to even call this a Van Damme movie. It's like a lost movie from Bronson or Eastwood, circa 70's. It's like Siegal and Peckinpah joined forces and took on the reckless abandon and excessiveness of Michael Winner. Those who want the new Bloodsport will not take this to their hearts as Van Damme's pinnacle, but still, they should enjoy Van Damme in a film with genuine atmosphere, in a role he stamps real authority on. Van Damme, minus the flashy kicks, plays a walking turd! He's a degenerate drug addled morally abstruse cop, and a borderline maniac. Van Damme has a role split into two halves if you like, pre-coma, post-coma. Pre coma is the dirty cop Stowe who's lost all regard for the people close to him, and his co-workers. He lives only for himself, and only to bring down ex-partner Callaghan (Rea). He'd sell his own mother to get the collar. Van Damme gives his best performance. He's really playing an unlikeable character whose judgement has become clouded. He thinks he's doing right, trying to do right, but loses track of the right and wrong ways to get what he wants. Van Damme is just a mean, badass machine in the first half of the film, not a man to be crossed at all. When Stowe wakes from his coma, having been left for dead by Callaghan, he wants to turn his life around, while he has to fully recover from his injuries. Here Van Damme is equally good. The film is a real departure for him. He really immerses himself in the role and vanity is so far from his mind here. Van Damme looks outta shape (and should do), and early on is really made to look dishevelled. Elsewhere Stephen Rea kind of flitters in and out in an extended cameo, but he gets to really chew scenery in a great scene at the end, when he and Stowe come face to face for the first time since Stowe's resurrection. Rea is simply picking up his paycheque, but he gets the one scene to let loose and deliver, and he leaves a lasting impression. Selina Giles as Stowe's wife enters the film with a bang! It's not a good one either, cause she's not delivering a good performance. However no sooner than Van Damme gets shot in the head, she begins delivering a fine performance. It's quite strange in that respect. There's also decent support from Adam Leese and Gary Beadle.The action is short and swift. It's supposed to hit hard, and hit fast. They're simple scenes but they pack a punch, in a way that The Hard Corps and Second In Command were lacking. Ditto Wake Of Death, while supremely violent was a letdown in the action. Here though it's all about the violence. It's efficiently choreographed and edited and it has impact. When people die, you know they're dead. Those eagerly awaiting plenty of hand-to hand will be disappointed it, there's only a few quick little flourishes, but for this film Van Damme is far better armed with a shotgun than unleashing his kicks. The action isn't meant to be over the top, drawn out and excessive. It's about the forceful violence dished out. To see what I mean simply check the end action sequence in Straw Dogs.Simon Fellows does well here as I mentioned, and he keeps the film ticking over nicely. Doug Milsome's cinematography is the best in a Van Damme movie for a while now. It looks great, and really keeps that dank 70's vibe going. There's also great sound design and Matthew Booth does a good job piecing everything together in the editing suite. A real standout though is the score from Mark Sayfritz, a blend of orchestra and synth effortlessly combining. Occasionally there's a real Massive Attack vibe in the music. It's arguably the best score in a Van Damme film, and Sayfritz will be a welcome returnee for Van Damme's next film, The Shepard. All in all, those who like a good gritty action thriller with some vicious violence, need look no further than Until Death. Those who saw Wake Of Death as a turning point were seeing a false dawn, cause this is Van Damme's career defining moment. It proves he's now an actor, and that WOD wasn't a flash in the pan. This is the best DTV film I've seen, and as those who know my love of Lundgren's Mechanik, will realise that means a lot. ****
Kick-Ass, Van Damme is back!!
posted on 08 Dec 2008This was a dramatic and interesting film. It has its usual Jean Claude standards though such as Graphic Violence, Language, Sex, and Drugs. But hey, that's why I and a lot of other fans watch these movies. I thought Van Damme was a vigilante on the loose in this, especially when he came out of that coma. Stephen Rea is also playing his usual confusing and mean character who likes to screw up people's lives just like in Fear Dot Com, which was a stupid movie unlike this one. I had hight hopes for this movie and it came through well. Since I was little I have always loved watching Van Damme and Steven Seagal movies, I just hope that they keep up the good work! 8 out of 10
I had no idea it would be so different from what Van Damme has done before, 95% DRAMA!!!
posted on 25 Oct 2008OK, before I saw the movie I had no idea it would be so different from what Van Damme has done in the past. Guys, this movie is completely different from anything he has ever done. The movie is 90 – 95% drama and 5-10% action, yup, it's more of a drama than an action movie and it has a great story.The movie's main character is Anthony Stowe, a Narcotics cop who was once partnered with Callahan, a man who has since become one of the most important drug dealers in New Orleans and who began his involvement in the drug business during his time as a cop. Stowe, still a cop is now after Callahan, his former partner. The great thing about this story that is similar to others that we've seen in the past is the fact that we don't get the whole story, only parts and pieces of it while the main story of the movie deals with the final part of the cat and mouse game between Stowe and Callahan. The movie looks great, in fact with just 3 exceptions, BUT, these 3 scenes amount to only 15 seconds, or around that, so they can be easily overlooked.Simon Fellows is clearly a beginner at directing. In Second in Command he tried to create a feeling of revolution/war/chaos through the camera movement, but he failed because he overdid it, he tried too hard and in the end he made some viewers hate the camera movement and the overall style. Rest assured that he has improved tremendously with Until Death. He does some interesting camera moves that actually improve scenes and which ARE METAPHORS FOR THE STORY. YES people, FELLOWS IMPROVES some scenes WITH THE WAY HE DIRECTS. The way the camera is placed or the way the camera moves makes some scenes feel more important, bigger and BETTER than they are and enhances their emotional impact. If only Fellows would learn how to do the same for action, he would then be a much better director.Van Damme has drastically improved as an actor in a very short time. And with Until Death he hits another one right out of the park, he gives a great performance, at a level at which others have won Oscars at and I am not joking. Unfortunately this is both good and bad. It's good because he can impress the audience and easily carry the movie and it's bad because EVERYONE else looks like an amateur when compared to him. Stephen Rea is GOOD, but he clearly did this movie for the money so does not try very hard. The actress portraying the wife is awful; she couldn't deliver any EMOTION, any impact along with her lines. Her role was VERY IMPORTANT in the movie and her acting was terrible, you can tell she either is an amateur (which is not the case) or not at all interested in the movie, which is what really happened since actress Selina Giles has a long list of acting jobs on her resume. Unfortunately her performance is the weakest of them all and she brings the movie down by quite a lot. It is interesting to see the best actor in the movie (Van Damme) and the worst actor (Selina Giles) at the same time on screen.Had UNTIL DEATH had a better actress in the role of THE WIFE, a good soundtrack and a more emotional style of direction it could have been a 10/10 movie, as it is at the moment it's at 8.5/10.It is a completely new and different role for Van Damme, it has small amounts of action compared to his older movies and it is a DRAMA, a type of movie that people might not want to see Van Damme in Until Death told me a great story, a great dramatic story, it showed to me that Van Damme can carry this type of movie and it also gave me a lot of hope for THE SHEPERD (provisional title), Van Damme's next movie which will be filled with action and which is directed by Isaac Florentine (Undisputed 2) and produced by the same people with most of the same important crew behind it.This is why I respect Van Damme, he has grown as an actor and has created and put in place all the necessary elements to make quality movies. He has improved himself even if he is a DTV star, he keeps in great shape, has become a great actor and can still do some cool action, although he has evolved away from the action filled extravaganzas of the past (which is a good thing). Any new Van Damme movie is guaranteed to be good and interesting and the very nice fact is that his fans are disappointed when his movies fail to be GREAT and are JUST GOOD (as was the case with Second In Command).Also keep in mind that I saw an edited version so the DVD might have more scenes, more action (a tiny little bit more), a better soundtrack and an even better visual quality as I saw the movie on TV in a TV format and aspect ratio. The DVD version could be drastically better, but even if it isn't this is still a movie I would recommend to anyone who loves a great drama, a great COP drama and some cool action from a classic star of the genre who has reinvented himself and who gave his best acting performance, a performance that I dare say is great by ANY standards.8.5/10 on any scale…
Waste of time
posted on 23 Oct 2008OK i had high hopes for this one. Not that Van Damme was in it thou. I've seen his movies and i have to admit that i was a big fan of his many years ago. Bloodsport for ex was a favorite when i was a lot younger then I am today ;) Thou his latest movies have not been much to say the least. So when i looked at the ratings here i was very pleased. "7.7 for a van damme movie?? God damn i have to see this". It started out good with van damme playing a cop that have seen better days. He was not in this movie to show off his ass that was for sure ;) But oh my god.... The acting SUCKED so bad... I can not say that any of the actors on this movie was worth the money seeing this movie. And the story was so predictable. I wont spoil anything for you unlucky people that are going to see this after all but if any of you do not guess the end after 30-40min then I do not know what to say :)Well good part in this movie was that van damme was more then just a "kick-show-ass" guy in this movie. And well MAYBE he acted a little better then he use to but it is not enough for me anymore. I am sorry but this movie goes down the toilet. Take my advice and spend 1.41h of your life on something more meaningful
Jean Claude Van Dammes best role.
posted on 21 Oct 2008I must start by saying this is by far the best DTV action movie I've seen for along time, i know thats not saying much the out put from Mr's Snipes, Van Damme and Segal have been really bad of late. Until Death however is a very different beast indeed more a cop drama than an action movie this sees Mr Van Damme moving into uncharted acting territory and he succeeds and impressively so.This is not a perfect film, there are some bits of wooden acting and stilted action on the whole though this film work. First off Van Damme plays the role of a wretched drug addicted cop expertly, the man has seriously pulled up a gear in the acting stakes, I was genuinely surprised at how he portrayed Anthony Stowes decline and redemption, never over playing it he mumblers and curses his way through the first half of the movie. Post coma we see him go from bumbling recovery through to as close to redemption as he can get. The only main let down is the actress playing his wife who at time misfires the delivery which is a shame as the scenes are quite important in terms of Anthonys motivations. That said this is really Van Dammes movie almost a showcase of his new improved acting chops. The music must also be mentioned quite low key for most of the movie but the brooding parts worked well. Stephen Rae is a bit wasted here but again, its all really about one mans demons.....again Mr Van Damme. Van Damme fans will love it Im sure but hopefully some others may take a chance on the Muscles from Brussels and end up genuinely surprised.
Chad forgives you, i don't.......
posted on 03 Oct 2008having a break from all his usual action movies has done the boy good, as this has to be one of the finest Van Damme films to be released in a while. i had my reservations knowing that Fellows was directing this, following the average 'Second In Command', but Fellows appears to have learnt from his mistakes, and in return has made a solid thriller, which while it may not appeal to all, is a great thriller.Van Damme plays against type as Stowe, a dirty cop, heroin addict and adulterer whose luck is running out. after being shot and left for dead, he is comatose for seven months, only to wake up a new man, realising that he has been giving a second chance at life.Van Damme does his best with material he is given, and comes so close to the medium known as acting, but he is well supported by the rest of the cast. the story runs along smoothly, and camera-work is very gritty, and improves the actual storyline. there may be a few plot holes, but it doesn't spoil the flow of narrative and characters are given their fair share of story.if you are expecting bloodsport or kick-boxer, you will be disappointed. but if you are a true Van Damme film, you know where the film was going in the first place, and be pleasantly surprised with the results.
New and not necessarily improved Van Damme…
posted on 08 May 2008I hesitate to criticize Van Damme's performances, because I have been a huge fan of his since I was a kid and used to stay home on weekends and watch Kickboxer and Bloodsport over and over again. But in Until Death, it seems that he has gone from making his unique style of action and martial arts b-movies to making your standard, everyday action b-movie. It's like his personality has been consumed by the cheesy film surrounding him.For his part, there is definitely a lot more acting in his role than what I generally associate with him. His is a complex character, a detective of questionable integrity suffering from a drug addiction, struggling through major family problems, and unable to catch the bad guy at the top of his most wanted list. To say his character is heavily flawed would be a massive understatement, but for the most part he pulls it off well.Where the movie goes wrong is in the story and the choreography of the action, such as the climactic gun battle, which is either overdone or underdone, I can't decide which. Van Damme plays Anthony Stowe, a New Orleans Detective with a heroin addition that shows all over his body, yet no one ever seems to notice, despite the fact that he is not only shooting up on duty, but shooting up in his office at the police station. Clever! He has a beautiful wife and various other women chasing after him, which is ironic, since he generally displays all the charm and romance of a steel-toed work boot. Soon we learn of his one major flaw – he has a habit of reporting the misdeeds of other police officers, coming off as the upstanding, by-the-book officer of the law, while at the same time breaking the law much more himself. It's not very far into the movie that we realize that something bad has to come of all this. (spoilers) Then, about halfway through the movie, all realism is thrown out the window and we get this bizarre revenge story. Stowe is captured by the bad guy and shot in the head, under the chin and (despite the doctor explaining later that the bullet lodged against the inside of the top of his skull) clearly exiting out the top of his head. I'll accept that as just a standard goof (maybe the fx guy was a little too overzealous), but later, as the doctor is explaining the miraculous survival, he mentions that the nasal cavity has been completely destroyed.I'm no doctor, but I have a feeling that if the nasal cavity was destroyed, Stowe would never speak the same again. Not in this movie. Evidently a gunshot to the head is an injury that can only be cured by pure rage, and Stowe had a healthy dose of that rattling around in that indestructible head of his. But the screenwriters seem to think that a gunshot to the head and something like, say, a stroke, will have the same affect on speech patterns. I doubt that. Then again, these are the same writers who have a doctor explaining that, after being shot in the head, Stowe is "very lucky to still be alive." That's a pearl of medical wisdom if I've ever heard one!The climactic scene of the film is preempted by a ridiculous monologue by the bad guy, which eventually evolves into the age-old stand-off between the good guys and the bad guys, who enter the scene one by one at just the right moment, until everyone is pointing a gun at someone else and doing some tough talking. This is followed by an age-old gunfight, which looks like every other gunfight that ever took place in an old warehouse in a sub par action drama, and a nice little piece of video evidence at the end to tie up any loose ends. I've seen lots of movies that are much worse than Until Death, but I have to say that I liked the old Van Damme better, where he wasn't just another brooding guy with a gun and a burning motive for revenge.
Flawed but very Entertaining
posted on 08 May 2008If you rent or buy a Van Damme movie then you want to be entertained, right??? As long as you are entertained then you would be willing to let the quality of the acting or script slide a little, right??? Well, I have to say that this film did indeed entertain me and Mr. Van Damme even surprised me because he was rather good, even with a script that went a little overboard with movie cop-talk. For all of his critics,I say, give the man a break, he is making an effort and trying something different.As an Irishman I was as surprised as anyone to see Stephen Rea in such a film as I hadn't looked at the full credits before watching it, but he was solid as usual.I don't want to summarise the film for anyone because I watched the film without knowing anything about the story except that Van Damme played a dirty cop, and I found the story to be very entertaining ,even in spite of the poor dialogue at times. Please, do not go along and watch this film with preconceived notions of negativity towards Mr. Van Damme, just watch it with an open mind, and I think you may find yourself surprised.....
Van Damme is back with a bang
posted on 22 Jul 2009STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning Anthony Stowe (Van Damme) is an undercover Narcotics agent who's getting more into drugs than busting them, having become hooked on heroin whilst on an assignment. His colleague blames him for the death of his girlfriend, his wife is pregnant with another man's child and everyone generally dislikes him. It all comes to a head when his former partner and dirty cop Callaghan (Stephen Rea) shoots him in the head and leaves him for dead. Miraculously, he survives and after gaining his strength back he sets out to become a better person and even the score with those who wronged him.There's a regular user of the Steven Seagal/Van Damme message boards by the name of Steveday_UK who, if his posts are for real, seems to have been driven mad by the fact that, while Seagal's films gets consistently worse and worse, VD's get consistently better and better, more ambitious and dynamic in scope while Seagal seems happy to just churn out the same old tired formula over and over again, ad nausea's. His films are much better made as well, with no dubbing, stunt doubles or obvious post production tampering. He hasn't made a great film in quite a few years but compared to Seagal's recent oeuvre, they're masterpieces.As has already been noted, this is a more drama oriented film, with no martial arts and just a few tasty action set pieces here and there. VD's really gone all out to impress as a sleazy cop who's life is spiralling out of control, and he has a fine co-star in Rea, who looks like Leo Sayer minus the poodle hair. Paul Trueman from East Enders has also come back from the dead and become a New Orleans police chief.He's had a bit of a rocky patch these last few years, but if VD can churn out a few more like this, he'll eclipse Seagal in the straight to DVD market no problem. ****