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Cast:
Jean
Claude Van Damme
Rob
Schneider
Lela
Rochon
Paul
Sorvino
Carman
Lee
Wyman
Wong
Glen
Chin
Michael
Wong
Action:
Yuen
Bing
Producer:
Nansun
Shi
Director:
Tsui
Hark
Score:
  
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KNOCK
OFF
AKA:
Knock-Off ||
Knockoff
Year:
1998 Reviewer: Phil
Mills
For
me, Tsui Hark has always been one of the most frustrating Hong
Kong directors, not because of a lack of talent but more due
to his inconsistencies. One moment he is responsible for
creating a genre-defining classic (see 'Once
Upon A Time In China' or 'Zu:
Warriors From The Magic Mountain') and then all of a
sudden, he will take two steps backwards and produce a bland
and incompetent action film (need I say more than 'Black
Mask 2'?). So far, his American ventures have been
of the latter variety but could 'Knock Off' could be the
exception? Sadly I'd have to say not.
Marcus
Ray (Van Damme) and his partner Tommy (Schneider) are the
kings of the "knock off" clothing industry in Hong
Kong. When one of their shipments to the U.S. is
identified as counterfeit, they suddenly find themselves at
the centre of a Russian mafia plot to hold the United States'
security for ransom. As it turns out, the mafia are
using their clothing lines to implant tiny micro-bombs that
will eventually be distributed throughout the States, allowing
the Russians to have them at their mercy. With the CIA.
powerless to infiltrate the smuggling ring, they turn to Ray
and Tommy to assist them in the case even though they are
hardly the most reliable pair. However, as things start
to explode around them, Tommy and Ray find themselves fighting
for their lives and hope that they won't end up being
"knocked off" for real!
Unfortunately
for fans, 'Knock Off' displays all the attributes of Hark that
sum up his darker side. For some inexplicable reason he
has a very mediocre interpretation of what goes into making a
successful Hollywood movie (although some may argue that is an
easy mistake to make) and persists in churning out under-par
action fodder such as this. The main faults here
manifest themselves in a couple of ways; for starters, the
subject matter of counterfeit clothing is a bizarre (and
somewhat uninteresting) choice but it is one that becomes
totally unconvincing when placed in these outlandish
scenarios. This is not helped by the almost non-existent
scripting and farcical characters that fail to provide the
film with the necessary substance to allow you to overlook the
faults. Van Damme adds insult to injury by putting in an
arrogant and smug performance that is not complimented by the
presence of America's answer to Dean Shek - the irritating and
completely unconvincing Rob Schneider. Throw into this
Hark's determination to implement a different style of
dizzying camera trickery to each action sequence and you are
left with quite a disappointing overall effort.
As
is so often the case with Hong Kong directors though, 'Knock
Off' does redeem itself with the emergence of some decent
action despite Hark's decision to shoot each scene
differently. The obvious restriction with using a star
like Van Damme is that his on-screen martial arts appear quite
limited and he isn't exactly acrobatic but thanks to his small
build it is quite easy for Hark to employ a double for some of
the trickier sequences. Unlike Seagal's recent
forays, this is actually quite effective here and makes for
some decent displays of physical gunplay and a few relatively
punchy fights sequences (no pun intended). However, it
is somewhat disappointing that there are no distinct opponents
or big bosses for Van Damme to duel and even though the finale
does feature some interesting choreography, there is no
closing battle that would have perhaps provided a more
explosive ending.
It's
extremely easy to see why 'Knock Off' was a failure for both
star and director as there's nothing original here and little
that hasn't been done better elsewhere. Hark needs to re-evaluate
his action movie ideas before he will become successful in
America as thus far, he has only produced films that are
probably more suited to a television market. A shame really,
as we all know he is capable of so much more.
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