JCVD

As a deconstructionist satire of international movie legend Jean-Claude Van Damme, "JCVD" goes beyond expectation in presenting a humorous soup-to-nuts vision of the surprisingly sensitive actor. Director/co-writer Mabrouk El Mechri opens with an extended tracking-shot action sequence that features Van Damme working up a sweat by taking out a gauntlet of gun-wielding bad guys. A prop steel wall falls to reveal the inner workings of a movie production that the Muscles from Brussels is working on before attending a court hearing for child custody of his daughter. Vam Damme arrives home to Brussels jet-lagged and broke, only to become involved in a real-life postal robbery for which he seems a prime suspect by the surrounding police force. Van Damme gives a touching direct-to-camera monologue about his career and outlook on life that is the film’s virtuosic centerpiece. Never underestimate JCVD.
Rated R. 96 mins. (B) (Three Stars)