Of
course, Jean-Claude Van Damme can speak French. He’s the “Muscles from
Brussels.” But no Flemish. He’s not the “Walloon Goon.” You would think
Francophone action cinema would have made better use of him over the years, but
at least he has a chance to play his age and take stock of his career in Julien
Leclercq’s The Bouncer (a.k.a. Lukas, trailer here), which releases
today on DVD.
Lukas
has a mysterious past, so he is forced to work dodgy partially off-the-books
bouncer gigs to support Sarah, his adoring little moppet daughter. Money was
already tight before he badly injures an aggressively obnoxious and entitled
nightclub patron. As a last resort, Lukas accepts a bouncer gig at a strip club
owned by Jan Dekkers, a mysterious Flemish underworld figure. Unfortunately, Lukas is also “recruited” by predatory
copper Maxim Zeroual to inform on his new employer.
Recognizing
his talent and nee for cash, Dekkers and his righthand man Geerts quickly recruit
Lukas to do some of his dirty work. Part of his duties also include driving and
babysitting Lisa Zaccherini, an Italian printing expert, who is most experienced
doing jobs with a 2.6 x 6.4 trim-size. Both sides of the law will make threats
regarding Sarah to force Lukas to do their bidding, but the more desperate his
circumstances, the more dangerous the old bouncer gets.
Okay,
The Bouncer isn’t exactly the equal
of Gran Torino or Harry Brown, but anyone in the future who
writes a scholarly survey on the filmography of Van Damme will spend a
disproportionate amount of time on this film. Even if it sounds like faint
praise, Lukas is probably his best and most honest performance to date.
Of
course, Van Damme still throws down, but the fight scenes are grittier and way
more street than his typical high-flying melees. There are also real stakes, because
Lukas is decidedly not a super-hero. Leclercq (who previously directed The Assault and produced SK1) also helms some tight, tense action
scenes, including a particularly impressive long take that follows Lukas as he
stalks a rival gangster through a country villa (against his will).
