Hard Target 1993

When it comes to "action" movies, you really need to master the art of disengaging your brain and shutting down all sense of logic and reason…and I feel like I've come close to doing that. Every once in awhile, though, a movie comes along that - as much as I want to like it - it really challenges that ability. Hard Target was one such movie. Although I've never been a fan of his acting ability, like most guys back in the day, I was a fan of Jean Claude van Damme movies. I must have missed this one back then, though, because I don't recall ever seeing it…and watching it tonight was just...in some ways difficult, in other ways almost laughable. If I didn't know better, I would suspect this of being a satire of all the JCVD movies. The sad truth, however, is that it's NOT a satire; it's an action movie that you're expected to watch with jaw-dropping incredulity at how badass this dude really is. There was plenty of action from the get-go, and even a few van Damme martial arts moves thrown in for good measure, but overall, this was just way too ridiculous even for those who really can disengage their brain for an hour and a half. Good cast but a really tired storyline (same ol' The Most Dangerous Game story; been there, done that...) that this movie does nothing different with. Sadly, though, Wilford Brimley (RIP) did a bang-up job as "Doc" in the 1982 remake of The Thing but here he just flat-out sucked trying to be a cajun moonshiner down in the bayous of Lousiana. Painful to watch. While I was pleasantly surprised at the notable cast here, they failed to pull this one off. I couldn't really recommend this to anyone unless you're just willing to laugh it off. Granted, there's plenty of action but it's not enough to make this stinkpot tolerable.