Replicant
2001
Director: Ringo Lam
Stars: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Michael Rooker
I swear that Jean-Claude Van Damme must have some kind of illegitimate twin brother, becuase this is at least the third time he's done the whole "good vs. evil twin" thing, Double Impact and Maximum Risk (Van Damme's previous collaboration with Ringo Lam) being the previous films. I guess studios really like that whole "double the Van Damme, double the Van Damage" idea. Anyway, the twist is this time, Van Damme plays a serial killer called "The Torch" who is cloned by a government agency. The clone supposedly has some kind of telepathy that will lead the police to Torch, but he's kind of a dimwit, so it's up to retired cop Michael Rooker to try and get the clone working right.
The word around Maximum Risk was that Lam and Van Damme did not get along together at all -- Lam said that Van Damme "couldn't act for sh*t" and Van Damme threw tantrums on the set over Lam's perfectionism -- and the result was a total stinker, so I was a bit suprised when I heard that the duo was going to be paired again. The results this time around aren't all that great, but at least I wasn't bored to tears as with Maximum Risk.
Replicant is a very nice-looking movie, even with its' apparent low budget (once again, Vancouver is used for an American city, this time Seattle). Some of the cinematography, such as one sequence that can best be described as a "reverse flashback", gives the film a good visual flavor which sets it apart from Van Damme's usual junk. Speaking of Van Damme, he must have put down the coke spoon, because he actually does a decent job in the acting department. Yeah, it's no Oscar winning performance, but compared to some of his other stuff, it's pretty good -- maybe he should just stick to playing villains from now on. He also looks pretty good in the action bits, though he is obviously doubled for some of the more acrobatic stuff and the use of closeups and other camera tricks make me think he was doubled in other areas as well.
The movie's main problem is its' pacing. Like Maximum Risk, the movie seems to unfold at a slow pace, made even worse by some seemingly unnecessary scenes, such as one where the clone has a "messy" encounter with a hooker. Ringo Lam's movies usually have a slower, more deliberate pace to them, and they work because they have strong actors who can hold the viewer's interest by creating characters that people care about, or because the action is so over-the-top it shows something new to the viewer.
And that, ultimately, is what makes Replicant an average movie instead of a good one. While it's not as bad as some other straight-to-video trash, there's really nothing new to see here. You get the idea -- and probably rightly so -- that the people involved were just working to cash a paycheck instead of trying to make a good movie.
RATING: 5
This DVD is available for purchase at www.hkflix.com
