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I have an pretty comprehensive MA movie collection, spanning classic & modern HK to Japanese Samurai exploitation to American cheez classics from the 80s and 90s (and more). I had no idea that there was a direct-to-DVD martial arts scene worth exploring, so this all came as something of a revelation. I came across this movie as a result of discovering Michael Jai White in Black Dynamite. His fighting prowess caught me off guard, and I quickly sought out his other projects (including Blood & Bone and Undisputed II). Jai-White definitely caught my eye in Undisputed II, but I was even more impressed by his flashy onscreen opponent, Uri Boyka. Boyka is a Russian badass convict played by Scott Adkins. Adkins is a British martial artist who happens to have enough of a legit acting background to make him a good lead. Boyka is crippled at the end of Undisputed II, and I never expected to see him in another movie. It came as a surprise, then, to learn that Undisputed III would focus on Boyka's rise back to the top, and I was quite excited to see what Adkins could do with more screen time. It turns out that Adkins is a martial arts monster, and what we have in Undisputed III is an excellent documenting of his skills. This movie has everything a man needs: 1. An international roster of fighters in a no-holds-barred battle for freedom 2. Intense amounts of profanity 3. Ridiculously jacked actors (esp Adkins - WTF) 4. Hilarious homoerotic subtext 5. EXCELLENT action scenes that are shot effectively, with NO Bourne chaos and plenty of extended shots to showcase the skills on display 6. Seriously quotable dialogue ("Champion of the toilets"!) 7. Brutal violence and effective makeup effects 8. An awesomely over-the-top Colombian villain name Dolor Dolor deserves a bit more love before I go on. He is apparently in prison on trafficking charges, and seems to be either a heroin addict or juiced up on performance-enhancing drugs (I don't know what his syringes are supposed to hold). He is the tournament favorite and is constantly coddled by being allowed to bask in the shade and read(!) while everyone else does hard labor in the yard. The way this guy moves is just awesome. It's an odd combo of dance, martial arts, and showboating that is great to behold. There's one scene where he choo-choos into the frame before tearing Boyka a new one, and I laugh every time I see it. I may be focusing on Dolor, but Boyka also deserves a place in movie history. Adkins amps up the flash factor and delivers some absolutely electric moves. He spins, flips, and grapples his opponents into oblivion before finally meeting his match in Dolor. The epic 10-minute showdown between these two is on par with anything I've seen on film. In addition to all this, Undisputed III is also the best Street Fighter movie that Capcom never made. It takes place in a prison which has been constructed around a ring, for god's sake! As an old-school Zanghief player, it made my heart warm to see such a great (if belated) SF movie finally hit the screen. I love this movie, and I really hope they make Dolor the star of the next sequel. 8.5/10
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Jun 6, 2010 19:29
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| # ? Apr 20, 2024 02:40 |
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