Product Description

No Description Available.
Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure
Rating: R
Release Date: 21-OCT-2003
Media Type: DVD

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #71305 in DVD
• Brand: VAN DAMME,JEAN-CLAU
• Released on: 2001-10-16
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• ESRB Rating: Teen
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .26 pounds
• Running time: 106 minutes

Amazon.com
Jean-Claude Van Damme (star of Timecop and Universal Soldier) plays two roles in this surprisingly good action thriller. Replicant also stars Michael Rooker (of Henry, Portrait of a Serial Killer, The Replacement Killers) as Jake Riley, a cop who's been tracking a serial killer called "The Torch" (Van Damme). Frustrated, Riley decides to retire--and the National Security Department makes him an offer: they've cloned "The Torch" as part of a program to track down terrorists; they'll turn this replicant (Van Damme again, of course) over to Riley as a sort of test run for the program. The idea is that the replicant will slowly recall the original person's memories and lead the cops to the original. It's ridiculous, but no more ridiculous than the setup for the highly successful Face/Off, and it works just as well as the engine for an effective action flick. What makes Replicant more unusual is that the writers actually put some thought into the relationship between Riley and the replicant, which starts to mirror parent-child relationships in emotionally complex ways. Furthermore, while it's no surprise that Rooker gives a solid performance, it is surprising that Van Damme does just as good a job in both of his roles--he's perfectly creepy as the serial killer and genuinely affecting as the quickly developing replicant, projecting a mixture of innocence and turmoil. Replicant was directed by Hong Kong director Ringo Lam, the man behind Full Contact and City on Fire. He was clearly working on a limited budget, but the movie looks good, moves with lean efficiency, and has some riveting action sequences and good quality effects--the scenes where Van Damme (inevitably!) fights himself are completely convincing. A satisfying movie. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Surprisingly Very Good- Van Damme Delivers
Jean-Claude Van Damme has reunited with Director Ringo Lam (Maximum Risk) for the movie "Replicant." To my surprise, this movie delivers a powerful punch and why it did not get a theatrical release in the United States is unknown. However, it deserved one. This is not the average straight to video/DVD type of movie. The production values are high and the acting by Rooker and Van Damme is very good. Actually, it is Van Damme's best performance ever and is the caliber of any action star in the "A" market today.

Van Damme plays a convincing serial Killer and Clone who is directed to track him down. Both characters are well acted. He, for once, does not over act in two roles which could have been very easy to do. Rooker plays a street cop who is obessed with catching the killer. His character is developed well for an action flick and the two pull if off nicely.

The fight scenes are terrific and the stunts are great. For action fans-this film is a must. For others, it may not be worth the purchase, but is well worth the showing. You will be entertained.

One of Van Damme's best
First of all, this movie should have been released theatrically instead of going straight to Video. But since the DVD is here, Van Damme's fans (and action fans) should check it out. It is far better than his last 4 or 5 films (which are very bad: Desert heat, Universal soldiers: The return, Double Team, Knock off).

The story about cloning but director Ringo Lam made this movie highly entertaining. Van Damme plays double role, one is the serial killer, the other role as his clone which created so the police can catch the serial killer. Interestingly, Michael Rooker co-stars, he also appears in other cloning movie starring Arnold (The sixth day).

The DVD is OK. Bright and clear and the sound is fine. Van Damme provided commentary tracks along with ROoker, which are quite amusing. REcommended.

One of Van Damme's best
While Jean-Claude Van Damme may be a direct to video action star now, Replicant is a surprisingly good film that should have seen time in theaters instead of other Van Damme flops like Knock Off and Double Team. The storyline, which has Van Damme doing double duty as a serial killer called The Torch and a clone of the killer, is instantly ignored as we see how surprisingly creepy and effective Van Damme is as the killer, and how naive and innocent he is as the developing clone. Michael Rooker is great as well (he always is though) as the ex-cop on the killer's trail. The action scenes are very well put together, and as I said before, the acting from Van Damme is so unbelieveably good in his dual roles that you might forgive him for films like Street Fighter and The Quest (well, maybe not), but all in all, Replicant is one of Van Damme's best, and it is a shame it has gone direct to video.