Kickboxer 3: The Art of War starts as US kickboxing champion David Sloan (Sasha Mitchell) & his mentor Xian (Dennis Chann) arrive in Brazil in Rio de Janerio to take part in a kickboxing tournament against brutal Argentinian champion Martine (Ian Jacklin). While enjoying a bit of lunch on the beach a young local boy named Marcos (Noah Verduzco) steals David's camera, David gives chase & catches Marcos & finds out that he is homeless & trying to get money to support himself & his older sister Isabella (Alethea Miranda). David & Xian take pity on the pair & hire them as local guides, while at a charity event Martine's manager Lane (Richard Comar) takes a fancy to Isabella & has her kidnapped in order to sell her as a sex slave & also tries to get David to throw the upcoming fight against Martine so he can make lots of money from betting which doubly annoys David & Xian who set out to rescue Isabella & beat Martine in a fair fight...
Directed by Rick King this was the third film the the Kickboxer franchise which started with the reasonably watchable early Jean-Claude Van Damme flick Kickboxer (1989) & Kickboxer 2: The Road Back (1991) both of which featured the two main character's David Sloan & Xian who also take center stage here in the exotic Brazillian location of Rio de Janerio which is just about the only thing Kickboxer 3: The Art of War has going for it. For a film called Kickboxer there is actually very little kickboxing in it, there are a few fight scenes & the final big fight between Sloan & Martine but otherwise the script goes for plot development. Unfortunately the story just isn't that good, the two homeless kids, the bad guy, the grudge match against the evil fighter, the proverb reciting Chinese mentor & some lame attempts at sporting drama as once again the underdog who has the odds stacked against him comes through & wins in the end. At almost 90 minutes Kickboxer 3: The Art of War feels longer, a lot longer as it's a fairly slow going film that fails to be exciting or surprising or funny or good. I suppose it's competent, it tells a story even if it's not a very good one & some may enjoy the mixing of thriller, martial arts & sporting drama although I didn't.
There's not much action here, maybe they blew the budget on the Brazillian locations? There are a few shoot-outs, a couple of fairly lame fights & even a training montage in which Lane tries to torture Sloan but to me was just making him even fitter & stronger by pushing him. Wouldn't it have been better to break his foot or something? There isn't even much of a showdown between Sloan & Lane at the end. Also, why was it OK for Sloan to kill all those bad guy's but when Marcos tries Xian tells him that it's wrong?
Actually filmed in Rio de Janerio, this looks alright but has dull photography & forgettable production values. The acting isn't that good, Sasha Mitchell acts more like a Californian surfer dude than a world kickboxing champion while the two Brazillian kids are very annoying.
Kickboxer 3: The Art of War is a forgettable martial arts action thriller with little in the way of martial arts or action, there are better films out there. Followed by Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor (1994) & Kickboxer 5 (1995).
Directed by Rick King this was the third film the the Kickboxer franchise which started with the reasonably watchable early Jean-Claude Van Damme flick Kickboxer (1989) & Kickboxer 2: The Road Back (1991) both of which featured the two main character's David Sloan & Xian who also take center stage here in the exotic Brazillian location of Rio de Janerio which is just about the only thing Kickboxer 3: The Art of War has going for it. For a film called Kickboxer there is actually very little kickboxing in it, there are a few fight scenes & the final big fight between Sloan & Martine but otherwise the script goes for plot development. Unfortunately the story just isn't that good, the two homeless kids, the bad guy, the grudge match against the evil fighter, the proverb reciting Chinese mentor & some lame attempts at sporting drama as once again the underdog who has the odds stacked against him comes through & wins in the end. At almost 90 minutes Kickboxer 3: The Art of War feels longer, a lot longer as it's a fairly slow going film that fails to be exciting or surprising or funny or good. I suppose it's competent, it tells a story even if it's not a very good one & some may enjoy the mixing of thriller, martial arts & sporting drama although I didn't.
There's not much action here, maybe they blew the budget on the Brazillian locations? There are a few shoot-outs, a couple of fairly lame fights & even a training montage in which Lane tries to torture Sloan but to me was just making him even fitter & stronger by pushing him. Wouldn't it have been better to break his foot or something? There isn't even much of a showdown between Sloan & Lane at the end. Also, why was it OK for Sloan to kill all those bad guy's but when Marcos tries Xian tells him that it's wrong?
Actually filmed in Rio de Janerio, this looks alright but has dull photography & forgettable production values. The acting isn't that good, Sasha Mitchell acts more like a Californian surfer dude than a world kickboxing champion while the two Brazillian kids are very annoying.
Kickboxer 3: The Art of War is a forgettable martial arts action thriller with little in the way of martial arts or action, there are better films out there. Followed by Kickboxer 4: The Aggressor (1994) & Kickboxer 5 (1995).