Cyborg

Rating:
Summary: BRILLIANT TRASH
Review: Originally intended to be the sequel of MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE, a box office bomb, CYBORG is the post-apocalyptic story of a Slinger (hired protector) named Gibson Rickenbacker (Jean-Claude Van Damme) who sets out for revenge against Fender Tremolo (Vincent Klyn), the hellish villain who murdered the woman he loved.

If the names Gibson and Fender sound familiar, it's because all the characters are named after guitars or accessories like Roland Pick, Marshall Strat and Pearl Prophet. Fender also possesses The Cyborg, an half woman/half machine who has the technology to wipe out the plague that infests the world.

For all fans of Joseph Campbell's "The Hero With A Thousand Faces," here is another cinematic entry that follows the ancient path of the mythic paradigm.

Director Albert Pyun (THE SWORD AND THE SORCERER) and screenwriter Kitty Chalmers (JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH) borrowed plot elements and styles from legendary filmmakers like John Ford, Akira Kurosawa and Sergio Leone -- and their films -- STAGECOACH, THE SEARCHERS, THE HIDDEN FORTRESS, THE SEVEN SAMURAI, A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS and THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY. The film is essentially a western -- punctuated with droves of kung fu and savaté -- and dressed in the melancholy garment of post-apocalypse à la THE ROAD WARRIOR and ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK -- only with 1/3 of each film's budget!

Don't watch CYBORG expecting state-of-the-art special effects, great acting or complex storytelling. This is a grade-B trashy sci-fi flick -- the 50s had 'em like MONSTER FROM GREEN HELL and THE GIANT GILA MONSTER -- and the 80s had just as many, such as CYBORG and COMMANDO. For a trash classic, the film's soundtrack boasts an above-average score by composer Kevin Bassinson "SMALLVILLE" (TV).

As far a trashy cinema goes, CYBORG stands at the top of the heap. Roger Ebert included the film in his pretentious book `I Hated, Hated, Hated This Movie' -- all the more reason not to miss it!

Rating:
Summary: Pure Entertainment
Review: I remember watching this movie several times a year when I owned it as a kid. I never forgot about it, and kept promising myself that someday I will buy it. That promise has not yet been made, but I just now saw the film on TNN, and it was like watching a new movie because I didn't remember any of it. And let me just tell you...forget Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Bruce and all those other quaky (entertaining, but quaky) martial art films. Cyborg blows them all away.

I've seen other Van Damme films (God were they horrible). This is the only one that captivated me. The fight scenes were just so realistic. You don't got a guy climbing walls like he's spider man throughout the entire film, or jumping off buildings or flying around like he's a bird - he actually gets hurt and falls to his knees every now and again. It's not like the Matrix where you're just sitting there waiting for the guy to win - you really feel the pain of Jean-Claude's character when he gets cut or kicked.

All the reviewers are correct. There is hardly any dialog to this film...because it's an atmospheric film. You remember the Shining? No dialog on that one either, just pure atmosphere. And let me tell you, the doomsday world that this movie depicts was mind blowing. It really delivers to the viewer a sense of utter desolation. Everyone in the film is maniacal - totally out of their minds. It's the Drak Ages all over again, where little differentiated bewteen both sexes, and women actually faught in wars, at times accompanied by their children. Take Escape from LA, and combine that with REALISM, and that's just the world you'll enter when you watch this film.

Jean Claude did such an excellent job of playing a traveling vagrant consumed by the nightmares of a seriously disturbing past. His only priority in life is to kill the Cyborg that killed him a long time ago. The world is at the mercy of an awful plague, and even when the doors of a possible cure is open to him, all he can think about is vengeance. Note the face he makes when he first sees the Cyborg after years of searching for him. The hatred was so well defined in every contour...I was thinking, 'My God, I would NOT want to be that Cyborg!'

Well, whatever he had in mind, it didn't turn out so well. His nemesis proved to be quite...unstoppable.

The music in this film has got to be the best I've ever heard in any action film. It plays along perfectly with the atmosphere and the fight scenes. Slow, but hard pounding. Very nice touch. The whole movie was choreographed with the utmost of precision. Right on target with each kick and punch. Had me totally captivated. Get this film if you're not much for that cheesy stuff that comes from all these popular Chinese directors that is totally fake, (with the exception of a few Bruce Lee films). Jean Claude's character actually carries a gun around which in most martial art movies, this element lacks (Hey, a gun is more effective than a sword. Am I right or am I right?) And he is not afraid to use it, but tries to conserve his ammunition by fighting (bullets and guns are scarce in this upside down world). Lots of battles with sharp bladed weapons too. I mean, this movie has it all.

Rating:
Summary: Bottom Feeder Extraordinaire
Review: This is a film that doesn't get any better with age. Even if I'm aging at the same rate. It's one Van Damme would be smarter to disown, not release as a 'deluxe edition' DVD. Although he gained a lot of renown and word-of-mouth with both this film, "Bloodsport", and "Kickboxer", both of those films were better suited to JC than this dog.

The one good scene has absolutely no dialogue, and it's quite an enduring image, even after all these years--the splits/knifing bit in the sewers. But one good scene does not an action movie make.

It isn't even the cheapness of the sets/budget, lousy screenplay (if you can call it that), or Jean Claude/Jesus Christ juxtaposition that make this film stink so badly. They picked up the cast of "Gold's Gym: the musical" and gave them guitar manufacturer's names, and there's your movie.

All of that wouldn't matter if the action was any good. What little there is doesn't excite, and the mark of any film is this film's biggest problem. It's boring as all get out.

Avoid at all costs; I'm not joking.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Film, No other Actor will compare to Van Damme
Review: This movie "Cyborg" made around 5 million dollars,
not much money, but this is the film that made Jean
Claude Varenberg [Van Damme]. The plot takes place in
the future in where a band of Renegades want a destroyed
Earth under the leadership of their leader called "Fender".

Fender, their leader, finds out that a lady by the name of
"Pearl" Who is a Cyborg, carries in her eye data that can save
humanity, and so this is where Van Damme characters comes into play. Van Damme must protect Pearl from the Evil Fender and his henchmen. The fight scenes are fresh, and exciting to watch. Jean Claude Van Damme(Varenberg) was like around 26 years of age when he did this film(1987). He was actually placed in the spot light, by late night talk show host "Arsenio Hall". Arsenio Hall was the one who exposed him in the media sphere thru his show for fans too know of this charismatic man. He was labeled "The muscles of Brussels" due to his physic whom many females admired.
The movie is really action packed(super fight scenes between Van Damme and Fender and the Henchmen), and lets not forget the background music-very modern, chaotic, and futuristic.
One might think that the movie might need more lines, but this is not a love story, but a story of survival, in where hatred and destruction are rampant.It takes place in the future in a destroyed Earth. The Movie is recommended to any one who reads this Review. I have seen some of his other films such as "Lionheart", "Legionaire", and "Desert Heat". But this is his best work. His English is not the best, but his accent and enthusiasm, his energy easily makes the reporter understand what he is saying.He works hard to be fluent. Regardless of the Critics who say not so nice of him; Van Damme is Immortal. Many in the scene have tried to imitate him, it has failed.
One more thing Cyborg 2 does not have Van Damme, Cyborg 2 is no good. Van Damme is featured on the cover of the film titled "Cyborg".

Rating:
Summary: One of Jean-Claude's worst movies
Review: Jean-Claude looks real good in the movie but they really don't show him off well enough to quite compensate for the bad story the horrible acting and the just generally badness of the movie. Unfortunately that was one of the movies I bought new instead of used and it cost nearly 14$. IF I had bought it used I would not be as unhappy about the purchase.

Rating:
Summary: Van Damme's rock-bottom worst...
Review: Director Albert Pyun has done it again. He's taken an interesting premise and muddled it with monotonous dialogue, jittery action, pointless camera angles, and an irritating feel. Pyun, who also directed the similarly awful "Omega Doom," is my absolute least favorite director and this movie shows why. Every scene in this movie looks dirty, gross, and disorienting. Added to this are horridly awful performances including a young Jean-Claude Van Damme, who should've stayed far away from this. Word has it that Pyun and Van Damme did not get along while filming. I'm not surprised. Van Damme looks bored in every scene and this is his absolute worst performance; it's even worse than "Maximum Risk!" Two more sequels were made, but they're even worse. Van Damme fans like myself ignore this shlock. We've seen better from him.

Rating:
Summary: Knife-sharpening! Flashbacks! Pointless religious imagery!
Review: One of the most horriffic atrocities ever foisted upon the movie-going public. At least twenty minutes of the film is devoted to scenes of people sharpening knives. There are random flashbacks riddled throughout the movie -- and then at one point, they are ALL SHOWN AGAIN, just in case you missed them the first time. Jean-Claude Van Damme is CRUCIFIED, the culmination of a string of pointless religious imagery. There are approximately seven lines of dialogue, none of which are sentences of more than four words. (Example: "I like scars.") The rest of the time, the actors are simply yelling. Waaaauuuggh! Yaaaarrrgghh! Ugh. Ed Wood made better movies than this.

Rating:
Summary: Pure Garbage!
Review: This movie is trash, but a Van Damme classic. He plays a mortal (how degrading), that helps a cyborg get to Atlanta in one piece. A posse with a head bad guy who has the most boisterously entertaining voice in history of mankind tries to get the robot out of Van Damme's hands. No! This movie has the worst special effects ever and the acting is atrocious. Van Damme barely speaks, but manages to entertain me. Lots of kicks and brawls to entertain even the other deities. Watch out for this one.

Rating:
Summary: Beyond Heaven
Review: Van Damme delivered a beyond genius performance in this spectacular special-effects extravaganza. The bad guy is so funny when he talks, the tears roll down my face. I love this movie. Van Damme is almost a god. God bless him for this movie and for his actiing ability.

Rating:
Summary: van's best or atleast one of.
Review: This movie is set in a dark future like most.Van-Damme's
charecter hunts pirates &protects a cyborg .He has a personal grudge against pirate leader Vendor.
this movie is not accadamy acting or top ofthe line acting,but hey it does not wast time on dilogy.Just runs with action & a bunch of flash backs too move the story along quickly.Short and sweet.