Apparently demand for In Hell was so great that First Look decided to release a “special edition” of it for the dedicated Jean-Claude Van Damme fan with its own special tin. Same garbage, different pile, but this time around it has a tin case as opposed to the standard plastic.
JCVD is back for another direct to video release as Kyle, an American who is imprisoned for killing the man who raped and killed his wife. Sentenced to prison, he has to fight in a series of brutal prison matches set up by the powers that be that run it. And its a film that’s so bad the stench of it will emanate from your DVD player for several hours later.
A low-rent version of Lionheart, a minor hit of his glory days, its just as sad to see JCVD in the same crap as it is to see Steven Seagal making the same horrible action flicks of his glory days. Its kind of sad to see the Eastern bloc version of Undisputed with JCVD in the lead, but even sadder to see former NFL great Lawrence Taylor in a supporting role and clearly outshining everyone in the cast by not doing anything but look tough. Its rather amusing to see all the bad, ham-fisted acting and see L.T look like the greatest actor alive merely by reading a book when everyone else is acting.
Gregg Easterbrook of “Tuesday Morning Quarterback” fame on ESPN.com has a segment where he discusses “Happy Hour in Hells Sports Bar.” In Hell is playing across the street as the latter half of a “Double Feature in Hells Cineplex.”
Presented in a widescreen format with a Dolby Digital sound, the film has a markedly good transfer. In Hell did have a reported budget of $15 million and it looks every bit the part. The film is a dark film, but with dark hues and colors that come through vividly.
There are Previews for A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints and other First Look Studios films.
A behind the scenes look at the film is promised in The Making of In Hell, but not really provided. Titled “The Making of Hell” throughout, one wonders if the amateurish editor who put the piece together either didnt know about the films proper title or just missed the word “In” when putting the piece together. It looks cheap and as if it was designed by a first year collegiate graphic design student who was failing miserably, put together without any rhyme or reason to try and be a thorough “behind the scenes” perspective. The picture and audio quality is noticeably bad and looks like it was on VHS, copied multiple times, and then transferred onto DVD. Nothing of note is said as the piece is a poorly made EPK.
The only thing special about this release of a bad JCVD film is that it belongs in the Special Education wing of any film school. A disturbingly glorified re-release, this version of In Hell barely qualifies as a release in and of itself. Unless youre an ardent JCVD fan, recommendation to avoid at all costs.
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First Look Studios presents In Hell. Directed by Ringo Lam. Starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lawrence Taylor. Written by Eric James Virgets, Jorge Alvarez, Steve Lashlaw, and Les Weldon. Running time: 96 minutes. Rated R. Released on DVD: 12.9.2008. Available at Amazon.com.
