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Movies / On DVD / Maximum Risk
Maximum Risk

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Maximum Risk (1996)

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30 %
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Reviews Counted:30

Fresh:9

Rotten:21

Average Rating:4.4/10

Runtime: 1 hr 41 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Synopsis: After making several violent Hong Kong action films in the style that's come to be known as heroic bloodshed, Ringo Lam came to Hollywood to make his first American film with Belgian martial arts... After making several violent Hong Kong action films in the style that's come to be known as heroic bloodshed, Ringo Lam came to Hollywood to make his first American film with Belgian martial arts star Jean-Claude Van Damme. MAXIMUM RISK, like Van Damme's previous DOUBLE IMPACT, is the story of twin brothers. Unlike the earlier film--in which he played brothers with contrasting characters--here he's a French policeman, Alain Moreau, who takes on the identity of his dead brother, Mikhail. They were separated at birth when their mother, Chantal, played by veteran French film actress Stephane Audran, gave one up for adoption to a Russian diplomat. He grew up to become a member of the new Russian Mafia operating out of the Little Odessa section of New York City. When Mikhail is murdered in France after a wild chase through the streets, Alain goes to New York, where he's assumed to be Mikhail by everyone from the local Russian crime boss to his brother's beautiful girlfriend, Alex (Natasha Henstridge). Working with a seemingly unlimited budget for car crashes, Lam stages the action scenes with a kinetic flair and smartly knits them together with the help of sharp editing by Bill Pankow. [More]

Starring: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Natasha Henstridge, Frank Van Keeken, Zach Grenier

Starring: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Natasha Henstridge, Frank Van Keeken, Zach Grenier

Director: Ringo Lam

Director: Ringo Lam

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Maximum Risk

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

A standard Van Damme pic, competently assembled but with little of the manic edge found in director Lam's Hong Kong movies.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The plot holds together pretty well, which is not always the case in Van Damme's movies, and does not require the concoction of labored explanations for his pronounced accent.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
11/02/08
TV Guide's Movie Guide

...the movie has some good moments of intrigue and adventure, and with a more charismatic hero it might have worked better.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
08/20/08
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

The energetic action isn't quite enough to overcome an undernourished story. [Blu-Ray]

Full Review Source: Groucho Reviews | comment Comment
08/13/08
Peter Canavese
Peter Canavese
Groucho Reviews

It's a visceral delight that refuses to be deterred by niceties of plot or character consistency and prefers sweat to emotion.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
07/08/08
Leonard Klady
Leonard Klady
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
08/06/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

For sweet bloody thrills, this one beats the summer blockbuster competition hands-down.

Full Review Source: Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus | comment Comment
09/25/03
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer
Bryant Frazer's Deep Focus

No review available.

comment Comment
08/16/03
Rebecca Murray
Rebecca Murray
About.com

Villains curl their upper lip and snarl in bad Russian accents, while Van Damme bungles four-word sentences.

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
05/20/03
Susan Tavernetti
Susan Tavernetti
Palo Alto Weekly

Premium Van Damme...Henstridge is eye-poppingly appealing

comment Comment
04/27/03
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Moviehole

Those who approach Maximum Risk with minimal expectations will, in the end, experience at least the occasional pleasant surprise.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
04/16/03
Dragan Antulov
Dragan Antulov
rec.arts.movies.reviews

Fights ensue. Van-Damme kicks a lot of ass. Explosions occur. The end.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
08/01/02
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

Zesty chases and Van Damme's always exciting fights scenes fit well within a story that carries more intrigue than the average kick-and-crash extravaganzas.

Full Review Source: Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) | comment Comment
06/18/02
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/24/02
Boston Phoenix

No review available.

comment Comment
02/07/02
Susan Stark
Susan Stark
Detroit News

There are so many car crashes in Maximum Risk that Van Damme ends up playing second fiddle to an ever-expanding salvage operation.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/22/02
Richard Harrington
Richard Harrington
Washington Post

The plot moves along so that a mandatory fight scene is sure to pop up every fifteen minutes to make sure the audience isn't snoozing, but Lam manages to botch at least half of these scenes with shaky camerawork and scrappy editing.

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
02/27/01
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

Lam not only handles the bravura action set pieces with ease but also a capable international cast as colorful and varied as the film's many locales.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
02/14/01
Kevin Thomas
Kevin Thomas
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Jean-Claude does little Van Dammage to his lukewarm reputation with this standard actioner.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online

Maximum Risk equals minimum impact -- even by Van Damme standards.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Thompson
Bob Thompson
Jam! Movies
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
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