I was waiting so long for this film, undisputed 2 and 3 where amazing - among the best martial arts movies out there, but this well... sucked and I'll explain why.
I believe the director and a lot of other people involved in the other films where absent here, and it really shows. But let's talk about what made undisputed 2 and 3 good. For me, at first it's the dark gritty atmosphere and good characters. Boyka was a true product of his environment and the fight scenes where hard hitting with impact and (especially undisputed 2 which I think is the best) has an element of realism to it.
OK just to be clear, while I had realistic expectations for this; me and the woman was waiting ages and looking forward to it, only to be sat at the end both saying "the other ones where much better" and here's why:
Boyka is too nice! I get that he's a changed man etc, but it's to the point it feels really artificial, and overly emphasized on God. Also, there is a lot more talking for him in this role and nothing against Scott Adkins but all you're reminded of is that his accent is all over the place, and that (even though he's clearly tried and fair play to him) but he's just not a very good actor. You didn't notice this in the other ones as he didn't speak that much or show/try to show any emotion. He looks good though, he's clearly beefed up for this role and had dedication to it but that's not enough.
SPOILER ALERT
OK fight scenes. Boyka pulls off some cool moves, the best fights are with the two brothers and guy with blonde line through his hair, the rest where "meh" at best. The worst, OMG, the WORST thing they could have done was to bring Martyn Ford (the big steroid guy, who makes Scott Adkins look like Al Pacino in the acting sense) on board. The guy is just a big red steroid lump, who clearly can't fight or hit with any speed to save his life. And he has a bane/Hannibal style face mask on!!??!?! which is just laughable. Honestly me and the missus where in tears laughing every time he was on screen. Note to film makers, just because someone is big and may, in theory look cool, does NOT mean you should cast them in the movies, Arnold was a one off, remember that.
In summary (and not because they weren't in prison) it didn't feel in any way like an undisputed film, bad story, mediocre acting at best, OK fight scenes (some good) and some bad writing/directing makes this a flop and big disappointment which is a shame because I am a huge fan of the series. This could have been so much more, it really could, but unfortunately not enough elements where in tune with each other.
I do hope this isn't the last of the series, but if you do make another, do it properly otherwise it will be buried for good.
P.S
As of writing this, the review score is 8.4/10 on IMDb which is clearly fake, don't believe it the ratings will come down soon and more GENUINE people vote.
I believe the director and a lot of other people involved in the other films where absent here, and it really shows. But let's talk about what made undisputed 2 and 3 good. For me, at first it's the dark gritty atmosphere and good characters. Boyka was a true product of his environment and the fight scenes where hard hitting with impact and (especially undisputed 2 which I think is the best) has an element of realism to it.
OK just to be clear, while I had realistic expectations for this; me and the woman was waiting ages and looking forward to it, only to be sat at the end both saying "the other ones where much better" and here's why:
Boyka is too nice! I get that he's a changed man etc, but it's to the point it feels really artificial, and overly emphasized on God. Also, there is a lot more talking for him in this role and nothing against Scott Adkins but all you're reminded of is that his accent is all over the place, and that (even though he's clearly tried and fair play to him) but he's just not a very good actor. You didn't notice this in the other ones as he didn't speak that much or show/try to show any emotion. He looks good though, he's clearly beefed up for this role and had dedication to it but that's not enough.
SPOILER ALERT
OK fight scenes. Boyka pulls off some cool moves, the best fights are with the two brothers and guy with blonde line through his hair, the rest where "meh" at best. The worst, OMG, the WORST thing they could have done was to bring Martyn Ford (the big steroid guy, who makes Scott Adkins look like Al Pacino in the acting sense) on board. The guy is just a big red steroid lump, who clearly can't fight or hit with any speed to save his life. And he has a bane/Hannibal style face mask on!!??!?! which is just laughable. Honestly me and the missus where in tears laughing every time he was on screen. Note to film makers, just because someone is big and may, in theory look cool, does NOT mean you should cast them in the movies, Arnold was a one off, remember that.
In summary (and not because they weren't in prison) it didn't feel in any way like an undisputed film, bad story, mediocre acting at best, OK fight scenes (some good) and some bad writing/directing makes this a flop and big disappointment which is a shame because I am a huge fan of the series. This could have been so much more, it really could, but unfortunately not enough elements where in tune with each other.
I do hope this isn't the last of the series, but if you do make another, do it properly otherwise it will be buried for good.
P.S
As of writing this, the review score is 8.4/10 on IMDb which is clearly fake, don't believe it the ratings will come down soon and more GENUINE people vote.