The action thriller Black Water marks the 70th credit for Jean-Claude Van Damme and the 79th for Dolph Lundgren, but the two have only appeared together twice before this one. In this movie however, they are on the same side of the law when they face off against their adversaries in an under the ocean jail while fighting for their lives. The sets are very good, the script exciting and the main actors get to do what they do best.
Two CIA operatives are being held at an undisclosed prison. Just arrived, Scott Wheeler (Jean-Claude Van Damme) awakens in one of the cells still delirious from being drugged. Banging on the wall of the next cell, Marco (Dolph Lundgren) responds. Wheeler asks where he is and Marco implies that he’s in a black site, a place where no one will be able to find him. He also tells Wheeler that he’s held in a cell aboard a submarine with no escape. Marco urges him to think hard and remember what he was doing just before he blacked out. This would clear up as to why he has been brought to the prison.
Flash back to Wheeler arriving at a motel where he meets with Melissa (Courtney B. Turk) his CIA partner. She has stolen information contained in a travel drive. Wheeler shows her that he has acquired the dongle, a key for the drive that allows it to work. When Melissa goes out for breakfast a gunfight begins and Melissa gets shot in the melee with the attackers obtaining the flash drive. Wheeler almost escapes, but things don’t pan out between him and the film returns to present day inside his cell. He convinces Marco that he’s being held because of what he knows about the CIA.
The film moves along at a fast clip setting up the mystery and then the aftermath of Marco joining Wheeler in an attempt to escape to pick up the key to the travel drive where he stashed it. Director Pasha Patriki does a good job of creating a lot of action and suspense as we find out what the travel drive contains, whether Wheeler can get out of the sub and the final resolve. The acting is right around par, the cinematography decent, but the storyline a little unimaginative. In all however, I do like the fight scenes, build-up, twists and the final conclusion.
Van Damme plays Wheeler with his usual good acting, especially if you like many of his movies. He holds up well here handling the largest amount of screen time and still has some nice moves when it comes to combat and chase scene. Not wanting to comply with the demands of CIA bosses, his character takes a lot of punishment and gives it back in a big way.
Playing a tough hardened CIA Agent Ferris, the antagonist in the film, is Patrick Kilpatrick. Ferris is fighting his way to the top of the food chain putting out fires for his CIA boss Ed Rhodes (Al Sapienza). His staunch demeanor makes the interrogation scenes and his personal vendetta seem very realistic. As he presses Wheeler to get him the dongle, you can see his ire and contempt for the stubborn CIA operative.
Although Dolph Lundgren is not in the film a lot, he’s still fun to watch working out a deal with Wheeler so he can get out of his life term in the underwater prison. Helping out when you least expect it, he provides a nice twist in the finale.
Critic Notes: Lundgrin’s first film, A View to a Kill in 1985, would turn out to be a screen test for what was to come. Within a year after its release he pleases audiences starring opposite Sylvester Stallone in Rocky IV as the Russian boxer Drago. He went on to make many thrillers as the bad guy starting with The Punisher and Universal Soldier until he got tagged by Stallone again for The Expendables 1, 2 and 3. Van Damme found a niche when he starred in Bloodsport, then picked up Cyborg followed by Lionheart. Time Cop and Street Fighter pushed him into the 21st century where nothing really clicked until The Expendables 2 and the sequel Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning, both in 2012. He went on to make two sequels Kickboxer: Vengeance and Kickboxer: Retaliation.
Black Water has been rated R by the MPAA for violence and language. It also has a quick scene of partial nudity and sexual innuendos. The violence includes a lot of gun play. The film has been released on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A good movie for action lovers and a reminiscence for those who follow Lundgren and Van Damme. (3 out of 5 Stars)
Specifications and additional video information:
Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Al Sapienza, Courtney B. Turk, Jasmine Waltz, Aleksander Vayshelboym, Mark Sherman, Cathal Pendred
Directors: Pasha Patriki
MPAA Rating: R for violence and language
Genre: Action, Thriller
Running Time: 1 hr. 44min.
Video Release Date: August 21, 2018
Original Theatrical Release Date: May 25, 2018
Language: English
Reviewed Format: Blu-ray
Audio: 5.1 DTS Master Audio
Video: Widescreen, Aspect Ratio 2.40:1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Number of Discs: 1 Disc, plus Digital Copy Code
Distributed by: Lionsgate
Released in: Blu-ray, DVD, Digital HD
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
