Kickboxer 2

Plot

One year after his brothers deaths at the hands of Tong Po, David Sloane, the youngest and last of the great Sloane dynasty, struggles to keep the family kickboxing gym afloat. Although his will to compete has waned since the loss of his brothers, financial problems eventually force Sloane to fight again in a new organization run by a crooked promoter. His surprising comeback ultimately attracts the attention of Po who, having been disgraced by Sloanes older brothers, seeks to lure their younger sibling back into the ring. But when Sloane announces his retirement after the bout, Pos manager Sanga hires a group of thugs to burn down the gym, injuring Sloane and killing one of his young students.

While recovering in the hospital, Sloane is visited by Xian Chow, who trained his brother Kurt in Thailand. Though David initially wants nothing to do with him, he finally relents and allows Xian to nurse him back to health. Meanwhile, one of Sloanes most promising students has secured a championship bout and invites Sloane to watch the fight. However, his slated opponent is unexpectedly replaced by Po, who brutalizes the young man and kills him in the ring. Now with no other recourse, Sloane is forced to accept Pos challenge. In a bloody bout reminiscent of the "ancient way" of fighting in Thailand, Sloane exacts his revenge and defeats his rival.

Cast

Production history

Kings Road president, Stephen Friedman had wanted to bring Van Damme back for the sequel, but the cost was too high for the budget. David Goyer was hired to write the sequel. Pyun pushed for the original Tong Po (Michel Qissi) to return. Pyun, to make sure realism would be captured in the kickboxing fights, hired Jimmy Nickerson as fight coordinator. Pyun met with several well known martial arts teachers before deciding on Dan Inosanto, who was trained by Bruce Lee. Inosanto and Pyun met and through that discussion, Inosanto suggested Benny "The Jet" Urquidez who was a well regarded pioneer of full contact kickboxing. Pyun met with Urquidez and Mitchell and the deal was made for Urquidez to train and coach Mitchell. Pyun wanted Sashas approach to full contact to be similar to Urquidezs.

Release

The film was given a limited release theatrically in the United States by Trimark Pictures in June 1991, grossing $1,250,712 at the box office. HBO Home Video released it on VHS and laserdisc the same year.

The film was released on DVD by Lionsgate in 2003.

Reception

Even though the film received good reviews from some critics and popularity among fans of the series, in comparison to the 1989 Van Damme original, the film was not initially well received. TV Guide opined, "From its opening moments its obvious that KICKBOXER 2 is struggling under the leaden weight of humorlessness. This is the movie that absolutely no one wanted to see: a kickboxing movie that takes itself dead serious." Michael Sauter of Entertainment Weekly wrote "...kickboxers have all the right moves-yet as action heroes, theyre practically interchangeable. If any of them is serious about filling Van Dammes shoes, hed better start working on his style."