KnotMissPriceless Why so much hype?

Matialth Good concept, poorly executed.

Holstra Boring, long, and too preachy.

Spoonatects Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

Leofwine_draca This Van Damme outing isn't a success because it has "all the right ingredients"; rather, it's a success because it's just so different to the rest of his output. Gone are the brutal martial arts tournaments and battles with hired killers; instead, what we have here is a well-paced tale of heroism, warfare, and man's loyalty to his fellow man. Strong acting from the supporting cast - not to mention Van Damme, who can be all right when given the right type of character - and some excellent desert locations, filmed in Morocco, give LEGIONNAIRE an edge over most of its ilk, and it's a crying shame that this went straight-to-video when bigger-budgeted but poorer movies manage to make it to the cinema screens.This is Van Damme's most adult film to date, a film which realistically deals with friendship in times of danger. Not only is it a film which is pleasing to watch - the beautifully arid desert locations are complemented by a fine score and good cinematography, whilst the action sequences which depict huge battles full of explosions and the like are well-choreographed and visually excellent - but it's also a good-natured movie which stays with you after the close and leaves you with a good feeling inside, even despite a downbeat ending.The supporting cast, which includes an excellent Nicholas Farrell and Steven Berkoff, is also uniformly excellent, marred only by the occasional stereotype (the maniac mobster, played over-the-top by Jim Carter, or the strict platoon leader), and the film is awash with good performances. A slower-paced yarn, this takes time to build up the characters and make you care about them before shocking us with high body counts in the war sequences and unflinching deaths for the heroes. Although the story is familiar from all the films that have come before it, LEGIONNAIRE stands true as a good genre film and just goes to show that serious, intelligent action flicks can still be made in this day and age. Someone finally realised it isn't all just about special effects and stunts.

jonathanruano Legionnaire is an entertaining film about a French boxer Alain Lefevre (Jean-Claude Van Damme) who tries to escape from his troubles with some Mafiosos by joining the French Legion and fighting for French colonialists in Morocco. Van Damme has never been good with challenging roles, which is why it was a good idea to saddle him with the relatively safe and likable character of Alain with little margin for error. The filmmakers also did something else that was smart: they surrounded Van Damme with interesting characters (played by rather good actors), which automatically raises the interest-level for this film. Steven Berkoff is clearly having a lot of fun with the villainous character Sergeant Steinkampf and we have just as much fun watching him. An under-appreciated talent, Adewale Akinnuoye-Aghbaie, does a really decent job playing Luther who decides to join the French Legion to escape the racism of the South along with a bogus murder charge. Then there is Nicholas Farrell who delivers a wonderfully well conceived performance as the British recruit Mackintosh, a man with a compulsive gambling habit, who is renowned for his witticisms, and even capable of speaking a few Arabic phrases (which are most useful in a brothel). The Arabic phrases are completely unnecessary, but much appreciated all the same. Finally Ana Sofrenovic makes for a beautiful love interest, Katrina, who we would like to see reunited with Alain and broken free of the clutches of the evil mob boss. As a result of all these factors in addition to some great cinematography and some pretty good action and survival in the desert scenes, Legionnaire hums along quite entertainingly right until the end.7/10

M&J Saw this on USA Network one afternoon while home sick with the flu. I was actually surprised. It wasn't half bad and it had an unusually brave ending. It's not an action flick, per-se. You'll see no flying kicks to the face from across the room. No, instead, this is a war film produced and co-written by Van Dam himself. The film takes place in the 1920's, with decent production, set design, wardrobe, etc. While the movie avoids many action cliché's it manages to stumble into some war cliché's. With a little more money, time, and some more script revisions to amp up the movie's already gritty undertones, this could have been a classic. Unfortunately, it *Just* misses the mark. 7 out of 10. Still, I enjoyed it for what it was. I would recommend it for a rental.

axopnk From the moment you look at the cover and back you think to yourself, well it's Van Damme, probably not going to be that great but whatever i'll watch it. And then wow. What a movie. From the very beginning of the film it has a historical feel with the intro, and then musical score kicks in (which is awesome by the way) and you knew you were in for a treat. Van Damme's character has depth but what makes the movie unique is that Van Damme may be the main actor but doesn't need to go over the top to achieve this. He didn't play the "bad ass guy" from Universal Soldier or the "world's greatest fighter" from bloodsport. He played a hero with flaws, which made him so much more real. Secondly, the supporting cast was great, all with their own back stories to how they ended up in the legion. It was different to see how each character came from a different part of the world, had their own struggles, yet found a way to look past those differences to survive. Again just by Van Damme listening to their stories and getting to know them personally made his character shine. Overall this is a great flick that many people overlook just because Van Damme is in it. If it had been Orlando bloom, Brad Pitt etc. as the lead actor everyone would have rated this movie higher. Don't judge this movie by it's cover.