‘Kickboxer 2’ Blu-Ray Review – Dramatic Action Sequel Goes Another Round With A New Star

Mr. Sangha, the Thai government official who handles Tong Po, a brutal kickboxer, wishes for Tong Po to have another opportunity to fight against Kurt Sloan and vindicate himself. However, in a fit of rage, Tong Po kills Kurt and deprives himself of the opportunity to face him again. When they hear of David, Kurt’s brother who owns a kickboxing gym in Los Angeles, they manipulate him into a match for Tong Po to regain his honor.

For thoughts on Kickboxer 2, please check out my thoughts on No Streaming Required: 

Video Quality

Kickboxer 2 finally makes its Blu-Ray debut with a 1080p transfer that most will find to be pretty great. While specific details about the transfer were not made available, this appears to be derived from a pretty stable master that is in fighting shape. The transfer is naturally filmic with some fetching detail in the production design and texture of clothing. There are some fleeting specks of print damage present in the transfer, but overall the source is not terribly flawed. For the majority of the film, it looks impressively clear and detailed, but there are some shots that look a bit soft and lacking in fine detail. Colors are vibrant enough to make an impression, especially when capturing the pops of color in select design elements. The black levels are passable in their depth, and highlights do not give into blooming very often. Fans have been crying out for a proper HD presentation, and most should be pleased by the results. 

Audio Quality

Lionsgate Home Entertainment brings us this new Blu-Ray with a lossless LPCM 2.0 stereo mix that captures the thrills of this story quite well. Admittedly, you will need to put the volume a few notches higher than normal due to the level of the mix, but the fidelity is strong once you get it to ideal listening levels. Dialogue holds up quite nicely, coming through clearly without being stepped on by the score or sound effects. The movie is accompanied by a welcome score that sounds great here. With this movie being centered on fighting, there are some blows that make a sonic impact. The environmental effects are delineated nicely from the roar of the crowd to the natural din outside. This is a track that represents the film in a very satisfying way. Optional English (SDH) subtitles are provided on this disc.

Special Features

• Audio Commentary: Film Historians Mike Leeder and Russell Wait provide a very informative commentary track in which they discuss the origins of the project, how the production accounted for the absence of Van Damme, the background and history of the performers, the classic archetypes and tropes that are utilized, the tone of the film, and more. This track is great for putting much of this feature into context.

• Ring of Fire with Matthias Hues: A 12-minute interview with the performer in which he talks about his career, his memories of fellow performers, his feelings about martial artists attempting to get into film, and much more.

• Still Standing with Vince Murdocco: A nearly 19-minute interview with the actor in which he discusses his early film work, memories of working with his co-stars, how he made some bonus money while filming, the fate of his character, and much more. 

• Fight to Film – Behind the Camera of Kickboxer 2: A 17-minute new interview with Director of Photography George Mooradian in which he discusses his early life and career, the experience of being directed by Albert Pyun, the respectful nature of Sasha Mitchell, memorable shooting experiences, the technical aspects, and more.  

• Legacy Special Features

• • Still Gallery (4:56)

• • Trailer Gallery 

• • • Theatrical Trailer (2:12)

• • • Trailer #2 (1:53)

• • • Spanish Theatrical Trailer (2:12)

• • • Teaser Trailer (2:01)

Final Thoughts

Kickboxer 2 follows up a beloved action outing with a sequel that jettisons the main star and brings back the main villain for a second bite at the apple—and it kind of works. Sasha Mitchell is no Jean-Claude Van Damme, but he is fairly charismatic in his own right for what is ostensibly a direct-to-video movie. The lack of humor or self-awareness is a bit of a hindrance, but it largely delivers on what you want from a fighting movie from this era. The presence of Peter Boyle and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa lends some gravitas to the situation that works in the film’s favor. If you go in with the proper expectations, you will leave smiling. Lionsgate Home Entertainment has released a new Blu-Ray as part of the Vestron Video Collector’s Series which sports a decent A/V presentation and some truly fantastic supplemental features. Recommended 

Kickboxer 2 is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray exclusively through Lionsgate Limited.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Lionsgate Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.