Kickboxing action has never been so powerful! Matt Reeves a retired kickboxing champion coaches his friend Johnny Styles to win the championship. Johnny is then approached by representatives of the fierce and dangerous Neg... more »aal a man who formed his own underground kickboxing federation. Johnny's refusal to join the dark organization ignites a blazing kickboxing fight in which he is brutally murdered. Enraged his friend Matt hunts Negaal down and exposes him as a murderer. Explosive hard-hitting action ensues as the two avengers fight to the death.System Requirements:Starring Dale Cutts Denney Pierce Duane Porter Geoff Meed George Moolman Greg Latter James Ryan John Hussey Mark Dacascos Mathew Stewardson Robert Whitehead Rulan Booth Tony Caprari Directed by Kristine Peterson Running time: 91 minutes Copyright Lion's Gate 2003Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: R UPC: 031398838029 Manufacturer No: 71495« less
"Kickboxer 5 was not the worst martial arts movie I have seen, but compared to the other 4 Kickboxers, this just did not belong. The other Kickboxers remained fairly close to one another through either story or characters. The only element from any of the previous Kickboxers found in Redemption was David Sloan, who appaears no more than a shadow getting the beat down and killed during the beginning credits. Its quite ridiculous too, because the goons that kill him can't seem to lay a hand on Matt Reeves (Marc Dacascos) throughout the movie.
Matt Reeves, our main character, receives the news that Sloan was killed by the Negaal Federation, and soon they kill another of Matt's friends who has just won an important ring match. So Matt of course wants revenge, travels to South Africa to locate and stop the leader of the Federation - Mr. Negaal. Mr Negaal (James Ryan) is an ok villain, but really has no skill in this movie that impressed me. His goons are complete idiots. The other characters in the movie are your basic average B movie actors. Marc Dacascos is the only highlight, of the film period. His katas and training sequences are worth watching, but any fights he takes part in are just totally unimpressive, and that includes the final brawl against Negaal which is one of the most dissapointing climatic fights I have ever seen.
Redemption is just average, maybe not even quite. Its not extremely cheesy nor ridiculously stupid, but it just does not impress, when it so easily could have. The fights are pointless and the plot is too predictable. If you are bored and need some average entertainment, here you go. Don't even bother getting this if you wish to complete your Kickboxer collection - it just doesn't even fit the role."
Only a slight improvement above Kickboxer 4
Thomas | Georgia | 06/26/2005
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Kickboxer and/or Mark Dacascos fans may want to look elsewhere. While Kickboxer 5 is a bit better than the fourth, that's about it. There are a few good fight scenes halfway through the movie but then it goes downhill from there. Kickboxer 5 starts off with David Sloan getting murdered by some crimeboss in South Africa. Mark's character declares vengence (what a surprise!) and he goes off to find the crimeboss responsible for David's death with the help of an escaped convict. The final fight scene with Mark Dacascos and the crimeboss is just as ridiculous as the final fight scene in Kickboxer 4. As most direct to video films go, this one doesn't deliver overall so if you are one who wants to see the Kickboxer series than just stick with the first three movies. Trust me on this one!"
Kickboxer Fans Save Your Time!
Crazy Jim | Massachusetts | 06/17/2003
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Fans of the Kickboxer series will be dissapointed by this fifth installment which has nothing to do with the previous entries except for the fact that David Sloan is killed in the opening. Sasha doesn't show up, it's just a siloutte of another actor. The characters are pretty boring and the film itself is very tame for an R-rating though Dascasos use of the word "buttface" could be a bit extreme for some. The film could have gone without attaching the Kickboxer name to it. Even on its own two feet, this movie isn't very good and I am somewhat a fan of the lead (Mark Dascasos)."
KICKBOXER 5 THE REDEPTION
Crazy Jim | 01/18/2001
(1 out of 5 stars)
"VERY DISSAPPOINTING,HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE KICKBOXING SAGA,A PRODUCTION THE COULD OF DONE WITHOUT,DAVID SLOAN DIES.........LOL.COMMON REALLY EVEN I COULDNT BELIEVE IT,SEE THE MOVIE FOR A GOOD LAUGH,NOTHING ELSE."
Yes, indeed average...
Francis | germany | 04/21/2000
(3 out of 5 stars)
"...was this movie of Mark Dacascos, one of my favorite Martial Arts-actors of all time. That was one of his rookie movies in that he played a character who wants to avenge " his firned's" death (as usual in these kinds of movies) Of course this plot was immediately predictable and showed some bad acting. If Mark wouldn't have played in this movie I'd give this video 2 stars right away. But luckily it's not as halfwitted as it seems. I actually enjoyed Reeves and Croft teaming up together.Overall I'd say Mark has done better movies like Only the Strong and Drive."