Death Warrant (1990)

Director: Deran Sarafian

Starring: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Robert Guillaume, Cynthia Gibb

In a violent and corrupt prison, decorated cop Louis Burke must infiltrate the jail to find answers to a number of inside murders. What he finds is a struggle of life and death tied in to his own past.

Jean-Claude van Damme was at the height of his career, having made a name for himself in films like ‘No retreat, no surrender’, ‘Bloodsport’, and ‘Kickboxer’. He was in top form in ‘Death Warrant’ and undoubtedly one of the best kickboxers around at the time. Despite his lean and mean demeanor, he still had a pretty boy face, making him the perfect choice for a number of roles.

Van Damme is perfect in ‘Death Warrant’. His dry sense of humor together with his unusual accent also works very well. Although Patrick Kilpatrick had more credits to his name, he was maybe not as well known. Although he is equally good as the antagonist, The Sandman, I found his character underdeveloped. The Sandman had the potential to be the film’s most interesting character, yet he is absent for most of the film. He only makes his appearance again towards the end – in time for a good finale.

There’s lots of intrigue and twists here, and I thought Cynthia Gibb was rather good as the love interest. On the downside, there’s way too much racial reference, which I didn’t enjoy at all. The constant use of the word ‘nigger’, and race specific references were displeasing.

I didn’t find everything that went down in the prison very believable (or even possible). Some character actions and events also only made sense much later in the film. I loved it when all hell broke loose. The showdown was good, and rather brutal.

‘Death Warrant’ earned nearly $17 million on a $4 million budget.

Would I watch it again? Maybe.