Let’s start by calling this a critic’s peak. This is a movie that not only washes away all negative thoughts this reviewer had for Jean-Claude and previous movies like Knock Off or Double Team, but it also puts him in the spotlight in a movie that really has minimal action.

It’s very tricky and very out there, but it literally is one of the best movies I’ve seen all year.

And I’ve seen a bunch.

It’s one that I wish I had seen last year in theaters but I didn’t. I bought it on a whim and am completely happy that I did.

But the good is the movie itself. Jean-Claude is playing a down on his luck version of himself, one who is losing his daughter, losing his film career, and losing himself in the process. He has nothing and is broke. And he gets caught in the middle of a robbery.

It opens with a long single shot action sequence from one of his movies not yet made and then boom, right in the middle of the meta-fictional story of JCVD.

He deserved an Academy Award, or at the very least, a nomination. But make sure you watch the theatrical version of the film. It’s subtitled and it’s tough to follow as the French and Belgium speak REALLY fast and switch characters really fast, but you miss a lot of his acting if you watched the dubbed version.

The simple scene, near the finale, shows a side of JC we’ve never seen. One in which he looks right at the camera and spills his guts about his past and basically tells us not to cry for him. He chose this path.

Best movie of 2008 or at least near the top of the list. See it and be amazed at the acting abilities of one of the greatest action stars of our generation and be amazed that he was wasted all these years. And keep your fingers crossed that maybe this will mean something better for him in the future.