Story-wise, Cyborg is more of an adventure than a strict hero’s journey. van Damme is a mercenary gunslinger (or plain slinger) laser-focused on revenge against Fender, and Cyborg follows Gibson on his journey to his final destination. Like a game of Dungeons & Dragons, each step on his journey features some terrifying encounter with either raiders or pirates. When it catches up to Fender, he is overtaken and crucified, but unlike Jesus, he can free himself. At night, we flashback to the horrifying events surrounding his lover and her children.
If I have a problem with Pyun’s movies, it’s in the storytelling. He builds fantastical worlds but then tells late-night campfire-like stories within them. Personally, I’m looking for a character arc and a big one for our heroes. In the case of Gibson, bad things happen to him, and he becomes a dark, brooding figure as a result, but at the same time, I’m looking for him to do more than win in the end and kill the bad guy. I’m looking for some big character switch or growth in the end…some higher calling, if you will. Maybe, it’s in the sequel (which I haven’t seen yet).
“…brings up the fond memories I have for 80s and 90s, pre-CG filmmaking.”
The other criticism I have with Cyborg is the action. It feels very staged and “safe” in its choreography, which is not something I expect from Jean-Claude van Damme. Fights feel stilted knowing that a quick cut is about to happen. Fighters move in a very deliberate manner, and each punch and swing feels forced. Again, it looks more like a dance than a fight. That said, I loved all the fake gore. Plenty of decapitated heads on a pole and bodies swinging off chains. Kill or be killed.
There’s a cool campiness in Cyborg. I just wish there was less of it in the story. But, if anything, it brings up the fond memories I have for 80s and 90s, pre-CG filmmaking. As slick as CG-heavy sci-fi is, there is a personal, intimate, and imperfect quality that can only come from practical design, and that is what I admire most about the films of Albert Pyun.
"…each step on his journey features some terrifying encounter with either raiders or pirates."
