Release Date: 09/16/2008
Label/Distributor: Anchor Bay/Starz
Rating: Unrated
Retail Price: $26.97
Genre: Action & Adventure Cast: Clovis Cornillac,Karole Rocher,Caroline Proust,Olivier Marchal,Francis Renaud
Director: Julien Seri
Running Time: 98
DVD Video Options: Color,DVD-Video,NTSC,Widescreen
DVD Audio Options: English;Original Language
UPC Code: 013137219092
A Thai boxing enthusiast finds himself on the wrong side of the law when a
street fight ends in the accidental death of his opponent. After a stretch in
prison, Angelo (Clovis Cornillac, A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT) returns to society
a shadow of this former self. He meets and falls in love with a waitress who, it
later transpires, is being paid to go out with him. Upon learning the painful truth,
Angelo vows never to allow himself to get hurt again. He is drawn back into the
illegal world of underground free fighting, but this time, he will stop at nothing
to become the ultimate fighting machineThe Scorpion.
Scorpion
By Buzz McClain -- Video Business, 9/8/2008
LIGHTNING MEDIA/ANCHOR BAYStreet: Sept. 16
Prebook: now
> French accent gives this kickboxing actioner quality punch.
Scorpion is your standard B-movie kickboxing bloodbath, but it’s French, and with that comes rich cinematography, assured acting and a surprising level of sophistication not found on most ass-kicking genre titles. Perhaps the creative, cleverly lit set-ups and the propulsive techno score help push things from one brutal bout to the next. Whatever it is, Scorpion makes for a boxing-comeback movie that’s far more interesting than usual as it details the story of a down-and-out ex-con, Thai boxer Angelo (Clovis Cornillac), who is drawn into an underground mixed martial arts street-fighting scheme. Eventually, he works his way up to the big paying bout with a monster named Elias (Jerome Le Banner). Director Julien Seri reaches his limitations by trying to resolve the film’s handful of stories, but genre fans will enjoy the believable fights.
Shelf Talk: The cast will be lost on American audiences, but Le Banner’s profile should increase thanks to his turn in Vin Diesel’s big-budgeted Babylon A.D. Lightning Media is striking at mixed martial arts Web sites (www.ultimate-fighter.ca) and action sites (www.loudside.com) as well as YouTube and MySpace to get the word out to the natural fan base.
Action, color, NR (violence, language, nudity, sexual situations, drug use), 98 min., DVD $26.97Extras: none
Director: Julien Seri
First Run: DVD premiere