The movie is kind of like the self parody of a Hong Kong movie. Even the theme of the movie is the "Fake" merchandise going through HK.

But there's nothing fake about the movie's quality. From the very opening sequence where Michael Wong goes after the smugglers, the movie has high quality action all the way to the very end.

In between the hard core action, John Claude Van Damme's character puts in comical performance that's pretty funny, getting into all sorts of trouble while trying to make money on fake Nike shoes, and designer jeans. The charming insincerity seems to fit JC's character perfectly as the fake merchandise dealer / accidental good guy.

While this movie is not made by any notable HK movie studio, it's easily one of the best movie to come out of Hong Kong. It's a great movie for Asian and action movie fans alike.

Tsui Hark's career took a serious down turn when he decided to try his chances in Hollywood. To be fair though, this seems to be true of pretty much everybody that decides to try a career in Hollywood. Tsui got off to a bad start when he was teamed up with Jean Claude Van Damme (an indignity every HK director seems to have to suffer on arrival in the US) to make the movie DOUBLE TEAM. I haven't seen DT, but it seems to be universally despised. However, so is KNOCK OFF for the most part, which I find to be very unfair as it has a lot to offer.

To properly appreciate the film, however, one has to take it in the proper context. One has to realise that Tsui Hark realised he was not going to be taken seriously in Hollywood, and would probably be consigned to cheesy action B-movies for ever if he stayed. I have no doubt he already planned to return to Hong Kong when he made KNOCK OFF, and decided to have a little fun first - and channel a lot of Hollywood money into Hong Kong hands at the same time. Keeping this in mind whilst watching the film reveals a whole level to it that I suspect most viewers do not appreciate.

It's clear that the script for the movie is rather absurd, but quite cleverly so. The concept of the Russians trying to take over the world by fitting miniature bombs in knock off children's toys is not one that was ever meant to be taken very seriously. Having the Russians as the main villlains is a quaintly out-dated set up, but the real interest is in the backdrop, where Tsui shows a little love for the people of Hong Kong and worries about the hand over to China in 1997.

He also decides to have a little fun at the expense of Van Damme, who is given a rather ridiculous role that makes fun of his usual image (perhaps this is why Van Damme fans don't like the movie? Though VD himself seems quite a willing participant in the fun-poking).

Rob Schneider is quite amusing but dangerously annoying as the comedy side kick, whilst Lela Rochon is particularly attractive as the primary glamour interest (who also kicks no small amount of ass). Few woman sharing a movie with Carmen Lee could come away looking good, but she manages it. The rest of the cast are an assortment of anonymous alleged russians and CIA agents, and some familiar Hong Kong faces round out most of the rest of the cast.

Tsui Hark handles the script tightly, sticking close to its B-movie heart but using it to set up some fun and playful scenes. It should all be taken a little tongue in cheek - those that have seen Tsui Hark's better works should appreciate that straight away.

As well as fun with the script and with JCVD, Tsui Hark also decides to have a *lot* of fun with his camera. Hyperkinetic camera work has always been his trademark, and here he decides to hold nothing back. There are some amazingly sophisticated and inventive shots and movements, giving the film a unique visual style (that Tsui revisited and expanded on when he returned to Hong Kong and made TIME AND TIME). It is for the visionary camerawork that the movie should really be seen.

There's also some pretty good action though, well above the average for Jean Claude Van Damme - thanks to Sammo Hung and Yuen Bun's involvement as the 2nd unit crew, no doubt. JCVD is usually something of a one-trick pony, and has barely a 10th of the physical agility and skill of his Asian contemporaries. The action directors manage to use him well here though, and the camerawork makes him look far better than he's ever done before.

It's a sad fact that most of the people that watch KNOCK OFF will probably be Jean Claude Van Damme fans, because to be honest anybody that thinks JCVD is a good martial artist probably doesn't have the experience to appreciate a Tsui Hark film. On the other hand, many Tsui Hark fans will avoid KNOCK OFF because of the presence of Jean Claude Van Damme. This is a shame, as it's really more a Tsui Hark film than a Van Damme film.

Whilst it may be Van Damme's best movie, few would dream of arguing that it's Tsui Hark's best, despite his inventiveness being in pretty good shape. It's still broadly bound by the limits of a Hollywood action movie, though, and no match for works like ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA or THE BLADE. It would be nice to imagine that his time in Hollywood would lead to more Americans appreciating his groundbreaking Hong Kong movies, but I doubt that it has.

Still, the movie is recommended for Tsui Hark fans. Not his best, but delivers plenty of entertainment none-the-less.

I wasn't expecting (or asking) much when I originally saw "Knock Off". I had decided to take in a Sunday afternoon matinée purely as a way to kill a couple of hours, and "Knock Off" was on the marquee as I drove up to my local multiplex. Either I had already seen everything else or couldn't stomach the idea of watching what was left, and so I went in, not expecting to see anything more than Van Damme doing what Van Damme does.

When I saw on the credits that Tsui Hark was the director, I perked up considerably. I'm not a hardcore Hong Kong cinema fan, but I was marginally aware of Hark's reputation in Hong Kong. John Woo's first American effort a few years previous also starred Van Damme and "Hard Target" turned out to be the best Van Damme film to date (or "ever", depending who you ask).

Well, it wasn't as good as "Hard Target", but it still turned out to be the 4th best JCVD film I've ever seen - "Time Cop" and "Sudden Death" are better written, better acted, more accessible mainstream American movies - and a decent piece of action-oriented entertainment. I think in fact that "Knock Off" had the potential to be a minor classic, but the writing ( a typically over the top HK cinema plot about micro-explosives and terrorism ) doesn't really translate well to American tastes. Hark and his film crew have the gift of conjuring striking images and camera work and crafting astonishing action sequences, but story-wise, they can't really get beyond the surface froth to give us some characters we care about or actual emotion (chewing the scenery doesn't count as 'emotion'.)

Also weighing in against "Knock Off" is that it features far too much of Rob Schneider. He's actually much better here than in the cinematic tragedy that was "Judge Dredd", but dude, it's ROB SCHNEIDER. I actually like Schneider better in the stupid comedy movies where he plays the lead, for some reason...I think it's because his 'irritation' factor is actually a PLUS in a comedy movie, but he just is out of place and stupid in any kind of sidekick role in action or science fiction vehicles.

Van Damme's problems with drugs and partying at this point in his career are common knowledge, but he still looks good in tight fitting clothes, even if he is a little rough around the edges. In some ways it makes him somewhat more believable for the role - his character is a semi-legitimate, slightly seedy hustler and party animal, and he looks the part (instead of the super hero he played in porn-fu fare like "Blood Sport" and "Kick Boxer".) He's still no actor and Hark can't make him one, but he goes through the motions, and there's enough frenetic action all around him to make him look really good. He holds up his end just fine. For better or worse, he does what he does, and it's framed differently enough that it makes for a nice change of pace from his usual macho kick-boxing antics. I could swear in a few spots that they were going for a kind of "Jackie Chan" vibe, especially in the rickshaw race and in the scene in the knock-off factory where JCVD has a running fight with dozens of employees who are trying to kill him (because they think he murdered their boss).

So yes, I like "Knock Off" as enjoyable eye candy and acceptable action oriented entertainment. I even picked it up (used) on DVD at my local "Sun Coast" a few weeks back for $7 to add it to my collection. I imagine that even some who didn't care about martial arts, HK cinema or Van Damme might get some enjoyment out of it. Call it a "weak" 7 stars (7.1) or a "strong" 6 stars (6.9) as long as you don't ask for much actual human emotion in your cinematic entertainment.