Distributed by
Pioneer LDCE

Cat.no: PLFEB 34681

Cert: 18

Running time: 111 minutes

Sides: 2 (CLV)

Year: 1995

Pressing: UK, 1996

Chapters: 47 (26/20+1)

Sound: Dolby Surround

Widescreen: 2.35:1 (Panavision)

Price: £24.99

Extras : Trailers for Casino, Strange Days, Waterworld, Apollo 13 on Chapter 47.

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Director:

Peter Hyams (2010, Timecop, Capricorn One)

Producers:

Moshe Diamant and Howard Baldwin

Screenplay:

Gene Quintano

Music:

John Debney

Cast:

Darren McCord : Jean-Claude Van Damme (Hard Target, Timecop, Maximum Risk)
Joshua Foss : Powers Boothe (Tombstone, Nixon, Blue Sky)
Vice President : Raymond J. Barry (Dead Man Walking, K2)
Hallmark : Dorian Harewood (Roots, Full Metal Jacket)

Sudden Death reunites Timecop's star (Jean-Claude Van Damme) and director (Peter Hyams) for another slice of widescreen action, swapping time travel for an ice hockey stadium, where Van Damme plays security guard, Darren McCord, who used to be a fireman until a tragic accident two years ago in which a little girl died.

The film takes place inside the Civic Arena on the day of the Stanley Cup final game where 17,000 fans have packed the stadium for the match between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Chicago Blackhawks. McCord has taken his two children to see the game, but the audience numbers have been increased unknowingly as terrorists led by Joshua Foss have taken over the VIP box, holding a number of people hostage including the Mayor and the US Vice President. All they want is money, but lots of it, and it has to be transferred in three equal parts during each of the first three periods of the game. If this doesn't happen...the hostages start dying one by one.

McCord is the one man who has to go behind the scenes, bump off the bad guys (and girls) he comes across, disarm the bombs rigged around the stadium set to go off at any time, and rescue his daughter who has also been taken hostage in the VIP box.

"Die Hard In an Ice Rink" ? Not quite. The synopsis sounds familiar, but it would take a lot to beat that film, and this one does go more for the action-by-numbers approach, but it does have its moments as well as a superb finale.

Van Damme does his usual one-man-against-the-world act, accompanied with slo-mo explosions, and well-handled action scenes which come fairly evenly, and sometimes are very amusing - witness the scene where he has to fight the team's mascot, a bad girl in a giant Penguin suit, in the kitchen area, which does lead to a nasty end.

In any other hands, the film might have been serverly lacking as the concept is hardly ground-breaking, but from an established director, Peter Hyams, who always makes good use of the Panavision frame, and an excellent chief bad guy in the form of Powers Boothe (why isn't this guy in more roles such as this?), the film is brought up a notch from the 'average' slot.

On video this will become another fullscreen Friday night renter, but the laserdisc brings out the full impact of Hyams cinematography. Picture quality is fantastic: very colourful and sharp, and the surround sound mix comes into play many times during the film as the clock ticks by, and as the teams draw even, we reach the Sudden Death play-off.

This disc is well-chaptered with 46 spread throughout the 111 minutes of the film, plus one for the trailers at the end of the disc, which are for four other Pioneer PAL LD releases : Casino, Strange Days, Waterworld, Apollo 13.

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 1997.