DOUBLE IMPACT (1991)
Collector's Edition 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray
Label: MVD Rewind Collection
Region Code: Region-Free
Rating: R
Duration: 109 Minutes 38 Seconds
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround, LPCM 2.0 Stereo with Optional English SDH Subtitles, Spanish Subtitles, French Subtitles
Video: HDR10 2160p Ultra HD Widescreen (1.85:1), 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Sheldon Lettich
Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Geoffrey Lewis, Bolo Yeung, Alonna Shaw, Corinna Everson, Julie Strain
In the Sheldon Lettich (Lionheart) directed Double Impact (1991) er get a double-dose of the 'Muscles from Brussels; JVCD (Knock Off) in a dual-role! The film opens in 1966 in Hong Kong with business partners Paul Wagner (Andy Armstrong, Total Recall) and Nigel Griffith (Alan Scarfe, Lethal Weapon 3) celebrating the opening of the Victoria Harbour Tunnel. Paul attends with his wife Katherine (Sarah-Jane Varley, Howard's End) and their identical twin infant sons, Chad and Alex. After the celebration the Wagner's return home, followed by their security Frank Avery (Geoffrey Lewis, Salem's Lot), until he is let go for the evening. The family is followed home by Triad hitmen, lead by Moon (Bolo Yeung, Enter the Dragon), who kill the parents, with Frank arriving too late to save them, but he and the family's maid save the twin separately, with one of the babies sent to a French orphanage in Hong Kong and the other take by Frank to France. We learn that the hitmen were hired by Raymond Zhang (Philip Chan, Hardboiled), who has teamed-up with Griffith to exterminate his business partner and reap the monetary reward generated by the tunnel for themselves. Twenty five years later, Chad who was raised in France and then Los Angeles by "Uncle" Frank is a Beverly Hills fitness instructor, while Alex, still in Honk Kong, has become a street smart smuggler, each unaware of their past or the existence of the other, that is until Frank tracks down Alex and reunites them and convinces them to get revenge on their parents' killers and the legacy money they are owed.
It's an interesting set-up, and Van Damme is solid in the dual-role, able to play both the more streetwise Alex and the kinder but still kick-ass Chad, who is softer but still plenty kick-ass, having been raised in L.A., his introduction features him giving a muscle rub down tot he lovely Julie Strain (Fit To Kill)! The brothers initially quarrel a bit, of course we have JVCD vs JVCD, because why would you not? After some initial hesitation they do team-up to take down the baddies, with the tutelage of "Uncle" Frank, and some help from Alex's girlfriend Alonna (Danielle Wilde, King of New York) who conveniently works for Griffith and is able to dig up some dirt on him to confirm his involvement in their parent's murders. The team attacks some of Zhang and Griffith's operations causing a ruckus, with Zhang sending is hitman Moon, now scarred and blinded in one eye after being shot by Frank during the attempted assassination of the twin years earlier. Another baddie comes by way of former body builder, Corinna Everson (The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.) a Kara, Griffith's musclebound female bodyguard, who is memorable in the role for sure.
This ne delivers plenty of action set-pieces in warehouses and on a freighter, and of course those patented JVCD martial-arts kicks we love so much. The dual-role is handled well, plenty of old school camera trickery and body doubles, it's not too hokey but it's not exactly seamless in the pre-digital age, but that is also its charm. I liked that Alex is somewhat jealous of pretty boy twin Chad, and during a drunken escapade imagines that his brother is having sex with Alonna, so we do get some topless nudity, albeit imagined, but still very much appreciated!
The flick is a blast, chock full of early 90's action excess, with twice the Van Damme action, not to mention tons of gunfights and explosions, the physical martial-arts is kinetic and well-staged, and I loved seeing Geoffrey Lewis in a beefier role than usual, not just that, but playing a good guy for a change, as he was most often casts as a baddie or scumbag.
Audio/Video: Double Impact (1991) arrives on 4K Ultra HD from MVD as part of their 4K Laser Vision Collection, with a director approved 2025 4K scan/restoration, presented in 2160p, representing a 16-Bit Scan of the Original Camera Negative framed in 1.85: 1 aspect ratio with HDR color-grade. This looks terrific, the source is clean, the grain field looks solid, and comparing it to the previous Blu-ray edition depth and clarity are nicely improved, as are the HDR10 enhanced color-grade, which always looks natural but nicely suffuse, skin tones look natural, and black levels showcase strong shadow detail and contrast.
Audio comes by way English DTS-HD MA 5.1 Surround or LPCM 2.0 Stereo with optional English subtitles. The surround track is quite impactful, sounds of gunfire, explosions, physical action and atmospherics impress, piercing and sharp with a solid low end impact. All the while dialogue is crisp and nicely prioritized in the mix, never lost in the action or the Arthur Kempel (Mystery Men) score. The stereo track is excellent as well, obviously not as immersive but the stereo panning effects are pleasing just the same.
Extras include a 112-min 2-part The Making of Double Impact documentary, 54-min of Deleted/Extended Scenes, and an 8-min Anatomy of a Scene with Director Sheldon Lettich. We also get a rare 7-min 1991 Behind the Scenes Featurette with interviews with Jean-Claude Van Damme, Moshe Diamant and Charles Layton, 8-min of Double Impact: B-Roll Selections, and 5-min of Double Impact: Film Clips.
Also included are 6-min of Cast & Crew Interview Clips, these are 1991 EPK interview clips featuring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Moshe Diamant and Charles Layton, plus a Double Impact MVD Rewind Collection Promo, and the 2-min Original Theatrical Trailer.
The 2-disc UHD/Blu-ray release arrives in a black dual-hubbed keepcase, we get a Reversible Wrap featuring the same key art but with MVD Rewind Collection or a 4k LaserVision Collection layout options. Inside there is a Collectible Double Impact “4K LaserVision” Mini-Poster, plus we get a Limited Edition Slipcover with the 4k LaserVision Collection layout, which is limited to the first pressing only.
Special Features:
- Director Approved 2025 4K Scan/Restoration (2160p - 16-Bit Scan of the Original Camera Negative) of the movie presented in 1.85: 1 Aspect Ratio in HDR (4K Ultra HD Disc)
- Audio: LPCM 5.1 Surround, LPCM 2.0 Stereo (4K/Blu-ray)
- Optional English SDH Subtitles, Spanish Subtitles, French Subtitles (4K/Blu-ray)
- High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the main feature in 1.85:1 aspect ratio (Blu-ray)
- English 2.0 Stereo Sound (LPCM), Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0 (Blu-ray)
- The Making of Double Impact: Part 1 (HD, 52:47) + The Making of Double Impact: Part 2 (58:45) (Blu-ray)
- Deleted / Extended Scenes (SD, 53:57) (Blu-ray)
- Anatomy of a Scene with Director Sheldon Lettich (HD, 7:59) (Blu-ray)
- 1991 Behind the Scenes Featurette: Rarely seen legacy featurette from 1991 featuring interviews with Jean-Claude Van Damme, Moshe Diamant and Charles Layton (6:58, SD) (Blu-ray)
- Double Impact: B-Roll Selections: Raw, behind the scenes footage from the set (8:05, SD) (Blu-ray)
- Double Impact: Film Clips: Five full frame clips from the film for use in TV promos (4:52, SD) (Blu-ray)
- Cast & Crew Interview Clips: 1991 EPK interview clips featuring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Moshe Diamant and Charles Layton (6:21, SD) (Blu-ray)
- Double Impact MVD Rewind Collection Promo (:24, HD)
- Original Theatrical Trailer (1:40, SD)
- Collectible Double Impact “4K LaserVision” Mini-Poster
- Reversible Cover Art
- Limited Edition Slipcover (First Pressing Only)
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