Darkness of Man DVD Review (Sony Pictures/Saban Films)

Darkness of Man is a 2024 crime film co-written, produced, and directed by James Cullen Bressack (Survive the Game, Fortress, Hot Seat, Beyond the Law, Blood Lake, Hate Crime, and Grindsploitation). It was co-written by Alethea Hnatko-Cho (Happy Horror Days and Invoking 5). It was produced by action legend Jean-Claude Van Damme (We die Young, Kickboxer: Retaliation, Pound of Flesh, Assassination Games, 6 Bullets, JCVD, Inferno, Legionnaire, and Black Water). It grossed $17,324 during it’s limited theatrical run. Russell Hatch (played by: Jean-Claude Van Damme from Bloodsport, Kickboxer franchise, Universal Soldier franchise, Hard Target, Street Fighter, Double Impact, Lionheart, Cyborg, The Expendables 2, and Timecop) is a Interpol operative that decides to take on the role of father figure to the young Jayden (played by: Emerson Min from Black-ish), the son of an informant (played by: Chika Kanamoto from The Man in the High Castle) killed in a routine raid gone wrong years ago. He tries to help out her father Mr. Kim (played by: Ji Yong Lee from The Chair) and his struggling shop during a war between rival gangs lead by Hyun (played by: Peter Jae from The Departed) and Lazar (played by: Andrey Ivchenko from Stranger Things). Can Hatch get some redemption from his past????Darkness of Man is more of a crime film rather than action. Jean-Claude Van Damme doesn’t do any martial arts here, he just straight up fights. I know that he’s not the big blockbuster drawl that he used to be back in the day but it’s nice to see him do some different kind of projects. Director James Cullen Bressack started out in low budget horror but he’s been doing lots of these independent action films lately. He’s worked with some of the biggest names in the genre which includes Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bruce Willis, Mel Gibson, and Steven Seagal. I have to say that he’s improved so much over the years when it comes to directing. The script is pretty simple and straight forward when it comes to the story. Jean-Claude Van Damme as Russell Hatch gives one of his best performances in awhile. He plays a washed up agent that’s let guilt take over his life. He wants to make stuff right with a past situation. He gets caught between a war between Korean and Russian gangsters. As he gets older, Van Damme is a much better actor to be honest. Some of these actors only have really quick cameos in Darkness of Man but it’s still a killer line up. This impressive supporting cast includes Kristanna Loken (Terminator 3), Sticky Fingaz (Blade: The Series), Shannen Doherty (Heathers), Zack Ward (A Christmas Story), Cynthia Rothrock (China O’Brien franchise), Eric Roberts (The Dark Knight), Emerson Min, Peter Jae, Andrey Ivchenko, Chika Kanamoto, Ji Yong Lee, Spencer Breslin (The Kid), UFC fighter Nick Diaz, Weston Cage (Lord of War), Kristos Andrews (The Bay), Marina Mazepa (The Continental), and Kris Van Damme (Universal Soldier franchise). It’s the last performance from the talented Shannen Doherty before she passed away this year. Darkness of Man was a surprise, you never know what you are going to get with a Van Damme project these days. It’s very entertaining and it has some quality replay value to it. If you are a fan of Van Damme or crime features, you’ll enjoy this one. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this standard definition presentation from Sony Pictures! This 480p (2.39:1) transfer looks great on DVD. It has excellent cinematography and the locations really stand out in this. Honestly, I think this movie deserves better than just a DVD for it’s debut. I’m really shocked that this didn’t get a blu ray release in the states at the same time since Van Damme is still very popular. Man of Darkness has gotten a few HD home video releases overseas so it’s still possible that it might get one here someday. It has an English: Dolby Digital 5.1 track. The audio is pretty damn good on this DVD. All of the dialogue is crisp, the crime is elevated, and the music has a nice boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. Unfortunately, there’s no extras on this disc. This is a professionally made on demand DVD-R home video release. It’s available everywhere right now including MovieZyng.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!