Kickboxer poster

Kickboxer (1989)

Film · 1h 38m · Rated R

Action, Drama, Sports, Thriller

An American champion's paralysis ignites a ruthless quest for vengeance in the brutal world of kickboxing.

Pulpy and high-octane. A full-attention watch at full speed. Emotionally it is heavy.

Streaming on Fandango at Home (free), Plex (free) and Tubi (free).

Kickboxer parents guide

Heads up on strong sex and nudity. That is past what the R on the box suggests. Beyond that, brutal violence and some strong language.

Scare
Not scary
Jump scares
None noted
Gore
Graphic gore
Blood and wounds shown clearly.
Violence
Brutal violence
Our top level for violence.
Sex and nudity
Strong
Strong means explicit or repeated sex, extended nudity, or sexual assault shown on screen, attempted or completed, even partly off screen. Any one of these is enough.
Language
Moderate
Some strong profanity, a few f-words.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is Kickboxer scary?
No. Kickboxer is not a scary watch.
How gory is Kickboxer?
Graphic gore and brutal violence. If graphic gore is a dealbreaker, skip it.
What is Kickboxer rated, and is it OK for kids?
Rated R, and it earns it: strong sex and nudity, brutal violence, and some strong language. Not one for kids.

What is Kickboxer about?

If your enemy refuses to be humbled... Destroy him. Accompanied by his brother Kurt, American kickboxing champion Eric Sloane, arrives in Thailand to defeat the Eastern warriors at their own sport. His opponent: ruthless fighter and Thai champion, Tong Po. Tong not only defeats Eric, he paralyzes him for life. Crazed with anger, Kurt vows revenge.

Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)

Yes. It lands on a happy note.

Cast and crew

Directed byDavid Worth, Mark DiSalle
StarringJean-Claude Van Damme, Dennis Alexio, Dennis Chan Kwok-San, Haskell V. Anderson III, Rochelle Ashana, Michel Qissi

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Uses the TMDB API; not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Intensity, content, tone and pace tags are CouchRot's own.