In Hell (2003)

So much average

Crappy film

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

In Hell has a very simple plot and incredibly poorly written script. The Acting is too bad that you can't continue watching. The camera angles, visuals, editing everything related to cinematography is very wrong or primitive.

This movie was a complete surprise. I have always seen Van Damme as a great action hero and most of his movie doesn't have any story. When I started watching this one, I expected same action stuff but it completely took me by surprise. The movie started with some action stuff but then on the real story evolves. There is no big surprises around but it was not all out action. Van Damme managed to emote well and the prison torture scenes were well done. After seeing this film,most of us will fear to death if we even dream of getting into a prison like this. All actors as prison wardens and inmates given the movie the exact feel it needed.Watch this movie without any expectation and you wont be disappointed..

With Ringo Lam directing and Jean-Claude Van Damme starring, I was expecting In Hell to be a cheesy, slam-bang, all-out fight-fest full of stereotypical hard-nut characters smashing the crap out of each other at every opportunity; what I actually got was a surprisingly grim and unflinchingly brutal prison drama, albeit full of stereotypical hard-nut characters smashing the crap out of each other at every opportunity.Lam directs with style, Van Damme is actually pretty good in a role that requires him to act for a change, and for a while the going is good, but the film is eventually sunk by a script that develops ideas above its station: in a blatant attempt to elevate the film to Shawshank/Midnight Express status, Van Damme's character, Kyle LeBlanc, takes a journey through his own personal hell, unbelievably becomes a symbol of hope and inspiration for the other prisoners, and risks his life to protect a mentally handicapped killer against the corrupt guards; all the while, clichéd brute with a brain, prisoner 451 (Lawrence Taylor), delivers a solemn, philosophical voice-over.None of this 'emotional drama' is particularly convincing (especially the previously utterly ruthless Russian mafioso coming to admire the American), but the best (or worst) is saved for last when Kyle drives straight out of the prison's front gate in what must be the dumbest jail-break in cinematic history.

I had been interested in seeing IN HELL since last year, when I saw it listed in Mad Movies (French Horror magazine), in their series "Overlooked/Forgotten Video Gems". And yes, this Jean-Claude Van Damme flick delivers. Raw and uncompromising violence in a prison flick that even carries a mysterious, supernatural-like tone underneath. Nice cinematography and an unknown cast that takes pleasure in portraying corrupt and bad-to-the-bone characters. It starts off a little clichéd, but if you stick with it, it should be worth it. Definitely one of the better, if not the best Van Damme movie I've seen in years. Though I'll admit, I haven't seen many of his films made from 2000 onward. But I now, finally, have another to-see Van Damme film on my list: the recent JCVD (2008), and I have a feeling with that one, my respect for the Muscles from Brussels will grow again.