>IT'S SUDDEN DEATH AT THE PITTSBURGH Civic Arena, the seventh game of the Stanley Cup finals, and what the fans don't know is that pesky terrorists are threatening to blow the facility to smithereens. Enter Darren McCord, fire marshal—better known as Jean-Claude Van Damme. Yes, this is Sudden Death, our hero's latest vehicle. But it's also Van Damme with a difference—and we're not talking a believable plot. Rather, it's a rare movie where the Belgian-born actor plays an all-American guy—and they don't waste precious oof!-time explaining away his thick Belgian accent. Herewith, some of the flimsy excuses film-goers have been fed in the past:
FILM: Kickboxer, 1989 CHARACTER: Kurt Sloane OCCUPATION: Neophyte kickboxer, out to avenge his wounded brother EXCUSE: Kurt was raised in Belgium; oddly, though, his brother, played by American karate champ Dennis Alexio, has no foreign accent
FILM: Double Impact, 1991 CHARACTER: Identical karate expert twins Chad and Alex OCCUPATIONS: Chad is a Los Angeles aerobics instructor; Alex, a Hong Kong smuggler EXCUSES: Chad was born in Hong Kong, raised in France; Alex was raised by a French-accented nun
FILM: Nowhere to Run, 1993 CHARACTER: Sam OCCUPATION: Ex-con on the lam EXCUSE: He's French-Canadian
FILM: Hard Target, 1993 CHARACTER: Chance Boudreaux OCCUPATION: Merchant sailor EXCUSE: Raised in Louisiana bayou country by a Cajun uncle
FILM: Streetfighter, 1994 CHARACTER: Colonel Guile OCCUPATION: Allied Nations commander EXCUSE: None needed: he fits in fine with his multi-accented crew
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