Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Jean-Claude Van Damme, Harrison Page, Deborah Rennard, Lisa Pelikan, Ashley Johnson ... see more see more... , Brian Thompson , Jason Adams , William Terry Amos , Billy Blanks , Roz Bosley , Christopher M. Brown , Lonnie Burr , Lindsey Carlos , Mark de Alessandro , Douglas DuVal , Roger Etienne , Michael M. Foley , Loren Freeman , Leonard Gaines , Carlton Holder , Lew Hopson , Freeman King , Maurice Lamont , Jeff Langton , Micheline Lettich , Sebastian Massa , George McDaniel , Stefanos Miltsakakis , A.D. Muyich , Christopher Nixon , Donald Pike , Paco Christian Prieto , Steven R. Purwin , Abdel Qissi , Eduardo Ricard , Dennis Rucker , Julie Rudolph , Magic Schwartz , Tracy Shakespeare , Jeff Speakman , Dean Milor Thomas , James Brewster Thompson , Tony Valentino , Clement von Franckenstein , Denis Akiyama Voyo , Marc D. Williams , Sifu Williams , Tony "Satch" Williams , Stuart Wilson , Thunder Wolf , Galen Yuen , Lawrence Bender , Eric Karson , Roger La Page , Michel Qissi , Scott Spiegel

After his brother is badly beaten by a street gang, Jean-Claude Van Damme deserts the foreign legion in order to avenge his honor in this action film also known as A.W.O.L. and Wrong Bet. ~ Jason Anke... read more read more...ny, Rovi

Flixster Users

53% liked it

14,648 ratings

Critics

33% liked it

12 critics

DVD Release Date: September 8, 1998

Stats: 542 reviews

Your Rating



clear rating

Flixster Reviews (542)


  • October 23, 2011
    Great Van Damme flick and one of his best, watching him battle through various fighters of different skills untill he meets the big boss. Its very very basic, just like all Van Damme films and much like a computer game it has no proper plot, bad acting and the same predictable ou... read moretcomes but somehow its good.
    All the fights are very well filmed and choreographed, the fighters do look like real people and it looks slick n fast with the final fight being a real adrenaline rush, awesome.
    Question is whats it called? Lionheart? A.W.O.L? or Wrong Bet?
  • March 2, 2008
    One of my favorites of Van Damme, nothing special besides the fighting, which is why people watch it.
  • December 10, 2007
    Harrison Page is probably a pretty good actor.
  • January 29, 2007
    good flick
  • November 19, 2006
    The street fights are great and I was happy Van Damme returns to reunite his family and a friend altogether again at the end.
  • December 12, 2011
    Jean-claude is best!
  • July 10, 2009
    One of the last films i saw, before i gave up on the muscles from brussels. Ok effort with loads of cool fighting sequences. Best watched on a rainy day and on a channel lets say like action or something you didnt have to pay for.
  • March 1, 2011
    Lionheart is one of Jean-Claude Van Damme's more emotional roles. After news reaches Lyon (Jean-Claude Van Damme) about his brothers attempted murder, he escapes the service of the French Foreign Legion and heads to America to be by his side. Once he arrives, his brother p... read moreasses on and Lyon is left to look after his brothers family. To support them, he begins to compete in various underground matches under the watchful eye of fight promoter Cynthia (Deborah Rennard) and his friend Joshua (Harrison Page), while eluding two fellow Legionaires who are trying to bring him back for desertion.

    As with many of Van Damme's films, there are a lot of familiar faces among the cast. The final fighter he faces, Attila The Hun (Abdel Qissi), also plays The Mongolian in The Quest. While fellow Legionaire Mustaffa (Michel Qissi) makes steady work as Tong Po in the Kickboxer films; he is also brother to Abdel Qissi. Another fighter that Lyon compete's against in the pool scene is Paco Christian Prieto, who makes an impressive display of the fighting style Capoeira in the action film Only The Strong as druglord Silverio. Each battle scene shows Van Damme's prowess as a martial arts fighter, but lacks depth unlike his previous films in Bloodsport and Kickboxer.

    The film feels like a photoshoot for Van Damme, with fights being over much too soon and opting more on his acting than any other. Yes, we needed the guy to show more improvement in that department, but with a film that's supposed to be about tournaments, there's little of that going on. We don't even get to see Lyon find out who murdered his brother. He completely forgets about his death and moves on to his bare-knuckle fights. I guess the writers couldn't fit too much drama into the screenplay. Lionheart is still a well-rounded film with a young Van Damme in top form.
  • May 18, 2010
    Better than many of Van Damme's movies. Perhaps a bit better than other action flicks from the era, but still ultimately shallow.
  • April 18, 2010
    Probably my all time favorite Van Damme movie, next to Bloodsport of course. It's just awesome on so many different levels, most of them unintentional.

Critic Reviews


Janet Maslin
August 30, 2004
Janet Maslin, New York Times

Using tactics like these, Woody Allen could become an action hero, too. Full Review

Richard Harrington
January 1, 2000
Richard Harrington, Washington Post

As Lionheart heads for his final confrontation, the film's soundtrack blasts out a "Rocky"-like song called 'No Mercy.' Unless you're a Van Damme or martial arts fanatic, you're more likely to be thin... Full Review

Andrew L. Urban
December 20, 2008
Andrew L. Urban, Urban Cinefile

Accompanied by an occasionally jazzy score, the film has a solid dramatic base on which to build the Jean-Claude Van Damme action. Full Review

Clint Morris
May 6, 2005
Clint Morris, Moviehole

One of Van Damme's best flicks....good story, good skirmishes

Chris Hicks
January 1, 2000
Chris Hicks, Deseret News, Salt Lake City

The fight scenes, which are all Van Damme fans care about anyway, are pumped up by swift edits, which repeat snippets over and over so that it's the MTV equivalent of boxing, and punched-up volume con... Full Review

Owen Gleiberman
September 7, 2011
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

Click to read the article Full Review

November 24, 2008
Entertainment Weekly

Click to read the article Full Review

Christopher Smith
October 14, 2005
Christopher Smith, Bangor Daily News (Maine)

No review available.

Philip Martin
April 28, 2005
Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

No review available.

Michelle Alexandria
November 20, 2003
Michelle Alexandria, Eclipse Magazine

No review available.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

More Like This


Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Fighting
    Fighting (64%)
  • Rabbit Fever
    Rabbit Fever (100%)
  • Guys and Balls (Maenner Wie Wir)
    Guys and Balls (Maenner Wie Wir) (100%)
  • Mona Lisa
    Mona Lisa (50%)

Facts


No facts approved yet. Be the first

Lionheart (Wrong ... : Watch Free on TV


Lionheart (Wrong Bet) (A.W.O.L.: Absent Without Leave) Trivia

Movie Quizzes


Recent News


No recent headlines. Got one?

Recent Lists


Most Popular Skin


No skins yet. Interested in creating one?