There’s a new Jean-Claude Van Damme movie, and it doesn’t feature enough Jean-Claude Van Damme. “The Gardener” is mostly a tongue-in-cheek action-comedy about the plot to assassinate Serge Shuster (Michael Youn), a typically pompous and self-absorbed politician. Serge talks so much that you might wonder why his lack of character is so well foregrounded, especially given that Serge is ostensibly a sidekick for Van Damme’s title role as Leo, a Byronic man of action who can kill with a trowel and a pair of pruning shears.
The contrast between these two protagonists suggests a frustrated and only half-serious attempt at distinguishing one macho type (the dissembling, pseudo-tough civil servant) from another (the haunted, but sympathetic ex-soldier). Eventually, the difference between these two men is respectively confirmed with multiple gags involving a Nazi SS uniform (for Serge) and a big emotional scene (for Leo).
Serge’s obnoxious antics are so prominent that it’s hard to trust the sincerity or commitment of the makers of this undemanding genre pastiche. This comes up every time Van Damme tries to have an emotional moment and wears his stoic character’s heart on his sleeve. Is he wiping his nose too theatrically? And is he covering his face because he can’t bring himself to cry on command? Is this a badly performed sequence or a badly directed one?
I don’t enjoy questioning the sincerity of an eccentric and beloved action star like Van Damme, who has long established his desire to be taken seriously as both an actor and a star. Then again, Serge’s distracting behavior raises questions that the movie’s affable (but also frequently brainless and reactionary) comedy doesn’t seem ready to answer.
When we meet Serge, his sunny, well-maintained home has already been invaded by a platoon of masked gunmen. A flashback then establishes that Serge and his family, including his shrewish wife, Mia (Nawell Madani), and social-media-addicted daughter, Alice (Poqssi), are meant to be on vacation. Unfortunately, Serge shared sensitive information, making him a target for a mysterious group of killers, whose burly leaders have codenames inspired by “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Mia yells at Serge that he should “take some responsibility” right before the consequences of his actions catch up with him. It’s then up to Leo to save the day.
Leo takes out some bad guys in a flashy and satisfying action scene, and then drags Serge into a series of underground tunnels that bring to mind Rambo’s subterranean lair from “Rambo: Last Blood.” There’s even a joke about how Leo gets ready to fight in the same way that Rambo does in an oft-copied sequence from “Rambo: First Blood Part II.” Obviously, we’re not meant to be thinking so much about Leo’s Rambo connection that we remember Sylvester Stallone trimmed a scene from “Rambo: First Blood Part II” where Rambo laments the death of his romantic partner, since early test audiences supposedly laughed at Stallone’s expressive outburst. Still, where else to put one’s mind when so much of “The Gardener” revolves around the one-note premise that Serge, unlike Leo, isn’t man enough to follow Mia’s advice?
Youn’s schticky performance soon becomes distracting, especially once Serge puts on a Nazi uniform and complains about its poor fit (though “moral reasons” are also cited). That’s the joke, I know, but the gag’s only so funny when it’s already so played out. A scene where Youn takes on his would-be assassins while tripping on drugs is only funny thanks to Youn’s energetic performance. The gag is otherwise flat-footed—“It’s Raining Men”, really?—like a few other routines that negligibly touch on the movie’s formulaic action tropes and story beats. The fact that Serge’s creators try to get so much mileage out of his SS uniform also suggests that the real joke here is that he, unlike Leo, couldn’t be sincere if his life depended on it.
Which brings us back to Van Damme’s big tearjerking moment.
The most memorable scene in “The Gardener” is also its most crucial test of your patience: can you believe this man when he cries and confesses, in character, to having deep, unprocessed trauma? Some clumsy gestures put unnecessary stress on this emotional outburst. Then again, this scene wouldn’t have to prove so much if Van Damme didn’t have to try so hard to overcome his generic character.
As it is, “The Gardener” suggests that Van Damme still doesn’t know how to both give his audience what they want and show off his range. Not funny nor serious enough to coast on charm alone, the movie’s best joke is tellingly set up by Serge: Who pays for the electricity in Leo’s underground bunker? Leo doesn’t respond, which suits Van Damme just fine.
