Still, time has been kind to Hard Target.  With the film no longer under the burden of great expectations, and with Woo's grandiose approach to action fast becoming the standard in Hollywood, Hard Target actually manages to be a satisfying bit of entertainment.  And despite the trouble he may have been behind-the-scenes, Van Damme does come off as more rugged and hard-boiled on-screen than he has been in any film before or since. His performance of the action beats are good and his French accent even makes sense for his Cajun character, "Chance Boudreaux".  Also consider that Woo himself has evolved away from his signature visual style with each new Hollywood film: The Hard Target gunplay that seemed compromised before now stands as the only American Woo film that truly harkens back to the glorious action of his Hong Kong films. 

Note for action fans:  Try to watch the European DVD edition of Hard Target if you can.  For once, the European version of a film has more rather than less violence than its American counterpart.  Entire action scenes have been re-edited and extended to allow for more violence, more bullets, and more over-the-top verbal exchanges between the hero and villains.  It is amazing how much more "Woo-like" the film becomes when the action scenes are allowed to play a little more operatic and outlandish.  Recommended.

Okay, enough with the movie nerd stuff.  Here's the figure nerd stuff:  Presented below is my Hard Target figure.  One of the main reasons for attempting this project (aside from my recent obsession with the film), was to practice new oil painting skills learned from Sixty Driver's incredible head painting tutorial.  It is one of the greatest resources ever provided to this hobby and can single-handedly revive your interest in figures. Both the head and body have been repainted with oils to add dimension and enhance detail.  The head is from Blue Box Toys' "Leon" figure and the body is a Hot Toys figure with much customization in the form of shortening and slimming to match Van Damme's small stature.  Some may wonder why not simply use a short body type (e.g., a BBI first generation body) instead of facing the hassle of customizing Hot Toys' notoriously tall figure body. The answer lies in the HT body's broad, muscular, yet not too muscular physique. It gives the impression of being muscular yet still lithe and flexible, which is exactly how one might describe Van Damme's bulked-up dancer's physique.  Just look at the forearms: There are no other bodies on the market which offer that kind of definition and size. It is neither skinny nor excessively bulky.  If only more bodies offered such a good balance.  It also does not hurt things that the figure's shoulders are very broad and help to complete the solid, action hero look.

The other challenge was recreating the hair.  I lack the sculpting skill necessary to sculpt the greasy, messy mullet that JCVD wore in the film. So, I decided to recreate his hairdo with "real hair". ie, Mohair which is often used for miniature hair projects.  Lycia of Lycia's Customs had made a very nice real hair Legolas figure and she kindly advised me on methods for applying & shaping the hair.

Mohair looks great but it comes with a price: It is an absolute nightmare with which to work.  The exact quality of mohair which makes it look and feel like real 1:6-scale hair - its extreme thinness - is also what causes it to rapidly become tangled like crazy and impossible to separate.  The best method for this job was to take wide bands/bunches of hair straight out of the package and glue on the whole band at once.  That way, there was no need to untangle strands.  Afterwards, the hair was slicked back and shaped with strong-hold gel to recreate Jean Claude's infamous phantom mullet.  

The plan is to eventually post a full Hard Target diorama with all sorts of characters from the film.  Arnold Vosloo as the baddie is almost done, but the rest are in "coming soon" limbo.  I may also return to this figure to adjust the fit of the clothes and add weathering where appropriate.  Cheers!