The latest entry in the "Nazis bad" film genre, WAR PIGS (2015), is an enjoyable actioner with a solid cast and a tried-and-true story: the ragtag band of misfits who, after much trial, tribulation, and training, achieve something magnificent together. Anchored by Luke Goss as the disgraced Army captain in charge, Mickey Rourke as the major who put him there, and Dolph Lundgren as the foreign soldier who knows the lay of the land (but can he really be trusted?), WAR PIGS delivers the requisite camaraderie and action as the men—the War Pigs of the title—take on the job of destroying a Nazi superweapon.
The outsiders who pull together to save the day is a plot much beloved by audiences, and has served well in genres from science fiction (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014)) to sports (UNDERDOG KIDS (2015)) to samurai films (SEVEN SAMURAI (1954)). Indeed, WAR PIGS is not even the first World War II film to present a determined group of outsiders taking on the Nazis—and winning—nor will it be the last.
That said, there is something notable about this movie.
WAR PIGS marks three decades in the movie business for Dolph Lundgren.
Two movies that came out 30 years ago—A VIEW TO A KILL (1985) and ROCKY IV (1985)—first introduced viewers to the towering blond Swede, and then turned him into a villain we all loved to hate. Unfortunately, they also cast the mold for Lundgren's career, a mold that he is still trying to break in a quiet but persistent way.
"Once you can make money in Hollywood people want you to do the same thing over and over again," Lundgren says. He followed ROCKY IV with MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE (1987), a fantasy about a child's comic book character named He-Man, which arguably starred Lundgren's physique (and mullet).
Several roles as the strong, silent type bent on revenge followed. Despite a bit of a splash with UNIVERSAL SOLDIER (1992), in which he played opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme, by the mid-‘90s most of Lundgren's films were consigned to the direct-to-video market.
Now, Lundgren is a part of a major franchise ( THE EXPENDABLES 1, 2, and 3 (2010, 2012, 2014)), and the UNIVERSAL SOLDIER sequel, UNIVERSAL SOLDIER: REGENERATION (2009) was fairly well received. Lundgren has even finished filming KINDERGARTEN COP 2 (2016), a reboot in which he takes on the Arnold Schwarzenegger role as a cop who goes undercover as a school teacher.
"It's a New Age school," Lundgren says. "A kind of world village—I'm very much out of place. It's a romantic comedy."
To what can Lundgren attribute his current renaissance?
Part of it is the fact that Lundgren is probably one of the smartest men in Hollywood. With degrees in chemistry and chemical engineering, he was headed for MIT on a Fulbright scholarship when the singer Grace Jones hired him as a bodyguard, an opportunity he parlayed into his first movie role (Jones was also in A VIEW TO A KILL). Lundgren has learned the ropes behind the camera, too, adding writing, directing, and producing credits to his resume.
"I've directed four or five of them movies now,"he says. "And if I'm going to direct and star I may as well produce because otherwise I don’t have control."
Part of his renewed success is his own personal growth. After a divorce from his long-time spouse Anette Qviberg (the couple has two daughters), Lungren shares that he's been working on himself with meditation and therapy. "It's only recently I've had a little more sensitive roles," he says.
And part of it is definitely his long-term commitment to the martial arts. Lundgren holds a 3rd dan black belt in Kyokushin Karate and has been practicing the art for 47 years, during which he was European champion twice.
"I'll never stop, I'm sure," he says. In fact, Lundgren was preparing to shoot a promotional piece for a tournament when we spoke.
In front of the camera, his skills translated to thrilling fight scenes. When not under the spotlights, though, Lungren transferred some of his commitment and his work ethic to his movie career. The fact that the majority of his films were direct to video does not mean he wasn't busy. Lungren has averaged at least a movie a year for decades.
Lundgren can now be considered one of the elder statesmen of the action genre, and as both a martial artist and a connoisseur of crowd-pleasing mayhem, he offered his opinion on the world of mixed martial arts, which has produced a number of younger action stars. Not surprisingly, he saw both sides.
"It's good and bad," Lundgren says. "The good part is that kids are exposed to that kind of training, and it's good for keeping fit and for learning about yourself and about how to face your fear. Tough talk isn't going to do it when you get in the ring with somebody."
However…
"Some of the traditional values of martial arts, like honor and respect, are not as important once you start mixing money with martial arts," Lundgren adds.
Lundgren sees one big downside to fighting in the spotlight.
"Ego gets into it," he says. "In real martial arts, ego is something you have to leave at the door. If this was a real battle and they both knew one guy would never walk away, they would be in a very different place. They would be praying, almost—they would be facing their own deaths. Very Zen. In MMA you might get a broken nose, but you're not facing that."
Despite these misgivings, Lungren adds, "If I was young now I would try it because I had a crazy side to me when I was young."
With MMA ruled out, what does Lundgren look forward to?
"I still have to look forward to playing a chemical engineer on screen."
