The Bouncer (film)

A film noir, cheerless and violent. The protagonist is an antihero, struggling through life to nurture his eight-year-old daughter, and working in nightclubs as a bouncer to provide his income. When he gets involved in a fight, he ends up about to face jail, and losing his daughter to the social services. He is then asked by the police to spy on a criminal organization. In return, he would erase his problems with justice.

Lukas is a former bodyguard who was forced to flee South Africa after the death of his wife. He now lives with his daughter Sarah in his home country of Belgium and works as a bouncer for a nightclub. One night, Lukas is forced to restrain a patron who attacked a waitress, who subsequently ends up badly injuring himself attempting to attack Lukas. Lukas is fired from his job at the nightclub, but is set up with a new job by his former bouncer co-worker, Omar, at a strip club. To obtain the job, however, he is forced to fight multiple other applicants in a brawl, and Lukas ends up being the last person standing.

In the meantime, due to the injured nightclub patron's status as the son of a member of the European Parliament, Lukas is investigated by the authorities, led by the mysterious Maxim, regarding the fight. He is pressed into going undercover at the strip club to spy on its owner, Jan, an organized crime figure, or else face prosecution and imprisonment for the incident at the nightclub. The authorities also threaten to send his daughter to a foster home.

His first assignment is driving an Italian woman, Lisa, back to her hotel. Informing the authorities about her, he discovers that she was indicted for forgery some years ago. Later, he is confronted by Jan and his lieutenant, Geert, and reveals to them his past career in South Africa. His bosses force him to drive to an associate, where he listens in on a conversation detailing Jan's attempt at moving an unspecified product (later revealed to be counterfeit banknotes). Jan is experiencing difficulties with some prospective business partners who do not trust him, and would rather work with an organization from the Netherlands.

Lukas is asked to pick up Lisa from her hotel with his daughter in tow, and drives her to a meeting with Jan and Geert. Lukas' daughter is driven away, and Lukas is forced to participate in a new assignment, the kidnapping of a crack cocaine cook. Lukas successfully infiltrates the cook's hideout and apprehends the target, escaping with Geert. He later reunites with his daughter, who was hanging out with Lisa at her hotel. Maxim meets Lukas at his home and Lukas informs Maxim of the latest developments. Lukas has had enough of the undercover work, but Maxim informs him that he knows about Lukas' past life in South Africa, and if Lukas refuses to cooperate, he will be sent back there to face punishment for an unknown crime. Lukas agrees to remain undercover, and meets with Jan at the strip club, asking for more work.

Jan intends to trade the cook to the Dutch gangsters in return for watermarked paper for counterfeit banknotes, and tasks Lukas, Geert and Lisa to the task. At the trade, the Dutch gangsters betray and attack Lukas, Geert and Lisa. Lukas manages to incapacitate the Dutch gangsters in a car chase, but Geert is shot and killed. Jan, however, is satisfied that Lukas and Lisa escaped with the watermarked paper, and burns the getaway car with Geert's body inside to destroy the evidence.

Lukas sends his daughter into hiding with his bouncer friend Omar while he finishes his assignment for Jan and the authorities. Meeting with Lisa at her hotel room, she recounts to him her past life as a money forger, and he reveals to her that his wife was killed in a botched carjacking. The South African police were unable to find his wife's killers, but he did, which is why he fled South African and now lives in Belgium under a new identity. Lukas drops Lisa off at a warehouse, and informs Maxim of this. Lisa is arrested and Maxim investigates the warehouse, but discovers nothing. Lukas tells Maxim that they can still get Jan, because Jan still needs to print the counterfeit money for his buyers.

Lukas also asks Maxim to let him talk to Lisa, and Lukas convinces her to cooperate with the authorities so she does not end up dead like Geert. She agrees to print the counterfeit money for Jan so the authorities have cause to arrest and prosecute him. Jan meets with Lukas at the latter's home and they both go to confront his other associate. Jan believes that this associate ratted him out to the police and murders him in front of Lukas.

Lukas, Jan and Lisa proceed with forging the counterfeit banknotes at a farm. In the morning, the authorities led by Maxim raid the farm and Lukas reveals his deception to Jan, who shoots him in the chest in front of the police. Maxim then murders Jan and Lisa, and he and his unit steal the counterfeit money. After Maxim realizes Lukas is still alive, he moves in to finish him but Lukas disarms Maxim and beats him to death. Lukas then kills the other members of Maxim's unit. Badly wounded, Lukas calls his daughter and starts up a car.

• Jean-Claude van Damme as Lukas
• Sveva Alviti as Lisa Zaccherini
• Sami Bouajila as Maxim Zeroual
• Alice Verset as Sarah
• Sam Louwyck as Jan Dekkers
• Kevin Janssens as Geert
• Kaaris as Omar

• The Bouncer on IMDb
• The Bouncer at Rotten Tomatoes