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Starring
:
Jason
Statham
Shu
Qi
Matt
Schulze
Francois
Berleand
Ric
Young
Action
:
Yuen
Kwai
Michel
Julienne (vehicles)
Producer
:
Luc
Besson
Steve
Chasman
Director
:
Yuen
Kwai
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THE
TRANSPORTER (2002)
Reviewed
by Tony Ryan
Retired
from the Military and living in France, Jason Statham has put
the skills learnt from his previous career to good use as a
highly paid, highly respected "transporter" - a
hired gun who simply moves any 'package' from A to B by
whatever means necessary. He lives by three simple rules:
Never change the deal, never mention names, and above all,
never look in the package. Predictably, he breaks this final
rule and as expected, all hell breaks loose.
By
opening a 'package' containing the ever sumptuous Shu
Qi in the boot of his car, their paths become crossed and he
spends the rest of the movie rescuing her, avoiding being
blown up and using some fancy footwork to see off his enemies.
As plots go, it's particularly threadbare, and the critical
element surrounding the smuggling of Chinese immigrants is
less than well utilised. Still, the point of this cinematic
exercise was to fit as many car chases, explosions, shoot-outs
and stylised fight sequences as possible into 90 minutes. To
some extent it achieves this aim, but is not without its
problems.
First
of all, none of the key cast members are expert martial
artists or stunt performers making any attempt to create
something new in terms of fight choreography an immediate
hindrance. Jason Statham, for all his impressive physique and
flexibility doesn’t exactly look like Jet Li when performing
the moves and wirework tricks needed. However, he is still a
notch above what I was expecting from someone with no
experience in this field, with some of his kicks and holds
particularly good. Most of the fight scenes were too short to
satisfy someone like me, and much of the fight action
resembled that from 'Romeo
Must Die' rather than a true HK-fight flick. What was
particularly disappointing was the way in which the fights
were filmed. The up-close/shaky camera/MTV-style shots were
equally as evident as in other films such as 'Kiss
of the Dragon' or 'Blade
2'. However, since this was directed by none other than
Yuen Kwai - one of the best action directors ever - the style
used was surprising, and excessive, even if it was to cover up
the actor's physical limitations.
The
car stunts, especially the chase that opens the film, were
possibly the most impressive I have seen for a while. Expertly
set up and executed, while edited to perfection fitting the
music perfectly. I never used to be a fan of car chases, but
the modern style as pioneered by the current French driving
units is a joy to behold!
Aside
from the physical performances, most of the acting appeared a
little clichéd and stereotypical. Shu Qi was surprisingly the
most impressive, and her grasp of the English language
appeared as good as, if not better than, Jet Li or Jackie
Chan. I expect we will be seeing more of her in the not too
distant future. Unfortunately, Statham's jilted US accent from
the 'The
One' reappears here, which is a shame, since the film is
not set in America; there was no need for it.
All
in all, this is a solid action flick that should appeal to
those who enjoyed 'Kiss of the Dragon' and similar
adrenalin-fuelled fare. Nothing extraordinary, and certainly
not an exercise in thespian ability, but an enjoyable 90
minutes nonetheless. It also has an excuse for you guys to
drag the girlfriend along to your local multiplex due to Jason
Statham spending plenty of time with his shirt off!
Rating:
 
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