Safe Commentary

You can tell right from the poster that this is not going to be an overly successful or well made movie.  Actually, if you just glance at it, you may think it's nothing more than Transporter 4.  Watching it, you may also think that it is nothing more than Transporter 4.  The story is one that's been done countless times.  A disgraced cop finds a way to redeem himself by protecting an innocent person with information from some very bad people.  Sound familiar?  That's because it's basically the same thing Bruce Willis did with Mos Def in 16 Blocks.

For what it is, they actually did an OK job but really nothing to write home about.  Throughout the movie, the viewer can really tell that the whole thing was slapped together pretty quickly and without much refinement.  Everything about the movie seems a bit too raw.  It's almost as if the writers and director woke up one morning and said, 'oh, crap!  We have to produce an action movie in a week!"  The writing is very average except when they try to say something witty and profoundly cool.  Then it becomes bad.  Overall, the acting is OK though.  I was really impressed with the Russians.  They did seem to be depraved and downright evil.  Overall though, the Chinese gang didn't come off the same way.  Maybe it has something to do with "Seinfeld, four!" going through my head whenever James Hong is on screen.  That's unfortunate because it was a bit part in an early Seinfeld episode and he's done a lot since then.  Also, ironically enough, the Chinese actor that came off as the baddest was Catherine Chan as Mei; the innocent girl who is supposed to be good.  She just had this "Children of the Corn" detachment about her that gave me the willies whenever she talked.

Finally, Jason Statham is what you expect.  He can do the fight scenes and talk with that "bubbling just beneath the surface rage" gravelly voice.  But when he's the lead without good support in a movie, it usually falls flat.  He needs an ensemble around him to really shine (The Expendables, The Italian Job, Snatch, The Bank Job, etc).  Ultimately, I can see what they were trying to do but they just missed the mark on almost all of it.  Having three different rival factions looking for the same thing just made it all a bit too confusing as to what anyone's motivation was.

Don't bother seeing it.