T. Rigney (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} filmfiend) wrote,@ 2006-06-20 15:42:00 |
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Kiss Of The Dragon
Quit needling me, already.
---
My introduction to the wonderful world of Jet Li was 2000's Romeo Must Die, directed by former cinematographer Andrzej Bartkowiak (Exit Wounds, Doom). It's a film most Li fans despise, due to the wushu wizard's reliance on wires for the majority of the picture. Now that I have a few REAL Jet Li films under my belt, I can understand why the movie is considered one of his weakest efforts. In response to the amount of gimmicky martial arts on display in that particular outing, Li decided to give his fans what they crave with 2001's Kiss of the Dragon. Written and produced by action guru Luc Besson, Chris Nahon's spunky little kung fu flick is thoroughly enjoyable, though it doesn't come close to showcasing Li's abilities as both an actor and a martial artist. It's still better than Romeo Must Die, of course, but it still feels a little watered down in spots. Regardless, it's a fun action flick, peppered with thrilling fights and some incredible choreography.
Li stars as Liu Jian, a Chinese cop who travels to Paris in order to investigate a Chinese drug lord with some powerful French connections. During a routine surveillance operation, Liu watches in horror as one coked-up prostitute stabs the drug lord to death in a ritzy hotel room. Rushing to his aid with limbs flailing, Liu soon finds himself in the middle of a good old-fashioned double-cross. The French cop in charge of the investigation is, in fact, the drug lord's connection in Paris, and he's just framed Liu for the murder by putting a few rounds into the dying crook's corpe using the Chinese cop's gun. Liu, of course, escapes, taking with him a cassette that contains THE TRUTH behind this gruesome murder. With the help of an American hooker (Bridget Fonda) -- who, incidentally, was supposed to help out with the drug lord's death -- Liu sets out to clear his name and take down those responsible for this high-level cover-up. Oh, and if he has time, Liu will rescue the whore's daughter, too. Touching, indeed.
There are far worse action movies than Kiss of the Dragon on the market, for sure. That said, there MUCH better Jet Li pictures currently hiding out at your local video store. Nahon does his best with the action, capturing several elaborate fight scenes with all the polish and finesse of a straight-to-video action director. This may sound like an attack on Nahon's ability as a director, but it's not, really, considering I enjoy more DTV genre efforts these days than those that find their way to the local multiplex. Why? Well, I think they appeal to the old-school action fan in me, where heroes could still wipe out an entire army of well-armed assassins despite the fact that they have fourteen bullet holes in their back. Kiss of the Dragon is THAT kind of action movie, where the hero will prevail and the bad guy will die an elaborate death unlike anything you've seen before. In fact, if an action film's big cheese doesn't buy the farm in a unique and original way, I often feel completely ripped off. Kiss of the Dragon has a bloody good climax, though I would have enjoyed a more traditional approach to big cheese extermination. But that's just me.
Performances are decent across the board. Jet Li is his usual stoic self, delivering plenty of kicks but little emotion. Bridget Fonda is the standard-issue Hooker With A Heart Of Gold, a wayward soul who is turning tricks on the street of Paris because the proverbial BAD GUY has her daughter locked away in a orphanage somewhere. But how did she get to Paris? How did her daughter get spirited away? What events led up to this depressing scenario? Unfortunately, these questions are left completely unanswered, though I seriously doubt you'll miss them. Anyway, the 2001 award for Outstanding Scenery Chewing in a Martial Arts Motion Picture goes to the uber-cranky Tcheky Karyo, whose nuanced *cough* performance is one all future actors should study if they are up for a role that involves extensive overacting. Everyone does a fine job, I suppose, considering Kiss of the Dragon isn't a movie that requires deep characterization and moving portrayals.
The action is decent, but it's not that great, either. The good stuff doesn't show up until the final act, making for some rather ho-hum confrontations between the opening credits and Liu's raid on a Parisian police station. This, I think, is due to Nahon's wonky direction. Take, for instance, the fight inside Uncle Tai's shrimp shop. When the buff black dude comes strutting through the front door, ultimately forcing Li to lay the smack down, the action feels choppy, as if it were pieced together from a dozen different takes. It's not fluid. This distracting element can also be found in a number of other scenes, including a scene where Jessica (Fonda) is being slapped around by her pimp (Max Ryan). Fluidity in a martial arts film is ESSENTIAL; you can't skimp on that. If the fight looks choppy, blocky, and cut all to hell, it's going to ruin its impact. For a fine example of this, compare and contrast the American version of Jackie Chan's 1985 disaster The Protector and the Hong Kong version, which Chan re-shot and re-edited. BIG difference.
B13 (13th District) fans should keep an eye out for Cyril Raffaelli, who plays one of the blonde twins that work for Karyo. It's also worth mentioning that he's involved in one of the film's most intriguing action sequences.
Kiss of the Dragon is a fine action movie. Seriously. It's good stuff. But it's definitely NOT a very good Jet Li movie. The fights are short and weak, the editing is sub-par, and it doesn't flow very well. Still, it's MUCH better than the drivel that passes for American action films these days, so definitely give it a shot. Of course, if your video store stocks either Fist of Legend, Danny the Dog, or Hero, you should probably investigate those titles first. And if you have access to Ronny Yu's 2006 epic Fearless, DEFINITELY check that out. Kiss of the Dragon should be on your list of Jet Li movies to see, but it shouldn't be towards the top. Somewhere in the middle, maybe, but NOT at the top. Not surprisingly, Chris Nahon is now working with Wesley Snipes on a project called Chasing the Dragon, which should find its way to video store shelves in the near future. Welcome to the wonderful world of direct-to-video, Mr. Nahon.
I hope you enjoy your stay.
Quit needling me, already.
---
My introduction to the wonderful world of Jet Li was 2000's Romeo Must Die, directed by former cinematographer Andrzej Bartkowiak (Exit Wounds, Doom). It's a film most Li fans despise, due to the wushu wizard's reliance on wires for the majority of the picture. Now that I have a few REAL Jet Li films under my belt, I can understand why the movie is considered one of his weakest efforts. In response to the amount of gimmicky martial arts on display in that particular outing, Li decided to give his fans what they crave with 2001's Kiss of the Dragon. Written and produced by action guru Luc Besson, Chris Nahon's spunky little kung fu flick is thoroughly enjoyable, though it doesn't come close to showcasing Li's abilities as both an actor and a martial artist. It's still better than Romeo Must Die, of course, but it still feels a little watered down in spots. Regardless, it's a fun action flick, peppered with thrilling fights and some incredible choreography.
Li stars as Liu Jian, a Chinese cop who travels to Paris in order to investigate a Chinese drug lord with some powerful French connections. During a routine surveillance operation, Liu watches in horror as one coked-up prostitute stabs the drug lord to death in a ritzy hotel room. Rushing to his aid with limbs flailing, Liu soon finds himself in the middle of a good old-fashioned double-cross. The French cop in charge of the investigation is, in fact, the drug lord's connection in Paris, and he's just framed Liu for the murder by putting a few rounds into the dying crook's corpe using the Chinese cop's gun. Liu, of course, escapes, taking with him a cassette that contains THE TRUTH behind this gruesome murder. With the help of an American hooker (Bridget Fonda) -- who, incidentally, was supposed to help out with the drug lord's death -- Liu sets out to clear his name and take down those responsible for this high-level cover-up. Oh, and if he has time, Liu will rescue the whore's daughter, too. Touching, indeed.
There are far worse action movies than Kiss of the Dragon on the market, for sure. That said, there MUCH better Jet Li pictures currently hiding out at your local video store. Nahon does his best with the action, capturing several elaborate fight scenes with all the polish and finesse of a straight-to-video action director. This may sound like an attack on Nahon's ability as a director, but it's not, really, considering I enjoy more DTV genre efforts these days than those that find their way to the local multiplex. Why? Well, I think they appeal to the old-school action fan in me, where heroes could still wipe out an entire army of well-armed assassins despite the fact that they have fourteen bullet holes in their back. Kiss of the Dragon is THAT kind of action movie, where the hero will prevail and the bad guy will die an elaborate death unlike anything you've seen before. In fact, if an action film's big cheese doesn't buy the farm in a unique and original way, I often feel completely ripped off. Kiss of the Dragon has a bloody good climax, though I would have enjoyed a more traditional approach to big cheese extermination. But that's just me.
Performances are decent across the board. Jet Li is his usual stoic self, delivering plenty of kicks but little emotion. Bridget Fonda is the standard-issue Hooker With A Heart Of Gold, a wayward soul who is turning tricks on the street of Paris because the proverbial BAD GUY has her daughter locked away in a orphanage somewhere. But how did she get to Paris? How did her daughter get spirited away? What events led up to this depressing scenario? Unfortunately, these questions are left completely unanswered, though I seriously doubt you'll miss them. Anyway, the 2001 award for Outstanding Scenery Chewing in a Martial Arts Motion Picture goes to the uber-cranky Tcheky Karyo, whose nuanced *cough* performance is one all future actors should study if they are up for a role that involves extensive overacting. Everyone does a fine job, I suppose, considering Kiss of the Dragon isn't a movie that requires deep characterization and moving portrayals.
The action is decent, but it's not that great, either. The good stuff doesn't show up until the final act, making for some rather ho-hum confrontations between the opening credits and Liu's raid on a Parisian police station. This, I think, is due to Nahon's wonky direction. Take, for instance, the fight inside Uncle Tai's shrimp shop. When the buff black dude comes strutting through the front door, ultimately forcing Li to lay the smack down, the action feels choppy, as if it were pieced together from a dozen different takes. It's not fluid. This distracting element can also be found in a number of other scenes, including a scene where Jessica (Fonda) is being slapped around by her pimp (Max Ryan). Fluidity in a martial arts film is ESSENTIAL; you can't skimp on that. If the fight looks choppy, blocky, and cut all to hell, it's going to ruin its impact. For a fine example of this, compare and contrast the American version of Jackie Chan's 1985 disaster The Protector and the Hong Kong version, which Chan re-shot and re-edited. BIG difference.
B13 (13th District) fans should keep an eye out for Cyril Raffaelli, who plays one of the blonde twins that work for Karyo. It's also worth mentioning that he's involved in one of the film's most intriguing action sequences.
Kiss of the Dragon is a fine action movie. Seriously. It's good stuff. But it's definitely NOT a very good Jet Li movie. The fights are short and weak, the editing is sub-par, and it doesn't flow very well. Still, it's MUCH better than the drivel that passes for American action films these days, so definitely give it a shot. Of course, if your video store stocks either Fist of Legend, Danny the Dog, or Hero, you should probably investigate those titles first. And if you have access to Ronny Yu's 2006 epic Fearless, DEFINITELY check that out. Kiss of the Dragon should be on your list of Jet Li movies to see, but it shouldn't be towards the top. Somewhere in the middle, maybe, but NOT at the top. Not surprisingly, Chris Nahon is now working with Wesley Snipes on a project called Chasing the Dragon, which should find its way to video store shelves in the near future. Welcome to the wonderful world of direct-to-video, Mr. Nahon.
I hope you enjoy your stay.
