Transport this Beauty Home Tonight!

Rating: 9/10 (16 April 2010)

Ah. The movie that introduced me to Jason Statham. Unfortunately, it took me a long time to get to this film.
I was very hesitant to see The Transporter, much as I was to watch my first Jackie Chan film (Supercop.) So it was years after release, and instantly I took to Statham's charm, acting, charisma and fighting ability. By the time I watched this, part 2 was already headed to theaters (which I did see on the big screen) and part 3 was planned.
But, I digress. This one involves an ex-super soldier who, well, "transports" items/people from one locale to another using basic and fundamental rules to make a living. And he's good at it, despite a noisy French officer. The transporter, Frank (Statham) gets inadvertently caught up in a human-smuggling ring and though he likes anonymity (obviously) he regains somewhat a heart and helps a victim and tries to stop the bad guys.
Really. If you cherish the Jackie Chan movies, you'll like this one. You know what I'm talking about. Barely a plot. Barely good acting. Less plot, more kick-butt. You'll then like this action vehicle.
I don't really like comparing Statham to Chan, as they are 100% different, but they do produce similar movies. While Chan has a certain charm for his fan base, Statham also has his own way of producing charisma for the audience. And he got me hooked.
Best scenes involve NO CGI or any special effects (something part two of this series should've taken note of but failed) and just having Statham driving or hand-to-hand combat. Just his character's depth and fighting technique is worth the time, money and effort into watching what would've actually been a run-of-the-mill average foreign action flick. Recommended!