Statham Good In First Starring Effort

Rating: 6/10 (28 November 2008)

Frank Martin is the transporter, a bad ass guy who transports criminals or their requests for a price. As long as the criminals play by his rules, Martin doesn't have a problem. This is readily apparent in the opening scene when Martin argues with four criminals who pile into his BMW, claiming they only said there would be three passengers. Martin doesn't budge until they acquiesce, which means offing one of themselves. Jason Statham inhabits the role of the transporter perfectly, but a promising film for the first fifteen minutes gets bogged down with a script that disappoints the audience. On his second job, Martin almost immediately breaks one of his own rules, and the film loses some steam as the character commits some blunders the audience doesn't expect of a bad ass guy. The film becomes more formulaic during the scenes when the female lead (Qi Shu) has screen time. Martin gets mixed up in human trafficking and of course the girl too. Technically, the film has multiple continuity errors which are more noticeable than in most films. Statham and the terrific action sequences make the film watchable, however over the top they are. The fight scenes are good, but the opening car chase is the highlight of the film. Luc Besson produced the film and co-wrote the screenplay which is inconsistent in tone, and action specialist Corey Yuen directed the film. **1/2 of 4 stars.