Film Reviews

Kiss Of The Dragon

• Rating:
• Director: Chris Nahon.
• Starring: Jet Li, Bridget Fonda, Tcheky Karyo, Laurence Ashley, Burt Kwouk.
• Details: US / 96 mins / (18).

Foolish and ponderously action thriller in which Jet Li plays maverick Chinese cop (is there any other kind?) Liu Jian. Sent to Paris to help break up an international drug smuggling ring, he's soon framed for murder. With only his serious fighting skills and an American hooker (a miscast Bridget Fonda) to help him, our boy sets out to prove his innocence. His problems escalate as the real perpetrator of the crime; the dastardly Inspector Richard (a hideously bad Tcheky Karyo) begins to hunt him through the streets of Paris, using Fonda's daughter as blackmail. Less a bona fida motion picture than a collection of (albeit, well choreographed) fight sequences, Kiss of the Dragon is not recommended for those who like any sort of subtlety in their movies. Jet Li's fighting skills are impressive, but his acting is extraordinarily limited, while Fonda's role consists of little more than eye candy.

Review by Garreth Murphy