Film Reviews

Transporter

• Rating:
• Director:
• Starring: Didier Saint Melin
• Details: Fra / 92 minutes / (18).

Jason Statham plays ex-special forces operative Frank Martin, who now earns a crust as a highly paid mercenary, transporting goods with no questions asked. His latest job sees him moving the contents of a car, but after he breaks his own rules and checks the package, he's shocked to discover a beautiful girl (Shu Qi) gagged and tied up in the boot. Within the space of a few frames, Martin has fallen in the love with the girl and decides to renege on the deal. Of course, his boss on this particular job, Wall Street (Matt Schulze) isn't overly pleased with this development and sets out to find him. But Martin is determined to get hold of him first.
Penned by Luc Besson (whose career has been on a disturbing slide since the heady days of La Femme Nikita, Leon and The Big Blue), The Transporter is fairly dire stuff. The narrative is little more than a collection of cliches and join the dot plotting, while the acting is atrocious, especially by the hideously limited Statham (a man who will never be confused with Robert De Niro, or even Keanu Reeves for that matter). The only thing that even comes close towards offering a saving grace are the gracefully executed action sequences. Even then, the directors' reliance on slow-mo techniques soon becomes repetitive. Give it a miss.

Review by Garreth Murphy