KISS OF THE DRAGON
Released: July 6, 2001
Jet Li stars and co-produces this martial arts action thrill ride set in Paris and co-written by Luc "Le Femme Nikita" Besson. Much of Besson's familiar trademarks exist in ample supply throughout this flick despite an overall silly, forgettable plot that serves just enough framework for the fight scenes to happen. Li carries "Kiss Of The Dragon" but is aided with Bridget Fonda in her first role that managed to get noticed on the Hollywood radar in two years when she played opposite her "Singles" co-star Bill Pullman in "Lake Placid". It's like as if Fonda wanted to make good after starring in "Point Of No Return", the lightweight American remake of Besson's "Le Femme Nikita"... Tchéky Karyo, a fine French actor who you may recall from "The Patriot" and Luc Besson's "Joan Of Arc" interpretation, also stars as the undeniably evil bad guy who'll stop at nothing to avoid getting busted by Li's character, a Chinese intelligence officer who goes to Paris on assignment becomes embroiled in a deadly conspiracy. Detailed plot summary is moot for a movie like this. By the end we have no real idea what the hell was going on but at least the fight scenes were great, creative and not computer generated like in "Romeo Must Die". This is an R rated movie and deserves this stamp without question. The blood and guts factor is high and even if much of the violence was cartoon like, some of the bad guys die pretty horrible deaths, including being severed in half and bleeding profusely out of body openings. In other words, it's a perfect date movie for geeks who can't get dates.
108 Minutes
20th Century Fox