Kiss of the Dragon

Jet Li has had a very interesting movie career in my eyes. He was an awesome villain in the most recent Lethal Weapon film, but when it came time for him to helm his own American action film...it just plain sucked. "Romeo Must Die" didn't show the Jet Li of "Lethal Weapon 4 or "Black Mask". Instead, there was this pieced together edited version of Li that just left a bad taste in the mouths of any human that was looking forward to true Martial Arts. Well, Li said he listened to the American audiences to see what they didn't like about his film...and he said he would get rid of the snip snip editing that took place. Well folks, he certainly did listen...and Jet Li finally has a film that shows off his true ability.

In "Kiss of the Dragon" Jet Li plays Liu Jiuan, a top government agent from China, who is sent to Paris to carry out a top-secret mission. Liu is in Paris to assist Richard (Tcheky Karyo), a police official with a small army in his back pocket. Unfortunately for Liu, the man he had come to assist betrays him. So Liu becomes trapped in a conspiracy, accused of murder in a place that he doesn't know. With nowhere to turn, Liu runs into an American woman named Jessica (Bridget Fonda) who is tied in with the devious Richard in more than one way. The two must find away out of their predicament, before Richard finds away to end both of their lives.

First, let me start off with the reason people see these types of films in the first place. Martial Arts. This movie delivers TEN FOLD. There are about 5 lengthy fight scenes that don't use any special wires, or effects, or camera editing to show the bout. The fighting is straightforward, and is a big sigh of relief from the MTV style of Romeo Must Die. In "Kiss of the Dragon" the action is fast paced and often, not leaving a lot of time for boredom. The scenes also don't suffer from extreme shortness, and you won't feel like you've been violated after seeing them. This is the Jet Li that I knew existed.

Of course, most Martial Arts films tend to have a story line about as in depth as the Presidents intelligence. "Kiss of the Dragon" changes that stereotype, as the storyline is very deep and believable. I'm very pleased to see an action film that blends the story and the action perfectly, so that not one seems for represented than the other. Of course, what made the plot even more perfect is the movie's villain. The bad guy, Richard, is a total bastard...and for those of you who root for the villain..you definitely have something to cheer for. In fact, this villain has to be of the best bad guys I've seen on film in a few years. The entire time while watching the film, I kept thinking..."This guy is such an asshole....I like him...a lot!"

This film is nearly perfect, but two slight thing hinders me from giving it a perfect rating. One is the fact that humor is basically non-existent in this film. For more martial arts films, humor rarely factors in (save for any Jackie Chan film). There are laughs that come in during the fight scenes, with the way and stuff Li uses to ward off people. But as far as characters or lines for comedy...its a little dry. Not a bad thing for me, but most American audiences are breast fed on comic relief in films. The other thing that's a little bothersome is Bridget Fonda's character. She does a fine job of portraying the misguided Jessica, but at times she becomes a little whiny...and death to her doesn't necessarily seem like a bad thing. Its not big, because she only has one real scene where this occurs..but its noticeable.

"Kiss of the Dragon" has just jumped leaps and bounds over the rest of the action films this year. "Tomb Raider" & "Fast and the Furious" were good films, but KoD takes this summer's action genre to the next level. Action, an intricate plot, and a villain to die for make this bad boy a must see film. Get to the theatre NOW!!

Rating: 3/4 out of four.

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