Unleashed Review

"UNLEASHED" reviews

Movie

UNLEASHED

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2005-10-25 21:09:37

Provider

Review

Unleashed sounds like the best Spinal Tap album never made. We can but dream! This is actually the latest film from Luc Besson's head (Leon, The Fifth Element) - he produces here - and it gets its title from the collar gangster Bob Hoskins removes from Jet Li's neck when he wants to set him on unforthcoming debtors. Besson is the writer here too, the director being Louis Leterrier (which, given the nature of the film, sounds made up, but isn't), and between them they gave this Glasgow-set film a madcap edge that possibly promises to be more fun than it really is.

Li is Danny, Bart's (Hoskins) pet attack 'dog', a disturbed man-animal who Hoskins keeps in a cage with only a teddy bear for company and who may ring of Mongo in Blazing Saddles to the more mischievous mind. Enter Sam (Morgan Freeman), who sets about taming the savage beast, taking him on boat rides, feeding him ice cream and teaching him how to play the piano. He also sparks Danny's investigation into his mother's death which, inevitably, leads back to Bart.

Freeman adds calm to the movie, a necessary device in a film full of freaks, but ultimately the film is about Danny, even if he sometimes goes an age without so much as speaking. Jet Li is, of course, hired for his fighting more than his acting skills, but Besson and Leterrier could do more to flesh his character beyond its comic strip bones. Unleashed is a decent idea, but not for the first time in Besson's career, there's rather less to it than meets the eye.

Movie

Unleashed

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2006-02-14 22:09:25

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

Jet Li is an action star. Just because the word ''act'' is contained therein, it doesn't necessarily mean he'll excel on that front. Having said that, however, his latest actioner Unleashed, isn't exactly a disappointment.

Story

Danny (Li) has lived his life with his ''Uncle'' Bart (Bob Hoskins), a fiery gangster who has trained Danny to be an enforcer and do his dirty work for him. In truth, Bart has basically treated Danny like an animal--a dog, to be exact, collar and all--not a person. As soon as Danny's job of savagely beating those who had ''wronged'' his uncle is complete, he goes back to his dark, dank quarters. One day, upon finding a benevolent blind man Sam (Morgan Freeman) playing a piano, Danny discovers that he's more than merely a dog. Sam takes Danny into his home and teaches him about the piano and human relationships, with the help of his step-daughter (Kerry Condon). All seems to be going well, but the collar wrapped around Danny's neck is a link to his former violent life--and, of course, Bart. Heading down that path of redemption, Danny winds up reluctantly going back to his uncle, albeit in a different frame of mind. The tension builds as a massive showdown between Danny and Bart becomes imminent. It is only after his collar is taken off that Danny is unleashed.

Acting

It's usually not Jet Li's job to exude acting chops, just execute the karate kind. But while the main thrust of Unleashed is the highly choreographed and entertaining fight sequences that show off his unbelievable skills, the actor still tries his hand at keeping it real. Thankfully, Unleashed is a decided improvement over most of Li's other nonsensical American movies (Cradle 2 the Grave anyone?), and is tailor-made for his broken English and acting range. Freeman, on the other hand, lends such an air of authenticity and workmanship to Unleashed that one wonders how the they were able to reel in the venerable actor, hot off his Oscar-winning performance in Million Dollar Baby. He is simply perfect as the soft-spoken, mild-mannered Sam. Then there is Hoskins. The robust British actor has had his fair share of Freeman-like success and has rightfully earned that same class of respect. But lately he seems to be taking any roles he can get, no matter the size (see Son of the Mask. On second thought, don't). It's clear playing Bart is a no-brainer for him, but he tends to go unnecessarily over the top.

Direction

Director Louis Leterrier shows a knack for the action, suggestive of a veteran filmmaker, even though he's only made two movies. His first film, 2002's The Transporter, was a relative hit and as far as straight action movies and directorial debuts go, it was a thing of beauty. The same can more or less be said for Unleashed. Simply put, if this movie fails on any front, it will not be due to a lack of blood, sweat and tears from Leterrier. He captures both the fight sequences and the occasional poignancy with stark eloquence, with every little detail in place. And the theatrics of it all--i.e. special effects, loud-as-hell sound effects--doesn't hurt either. The Japanese-revenge genre is executed to a tee, but he doesn't let it overstep its boundaries and turn the film into a cliché. It's not an easy thing to do, and many directors would be unable to solve that conundrum. The only disparity between this project and his last is that he has probably less to work with this time around, yet he has much more to lose. It's safe to say he does not crack under the pressure.

Bottom Line

With Jet Li attempting a wide emotional range, Unleashed will undoubtedly surprise some. But meddling with the martial arts star's proven, straightforward action formula may prove to be a costly flaw.