Jakethemuss
I stumbled upon this film about 7 or so years ago in the video store, and on a whim picked it out. I must admit to being fairly entertained with what I saw. The fight scenes are gloriously over the top and well choreographed, so much so I think I was laughing at several points during the film.The plot is about as complex as a glass of water, but forget that for now, this is a film you watch for the action, for the cheesy comedy factor, for the hyper-kinetic, lighting quick scenes of martial arts mayhem. The fight scenes come frequent enough and do not disappoint. There are killer ninja robots, gun wielding assassins who burst through windows on stunt bikes, and a large supply of hapless henchmen who couldn't shoot a barn door at 3 paces.Marc Dacascos shows of his talents in the lead role as Toby Wang, the hero and scene stealer of the film, Kadeem Hardison is on hand as Malik, the out of luck barfly who gets caught up in the ordeal, then there is Brittany Murphy in one pre-famous roles as a the ditsy daughter of a Motel owning couple.
wafsj
I was sceptical at first because straight to video martial arts films tend to scream 'rubbish' from the front cover all the way to the final credits. But this film is certainly different. The story is beautifully basic and uncomplicated, yet never seems too simplistic or rehashed. A biomechanically augmented ex-assassin and wise cracking bar-fly hardly seem the most likely pair yet this film manages to pull it off as it follows them running from bounty hunters, police and various explosions alike. The star of the film is certainly Dacascos who demonstrates such physical ability on a par with the likes of Jet Li and Ong Bak's star Tony Jaa. Due to the low budget - which adds to rather than detracts from the style of the film - there's no CGI and wire work is clearly minimal. Kinetic, frenetic and beautiful are certainly words that describe the fight sequences in this film. Dacascos fits the part of an enhanced fighter with a speed reminiscent of Bruce Lee, and the varied and stylised arenas complement the action no end. I cant believe Hollywood didn't target Dacascos for the biggest projects, save Cradle II the Grave. Kareem Hardison is hilarious at times but also sometimes a distraction from Dacascos but his improvisations and ability to carry the story between the action cannot be overlooked. This film has everything you could want from a martial arts flick and smacks of Chinese influence despite being an Amercian project. The main reason this film is probably unheard of is that it was released at the same time as Rush Hour which was a big budget version of this film, in the sense it is an action comedy with African American/Chinese protagonists. I strongly recommend this film to anyone who has seen Dacascos before as this is surly his finest film, and also to anyone that is intrigued by an American martial arts film that can hold its own against its Chinese counterpart.
bth2004
This is one of Dacascos' best films (unspeakable shame that most of his stuff is straight-to-video). First let's dispense with the downside. The main shame of this is that the effects are pretty cheesy and some of the scenes are absurd: primarily the Britney Murphey cheering section of the film (her involvement at all is nothing to brag about) and the singing portions in the bar at the end.Now the upside: this is some of the best action that Dacascos has ever done. His fight sequences are phenomenal (except that he can't shoot a gun worth crap, but then he doesn't really need to); the fight with the cronies at the hotel and the advanced model at the end are spectacular. Kadeem Hardison is a pretty good sidekick. Even the acting in much of the film is nothing to complain about (except again for Britney Murphey playing her moron character with a crush on Kadeem).Don't approach this movie with much intellect. Just go with a desire to see some incredible martial arts action and a couple of good explosions and you will enjoy yourself.
doc-mandel
I thought that this movie was excellent, I watched it after a recommendation from a friend.After a slow first ten minutes when we get introduced to the main characters Toby Wong (an excellent Mark Dacascos)and Malik Brody (equally as good Kadeem Hardison) the action gets under way and doesn't stop until the closing credits.The jokes come quick and fast throughout and the film only gets better with the introduction of the fantastic but pretty unstable motel worker Deliverance Bodine (Brittany Murphy).Overall I give it 8/10
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