The Transporter (2002)
Average Rating: 5.6/10
Reviews Counted: 124
Fresh: 67 | Rotten: 57
The Transporter delivers the action at the expense of coherent storytelling.
Average Rating: 5/10
Critic Reviews: 31
Fresh: 13 | Rotten: 18
The Transporter delivers the action at the expense of coherent storytelling.
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Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 285,728
Movie Info
An outlaw finds his life becoming all the more dangerous when he turns against a gang of criminals in this action drama. Frank Martin (Jason Statham) is a former Special Forces officer who lives on the French Mediterranean and has a lucrative second career as a underworld courier for hire. Martin will deliver anything anywhere, but he has three iron-clad rules - once the plan is in motion it cannot be changed, neither he nor his customers are to ever use their real names, and under no
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Cast
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Jason Statham
Frank Martin -
Qi Shu
Lai -
François Berléand
Tarconi -
Matt Schulze
Wall Street -
Ric Young
Mr. Kwai -
Doug Rand
Leader -
Didier Saint Melin
Boss -
Tonio Descanvelle
Thug 1 -
Laurent Desponds
Thug 2 -
Matthieu Albertini
Thug 3 -
Vincent Tulli
Thug
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All Critics (127) | Top Critics (33) | Fresh (67) | Rotten (57) | DVD (37)
Jason Statham uses his smoldering charisma to great effect.
The acting might be shoddy, the plot nonsense and the dialogue clunky, but the fighting is exquisitely done. Inventive, athletic, fun, stylish and tight, it's everything the rest of the film isn't.
Top CriticKills time between car chases and martial-arts bouts with random scuba-diving footage apparently culled from producer-co-writer Luc Besson's The Big Blue.
The chases and explosions get a little (well, more than a little) ludicrous, but the cool premise is still very cool.
It's high rent Steven Segal -- fights, explosions, and more fights, but with a flair.
The story is virtually impossible to follow here, but there's a certain style and wit to the dialogue.
Pure popcorn pleasure for older teens and up.
I appreciated the first half and the great performance from Statham, but became disappointed by the second half...
Every bit the over-the-top action extravaganza it appears to be, and the glee of its knowing preposterousness makes it easy to overlook its general mindlessness.
Chases and choreographed fights set to rock music take up most of the running time and the movie is like To Catch a Thief remade by a hack follower of John Woo.
This gang mastermind, gym body Italian import psycho neck wringer Gianni (Alessandro Gassman, son of famed Vittorio), has concocted likely the most convoluted mass murder scheme ever to hit the theaters.
An entertaining surprise.
A ridiculous and confusing mess of overwritten dialogue, nonsensical plot contrivances and impossible, overlong action sequences.
Mais uma vez, Luc Besson (que aqui exerce as funções de produtor e roteirista) ignora a narrativa em prol da ação inconseqüente (e inócua, já que ninguém sequer sangra). O que aconteceu ao responsável pelo ótimo O Profissional?
A serviceable Euro-trash action extravaganza, with a decent sense of humor and plenty of things that go boom - handguns, BMWs and seaside chateaus.
Statham impresses in a movie that is simultaneously the best (the fight scenes) and worst (everything else) action movie of the year. Destined for drunken Friday night rental heaven.
A post-modern take on the "heroic bloodshed" genre that already had one foot in self-satire.
British actor Jason Statham injects The Transporter with a healthy dose of clout, charisma and kickboxing skill.
The action sequences here don't have the kinetic oomph required in such a mindless effort.
...plays like an extended trailer for a movie, a highlights reel, with all the boring stuff, like talk, left out.
While it certainly has more gunplay and kung-fu hijinks ... it is ultimately less entertaining, despite the likeable leads.
Like the longest BMW featurette Guy Ritchie never made, this action yarn is a slick, sexy little package with fast cars, big explosions, dazzling locations in the south of France, a trip-hop score, and about as much plot to fill a thimble.
This movie is as fun to sit through as a burning hemorrhoid.
Statham employs an accent that I think is supposed to be an attempt at hardass American but sometimes just lapses into unhidden British.
Audience Reviews for The Transporter
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Super Reviewer
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- Frank Martin: I am listening...
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Jason Statham is a bored and retired army guy, who get's thrills out of transporting criminals and illegal substances all around France, whilst avoiding the law by any means necessary to him. It's a pretty good set up and a great opportunity for action. The Transporter is produced by Luc Besson, who sometimes directs films but mostly chooses to produce either throwaway action B movies like this or forgettable French dramas. Most of which are considered to be mediocre, however The Transporter like all the other Besson action flicks is adequately written and filled with plot holes, what makes it special, is Statham's unbelievably energetic performance. There are absolutely loads of moments where Statham fist fights, strips, drives cars whilst kicking ass, and brawls whilst covered in motor oil. It sounds ridiculous, but it's what makes this movie so fun. It takes a great lead performance, slick action and charm to make a movie like this work, and The Transporter is one of the few Besson movies that has that. In my opinion "Taken" is the best where as Transporter 1 is infinitely inferior but it holds as a cheesy, ridiculous action flick. If like me you glanced at the poster expecting all the action stereotypes you'll get just that. It's enjoyable enough, but not Besson or in equal measure, Statham's, best.