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The Transporter (2002)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:27
Fresh:12
Rotten:15
Average Rating:5/10
Consensus: The Transporter delivers the action at the expense of coherent storytelling.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for violent sequences and some sensuality
Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins
Genre: Action/Adventure
Theatrical Release:Oct 11, 2002 Wide
Box Office: $25,221,889
Synopsis:
Ex-Special Forces operator Frank Martin lives what seems to be a quiet life along the French Mediterranean, hiring himself out as a mercenary "transporter" who moves goods - human or otherwise -...
Ex-Special Forces operator Frank Martin lives what seems to be a quiet life along the French Mediterranean, hiring himself out as a mercenary "transporter" who moves goods - human or otherwise - from one place to another. No questions asked.
Carrying out mysterious and sometimes dangerous tasks in his tricked-out BMW, Frank adheres to a strict set of rules, which he never breaks. Rule One: Never change the deal. Rule Two: No names - Frank doesn't want to know whom he's working for, or what he's transporting. Rule Three: Never look in the package.
Frank's newest transport seems no different from the countless ones he's done in the past. He has been hired by an American known only as "Wall Street" (see Rule Two) to make a delivery, but when Frank stops along route, he notices his "package" is moving. Violating Rule Three, Frank looks inside the bag, finding its contents to be a beautiful, gagged woman.
Frank's steadfast adherence to his other two rules - which make up his basic code of survival - also quickly falls, hurtling him and his new companion on a road leading to shocking secrets, deadly complications, and the last thing Frank ever expected to come to believe: that rules are made to be broken. -- © 20th Century Fox
Starring: Jason Statham, Shu Qi, Matt Schulze, Francois Berleand
Starring: Jason Statham, Shu Qi, Matt Schulze, Francois Berleand, Richard Young, Doug Rand, Didier Saint Melin, Tonio Descanvelle
Director: Corey Yuen
Director: Corey Yuen
Screenwriter: Luc Besson, Robert Mark Kamen
Producer: Steven Chasman, Luc Besson
Composer: Stanley Clarke
Studio: 20th Century Fox
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Release:
Oct 14, 2008
Reviews for The Transporter
Kills 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.
The last 40-odd minutes are essentially one fight, pushed to the point of absurdity.
If you overlook the rock-stupid story line and one-dimensional characters, The Transporter will take you on the white-knuckle ride it promises.
It's also clear from the start that The Transporter is running purely on adrenaline, and once the initial high wears off, the film's shortcomings start to shine through.
Another big, dumb action movie in the vein of XXX, The Transporter is riddled with plot holes big enough for its titular hero to drive his sleek black BMW through.
This is a film where there isn't the slightest doubt about the dramatic outcome.
There's plenty to like here, especially for connoisseurs of the action genre.
Too much action brings the movie to a dead standstill. Why don't directors understand that? Why don't they know that wall-to-wall action makes a movie less interesting -- less like drama, more like a repetitive video game?
It's junk with a capital J. The sooner you realize that, the more quickly you can settle down to enjoying it.
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