LOUIS LETERRIER

Bil’s rating (out of 5): BB.  

Alternate title:  Danny The Dog

France/USA/United Kingdom, 2005.  EuropaCorp, Danny the Dog Prods Ltd., TF1 Films Production, Qian Yian International, Current Entertainment, Clubdeal, Canal+.  Screenplay by Luc Besson.  Cinematography by Pierre Morel.  Produced by Luc Besson, Steven Chasman, Jet Li.  Music by Neil Davidge, Massive Attack.  Production Design by Jacques Bufnoir.  Costume Design by Olivier Beriot.  Film Editing by Nicolas Trembasiewicz.  

Gang boss Bob Hoskins has raised Jet Li from a young boy to think of himself more or less as a pet dog. His emotional needs are never attended to and he has never been treated with any human feeling, his only developed skill an impressive ability to lay waste to the opponents upon whom he is set. His training has even gone so far as to keep him under control while wearing a dog collar that, when removed, signals permission to open up a can of whoop-ass on his owner’s foes. After Hoskins goes into a coma thanks to a car accident arranged by a rival, Li is given the opportunity to explore more of himself; a blind piano tuner (Morgan Freeman) whom he has recently met has intrigued him and opened up the possibility of becoming more human. This hyperkinetic action movie, one of the many from the Luc Besson film factory, is hyper-annoying from the get-go and will only really appeal to fans of the genre. Li is in magnificent form as always, but his face is blank most of the time and holds no tension, while Hoskins performs well but is filling out a role that, by this point, we know he can do in his sleep.