Rating: 5/10
Review date: April 20, 2003
Bulletproof Monk is a comic book adaptation which storyline is as clich�d and as lame as it could be so let�s get on with the review. Long time ago, there is a sacred scroll kept in a Buddhist temple somewhere in Tibet which holds great power that can either benefit or destroy the world. A monk will be chosen every 60 years to protect this scroll from anyone until his time is up where he has to find a successor to resume the task for another 60 years�
I find it a bit hard to review this movie initially since I find that it is just a mediocre action movie with a slight tough of humor here and there which makes this movie not memorable at all. I have to constantly remind myself that since it is adapted from a comic book, I have to give some leeway to the lame storyline and execution which includes stunts that require the actors to propel themselves in the fighting scenes using wires.
Of course there is nothing wrong with this (even though most contemporary movies are using more advanced methods) but I just find that the actions are not as exciting and aesthetically beautiful as it should have been.
I am also sick of the stereotypical bad guy who wants to rule the world (add to that the fact that he is still around 60 years later which doesn�t really make much sense) and the clich�d �come-back-after-death� scene where you thought the villain was dead but then he somehow managed to survive and try to fire one last bullet from his gun� Yawn�
However, that is not to say that this movie doesn�t have any positive side. For example, I find that this is the best Hollywood-produced movie featuring Chow Yun-Fat (the other two being The Replacement Killers and The Corruptor) since his English seems to have improved substantially.
Sean William Scott as Kar made a good performance, pouting one-liners now and then, resulting in most of the chuckles found in the movie. Jaime King also puts up a pretty good performance (mainly because of her cute look) and a few kicks here and there to add more spice to the action so to say.
Overall I wouldn�t recommend Bulletproof Monk to anyone unless you are: a) a diehard Chow Yun-Fat fan or b) someone who is just looking for something to spend 2 hours with. But even if you are the latter category, I would suggest you to rent it on video instead since the movie really doesn�t offer anything interesting or worth seeing in that matter.
To sum it up, the movie does offer some average action scenes with a few cheap laughs but it�s nothing much to look forward to when you consider all the shortcomings that comes with it. But then, maybe I shouldn�t take it too seriously after because it is adapted from a comic book (yeah, yeah, how many times do I have to remind myself of that?).
Memorable quote: �I wasn�t born a monk, nobody is.�
-Chow Yun-Fat as the Monk-
(c) 2003 Martin Taidy