Romeo  Must  Die

RRomeo must die? No, actually the screenwriters of this otherwise enjoyable action flick must die painful, excruciatingly painful deaths. Now, scripting has never been a concern of Hong Kong action films. Over there, the fight's the thing, everything else simply lacks importance, so it's left to the stars to rise above the paltry offerings the script offers them. Of course, in America, a fight scene is a good, entertaining, certainly compulsory thing but drama is required, a plot taken from A to Z and this is where a good majority of American action movies fall flat. In-between all the set-pieces, the audience more often than not, has to wade through cliché piled upon cliché, a depressing task, especially for those who have seen as many movies as I have. Outside of the moderately interesting Romeo and Juliet spin - which really is barely glanced upon - every step this movie takes is nauseatingly predictable, bringing back heinous memories of the endless amounts of repugnant crime/thriller b-movies I waded through in my youth. For the most part the dialogue is also on that level, especially in the first half, with some really idiotic attempts at smooth "homey" talk and outright machismo. The plot, for what it's worth centres on two crime syndicates, the black O'Day family, headed by the determined-to-go-straight Isaak (Delroy Lindo) and the Chinese Mafia. They live relatively peacefully side-by-side until someone murders the Chinese Crimelord, Ch’u Sing’s son, Po. His other son, Han (Jet Li) upon learning the news breaks out of prison and, with the help of O’Day’s daughter, Trish (pop singer Aaliyah) goes looking for his brother’s killer. Through the course of the movie, the two fall for each other, and so start and end the Shakespeare allusions. Two things elevate this movie from the one star I was on the verge of giving it: the awesomely energetic fight sequences and the two stars.  For the most part, Jet Li shows a terrific energy in the fight scenes, each one awesomely choreographed, but Joel Silver, still high off the success of a certain Keanu Reeves, matrix-shaped hit decided to up the ante, incorporating several CG/wire-fu scenes, each of which stand out awkwardly in this otherwise down-to-earth action thriller. Where the plot and dialogue certainly lacked imagination, the set-pieces show endless amounts of it with Li wiping out troupes of men in such ingenuous ways you can't help but get swept away by it all. Also, the neat borrow from Three Kings works well, that of showing the internal damage the mayhem causes within the characters' bodies. While Jet Li and Aaliyah work well enough apart, their characters only really come to (non-violent) life when together. Each comes fully alive, an instant chemistry evident between them. They shine in spite of the less-than-inspiring material, their rapport sparkling and hard to resist. In the supporting ranks, the usually reliable Delroy Lindo (Clockers, Get Shorty) gets swept away amongst the debris of the script, unable to do anything with a character still-born. His Clockers co-star, Isaiah Washington who showed so much potential in the otherwise mind-numbingly dull True Crime gets lumbered with a similarly thankless role as his right-hand man who you just know will end up corrupt and oh-so dead by the end. Russel Wong, as Ch’u Sing’s lieutenant fares better, having grown up considerably since 1986's China Girl, Abel Ferrara's own attempt at modernising the Romeo and Juliet concept, set between a more atypical Italian gangster family and the Chinese Mafia. Wong has an enjoyable presence and looks and talks like a Chinese Keanu Reeves (especially with the shades on). Romeo Must Die shows just how much of a disservice the pathetic, well-past-its-sell-by date Lethal Weapon 4 was to Jet Li. Burdened with a stereotypical triad tough man, he had little room to show his all-too-evident charisma, his fighting skills dulled considerably to make room for his older co-stars. Li's presence is similar to fellow Hong Kong star, Chow Yun-Fat, who excels in the other branch of action cinema their country has to offer, that of guns and gore. Watching Li in action, I can't help but wonder how he would fare in Yun-Fat's shoes guns a-blazing and all I can say is something would be sorely missing. At the end of the day, Jet Li has made a more-than-capable English-speaking debut; it was only a shame he couldn't have been more selective. Still, The Matrix sequels are on the horizon and the mere thought of Li in a real action movie makes me drool uncontrollably. I just hope that, outside of these sequels, Joel Silver puts The Matrix to rest once and for all.