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Note: Originally written by me for my website - ShaunMunro.co.uk - thanks :0)
~~~
The term “MTV-style” has by now become a well-worn cliché, although Transporter 3 may be an instance whereby the term’s application is best-suited. Whilst such a quick-fire editing style may befit many a hyper-kinetic action film, it is much to the foil of the latest Transporter installment (and many a member of the action crowd), in which helmer Oliver Megaton fatally misuses his cutting tools.
Transporter 3 does well to open with a flashy car chase, yet Megaton insists on intercutting between this and series protagonist Frank Martin (Jason Statham), whilst he sits in a boat, simply fishing. It is as though each time the action crowd will be leaning toward the edge of their seat, a misplaced cut is inserted, upsetting the flow of the action, making for a film that is wholly devoid of the lengthy and bombastic set pieces one would expect in a film such as this.
Each Transporter film has become less credible than the one that has preceded it, and in this instance, the after-the-fact (yet curiously overstuffed) plot is very nearly outdone by a Looney Tunes cartoon. Needless to say, a car comes crashing through Martin’s house, with his dying friend inside, eventually luring Statham back into his old ways, complete with an effortlessly attained femme sidekick named Valentina (Natalya Rudakova).
Despite its rough and fairly clueless opening, Transporter 3 does settle into fairly comfortable throwback territory by the end of the first act. Whilst it is in many ways a recount of John Carpenter’s Escape from… films, at least Transporter 3 is not an entirely routine sequel. Screenwriter Luc Besson (of Leon fame) throws a gimmick in the works – that Martin and Valentina are fitted with wrist bracelets which explode if they move more than 75 meters away from their car. Even if this gimmick has been better done elsewhere (Battle Royale, anyone?), Besson certainly manages to distinguish this sequel from its predecessors.
Unfortunately, for a film that should always emphasise just how much fun it is, Transporter 3 is an immensely padded film, replete with staid scenes of pseudo-character development, and a number of redundant instances of plot exposition. There are several painful scenes of considerable length whereby Frank and Valentina discuss their favourite foods (among other things), and rather than inject some much-needed charm into the film, they will likely simply leave you sighing, awaiting the next morsel of testosterone-fuelled action.
It is very much a shame that such interludes (as inaccurate as that term may be here) overpower Transporter 3, as the brief action scenes interspersed throughout (principally when Frank chases a car on a BMX bike), are agreeably frenetic, loud, and well-staged, particularly when Megaton calms down with the intercutting. Unfortunately, for all of the fifteen minutes of sparsely-spaced action in this film, one of the key set pieces – a 200mph car chase – appears to have simply been sped up, appearing amateur, and rather goofy. Fortunately, this irksome effect does not last too long, although once we return to something resembling solid action direction, you’ll likely be distracted by the incessant squabbling between Frank and Valentina.
Transporter 3 is packed with plenty of doom and gloom, and never really seems to fully embrace its own absurdity and sense of silliness until the final act, in which Frank, I jest not, manages to make a car float on water. Nevertheless, at its close, one must applaud this film for only rendering a few wholly recognisable CGI shots – it is just a shame that the action is not more voluminous and densely-packed.
Ultimately, the third entry into the Transporter series should be the last – this effort offers little in way of frantic inventiveness, and simply isn’t much fun either. Bogged down in a plot you’ll care not a second for, with so-so performances (other than a fairly reliable stone-face from Statham) and a poor script, Transporter 3 presents occasional visceral thrills, yet suffocates them with an obtrusive and unnecessarily lengthy narrative given the film’s overblown origins.
5/10
~~~
The term “MTV-style” has by now become a well-worn cliché, although Transporter 3 may be an instance whereby the term’s application is best-suited. Whilst such a quick-fire editing style may befit many a hyper-kinetic action film, it is much to the foil of the latest Transporter installment (and many a member of the action crowd), in which helmer Oliver Megaton fatally misuses his cutting tools.
Transporter 3 does well to open with a flashy car chase, yet Megaton insists on intercutting between this and series protagonist Frank Martin (Jason Statham), whilst he sits in a boat, simply fishing. It is as though each time the action crowd will be leaning toward the edge of their seat, a misplaced cut is inserted, upsetting the flow of the action, making for a film that is wholly devoid of the lengthy and bombastic set pieces one would expect in a film such as this.
Each Transporter film has become less credible than the one that has preceded it, and in this instance, the after-the-fact (yet curiously overstuffed) plot is very nearly outdone by a Looney Tunes cartoon. Needless to say, a car comes crashing through Martin’s house, with his dying friend inside, eventually luring Statham back into his old ways, complete with an effortlessly attained femme sidekick named Valentina (Natalya Rudakova).
Despite its rough and fairly clueless opening, Transporter 3 does settle into fairly comfortable throwback territory by the end of the first act. Whilst it is in many ways a recount of John Carpenter’s Escape from… films, at least Transporter 3 is not an entirely routine sequel. Screenwriter Luc Besson (of Leon fame) throws a gimmick in the works – that Martin and Valentina are fitted with wrist bracelets which explode if they move more than 75 meters away from their car. Even if this gimmick has been better done elsewhere (Battle Royale, anyone?), Besson certainly manages to distinguish this sequel from its predecessors.
Unfortunately, for a film that should always emphasise just how much fun it is, Transporter 3 is an immensely padded film, replete with staid scenes of pseudo-character development, and a number of redundant instances of plot exposition. There are several painful scenes of considerable length whereby Frank and Valentina discuss their favourite foods (among other things), and rather than inject some much-needed charm into the film, they will likely simply leave you sighing, awaiting the next morsel of testosterone-fuelled action.
It is very much a shame that such interludes (as inaccurate as that term may be here) overpower Transporter 3, as the brief action scenes interspersed throughout (principally when Frank chases a car on a BMX bike), are agreeably frenetic, loud, and well-staged, particularly when Megaton calms down with the intercutting. Unfortunately, for all of the fifteen minutes of sparsely-spaced action in this film, one of the key set pieces – a 200mph car chase – appears to have simply been sped up, appearing amateur, and rather goofy. Fortunately, this irksome effect does not last too long, although once we return to something resembling solid action direction, you’ll likely be distracted by the incessant squabbling between Frank and Valentina.
Transporter 3 is packed with plenty of doom and gloom, and never really seems to fully embrace its own absurdity and sense of silliness until the final act, in which Frank, I jest not, manages to make a car float on water. Nevertheless, at its close, one must applaud this film for only rendering a few wholly recognisable CGI shots – it is just a shame that the action is not more voluminous and densely-packed.
Ultimately, the third entry into the Transporter series should be the last – this effort offers little in way of frantic inventiveness, and simply isn’t much fun either. Bogged down in a plot you’ll care not a second for, with so-so performances (other than a fairly reliable stone-face from Statham) and a poor script, Transporter 3 presents occasional visceral thrills, yet suffocates them with an obtrusive and unnecessarily lengthy narrative given the film’s overblown origins.
5/10
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Note: Originally written by me for my website - ShaunMunro.co.uk - thanks :0)
~~~
The term “MTV-style” has by now become a well-worn cliché, although Transporter 3 may be an instance whereby the term’s application is best-suited. Whilst such a quick-fire editing style may befit many a hyper-kinetic action film, it is much to the foil of the latest Transporter installment (and many a member of the action crowd), in which helmer Oliver Megaton fatally misuses his cutting tools.
Transporter 3 does well to open with a flashy car chase, yet Megaton insists on intercutting between this and series protagonist Frank Martin (Jason Statham), whilst he sits in a boat, simply fishing. It is as though each time the action crowd will be leaning toward the edge of their seat, a misplaced cut is inserted, upsetting the flow of the action, making for a film that is wholly devoid of the lengthy and bombastic set pieces one would expect in a film such as this.
Each Transporter film has become less credible than the one that has preceded it, and in this instance, the after-the-fact (yet curiously overstuffed) plot is very nearly outdone by a Looney Tunes cartoon. Needless to say, a car comes crashing through Martin’s house, with his dying friend inside, eventually luring Statham back into his old ways, complete with an effortlessly attained femme sidekick named Valentina (Natalya Rudakova).
Despite its rough and fairly clueless opening, Transporter 3 does settle into fairly comfortable throwback territory by the end of the first act. Whilst it is in many ways a recount of John Carpenter’s Escape from… films, at least Transporter 3 is not an entirely routine sequel. Screenwriter Luc Besson (of Leon fame) throws a gimmick in the works – that Martin and Valentina are fitted with wrist bracelets which explode if they move more than 75 meters away from their car. Even if this gimmick has been better done elsewhere (Battle Royale, anyone?), Besson certainly manages to distinguish this sequel from its predecessors.
Unfortunately, for a film that should always emphasise just how much fun it is, Transporter 3 is an immensely padded film, replete with staid scenes of pseudo-character development, and a number of redundant instances of plot exposition. There are several painful scenes of considerable length whereby Frank and Valentina discuss their favourite foods (among other things), and rather than inject some much-needed charm into the film, they will likely simply leave you sighing, awaiting the next morsel of testosterone-fuelled action.
It is very much a shame that such interludes (as inaccurate as that term may be here) overpower Transporter 3, as the brief action scenes interspersed throughout (principally when Frank chases a car on a BMX bike), are agreeably frenetic, loud, and well-staged, particularly when Megaton calms down with the intercutting. Unfortunately, for all of the fifteen minutes of sparsely-spaced action in this film, one of the key set pieces – a 200mph car chase – appears to have simply been sped up, appearing amateur, and rather goofy. Fortunately, this irksome effect does not last too long, although once we return to something resembling solid action direction, you’ll likely be distracted by the incessant squabbling between Frank and Valentina.
Transporter 3 is packed with plenty of doom and gloom, and never really seems to fully embrace its own absurdity and sense of silliness until the final act, in which Frank, I jest not, manages to make a car float on water. Nevertheless, at its close, one must applaud this film for only rendering a few wholly recognisable CGI shots – it is just a shame that the action is not more voluminous and densely-packed.
Ultimately, the third entry into the Transporter series should be the last – this effort offers little in way of frantic inventiveness, and simply isn’t much fun either. Bogged down in a plot you’ll care not a second for, with so-so performances (other than a fairly reliable stone-face from Statham) and a poor script, Transporter 3 presents occasional visceral thrills, yet suffocates them with an obtrusive and unnecessarily lengthy narrative given the film’s overblown origins.
5/10
~~~
The term “MTV-style” has by now become a well-worn cliché, although Transporter 3 may be an instance whereby the term’s application is best-suited. Whilst such a quick-fire editing style may befit many a hyper-kinetic action film, it is much to the foil of the latest Transporter installment (and many a member of the action crowd), in which helmer Oliver Megaton fatally misuses his cutting tools.
Transporter 3 does well to open with a flashy car chase, yet Megaton insists on intercutting between this and series protagonist Frank Martin (Jason Statham), whilst he sits in a boat, simply fishing. It is as though each time the action crowd will be leaning toward the edge of their seat, a misplaced cut is inserted, upsetting the flow of the action, making for a film that is wholly devoid of the lengthy and bombastic set pieces one would expect in a film such as this.
Each Transporter film has become less credible than the one that has preceded it, and in this instance, the after-the-fact (yet curiously overstuffed) plot is very nearly outdone by a Looney Tunes cartoon. Needless to say, a car comes crashing through Martin’s house, with his dying friend inside, eventually luring Statham back into his old ways, complete with an effortlessly attained femme sidekick named Valentina (Natalya Rudakova).
Despite its rough and fairly clueless opening, Transporter 3 does settle into fairly comfortable throwback territory by the end of the first act. Whilst it is in many ways a recount of John Carpenter’s Escape from… films, at least Transporter 3 is not an entirely routine sequel. Screenwriter Luc Besson (of Leon fame) throws a gimmick in the works – that Martin and Valentina are fitted with wrist bracelets which explode if they move more than 75 meters away from their car. Even if this gimmick has been better done elsewhere (Battle Royale, anyone?), Besson certainly manages to distinguish this sequel from its predecessors.
Unfortunately, for a film that should always emphasise just how much fun it is, Transporter 3 is an immensely padded film, replete with staid scenes of pseudo-character development, and a number of redundant instances of plot exposition. There are several painful scenes of considerable length whereby Frank and Valentina discuss their favourite foods (among other things), and rather than inject some much-needed charm into the film, they will likely simply leave you sighing, awaiting the next morsel of testosterone-fuelled action.
It is very much a shame that such interludes (as inaccurate as that term may be here) overpower Transporter 3, as the brief action scenes interspersed throughout (principally when Frank chases a car on a BMX bike), are agreeably frenetic, loud, and well-staged, particularly when Megaton calms down with the intercutting. Unfortunately, for all of the fifteen minutes of sparsely-spaced action in this film, one of the key set pieces – a 200mph car chase – appears to have simply been sped up, appearing amateur, and rather goofy. Fortunately, this irksome effect does not last too long, although once we return to something resembling solid action direction, you’ll likely be distracted by the incessant squabbling between Frank and Valentina.
Transporter 3 is packed with plenty of doom and gloom, and never really seems to fully embrace its own absurdity and sense of silliness until the final act, in which Frank, I jest not, manages to make a car float on water. Nevertheless, at its close, one must applaud this film for only rendering a few wholly recognisable CGI shots – it is just a shame that the action is not more voluminous and densely-packed.
Ultimately, the third entry into the Transporter series should be the last – this effort offers little in way of frantic inventiveness, and simply isn’t much fun either. Bogged down in a plot you’ll care not a second for, with so-so performances (other than a fairly reliable stone-face from Statham) and a poor script, Transporter 3 presents occasional visceral thrills, yet suffocates them with an obtrusive and unnecessarily lengthy narrative given the film’s overblown origins.
5/10