Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever (Widescreen)

I will agree that the film's plot exists only to perpetutate the action, which consists of motorcycle chases, blazin' gun wars, and several great martial arts battles, which include the opening sequence, in which the Chinese "good" assasin Sever (Lucy Liu) "kidnaps" her ex-employer's son, a sequence during which Sever beats the bejesus out of Agent Jeremiah Ecks (Antonio Banderas), whose searching for information on his "deceased" wife, and the final fight, in which Sever takes on Ross, whose after a new "invention" she has hidden, and who is played by none other than the great Ray Park!

Notice how many quotation marks I used there? That could explain some of the film's unpopulartiy. By the halfway point, BALLISTIC:ECKS VS SEVER has had so many plot twists, it makes THE SIXTH SENSE's one big big plot twist look silly (well, okay, let's not go nuts here, but you get the idea.)

I am not an especially big fan of Antonio Banderas, but he comes across as a good male lead. It was really Lucy Liu that drew me to this film. Trust me, she is the only one of CHARLIE'S ANGELS who is a REAL martial artist, and she gets her chance to prove it this time around, with none of the over-the-top, pushing-the-envelope type of wire-fu (I'm looking at you, FULL THROTTLE)

Basically, BALLISTIC:ECKS VS SEVER is not half as bad as it is made out to be. Anyone looking for some good action should check it out, and you'll love to see Lucy Liu throwin' some real nice high kicks and just looking like a beautiful ANGEL. (If your'e still not impressed with Lucy, be sure to check out KILL BILL VOL. 1, when she gets to be the villianess.)

There's something of a plot here, but I'm not entirely sure what the hell was going on. Antonio Banderas plays FBI Agent Ecks, Lucy Liu is Agent Sever, and the two of them are duking it out because they somehow have crossed paths with a wealthy man (Gregg Henry) who is determined to smuggle a small electronic device that can assassinate its intended victim via heart attack. Mixed up in it all is Talisa Soto as Banderas' supposedly dead wife, only she's not really dead. Much mayhen ensues.

Ballistic is directed by Kaos, a Thai filmmaker who apparently wanted his movies to live up to his name. This is his first American feature and he shows almost no ability in crafting an action sequence. Martial arts fights that should get the adrenaline-pumping are so stiltedly choreographed, it'll inspire either laughs or yawns. Kaos also goes overboard on the slow motion, ensuring there's never an opportunity for the fight scenes to build momentum. And this is the only film I can think of where the people involved in a car chase actually follow the speed limit!

I feel a bit sorry for the cast here, particularly Lucy Liu, whose martial arts talents are squandered here. To date, she hasn't been much of an actress, but she looks and convincingly acts tough so such a role here must have seemed like a good idea. For Banderas, this is the third film where he has trouble with mysterious women. I've heard of typecasting, but never to such a ridiculous extent. The only thing keeping this guy's career afloat is Robert Rodriguez and that Spy Kids franchise.