Japanese Yakuza, Chinese Triads, the San Francisco Police Department and a freelance killer are slashing, punching and blasting away at each other in the new action flick Rogue Assassin. But even with so many bullets and fists flying, the biggest battle is staying awake.
Jason Statham is San Francisco-based FBI agent Jack Crawford. Jet Li is Rogue and he's an assassin. Jack's been after Rogue ever since Rogue killed his partner. And now Rogue's resurfaced in the middle of a Triad-Yakuza showdown that's all about – stay with me here, people – two priceless horse statues.
Cunningly Rogue is playing both sides off each other. Yes, there's a twist, but anyone with a room temperature IQ will guess it about 75 minutes before knuckleheaded Jack.
Jason Statham is an actor who plays the tough guy best when he mixes it up with humour, as he did in The Transporter movies and Crank. But this is po-faced stuff.
And I have to wonder what is the point of casting martial artist Jet Li in a role where he's mainly shooting people in cold blood, rather than facing them down chop-socky style? Really, it's like casting Jenna Jameson in Sophie's Choice. The skill sets don't match.
Philip G. Atwell directs Rogue Assassin as if in the grip of a grand mal seizure – when are these music video hacks ever going to learn that a gazillion quick cuts aren't going to distract us from the fact that we don't care about any of the characters on screen?
But the writers at least deliver some unintentional laughs with their Exposition 101 dialogue.
Hard-core action fans who've exhausted the $1 weekly section of the video store might want to get along but for me this film emphasises the ass in assassin.
Rogue Assassin blasts its way to a measly two stars and is in cinemas now.
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