film: review

> THE ONE (2001)
A major setback in Jet Li's mission to gain star status in American cinema.

By John C. Lyons
Film Critic

Starring: Jet Li, Carla Gugino, Jason Stratham, Delroy Lindo

Directed by: James Wong

Written by: Glen Morgan and James Wong

Genre: Action/Sci-Fi

Our Rating: 3 out of 10

The premise is a good one. There are hundreds of parallel universes that are in existence at the same time as ours. In each of these universes there exists another one of you and me. Maybe in this world you are married, in another you are not, in another you're gay, in another you…well, you get the idea. One man (one of the 130+ Jet Li's that are kicking around out there) gets the idea of killing off his other entities in these parallel worlds. As he does this (in order to keep balance among the universes) power, strength, etc is redistributed among the surviving Jet Li's. You get the idea? So basically what it comes down to is the evil Jet Li (Yulaw) and the good Jet Li (Gabriel) are the only two left, so they are damn strong and damn fast. You see where this is all going: Jet Li vs. Jet Li. It sounds good on paper doesn't it? Sadly enough, this is where the good ideas apparently ended.

There are so many things wrong with this movie. It runs only about 80 minutes and, at around the 20 minute point, I felt bored in the theater. This is not a good thing for an action movie starring a martial arts expert. The action scenes feel entirely awkward and fake, and they look pretty horrible too! The One plays out like a bad video game. There is no fluency to the action on screen. Every action scene feels very much created in a computer. Is Jet Li really there? Did they even need him? The interaction between characters in these scenes is just laughable. The Matrix is looking to turn three years old here very soon and it still kicks the shit out of any special effect you will see in this movie! After about 40 minutes into the film I just wanted to see Jet Li fight against himself. Oh, and if you are worried about being able to tell the two Li's apart, just have you and your friend move your game controllers to opposite ends of the television screen and, oh wait, never mind. Don't worry, in a moment which almost made me laugh out loud, one of them pulls the top part of his overalls down before they start fighting, which serves absolutely no purpose but to let you know who is who. At least Jet Li used two different fighting styles for the characters. The one on one fight, again is a big letdown and horribly done. And don't even get me started about the acting and the dialogue…arrrrrgh!

I wouldn't call myself a historian on Jet Li films. I have seen all four (The One, Kiss of the Dragon, Romeo Must Die, and Lethal Weapon 4) of his American films now, and that is all. I have been told that you haven't truly seen a Jet Li film until you see his overseas classics like Fist of Legend and Once Upon a Time in China. I can say, however, that this guy has the potential to be a star here in America. His last film (Kiss of the Dragon) I thought was great, and I had high hopes for Li in this follow-up, however, none of then panned out here, and it will be very interesting (and crucial) to see what project he decides on next. Will he be the next Jackie Chan or the next Van Damme? Speaking of The Matrix, Jet Li turned down a supporting role in the two upcoming movies. After seeing The One, I believe now even more that this decision was a mistake. My advice to Jet Li: do some solid supporting roles and then you will have the pull in the industry to get a good director and some decent supporting actors for your big starring vehicles. My advice to you: rent one of his other films. The video game will probably be much more enjoyable.

I saw this film at the Tinseltown theaters on upper Peach Street in Erie.

PROs: Kicking and punching and using motorcycles as hammers

CONs: Cast, crew, special effects, script, editing, production…

(01-1113)

related links:

The One - official site