Bulletproof Monk
Starring: Chow Yun-Fat, Seann William Scott, Jamie King
Directed by: Paul Hunter
Rated: PG-13 for violence, language and some sexual content.
Parental Notes: “Bulletproof Monk” is a fairly harmless action flick, with over-the-top fight sequences. Teens and preteens who don’t mind how cheesy it is will enjoy it.
Somehow bad action movies are appealing, in spite of their glaring deficiencies as films. Bad action movies have no real character development to speak of, although they may have ham-handed attempts to show characters learning a lesson or growing in some way. They have plot holes you could drive a truck through. their dialogue is generally campy or just plain bad, and hampers even the best actors. The sole redeeming quality of bad action movies is the action; their fight sequences are generally huge, complicated dances of often surprising grace. People enjoy these movies because they are escapist, and go to see them to watch archetypes hammer on each other. People see them for pure entertainment.
“Bulletproof Monk” is most assuredly a bad action movie.
Its plot, such as it is, concerns a Nameless Monk (Chow Yun-Fat), who has been guarding a magical scroll, trying to keep it from falling into the hands of a Nazi who wants to rule the world. The Monk meets a young pickpocket, Kar (Seann William Scott), and sees several things which make him suspect Kar may be the next in line to protect the scroll. Naturally, there is a young woman involved, a streetwise beauty named Jade (Jamie – formerly “James” – King).
The dialogue is often painfully bad, including such gems as “water that has no impurities bears no fish,” and “I guess I’m not the only one who’s bullet-proof.” Thankfully, Yun-Fat has the right mix of self-deprecating humor and dignity to carry off most of his dialog without looking like a fool. Scott and King don’t fare quite so well, but try hard to look cute enough to make up for it.
The audience has to take quite a bit on faith, including the Monk’s mysterious ability to show up in places he really shouldn’t know about and a preposterously complex lair for the Nazi antagonist. Anyone who can design torture devices that include MRI panels really shouldn’t be powering them with a water wheel. Maybe he wasn’t good at budgeting, and thus couldn’t afford a generator.
Thankfully, “Bulletproof Monk” doesn’t take itself particularly seriously, and the actors seem to know they’re in a terrible film. Scott and Yun-Fat appear to be having a great deal of fun together, and have good chemistry. The fight scenes are a thrill to watch if you enjoy Hong Kong style wire-work, and Corey Yuen (“The Transporter,” “The One”) does a good job with the choreography.
“Bulletproof Monk” is an excellent film if you just want to be entertained, and don’t mind its lack of such luxuries as a decent plot, bearable dialog, or three-dimensional characters. Those looking for even the bare essentials of those elements should stay as far from this movie as possible.