Unleashed

(Danny the Dog)
Louis Leterrier, France / UK, 2005
3 out of 4 stars

Actually I do like Jet Li’s acting in this, but sadly I might have enjoyed the American version better, because even though this international/European version is designated the “unrated” version, it apparently just has more quiet character moments, which here take up a very big middle portion of the film. I think these bits are good but after a while, you do want to see someone get beat up again. The film is very unbalanced in this regard, you’re either getting one or the other, at least until the film’s stellar closing bit. I mean, what are you supposed to do exactly when you’ve got an action film in which the protagonist must develop by refraining from violence entirely? I probably would have liked this movie better if Li’s father figure had been played by anyone other than Morgan Freeman. His shtick is definitely getting real old by this point, and actually sticks out more for me here than in something like Million Dollar Baby that pretty much has its schmaltz-level cranked up to Morgan Freeman the whole time.

Source: Universal DVD
10 March, 11:30 PM