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Directed by: Gérard Krawczyk Starring: Jean Reno, Ryoko Hirosue, Michel Muller Jean Reno is Inspector Hubert Fiorentini, a cop whose dubious methods in dealing with crooks make him both the best and the bane of the police force. Put on a forced 2 month "vacation", Hubert gets a call from Japan, discovering that he needs to settle the estate of a former lover whom he met, and left some two decades ago. Travelling to Japan, Hubert attends the probate meeting to find one of life's little surprises in store: a bubbly, 19-year old daughter (Ryoko Hirosue) with an eternal hatred of the man who knocked her late mother up. Wasabi is a pretty entertaining film. It’s a quirky action comedy with a similar tone to Taxi and The Transporter, two other movies which, like Wasabi, were written and produced by French director Luc Besson. The reluctant father/daughter relationship could also be likened to what was seen in Leon as well. With Wasabi however, the emphasis is very much on the comedic aspect of the story, with only a few short action sequences actually appearing in the film. And even those aren’t really taken seriously either, with stuff like people flying backwards through the air after being shot with Hubert’s huge gun as one example. However, I feel that the main key to my enjoyment of Wasabi was the compelling performance of one of my favourite actors, Jean Reno. Here, Reno's performance just screams out "badass" as his smug Dirty Harry-like character is put into several wacky situations, leading to some very interesting sequences. One example is a fantastic set piece in a mall where he efficiently takes care of a number of yakuza cronies shadowing his daughter all the while keeping it under wraps from her. Another scene of note is when he is forced to play Dance Dance Revolution at the behest of his daughter's friends. You can also expect good performances in Wasabi from Muller, who plays Hubert’s former partner Momo, and Hirosue who manages to be cute, engaging and rebellious without being annoying. The film is also competently directed, with some good cinematography and a great Eric Serra score. Unfortunately the movie, and a sub-plot that introduces the previously mentioned yakuza element, end rather weakly. Like I said, I found Wasabi to be a pretty entertaining film. Although light on action, Reno’s great take on Hubert means that it’s probably worth a rental, especially if you’re a fan of the actor. 3.5/5 PROS: Jean Reno is awesome. CONS: Not that much action. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0281364/ mrkillboy fucked around with this message at 05:26 on May 4, 2004 |
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May 2, 2004 10:13
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My last few posts have been negative - I guess I'm pissy today. So I need to make it up, and I do it here. Wasabi is a suprisingly enjoyable movie. I won't rehash the plot again, but although it's not the most original in the world, it does manage to throw enough little twists and details into what would seen to be a huge cliche, that it works. Jean Reno is, of course, great as the hot headed cop. Ryoko Hirosue is flawless as a Japnese teenager, and Michel Muller as the "sidekick" is great. The empasis is more on comedy than action, but the comedy is well thoguht out, entertaining, and (mostly) never quite expected. Definitely recommended. 4/5
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May 13, 2004 17:23
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This movie couldn't decide whether it wanted to be an all-out farce, a serious action movie, a comedy-action movie, or a dramatic-action movie. It was very disjointed and poorly-paced. Also, the Yakuza were portrayed like a bunch of inept stiffs. The comedy relief Frenchman was loving annoying. In spite of its faults though, Wasabi was also pretty entertaining. Jean Reno is probably my favourite action hero and the girl is pretty cute. Three.
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May 13, 2004 19:53
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I enjoyed the movie mostly for the funny banter between the French cop and the daughter, in addition to the cinematography and editing that was very reminiscent of Luc Besson (though technically he only produced it). It didn't hurt that Ryoko Hirosue, the Japanese actress who plays the daughter, is hot as hell. Admittedly, there were a few errors in the way of storytelling, pacing, and lack of shootouts, but I found this to be a surprisingly enjoyable movie. 4/5.
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May 31, 2004 09:08
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enjoyable and funny. the scene with the sidekick guy and the ddr machine is hilarious. it was just the way it was cut and edited together, he hits the button and starts dancing instantly. hard to explain.
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Apr 28, 2005 10:30
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