Romeo Must Die
	Rated R
	Runtime: 2hr 0min
	Starring: Jet Li, Russell Wong, Aaliyah, Isaiah Washington
	MFG Rating: 4/5

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DVD Features Video: Widescreen enhanced and very well done. The visuals in this film translated nicely to DVD with no visible flaws. Audio: The Dolby Digital 5.1 track is good and the gangsta rap soundtrack, will give your subwoofer a good workout, as will some of the action scenes. Extras: English and French soundtrack and subtitles. Also includes "making of" featurettes, cast and crew interviews, cast filmographies, and two Aaliyah music videos.

DVD Quick Take

To me Romeo Must Die is a 3/5 movie. The storyline was very interesting, predictable much of the time but with enough twists to keep me from flipping over to RAW. Also, while I’m not exactly a gangsta rap enthusiast, the music in the film was good and helped set the mood for the film.

My biggest gripe with the movie is the fight choreography. Jet Li is, to say the least, extremely talented. So why did they insist on transforming him from a kick-butt martial arts expert to a Chinese Peter Pan on a fly wire (see harness reference below in the theatrical review)? I mean, at least let me be tempted into thinking that a move or sequence in a fight is believable. But no, they couldn’t do that. Instead we’re treated to ridiculous shots of him jumping up to kick one guy, then somehow levitate to the next victim, and oh, what the hell, let’s have him kick a third guy while he’s up there. Brother!

That isn’t to say that all the fight scenes were bad. A lot of the scenes and particular elements were very cool, particularly how they showed someone getting seriously injured or killed without actually showing it (you’ll know when you see it). My main gripe is that I think Jet Li’s talent is enough to keep from having to resort to fly wires.

Other than those frustrating moments I really enjoyed the movie. It had pretty good acting, some characters who were likeable and others you couldn't wait to see bite the dust. I particularly liked Delroy Lindo as the father and head honcho of the African-American crime family. His portrayal was sincere and even though he was into shady business dealings I couldn't help but like the character for the love he had for his kids and his desire to go straight.

Finally one interesting note about the DVD features I noticed. As mentioned above the DVD includes options for English and French soundtracks and subtitles. My question is, for a movie that revolves around African-American and Chinese crime families, where are the Jive and Chinese language options on the features? I'm half kidding, of course, but after listening to all the gangsta rap in the film I couldn't help but be disappointed.

It's true. It's true.

-Steve

Movies For Guys' Original Review of the Theatrical Release

This movie kicks ass... most of the time. If it weren't for the multitude of slow spots between the fight scenes this movie would have easily gotten 5 stars.

The movie is touted for some reason as a variation of the Shakespeare classic, Romeo and Juliet, and I'm not sure why. Other than two characters becoming an item while their families are at war I just don't see it. Then again, I'm not much for Shakespeare so maybe I'm just missing a whole lot... but I doubt it.

Jet Li plays Han Sing who escapes from prison to avenge his brother's death. In the process of tracking down the killer he hooks up with Trish O'Day (Aaliyah) who turns out to be the daughter of the family his family is at war with. That's about as much as I can say without pushing our no-spoilers rule and to be frank about it, the plot is just there to get us from action sequence to action sequence anyway.

And what action there is! There's some real clever fight sequences in this film, kinda like Jackie Chan meets The Matrix. Let me say a word about the special effects here. Some critics have been quite harsh about the computer aided action sequences that allow Jet Li to perform impossible moves. (yeah, I'm talking to you Roger.) There are two types of effects used here. The first is used in many Martial Arts films and was also used in The Matrix. I'm talking about the harness that allows the character to seemingly defy gravity while executing moves. (You get a good behind the scenes look at this setup on the Matrix DVD.) I have no problem with these scenes at all as it still takes quite a bit of skill to work in that setup, and it's not like Jet Li can't kick ass in real life. The second type of effect was pure computer graphic assistance where his body is made to do impossible things. This I wasn't as happy with, but as I recall it was only used twice and didn't ruin the scenes for me. Audiences have become accustomed to the look this gives a fight and I don't think most fans really care as long as it looks cool, and it does.

If you like movies in this genre then just go see this one, you won't be disappointed. And by the way, the soundtrack rocks!

- John

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