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Movies / On DVD / Kiss of the Dragon
Kiss of the Dragon

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Kiss of the Dragon (2001)

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Reviews Counted:101

Fresh:51

Rotten:50

Average Rating:5.2/10

Consensus: A formulaic actioner that's sure to please action fans. Those looking for plot, believability, or character development will have difficulty finding them.

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Synopsis: The writers of THE FIFTH ELEMENT, Luc Besson (who also directed the Bruce Willis film) and Robert Mark Kamen, have teamed up again to deliver Jet Li in the action thriller KISS OF THE DRAGON. Li... The writers of THE FIFTH ELEMENT, Luc Besson (who also directed the Bruce Willis film) and Robert Mark Kamen, have teamed up again to deliver Jet Li in the action thriller KISS OF THE DRAGON. Li stars as Liu Jiuan, a Chinese agent so dedicated to his job that he has no friends, no family, no dreams. He is sent to Paris to help the French police capture a Chinese gangster, but France's top cop, Jeanne-Pierre Richard (Tcheky Karyo), has set Liu up to take the fall for a brutal killing he himself carried out. On the run in a strange city, Liu keeps a low profile until he unwillingly becomes friends with an American hooker, Jessica (Bridget Fonda)--who just happens to hold the key to his innocence. But Richard is always one step ahead of them--he has Jessica's daughter. Li and Fonda make a great team; their relationship is at the core of the film, as neither character has ever been able to put his complete trust in another person before. The action scenes, directed by Corey Yuen, are fast and furious and very violent, featuring mesmerizing moves by Li, especially one involving a billiard ball. Chris Nahon, in his directorial debut, makes excellent use of the location, including numerous shots of famous Parisian landmarks as the bad cops try to machine-gun down Liu in the streets and sewers and on the Seine. [More]

Starring: Jet Li, Bridget Fonda, Tcheky Karyo, Burt Kwouk

Starring: Jet Li, Bridget Fonda, Tcheky Karyo, Burt Kwouk, Max Ryan

Director: Chris Nahon

Director: Chris Nahon
Screenwriter: Luc Besson, Robert Mark Kamen
Producer: Luc Besson, Steven Chasman, Happy Walters
Composer: Craig Armstrong
Studio: 20th Century Fox

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Reviews for Kiss of the Dragon

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81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

By far Jet Li's best film since arriving in Hollywood after a luminous career as an action/martial arts star in Hong Kong.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
07/06/01
Wade Major
Wade Major
Boxoffice Magazine

What goes on when Li isn't fighting the bad guys isn't worth discussing; it's that stupid. But it will erase any lingering doubts about why Li has catapulted so high so soon.

comment Comment
07/06/01
Jay Carr
Jay Carr
Boston Globe

Too often the fights are pieced together so choppily that the thurst of the action is lost.

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
07/06/01
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune

Simply an exercise in hyper-violent showboating, a nihilistically pure look at impurity.

Full Review Source: NUVO Newsweekly | comment Comment
07/06/01
Edward Johnson-Ott
Edward Johnson-Ott
NUVO Newsweekly

The action as presented is strictly rote and much more bloody than balletic.

Full Review Source: culturevulture.net | comment Comment
07/05/01
Bob Aulert
Bob Aulert
culturevulture.net

Witless fun.

Full Review Source: IFilm | comment Comment
07/05/01
Dave White
Dave White
IFilm

If you don't like movies that mean to make us gasp at the outrageousness of the violence, you'll hate Kiss of the Dragon.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
07/05/01
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

A noisy and bloody thrill ride best enjoyed by the young at heart.

Full Review Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel | comment Comment
07/05/01
Peter Bernard
Peter Bernard
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Like certain subatomic particles that have velocity but no mass, Kiss of the Dragon pretty much ceases to exist when not in motion.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
07/05/01
Arthur Salm
Arthur Salm
San Diego Union-Tribune

Forget Romeo Must Die. Please forget Lethal Weapon 4. Kiss of the Dragon is the crossover film Jet Li fans have been waiting for.

Full Review Source: Reel.com | comment Comment
07/05/01
Tor Thorsen
Tor Thorsen
Reel.com

Doesn't add anything new to the stranger-in-a -strange-land action genre, but, like Li's intrepid hero, it gets the job done.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
07/05/01
Steven Rea
Steven Rea
Philadelphia Inquirer

Uneven and raw.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Daily News | comment Comment
07/05/01
Gary Thompson
Gary Thompson
Philadelphia Daily News

Mr. Li will come out of Kiss of the Dragon smelling like a rose; the combat couldn't be better. But next time around, he should leave the script to more capable hands.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
07/05/01
Elvis Mitchell
Elvis Mitchell
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

You, the average taxpaying citizen, need to see this movie like Bill Gates needs to win the lottery.

Full Review Source: Mr. Showbiz | comment Comment
07/05/01
Cody Clark
Cody Clark
Mr. Showbiz

There may be some arguments over Li's work as an actor, but his physical performance more than makes up for any other on-screen shortcomings.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
07/05/01
Mack Bates
Mack Bates
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A hard-core action film for hard-core action junkies.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
07/05/01
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

[Besson] gives his leading man plenty of room in which to demonstrate his genuinely awesome fighting skills.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
07/05/01
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star

Too choppy to develop emotional resonance.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
07/05/01
Tom Maurstad
Tom Maurstad
Dallas Morning News

Without generating any compassion for its characters, Dragon plays like one long martial arts movie with a bunch of bad acting and dialogue between the fight scenes.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
07/05/01
Glenn Whipp
Glenn Whipp
Los Angeles Daily News

It's refreshing to see that the French, known for their high falutin' movies, can produce something as wildly incoherent and dreadful as Kiss of the Dragon.

Full Review Source: Contra Costa Times | comment Comment
07/05/01
Mary F. Pols
Mary F. Pols
Contra Costa Times
 
 
81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 >> >|
all

Latest News for Kiss of the Dragon

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Variety brings news of the inaugural production from Code Entertainment: it's a horror flick called "The Gravedancers," and it's just about to wrap production in North... More...

June 14, 2001: The style of action in KOD was heavily influenced by comments made during series of messages posted by fans on the Jet Li website forum, immediately after the release of Romeo Must Die in United States. Opens in new window
More...

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