UNLEASHED review by Elliot Jay Stocks
The ingredients of UNLEASHED read like a ‘can’t lose’ menu of successful film-making: a story from the mind of Luc Besson (Leon / Fifth Element), a cast of award-winning actors (Jet Li , Bob Hoskins, Morgan Freeman), and a soundtrack by Bristol’s finest, Massive Attack.
Jet Li plays Danny, a simple, brutal fighting machine kept since childhood in a dog-like state by gangland boss ‘Uncle’ Bart (Hoskins), and used as his unbeatable henchman. Freed from his master by a car accident (the first of many for Bart and his unfortunate gang), Danny is taken in by blind piano-tuner Sam (Freeman) and his pianist step-daughter Vicky. Together, they re-introduce Danny to normal life with the aid of music.
When Uncle Bart resurfaces, Danny is dragged back into an underworld of murder and cage-fights, but something has changed within him, and so begins the struggle between his violent upbringing and his true good nature, fuelled by a quest to rediscover his forgotten childhood.
Wasting no time in setting the scene, UNLEASHED opens with a violent massacre of a fight scene, and - as with the ensuing battles – Jet Li’s performance as a martial artist is amply showcased, exemplified only slightly by the heavily-meaty sound effects. He also manages to balance the brutal with the delicate, and successfully gets the sympathy vote as a victim of dire circumstances.
The music (a soundtrack that varies from the rolling dub of familiar Massive Attack territory to the more gentle piano-led melancholy hinted at on last album ‘100th Window’) beautifully embellishes the tale. Perhaps one of the most negative points about the film is that the music is a little too quiet; its subtleties often lost amidst the fight scenes. In any case, the score stands as a superb Massive Attack album in its own right.
Unfortunately, the film is also let down by a few questionable elements of the plot, such as the ease with which Danny is led back to his boss by a character who seems to have very little power over him, and the amazing survival instinct of the gang. At times, Sam’s use of the piano as a metaphor for a person also seems a little too obvious. However, despite these flaws in Besson’s writing, we can’t help but wonder how the film would have turned out had he taken the director’s chair, a seat occupied for the first time by fellow Frenchman Louis Leterrier.
UNLEASHED is an interesting look at the depraved balance of power between a man and his slave, and the loss – and subsequent regaining – off childhood innocence. However, despite the emotional depth that raises it higher above your average action movie, the film is ultimately an impressive feast for the eyes, beautifully choreographed and filmed with a refreshing grittiness absent from Jet Li’s other English-speaking outings. This is sure to be a big hit this summer. |
DFA Records: Holiday Mix 2005
DFA Records: Holiday Mix 2005
