The car crazy Frank Martin (Jason Statham) returns here in a sequel that will exceed its predecessor when it comes to the amount of cool action.  His new job as a driver for Jack Billings (Hunter Clary), an elementary school boy of a rich family, might initially seem a little below his standards and skills.  Yet, this ex-special force operative with masterful skills in martial arts and in operating vehicles among many other abilities does it as a favor for a friend (we never learn what friend and why.)  The family for whom Frank is driving also seems to have domestic trouble, as Jack’s mother and father performed by Amber Valletta and Matthew Modine do not seem to get along very well.  In addition, Jack’s mother seems to have developed a sudden crush on Frank, which brings about a slightly awkward scene where she visits Frank within the first 15 minutes of the film.

Soon after the shallow introduction to all the characters something is bound to go wrong, as it does when a group of ruthless kidnappers led by Gianni (Alessandro Gassman) attempt to get their hands on Jack.  To make things even more complicated Gianni has a homicidal crazed beauty at his side that does everything she can to make life a living hell for Frank.  However, if the audience remembers Frank from the initial scene in the garage, they already know that Frank is the only one able to do something.  The opening brings to mind the same pattern as Man on Fire (2004); however, there is a cruel twist to kidnapping that has a far more lethal consequence than expected.

Transporter 2 does have the right elements for awesome special effects and truly extravagant action.  However, it suffers greatly from the opening scene and throughout the whole film, as the audience must not think, as it would deter the audience from enjoying the cinematic spectacle.  For example, the drenched floor in the indoor garage in the opening shot seems completely out of place in the subtropical Florida weather, but it does give a cool reflective light effect to the car and the environment.  It is also strange how four car robbers could get into the garage without Frank (who has trained his attentiveness to perfection).  It seems that the action sequences would not have happened without the many inconsistencies throughout the film.  There is also a myriad of situations where the film breaks all possible laws of physics, which removes a great deal from the cinematic potential of the film.

In Leterrier’s previous film Danny the Dog (2005), he remains far closer to reality and in the process makes a much better film.  Here in Transporter 2 the director seems to create a videogame atmosphere where the hero can do simply anything that the director desires.  This would be ok if it was a fantasy film, but it seems as if Leterrier tries to incorporate authentic realism and fantasy, which only seems to create awkwardness.  The computer-generated imagery also feels phony, especially in the culminating fight in the end.  Besides these unenthusiastic comments, the film does possess some truly spectacular visuals that shine through in the photography and the awesome scene framing.  In its presentation, Transporter 2 could be the epitome of action through the uncontrollably amount of stunts and violence in the film.  However, the overall cinematic experience was a rather poor one when compared to the many gems in the action genre such as The Terminator (1984), Hard Boiled (1992), and Léon (1994).

DIRECTED BY

COUNTRY

France / USA

Filmography links and data courtesy of