Transporter 2

A film that completely resigns from any logic in its screenplay, ignores the laws of physics, and yet is quite entertaining in its obvious naivety and unrestrained foolishness, partly due to the fact that it doesn't pretend to be anything else, and partly due to the presence of Jason Statham, who fits so well into these types of roles. All he needs is to show his fierce expression and utter a few sharp sentences in his deep voice to satisfy fans of action movies. Overall impression: 35%. (25/06/2009)

A very elaborate attempt to make a megalomaniacal series from the decent first film for the American market with a charismatic hero. Statham's problem is that he has no room in the film to act at all charismatic, if we do not take into account all the tender looks of a cold-blooded killer... The combination of music, luxury and exaggerated action scenes signals that Leterrier and Yuen are staring at Bond, but unlike Bond, Frank gives the impression of a funny exaggerated hero, whose solutions to situations have nothing to do with divine talent, but rather the choreographer's diseased imagination. Transporter 2 is so unbelievable that you can't have much fun with it. In the first film the exaggeration worked precisely because it was at least partially grounded and served with foresight, but the second film is stiff in terms of the humor and essentially just stupid. (26/01/2008)

Having enjoyed Danny the Dog and praising its relatively strong screenplay for a Luc Besson film, Transporter 2 made me realize that that film was just a momentary flash of his mind's brilliance. The entire scheme of the first installment was simply copied and transferred to America for a stronger audience impact. Fortunately, Americanism is only reminded of here by one awkward sentence, and the American flag is stylishly used in one action scene, which is once again meticulously crafted down to the last detail. The choreographic ballet from Corey Yuen's workshop once again oscillates between perfect simplicity and self-parody. It's too bad that the weak digital effects are used more frequently, as they ruin some scenes where we could have enjoyed the beautiful Audi W2, which looks flawless without a speck of dust or scratch, and when it speeds down the road, with the camera circling around it and Jason Statham behind the wheel, his charisma is simply captivating, as always, making it impossible not to get excited. A delightfully silly diversion, which has the misfortune of being the second film in the series. (08/10/2005)

The second Transporter movie somehow forgot its alphabet and, rather than stopping off at B, pranced off into its even lower categories. However, the considerably larger budget and over the topness make this into one big action party that easily exceeds part one in terms of quality. Just too bad that the powerhouse and star - the indestructible Audi A8 with its unstoppable charm - disappears from the story about half way through. (19/02/2008)

I feel that Besson's production and especially screenwriting prefabrications are starting to become a genre in their own right. Well, let's just call them “Bessonflicks” = narratively stupid brain-wash for viewers endowed with a hell of a lot of detachment. This sequel has is ten times more of that than in the first one (which I liked for its unconcealed simplicity and pace), but the plot and most of the action passages become so absurd that they start to get boring – more bombastic action sometimes doesn't mean more fun. And the transfusion of the antidote and the airplane at the end really sucked. (16/03/2006)