Mei, a young girl whose memory holds a priceless numerical code, finds herself pursued by the Triads, the Russian mob, and corrupt NYC cops. Coming to her aid is an ex-cage fighter whose life was destroyed by the gangsters on Mei's trail. In China, the girl Mei is a genius that looks like a computer in numbers. She is abducted by the Chinese Triads and the boss Han Jiao ends Mei to Chinatown, in New York, to help him in the control of his activities. Meanwhile, the fighter Luke Wright has his life destroyed when he wins a fight against the will of the Russian Mafia and accidentally kills his opponent. The Russian mobsters kill his wife and the alcoholic Luke wanders on the streets and hostels with no objective in life. One day, Han Jiao asks Mei to memorize a long number and soon the Russian Mafia abducts the girl from the Chinese mobs. She escapes from the mobsters and is chased by the Russians; by the corrupt detectives from the NYPD; and by the Triads. When Luke sees the girl fleeing from the Russian mobs in the subway, he protects the girl and discovers that the number she had memorized is the combination of a safe where the Triads keep 30 million dollars. Luke is an elite agent and uses his skills to protect the girl. This movie is about rival international gangs and a young girl who is a number wunderkind. But, we really know before hand it's about Jason Statham disposing of "bad guys". After a slow-ish beginning to setup the Chinese, Russians, and bad cops - and how the little Chinese girl and Statham relate to their Chinatown fiefdom - violence occurs at an extremely fast pace; one could almost call it "violence porn" taking into count the visual quantity which, thankfully, spares some of the all too common graphicness. Somehow, the bit of humanity wrapped up in the girl buffers it just the smallest bit as it becomes Stratham's noble vendetta. Statham's fall and rise hinges on this new purpose: to save the little girl. He takes it serious and fights out of the corruption while taking no prisoners.<br/><br/>Seen as an action vehicle for Statham this movie fairs a bit better than average as after the slow beginning it moves fast and with masterful fight scenes and a decent enough story. The character of Mei, played by newcomer Catherine Chan, is the standout here: she's a cool professional delivering nuance beyond her age. It's complimented by the usual, but well-casted cops/international bad guy plethora of characters anchored by the steely cold Robert John Burke. Of course, front and center is Statham and he's complicated so as you root for him you still have a sense of dread knowing his character is on the precipice of being beyond redemption due to his circumstances. In other words…A character for Statham with some meat on the bones which he delivers.<br/><br/>If you like action it's here and that is the bottom line. A Statham movie where he does his sch-tick well building to a crescendo that is satisfying. There isn't great depth, however, and that is what keeps the movie from rating higher. It's action entertainment that is over-the-top, but doesn't fall apart if you park some of the right-brain matter. I must say that in the times we're now in it becomes harder to appreciate a movie purely based on violent action, but as mentioned earlier in spite of the quantity the graphic level of it isn't pandered. Statham fans, as well as action lovers, should be fine with a recommendation as it quite a ride after ignition. If writer/director Boaz Yakin just keeps making films with Jason Statham, I may just forgive him for his involvement in the travesty that was the '80's Punisher film. Well OK not THAT, but perhaps it would however cleanse my mouth of the rancid taste that From Dusk Til Dawn 2 left.<br/><br/>Did he suddenly get better at writing decent dialog?? No not really, it's still clichéd and trite, however the mere strong presence of Statham as Luke Wright an ex-cop, ex-MMA fighter whom loses everything he holds dear when he doesn't throw a fight with a 'YouTube sensation'. Finding redemption by helping a whiz kid who's running from the same villains that are after him. The saving grace of this film are Jason and his above average fight scenes, without which this movie would've been barely rentable. Safe is both a slavish imitation of cinema gone by and a movie for our time. I found it wickedly entertaining and perversely refreshing in its total lack of contemporary piety.
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295 weeks ago