Unleashed

UNLEASHED (2005) - May 14, 2005
A surprisingly enjoyable action movie starring Jet Li as a man who was essentially brought up as a dog, trained only to fight and to kill. This is probably the best Jet Li movie that I've seen; it wisely avoids the over-the-top wirework that has plagued pretty much all of Li's American movies. The action was actually really good, easily the best I've seen since Ong-Bak. Though this movie isn't nearly as cram-packed with action as Ong-Bak was, the stuff between the action was actually quite good, so it doesn't really matter. Bob Hoskins chews the scenery and gives a really entertaining performance as Li's "uncle" Bart. Morgan Freeman is good (as always) as a kindly father-figure who helps Li to rediscover his humanity. And Li himself was actually quite good, creating a character that we actually come to care about. ***1/2