Kiss of the Dragon - R\nStarring: Jet Li, Bridget Fonda\nDirected by: Chris Nahon\nJet Li has been underused and misused in so many pieces of generic Hollywood crap. He was far and away the most entertaining performer in the derivative sequel "Lethal Weapon 4," his anemic "Romeo Must Die" left the Bard rolling in his grave and "The One" was anything but. Kung fu flick fans longed for the Li seen in such expertly made Hong Kong fare as "Fist of Legend." Finally with "Kiss of the Dragon" they have him.\n"Kiss of the Dragon," pairs Li with world-renowned French filmmaker Luc Besson ("Léon" or "The Professional" to American audiences) who both co-wrote and produced the film from Li's story idea. \n"K.O.D." tells the story (what little there is) of Liu Jian (Li), a cop sent to Paris to assist in the investigation of a notorious Chinese gangster. A corrupt French officer by the name of Richard (Besson regular Tchéky Karyo) frames Liu Jian for the murder of said suspect and entangles him in a mass conspiracy. Needless to say, things go haywire and Jet is left alone to bust balls and crack skulls amidst an onslaught of Euro trash. He later hooks up with the archetypical junkie hooker with a heart of gold (Bridget Fonda). \nBy no means is this a classy flick; villains are blown in half by grenades, thong-sporting hookers gyrate to Mystikal's "Shake Ya Ass" and a pool ball is kicked soccer style into a dude's cranium killing him instantaneously. "K.O.D." is a watermark for those of you who deem a six-pack and a Bruce Willis flick as a fine cultural experience.\nThe DVD is up to par with a film of this pedigree. The disc contains a modest commentary track featuring Li, Fonda and director Chris Nahon. Each track was recorded separately, but they're nonetheless entertaining. Li constantly refers to himself in the third person, while Fonda seems enamored by and sexually attracted to him. \nOther features include a Jet Li featurette during which he chronicles his friendship to fellow cinematic martial arts legend Jackie Chan and discusses his Buddhist philosophies at length. Another featurette focuses upon the flick's martial arts choreographer Cory Yuen, who previously worked with Li on pretty much all the crap referenced earlier -- despite this, the featurette's pretty cool.\n"K.O.D." isn't "Citizen Kane" and Li sure isn't Laurence Olivier, but that doesn't detract from the fact that this is a fun roller coaster ride of a flick. For those of you who've longed to see someone get stabbed in the neck with a set of chopsticks, this is the flick for you.\n
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