Movie Wars: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon vs. The Transporter [Archive]

outmywindow

26 Apr 2007, 08:10 AM

'The Transporter' was one of the absolute worst movies I've ever had the distinct pleasure of seeing, and I mean that. It was so bad it went all the way to good, then back to bad again. I had a wonderful time watching that movie and laughing my ass off. Jason Straham (or whatever his name is) took himself so seriously! I wanted to pull him aside and let him in on the big joke, but then that would have ruined it. For a similarly awesome movie starring him I recommend 'Crank.' Excellent piece of crap.

On a similar note, I caught 'Catwoman' today on AMC. Oh jesus that was a bad one. It actually hurt, physically...

Lurker

26 Apr 2007, 08:15 AM

I've never seen either one, and for some reason I don't think I will anytime soon.

Deckard

26 Apr 2007, 08:24 AM

Saw the previews for both those Jason Statham movies. That was more than enough. :sick:

Crouching Tiger on the other hand was actually pretty entertaining.

Ghost-Girl

26 Apr 2007, 08:30 AM

The Transporter was awful, at least Crouching Tiger (etc) was visually interesting.

RottenApple

26 Apr 2007, 08:31 AM

I loved crouching tiger.

Fantastic choreography.
Beautiful cinematography and locations
eh..beautiful ladies
The story was cool too.

Don't watch the dubbed version!

Hero and House of the Flying Daggers were great too

HilbertSpace

26 Apr 2007, 08:32 AM

I haven't seen The Transporter yet, but I finally got around to watching Crouching Tiger when someone bought it for me as a present. I thought it was actually fairly good. I'm not a huge fan of the genre (although Kung Fu Hustle is one of my all time favorite movies), but I found Crouching Tiger to be pretty OK. You'd probably have to be in the mood for it, though.

Hustler

26 Apr 2007, 08:35 AM

(although Kung Fu Hustle is one of my all time favorite movies)
Good choice. I found the lollipop scene so emotionally wrenching.

outmywindow

26 Apr 2007, 08:43 AM

...So no one agrees with me that 'The Transporter' is one of the crowning jewels of deliciously bad cinema?

HilbertSpace

26 Apr 2007, 08:44 AM

...So no one agrees with me that 'The Transporter' is one of the crowning jewels of deliciously bad cinema?

I do have to say that your review has convinced me to see it.

Hustler

26 Apr 2007, 08:45 AM

...So no one agrees with me that 'The Transporter' is one of the crowning jewels of deliciously bad cinema?
I sure was laughing when he rang the doorbell, then when the guy goes to look through the peep hole he ninja kicks the door down then goes in and whoops everyones' asses.

outmywindow

26 Apr 2007, 08:47 AM

I do have to say that your review has convinced me to see it.

Trust me, Dr. Forrester would send it up the Umbilicus for the inhabitants of the Satellite of Love if he had the chance.

I sure was laughing when he rang the doorbell, then when the guy goes to look through the peep hole he ninja kicks the door down then goes in and whoops everyones' asses.

Ugh, the fight scene which involves using bicycle pedals as footwear, wtf?

HilbertSpace

26 Apr 2007, 08:48 AM

Trust me, Dr. Forrester would send it up the Umbilicus for the inhabitants of the Satellite of Love if he had the chance.

Oh, I am so there...

Deckard

26 Apr 2007, 08:56 AM

...So no one agrees with me that 'The Transporter' is one of the crowning jewels of deliciously bad cinema?
I think you should only be allowed to make laughably bad cinema if you haven't already demonstrated you're capable of (acting in) good cinema, i.e. Lock Stock and Snatch. I felt cheated, as though he'd sold out. Though admittedly i laughed pretty hard at the trailers for both The Transporter and Crank. Laughed and cringed.

Spartan26

26 Apr 2007, 09:13 AM

'The Transporter' was one of the absolute worst movies I've ever had the distinct pleasure of seeing, and I mean that.I would've said that about Transporter II. I didn't see the first one, though I heard it was better. To which, I thought, how could it not be?

Crouching Tiger I enjoyed immensely. Beautifully shot. Excellent score. The leaving one storyline to jump to another for an extended period of time didn't bother me. Maybe that one storyline could be boiled down to another "poor, little rich girl" tale might be a detraction but it held my interest. I know a guy I used to work with didn't like the kind of super hero fight scenes in Crouching Tiger. They didn't bother me. I think having already seen Once Upon A Time in China I kinda knew what to expect. Also, I think it's not so bad when both fighters are basically harnessed in, it doesn't bother me that they're fighting upside down next to the chandelier. Michelle Yeoh does good stunt work. Her in any film is generally a good thing.

booyalab

26 Apr 2007, 09:38 AM

I haven't seen The Transporter, but I had the misfortune of seeing Crank (against my will) and I assume they're similar in awfulness, so I'll go with Crouching.

MacGuffin

26 Apr 2007, 03:54 PM

I enjoy Crouching Tiger so much more, if only for Ziyi Zhang who I now realize I left off my Asian List (http://forums.intpcentral.com/showthread.php?p=596445#post596445)... :stupid:

...So no one agrees with me that 'The Transporter' is one of the crowning jewels of deliciously bad cinema?
Sorry, that is Road House.

booyalab

26 Apr 2007, 03:56 PM

Sorry, that is Roadhouse.

pain don't hurt (at least when watching that movie)

MacGuffin

26 Apr 2007, 03:58 PM

pain don't hurt
Is there anything better than a philosophy major bouncer with a mullet?

I think not.

http://www.thedudeblog.com/dalton.gif

booyalab

26 Apr 2007, 04:05 PM

Is there anything better than a philosophy major bouncer with a mullet?

um yeah, one that does Tai Chi. Shirtless.

MacGuffin

26 Apr 2007, 04:12 PM

um yeah, one that does Tai Chi. Shirtless.
I forgot the Tai Chi. I thought he'd be bigger too.

outmywindow

26 Apr 2007, 09:00 PM

Sorry, that is Road House.

Hahaha, so true, so true. Any film which seriously uses the following line to 'intimidate' the protagonist is very high on my list:

"I used to fuck guys like you in prison."

Um, really? That's probably something you should keep to yourself, and have you gotten a hepatitis test recently?

tinribz

26 Apr 2007, 10:02 PM

Transporter 1 and 2 were both fantastic films. The action was all out a roller-coaster ride. The balance of humour and action spot on, the bicycle pedals thing being a prime example. How could you not find that inspirational and funny? Crank on the other hand was disappointingly bad.

CTHD is in my top ten it's a masterpiece. But comparing it to Transporter is like comparing the 1984 with Total Recall, both are sci-fi but that's about where the similarity ends.

One is an action movie the other is a love story (with action).

Ka.avik

26 Apr 2007, 10:11 PM

I loved crouching tiger.

Fantastic choreography.
Beautiful cinematography and locations
eh..beautiful ladies
The story was cool too.

Don't watch the dubbed version!

I agree; I've seen (parts) of the re-dubbed in english version, and while it surprises me because it really looks like their lips match -- and there were some extreme changes in the dialog, it saddens me too because it's so much less poetic.

And poetry, and recreation of myth, is what this is about. I've heard some say the flying-through-the-trees thing was over the top, but if you've read anything about the initial creation of their kung-fu styles you'll realize that it's true to form. That is how they describe their heroes fighting.

libertarianjim

26 Apr 2007, 11:15 PM

Use the DVDs of both these movies as coasters and make yourself two drinks as you watch Army of Darkness instead.

Zero Angel

26 Apr 2007, 11:22 PM

Heh. Army of darkness was the best. Crouching tiger was fantastic too. I didnt care much for the Transporter, it just seemed like a generic 'B' action movie, Crank wasn't the greatest but it did have its moments, I like how the main actor didnt take himself so seriously as he did in the Transporter.

The best movies IMO leave a lasting impression, Crouching Tiger did just that.

CoHo

27 Apr 2007, 12:55 AM

The correct answer is Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

bergenski

27 Apr 2007, 08:36 PM

I liked Crouching Tiger and that actress is awesome...I saw Rush Hour Two just for her :wub:

s0978

29 Apr 2007, 08:01 AM

christ.

naruto littles helpers.jpeg

29 Apr 2007, 08:57 AM

i havent seen the transporter, but judging by the director's other work, ill put my money on lee's film (which i enjoyed a lot). besson is hit or miss and not really that great of a director ((he's of the pejoratively named school of "cinema du look" (though carax, usually lumped with him, is the man)).

aether

5 May 2007, 03:37 AM

I've seen CTHD and at least one of The Transporters (the one where with the driving scene and the girl that is kidnapped). The Transporter stand out the most for me, the fast cars and beautiful girl. CTHD is too fantasy prone for me - great visuals nevertheless.

Lateralus

25 May 2007, 08:15 PM

Is the Transporter the movie where a guy has a bomb on the bottom of the car he's driving, so he drives up a ramp and makes the car do a barrell-roll, so the bottom of the car hits a chain hanging from a crane that knocks the bomb off the bottom of the car, just before the bomb explodes? Man, that was a long sentence and that scene was so fucking ridiculous.

I actually liked Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. I like martial arts movies, in general. But the Transporter (if I'm remembering the right movie) was trash.

Hustler

25 May 2007, 08:44 PM

outmywindow

25 May 2007, 08:49 PM

You're thinking of the Transporter 2.

I love that you know that.

Lateralus

25 May 2007, 08:53 PM

You're thinking of the Transporter 2.
Was the original any better?

Hustler

25 May 2007, 10:37 PM

Was the original any better?
Yeah.

hereandnow

25 May 2007, 10:40 PM

Was the original any better?

The original was much, much better.

libertarianjim

25 May 2007, 10:45 PM

The original was much, much better.

In that case, the sequel must have sucked out loud.

LongSilence

25 May 2007, 10:59 PM

Transporter was fun. You have to appreciate the humour and the originality that went into the fight scenes. As for the story and characterisation- well, you can appreciate the high-level intelligence that must have been required to say 'Hey, he's "The Transporter", a guy who escorts people,... what if we had his enemies be people who transport human slaves? Deep, am i right?'

CTHD was great on a whole different level. However, if you're not feeling up for getting yourself engrossed in a story Transporter can be more suitable.

Main question though- who brought these two films up as a suitable comparison and why?

MacGuffin

26 May 2007, 02:16 AM

The Transporter was a fun movie, but it's no Die Hard.

hereandnow

26 May 2007, 02:45 PM

In that case, the sequel must have sucked out loud.

Takes all kinds.

LongSilence

26 May 2007, 03:29 PM

The Transporter was a fun movie, but it's no Die Hard.

Well, to be fair its likely that the next Die Hard will be no Die Hard.

MacGuffin

26 May 2007, 06:49 PM

Well, to be fair its likely that the next Die Hard will be no Die Hard.

If it is as good as Die Hard III I will be happy.

Die Hard II was kinda weak.

LongSilence

26 May 2007, 07:47 PM

Hmmm, we'll see how well Bruce can still carry the vest. I mean, otherwise we'll be looking to... Justin Long and its apparent PG-13 rating?

djm

15 Sep 2007, 08:48 PM

I shouldn't really vote as I have not seen (and most likely will never bother to watch) The Transporter.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon is a beautiful bit of cinema with great cinematography, good acting and an interesting plot. Whats not to like about it.