The new Transporter spills out in a jumble of frenetic action vignettes, where incessant flash cutting, jittery special effects, and a booming score whip everything into a manic froth. Consider it a poor man's version of the latest James Bond outing, replete with sleek European sports coupes that out-sex the slinky Eastern Bloc heroine, and, of course, the well-chiseled savior.
This time courier extraordinaire Frank Martin (Jason Statham) and his beefy black Audi must transport a Ukrainian beauty (Natalya Rudakova) from Marseille to Odesa via Stuttgart and Budapest, the hook being that if Frank strays more than 50 feet from his car, the bracelet on his wrist will blow him to pieces.
Besides Statham's bristling persona, the film's strength lies in director Olivier Megaton's relentless drive toward the next wham-bam showdown; this goes far to mask the inane plot (which has to do with enviro-terrorism) and Rudakova's thespian inadequacies.
100 minutes | Boston Common + Fenway + Fresh Pond + Chestnut Hill + Suburbs
