Transporter 2

Transporter 2 is the second film based on the character created by Luc Besson in the 2002 hit The Transporter. As expected from the previews Transporter 2 is a nearly seamless series of action sequences and car chases anchored by a quiet anti-hero. Transporter 2, as its predecessor, is a perfect summer film, full of fisticuffs and fast cars and not trying to be too cerebral. Thus the film succeeds as a mindlessly entertaining summer vehicle. But for a fall movie, or for those who saw the first Transporter film, Transporter 2 is somewhat vacuous and tries a bit to be something that it is not. First, Transporter 2 is not a September movie, it is a July movie. Second, Transporter 2 does not care about world politics, family dynamics, or character motivation, it just wants to kick ass and look cool doing it.

For those who don’t know, The Transporter is a professional driver. In the vein of many action heroes, The Transporter, Frank Martin, was a militarily trained special ops officer who decided to freelance with his special skills and training after leaving the military. As with such battle tested warriors this gives him a calm and grace under fire that his counterparts do not share. Stratham is a big star waiting to happen who is able to command the screen and the lesser actors around him with a silent look. Stratham’s mere presence on the screen makes it interesting and he presents a smoldering and efficiently violent propensity beneath a calm and standoffish persona. Surprisingly Stratham was not able to parlay his impressive turn in the original film The Transporter into a bevy of starring roles. Frank may not give Stratham much dialogue to slog through but not only does he perform admirably in the myriad of action sequences; he brings a presence to the calm and quiet Frank that is truly compelling on screen.

The problem with the second Transporter as opposed to the first is that it is a sequel. The original film was an explosive yet quiet film with a decidedly European flair. That it took place in Provencal France and had only one major character that was an American could have been part of the foreign feel. But also there were respites between the heady chases and excessive use of bullets. Not so in the second transporter which is sufficiently more Hollywood to ruin the indie feel of the first film. This time the action is set in Miami, which of course lends itself not only to car chases but to boat chases. The film is full of Americans though Frank still seems like a fish out of water. The plot may have been sufficiently thin the first go round, but this time the plot truly lacks direction.

This time we see Frank Latham, transporter extraordinaire doing security chauffeuring work for the young son of, I think, the head of the DEA. Modine plays the busy and distant father with a certain stiffness and distain that makes it seem like he doesn’t really want to be there. Then the film never fully defines what he does, though it seems to be important to the plot. It just goes forward with: he isn’t around a lot and it has something to do with the DEA and a meeting of international officials trying to bring down the Columbian cartels. Since he is working for a security firm the purposely reticent Frank has all of his personal history on file somewhere as evidenced by how quickly the police are able to expound on this history and raid his house after the important guy’s child is kidnapped. This seems somewhat out of character for Frank who makes his living by being nearly invisible and leaving no trace of his work.

Enter Alessandro Gassman and Kate Nauta as the villains of the film. There is something decidedly Bond about Gianni and Lola, as they are called, and I half expected Pierce Brosnan to show up and trade innuendo heavy barbs with the femme fatale. Perhaps this is Jeremy Stratham’s Bond in training role. He had the look the only difference is that where Bond seems to relish the exotic locales and the beautiful women who fall across his path Frank Martin seems to want to avoid all of it and stay quietly at home. I would think that there isn’t a better choice out there for the next Bond but the producers seem to be seeking some significantly younger blood. Their oversight will be their, and the audience’s, loss.

But I digress, back to the villains. Gianni is a South American gun for hire whose latest employers, listed only as the heads of the Columbian cartels, have bought him a nasty virus, and its antidote, so that he can wreak havoc on the DEA conference that might disrupt their profits. Frank points out that this is a pretty lame plan, and Gianni agrees, but these two are not the ones making the plans, just carrying them out for a price. So though considerable time and energy in the film are devoted to setting up and carrying out this virus plan, the main characters even agree that it is unimportant and doesn’t motivate what they are doing. Hey if the characters don’t care how can the audience be expected to care?

This is kind of the whole tone for the film, the heroes and the villains are going through the motions of caring about what they are doing because it is what they are supposed to do. None of the characters seem to really want to be where they are whether it is in a bad marriage, a water chase, or a pointless international terrorist plot. No one seems to have a purpose or a direction beyond what is specified in the movie and that gives the characters a decidedly one dimensional feel that was not evident in the first film.

Despite all of the Transporter 2 is stylish and entertaining as long as you aren’t looking too deeply at the plot or the characters. It is a capable summer flick, easy to watch and just as easily forgotten. With his film presence Jeremy Stratham is certainly worthy of better material. But in the waning days of summer if you want to get in one last mindless blowing up buildings, car chase riddled film, Transporter 2 chases the summer out in style.