A review by Brooks Rich
I almost forgot to make the Friday post this week. Oops. It's getting a little harder to select films for Friday as I am also trying to preserve the filmographies of directors I might want to dedicate a month too. So today I am covering one of my favorite Wesley Snipes films, 2000s The Art of War. This film got buried in Snipes performance in the Blade trilogy but it's one of the slickest action thriller of the early 2000s, kind of a last gasp of the '90s, and is leagues better than Blade Trinity.
Snipes is Neil Shaw, a covert operative for the United Nations. He and his team use dirty tricks to ensure peace and cooperation. When Shaw is framed for the assassination of the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, he must go on the run with a UN interpreter to clear his name and uncover a conspiracy involving a trade agreement between the US and China. Second movie covered on this blog from around this time about China US trade agreements. It's like it was a recurring theme back then.
I am a Wesley Snipes fan. Yeah he was stupid and probably should have paid his taxes. Don't stiff the IRS, folks. Snipes has always been a charismatic leading man and The Art of War is a perfect showcase for him. He has good chemistry with actress Marie Matiko, who plays the interpreter, and I love all the scenes he has with his supervisor, played by the awesome Anne Archer.
This film is too good to be forgotten like this. The story is very interesting and moves along at a brisk place. The action feels plot driven instead of having action scenes just to have action scenes. Director Christian Duguay does a good job directing the action, especially Snipes escape from a car, easily one of the film's highlights. The opening is also well done and it's insane stunt is of course ruined in the trailer because why not. Also the last fight scene in this has a moment that I remember audibly wincing at in the theaters when I saw it back in 2000. Yeah this was one of the first R rated movies I saw in the theaters. It was this, The Matrix, and when my parents took me to Harrison Ford's romantic drama thriller Random Hearts. Anyone remember that film? It's weird.
Track this film down. It pops up on Netflix every once and awhile. It's a fun ride and a '90s action film hiding in 2000. Good stuff.
I almost forgot to make the Friday post this week. Oops. It's getting a little harder to select films for Friday as I am also trying to preserve the filmographies of directors I might want to dedicate a month too. So today I am covering one of my favorite Wesley Snipes films, 2000s The Art of War. This film got buried in Snipes performance in the Blade trilogy but it's one of the slickest action thriller of the early 2000s, kind of a last gasp of the '90s, and is leagues better than Blade Trinity.
Snipes is Neil Shaw, a covert operative for the United Nations. He and his team use dirty tricks to ensure peace and cooperation. When Shaw is framed for the assassination of the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations, he must go on the run with a UN interpreter to clear his name and uncover a conspiracy involving a trade agreement between the US and China. Second movie covered on this blog from around this time about China US trade agreements. It's like it was a recurring theme back then.
I am a Wesley Snipes fan. Yeah he was stupid and probably should have paid his taxes. Don't stiff the IRS, folks. Snipes has always been a charismatic leading man and The Art of War is a perfect showcase for him. He has good chemistry with actress Marie Matiko, who plays the interpreter, and I love all the scenes he has with his supervisor, played by the awesome Anne Archer.
This film is too good to be forgotten like this. The story is very interesting and moves along at a brisk place. The action feels plot driven instead of having action scenes just to have action scenes. Director Christian Duguay does a good job directing the action, especially Snipes escape from a car, easily one of the film's highlights. The opening is also well done and it's insane stunt is of course ruined in the trailer because why not. Also the last fight scene in this has a moment that I remember audibly wincing at in the theaters when I saw it back in 2000. Yeah this was one of the first R rated movies I saw in the theaters. It was this, The Matrix, and when my parents took me to Harrison Ford's romantic drama thriller Random Hearts. Anyone remember that film? It's weird.
Track this film down. It pops up on Netflix every once and awhile. It's a fun ride and a '90s action film hiding in 2000. Good stuff.
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