SUBMITTED BY LClem

April 16, 2003 — You couldn't make a case for "Bulletproof Monk" as a superior example of movie craftsmanship. The narrative is as slapdash as it is in most big-budget action movies. The images lack luster (surprising since the cinematographer is Stefan Czapsky, who has done striking work for Tim Burton and on Danny DeVito's wonderful "Matilda"), and the martial arts sequences have been edited (by Robert K. Lambert) with typical Cuisinart busyness. So why is "Bulletproof Monk" so much more enjoyable than the usual run-of-the-mill action junk? Why does it send you out of the theater in such a good mood? "Bulletproof Monk" absolutely refuses to take itself seriously, and it's precisely how it refuses to take itself seriously that makes all the difference. Striking an ironic stance has become the way for commercial movies to get away with being crap; simply acknowledging clichi has become a way for movies to claim that they are superior to the rest of the junk out there. (more at the link)