Safe (2012)

Posted in Reviews by - September 05, 2012
Safe (2012)

Mei is an 11 year old maths prodigy stolen from her Beijing school and held under duress to play financial adviser to Chinese triads in New York’s Chinatown. She is the sole occupant of a crucial code to a safety deposit box – the number is stored in the young girl’s photographic memory – and everyone from the Russian mafia, corrupt cops at the NYPD and even the Mayor’s office is in on the deal. Running parallel to this is the story of vaguely American cage fighter and ex-Special Ops tough guy Luke Wright (The Stath) who wrongs the Russians by failing to dodge a fight so his wife ends up in a body bag. He literally runs into Mei in an NY subway after scaling the moving train and running along the roof to save her, beating up some punks in the process. The ensuing chase device would have worked better if director/writer Yakin focused a bit more on the chemistry between Luke and the girl, as attempts to paint Statham as a surrogate father figure fizzles out among all the punching and gun fights. He still delivers the goods, though, even if this effort is particularly routine action fare, and pretty much exactly what the title suggests. Those expecting excesses of delirium as witnessed in The Stath classics like The Transporter or Crank will be left particularly nonplussed.

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Editor and creator of Kung Fu Movie Guide and the host of the Kung Fu Movie Guide Podcast. I live behind a laptop in London, UK.

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