No matrix, but then at times the Matrix isn't even itself. Bullet proof Monk is good but not great. The action is ok, the dialogue isn't bad and the plot was a good idea that just needs some work in spots. Such as Sean William Scott's love interest, she was kinda cool, but i'm afraid I didn't quite sympthasize with her point of views. That and they killed of one of the main characters just a little too quickly, and then took to long on another.I know this sounds like I can't make up my mind, but they needed an equalizer for the deaths of the bad guys.

A decent action thriller with enough romance for the girls, and machoism for the guys. That, everybody comes away from the film feeling as the good guys got the decent reward, even if it seemed to obvious of an outcome.

...so obviously this movie doesn't have a BULLETPROOF script. But in the long haul, that doesn't really matter.
Directed by Paul Hunter, Written by Ethan Reiff & Cyrus Varis and based upon the cult comic book of the same name, BULLETPROOF MONK is an entertaining (if predictable) blend of fantasy, martial arts, action and comedy; given more weight by the commanding screen presence of the legendary Chow Yun-Fat.
The film opens in Tibet in 1943, in the Buddhist Temple of Sublime Truth. Held within its confines is an ancient document, The Scroll Of The Ultimate. Anybody who is able to decipher its symbolism and read the scroll in its entirety is able to control the world and use the scrolls power for purposes of good or evil.
As with a lot of comic book movies the "plot" can be written on the inside of a matchbox: The Monk (Yun-Fat) has been given the task of guarding the scroll and as part of this responsibility he has sacrificed his name. In return he has been granted eternal youth.
But predictably, with it being 1943 and all, the Hitler has learned of the scrolls power & of course wants it in his possession to bring him closer to his goal of world domination. Of course, as any movie fan knows, the impotent little twerp couldn't take the Lost Ark Of The Covenant or the Holy Grail from Indiana Jones (RAIDERS and LAST CRUSADE) And bear in mind that Der Fruitcake he has also been mocked by Charlie Chaplin (THE GREAT DICTATOR- brilliant movie), been titillated by Grandpa Simpson in drag as a burlesque dancer & been indecently assaulted with a pineapple by Satan, a.k.a Harvey Keitel (LITTLE NICKY). But alas, alack, he has actually succeeded in murdering The Monk's master, and The Monk cannot rest in peace until he has returned the Scroll to the Temple & avenged his mentors death. Sound simple enough? Not really.
Now we flash forward sixty years later to New York, where The Monk is still on his quest. After a run-in with a young pickpocket named Kar (Seann William Scott), The Monk finds himself reluctantly joining forces with Kar to find the scroll.
Coincidentally also in NYC is the very Nazi who took the scroll from the Monk. Now wheelchair bound, he is still desperate for eternal youth and hungry for world domination; and this is made easier now that he has his hot blond granddaughter (Jaime King) to aid him.
So basically what follows is all quite predictable: Kar keeps trying to rip-off The Monk while lusting after King, The Monk does lots of butt whupping in some spectacular martial arts sequences and adults will be checking the clock counters on their DVD to see how much longer they have to suffer through this while kids will just enjoy all the action and won't give two hoots about it. I gave it three stars because I found it to still be quite entertaining (and also because at times I feel like I'm a kid trapped in a 25 year olds body). Another reason to watch is that the movie's Produced by John Woo; who along with Chow, helps give the movie more energy. Though BULLETPROOF MONK is light years away from reaching the heights of A BETTER TOMMORROW or HARD BOILED, it's still a good time-killing popcorn flick.
DVD Extras include five featurettes, behind the scenes doco "The Monk Unrobed", deleted scenes, trailer and a behind the scenes photo gallery.

This film was horrible! While I do use that word at times to describe certain films, this film probably is the first time that I used it to describe every part of it in its entirety. There were no redeeming qualities in this film, between the pompous acting and the cheapened story, it surprises me that anyone went to see this film or rather why it hasn't made it to the dollar bin at my local video retailer. I have read reviews that boast this film's originality and excitement, but I only mock at these fellow reviewers and question the honesty of their words. Did they see the film, or are they simply trying to build some form of publicity behind it? It is like I have said before, no matter how much you dress trash up, it is still yesterday's garbage. Bulletproof Monk is no exception. With crappy (for lack of a better word) acting, a childish story that teeters between unoriginality and boredom, and finally cheap special effects that continually prove that this director would have been better off staying with music videos instead of dabbling in the motion picture industry.

You can only ask an actor to do so much before it begins to feel like yesterday's laundry. Seann William Scott is not ready to headline a film, much less an action film on his own accord. He has not handled the pressures of being a leading man nor has he earned the rights. His work on the American Pie films may have given him some psudo-cult status, but it has not pushed him to the point of leading man. That may have been the reasoning for matching him with Yun-Fat Chow. The directors and producers were probably hoping that it would all balance out, well let me be the first to say that the scales were tipped unevenly in this movie. Scott portrayed his character physically able to do the task at hand, but with a Stifler mentality. That does not make for a good action film. There should be no reason that you, as an actor, should be clinging onto past characters to draw audiences into your film. Give them something fresh or something new to see and I promise they will continue to come back. That is definitely not the case here. Scott keeps that pompous grin on his face even during the emotional moments as if to say that he is cashing a big check with this one. In other words, from the beginning to the end of this film, he just didn't feel or fit the part that he was handed. Then again, nothing much was given by Yun-Fat Chow. Normally a decent actor, it is nearly insulting to see Chow in action with this film. CGI replaced actual fighting while deeply rooted conversation seems to float around hot dogs instead of life. It just doesn't seem like the vehicle that Chow would be found driving. Given that we have two actors that were completely miscast, the inevitable downfall for the rest of the film is that the story will suffer.

This was by far the poorest written story imaginable. I was surprised that `ole Alan Smithee didn't make an appearance on the ending credits. The use of Nazis as the irrefutable "bad guy" should sum it up for everyone reading this review. But, perhaps I am getting too hasty. The opening fight sequence was completely created by Hollywood instead of by true martial arts experts. This should be our vision into the future if we weren't so blinded by a recycled story about a scroll and the equivalent of a "golden child". The fact that our hero learns kung-fu from films is just another prize example of this downward spiral. Coupled with low-budgeted CGI and you have nothing that you can literally hold in your hands. Scott's character never gets off the ground, literally and figuratively, while Chow seems to be a substitute teacher instead of the one that gives us the wisdom we deserve. Even the love interest seems like a faded shirt. Maybe it was Scott's challenged grin or the complete lack of chemistry between him and a gu....girl named James, or just the fact that the moment they met they fell for each other without any further explanation just rubbed me the wrong way. It felt as if I had hic-ups throughout this entire film, continually wondering if they would ever settle I was forced to watch a very jumpy movie that offered no signs of relief.

Finally, what would be the point of talking about this film without at least mentioning once the cheese factor of the film known as the CGI. I have several opinions on what happened in this department, of which two I plan to offer to you guys. My first impression was that Bulletproof Monk was one of the pioneer films to allow interns to create effects in hopes of bettering a film. The producers than decided to leave in all the errors and amateurish designs in hopes to show the class a final product. Then, instead of going back to change the errors, they got frustrated with their students and decided to print the copy that they had in their hand, thus ultimately ruining the film. The second option that I have considered is that the effects were done by a disgruntled employee that decided to sabotage the film by including cheapened CGI/bullet-time effects. Either way, whichever of these (or the thousands of other possibilities) happened, it hurt the film deeper than anyone could have imagined. It hurt the characters and defaced the plot, leaving nothing for the avid film viewer like myself to grasp ahold of.

Overall, disappointment raged through my body when the final credits finally rolled.

Grade: * out of *****

A nice comedy/action film that's loads of fun to watch. Simple good vs. evil plot, with a few new twists on the East meets West theme. Goes great with the popcorn!

A little Hong Kong Kung Fu campy but most enjoyable. Not the vulgar, graphic violence in most of today's so called action movies. Requires a little more imagination than most of today's young people have but well worth watching. Some of the language used may put some people off but not excessive nor frequent.