Recommended Reading

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

Oh yeah, and while this movie isn't about spies, "Training Day" does have some crazy cause & consequence.

[Mirren]

someone mentioned Mamet's Redbelt, also by Mamet is Spartan with Val Kilmer, and its very much steeped in the black ops/espionage setting. surprised that no one has mentioned The Man From U.N.C.L.E., was a long running 60's spy show with a healthy dose of humour often showing itself in the form of the two main characters ineptitude. another spy show which was very good but more recent was Intelligence, a Canadian show that ran for two seasons focusing on the internal and external conflicts facing CSIS and a Vancouver based criminal organisation, essentially think The Wire but more watchable and with a greater emphasis on espionage

[Mirren]

i've heard a lot of praise for Taken but doesn't anyone think Kiss of the Dragon was superior?

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

i've heard a lot of praise for Taken but doesn't anyone think Kiss of the Dragon was superior?

 

Never saw it actually, it's on the list now. I did think Taken was pretty badass though, and while Jet Li is obviously a better martial artist Liam definitely has better acting chops.

[Mirren]

i've heard a lot of praise for Taken but doesn't anyone think Kiss of the Dragon was superior?

 

Never saw it actually, it's on the list now. I did think Taken was pretty badass though, and while Jet Li is obviously a better martial artist Liam definitely has better acting chops.

 

the whole idea behind Kiss of the Dragon was to make a more realistic Jet Li film, less wire work. both Taken and KOTD are set in Paris, KOTD takes less time to get going, and where Neeson's character is retired Li's character is still very much active(also the premise of a Chinese spy is more fresh then just another former CIA operative), also felt like a waste of Neeson's acting talent, and though tacky i like how in KOTD every fight scene is like a boss battle and has a unique angle to it e.g fighting a Dojo full of police officers in Karate gi's armed with tonfas or in another scene fighting a giant shirtless black bare knuckle boxer

[Fearless_Jedi]

Wait a minute how can you people even compare Kiss of the Dragon to Taken? Taken had such a better production quality to it and comparing it to KotD is like comparing a C movie to a B+ movie.

 

I like Jet Lee but Kiss of the Dragon seemed like a much more shallow story than Taken. Plus, I much preferred Taken's extensively brutal take on combat compared to the overly flashy and showoffy form in KotD. Not to mention the fact that Taken kept u on the edge of your seat most of the time while KotD kept you begging for more action during the boring parts.

 

Kiss of the Dragon as a better movie than Taken? What have you been smoking to cause such delirium?

[Mirren]

Wait a minute how can you people even compare Kiss of the Dragon to Taken? Taken had such a better production quality to it and comparing it to KotD is like comparing a C movie to a B+ movie.

 

I like Jet Lee but Kiss of the Dragon seemed like a much more shallow story than Taken. Plus, I much preferred Taken's extensively brutal take on combat compared to the overly flashy and showoffy form in KotD. Not to mention the fact that Taken kept u on the edge of your seat most of the time while KotD kept you begging for more action during the boring parts.

 

Kiss of the Dragon as a better movie than Taken? What have you been smoking to cause such delirium?

 

*shrugs* they're both Luc Besson produced so neither of them are exactly going to be of Fellini levels production wise, but if i had to choose between the two i'd give KOTD the advantage. Taken was just too dry and took too long to get started, the cinema where i saw it a lot of the men in the audience seemed to be pretty pumped and as they were leaving a lot of them seemed to be discussing the coolest scenes from the film but personally i just thought it was pretty meh. My take on the story is mostly the same as my take on the production values, Chinese super cop who's flown out to Paris to assist in French police operation to arrest a Chinese international finds himself without his passport and gun in a country where he doesn't speak the language with both police and criminals trying to kill him, he encounters a woman who like him doesn't speak the language and is likewise in a dire situation and decides to help her not because it might benefit himself but because it's the right thing to do versus washed up former CIA operative who has a daughter he's starting to lose touch with, she's kidnapped while in Paris so he hops on a plane and cracks some skulls, i'm siding with KOTD for story. KOTD also had one of the best film soundtracks i've ever heard, a soundtrack that was incredible in the context of the film, and as good when listened to by itself or even a single track. I guess that i just watched it at the right time, i was most probably in my teens and managed to sneak into a showing and i was at that age where i was starting to take a serious interest in music and film, had seen a number of Li's previous films (none of which i had partically enjoyed) and a number of Besson films (which i had very much enjoyed) and i liked it so much that nearly ten years later it still stands out as one of the best films i've seen and has developed into almost a ritual of watching it every year or two after on television, i'd most probably still put it in my top ten favourite films (along with such films as Russian Ark and The Cremaster Cycle).

[Mirren]

The ones who insert the "tapping a few keys on the keyboard turns a grainy low-res image into a super sharp high-res image" thing, into their plots, of course.

 

I see your CSI and raise you an Untraceable (about halfway down the page, can't find the unimbedded clip)

 

i watched Untraceable but only because at the time it thought it was a Tarsem Singh film

[Mirren]

The International is a great espionage film, it makes the Bond films look (even more) club handed. does anyone know if you can customise Thornton's facial structure? if you can i'm going to make my character look like Clive Owen

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

I second the International. A bit more cerebral than many espionage thrillers, though the pacing may be slow for those who want explosions.

[MacMichael]

Just came across a series today on Netflix, called MI-5. It's a BBC series and the first couple episodes look promising. Kind of a British version of 24 without the beating of people to a pulp. And each episode so far is a self contained plot.

[Mr. Fob]

Alright, didn't have time to read the whole topic just right now but the search topic function didn't turn up results so I guess this has not been suggested yet.

A very good mini series is "the state within".

It's mainly about the British ambassador in Washington DC who is confronted with an international crisi. Basically it looks like it is inspired by 24 but it much more focuses on the political and diplomatic aspect than on the action (though there is some in it as well).

I got the DVDs about a year ago and I am gonna watch it again as I am waiting for AP to come.

[entrerix]

did anyone mention "The Professional"?

 

best assassin movie ever made. plus gary oldman = win