Reel News

THE ONE

Reviewed byJustin Colburn and Keayn Dunya

In a parallel universe man has harnessed the power to move between universes. To regulate this type of travel, the Multi-Verse Agency was formed. Jet Li (Black Mask) stars as Yulaw, a rogue Multi-Verse Agent who is traveling through parallel dimensions in order to kill all of his Parallel Universe Versions (PUV's). Each time one of his PUV's dies, the energy that unites them all is redistrubuted among the survivors, making each in turn stronger, smarter and faster. As the movie begins Yulaw has killed 123 of the 125 versions of him and is on his way to kill the last one, Gabe Law (also played by Jet Li). Yulaw believes that by killing all of his PUV's he will absorb the energy they shared making him the "One" and giving him god-like power. Of course that is only one theory, the other being that by killing Gabe, Yulaw could upset the balance and destroy the universe. Yulaw is pursued by two other Multi-Verse Agents, rookie Evan Funsh (Jason Statham, Snatch) and Yulaw's former partner, Harry Roedecker (Delroy Lindo, Romeo Must Die). They have to stop super powered Yulaw from killing Gabe without killing him in the process.

There is one rather large hole in the story. If you can buy the theory that a limited number of universes exist or that versions of you exist in only a limited number then you'll have no problem. Whether you agree or disagree, there's a scientific argument for both. Other than that, the story flows well. The special effects team did a very good job of enhancing the story instead of trying of trying to dominate it. The action itself was spectacular and well complimented by the soundtrack. The motorcycle scene has created a lot of buzz and may be the highlight for special effects fans in the movie. The final scene was well done with the slow build up in styles between Gabe and Yulaw. One of the interesting things is how Gabe and Yulaw's Wu Shu styles reflected their personalities. Yulaw's style was fierce and direct, while Gabe's graceful and circular style reflected his romantic and peaceful nature that was most evident in the scenes involving his wife, T.K. (Carla Gugino, Spy Kids).

The One is the first big budget sci-fi/action movie since the Matrix so it has drawn several unfair comparisons based on that. This movie is not the Matrix. Other than the mention of the one and similar special effects these movies have nothing in common. The Matrix was terrific in its groundbreaking special effects and no one yelled "Thief!" when Yuen Woo Ping did the Kung Fu Choreography. So James Wong should be able to use similar, not the same, special effects without being called a hack. The One sets itself apart from the others with a style of its own and it deserves that recognition.