The Red Siren (2004)
Nearly 13, Alice rebels, telling the Paris police that her mother is a murderer. Alice has no evidence; her mother, Eva, rich and powerful, avoids charges. Alice promptly runs away, determined to find her dad whom she claims lives in Portugal. The police believe he is dead and that Alice is in denial. Nonetheless, they dispatch Anita, an Italian police officer on loan to the French, to find Alice and bring her back. Meanwhile, Eva has launched her own paramilitary force to hunt for Alice, and Alice has found a protector in Hugo, an ex-soldier turned hit man and gang member. He promises to get her to her father. All roads lead to a small town on the Portuguese coast.
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If you don't like this, we can't be friends.
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.
Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
I must confess... my low rating of this has to do with a similar plot (pre-teen girl who's life is in danger taken under the wing of a professional assassin) being much better utilised in Leon, with far more suspense and gripping action. It also had the added bonus of a young Natalie Portman, rather than the whiny brat who constantly lands everyone in trouble here. Add to that the main shootout being a poorly edited, shot-in-green-light farce, and a villainess who, if she chewed any more carpet, would have a completely bare house, and you can see we have real problems here.Still, it's not all bad. Jean-Marc Barr compellingly plays the ice-cool hired killer, and Asia Argento makes for a sexy yet intelligent officer. We get to see quite a few scenic highlights of Europe, and the plot moves along with just the right speed to stop boredom setting in. It's just the feeling of deja vu is constant from the first shot... And I guarantee you've seen it done better. I know I keep bringing this point up in my reviews, but if the boot fits... 5/10.
Honestly, if this movie had not included the aforementioned shooting scene, there would be really not much to see. In short, a not bad idea with a bad delivery. Acting not really believable and pardon me, Franch actors trying not to sound French, even with their voices dubbed onto the movie as they most probably could not deliver acting performance together with not sounding French. Funny if not ridiculous at times. Instead of saying the usual French 'otel' - I mean 'hotel', pronouncing every single syllable to the best of their abilities. Totally unbelievable role of the female cop, naive, dumb and artificial. Nice try, try harder next time...
A young girl named Alice(Alexandra Negrão)calls on Inspector Anita(Asia Argento, playing a normal person..seems to be going through the motions)to help put her assassin mother Eva(Frances Barber..one evil bitch)away because of the torture/execution of a maid recorded on disc. The killer, however, had a mask and the voice was mechanically altered. Even worse, Eva is a wealthy, powerful woman no matter how cold-blooded she is. Alice will go on the lam as Eva's goons are in hot pursuit. Luckily for Alice she hides in the car of Hugo(Jean-Marc Barr), a freedom fighter for a assassin group called Liberty Bells, who we saw in the opening accidentally kill a child he thought was a soldier. Hugo will assist Alice in the search for her boatmaker father Travis(Johan Leysen)while Eva draws on her lover, the Colonel(Carlo Brandt)and his top mercenary Sorvan(François Levantal)to find their whereabouts. Meanwhile, Anita will be given leave by her boss to go on the road to find Alice herself. It will all lead to a final showdown in the secret location/residence of Alice's father..that is if Hugo can get her there in one piece and if he's even alive.While, like many of it's kind, this polished, ultra-stylish Euro-actioner asks the viewer to accept a lot of improbable situations(such as the bullet-ridden hotel sequence where several of the Colonel's soldiers attempt to flush Hugo out from hiding resulting in lots of hi-tech gunplay)and coincidences(Alice just happening to choose a talented, top-notch assassin's car to hide in while running from Eva's goons). I enjoyed it even if logic is completely thrown out the window. I liked Jean-Marc as the hero Hugo and thought Barber was effective as the reptilian Eva.
I'm a huge fan of the Argento's and I watched this movie only because of Asia's presence. I really shouldn't have.The plot centers around a girl who claims her mother is a vicious murderer and the girl winds befriending a french "Leon" type assassin who helps her find her long lost father. But the deranged mother wants her daughter back and hires the most incompetent assassins ever to get to her. Also, a totally incompetent cop, played by Asia, is on their trail too.There's nothing here of any substance. No character devolopment, some of the stubidest dialouge ever, no suspense, bad acting and very boring (and long) action sequences. Everything in the technical department is well done but when there's no substance the film is simply boring. And it's way too overlong.I simply cannot believe Asia is refusing to work with her father and chooses these projects instead. This film isn't as boring as XXX, but it comes close.