Wasabi

In France, Hubert Fiorentini (Jean Reno) is a tough, violent, but very effective detective, who has been missing the great love of his life, a Japanese woman, for nineteen years. While capturing a criminal drag-queen, Hubert hurts the son of his chief and is "licenceed" for a couple of months. Meanwhile, he is called from Tokyo by the lawyer of his former girlfriend, who died and left of her possessions to him. When he arrives in Tokyo, he meets his former partner Momo (Michel Muller) and is informed by the lawyer about his inheritance: 200 millions of Euros and a teenager daughter, Yumi Yoshimido (Ryoko Hirosue). Sooner he realizes that the Yakuza is chasing him, looking for the huge amount of money. "Wasabi" is a great and very funny adventure, recalling the confusions of "Lethal Weapon". Jean Reno is excellent, as usual, in the role of a tough but very sentimental man. Ryoko Hirosue gives charm to the story, and Michel Muller is the clumsy and quite dumb partner of Hubert. This movie made my family and I laugh a lot, being an excellent entertainment. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Wasabi"

`Wasabi' is a high-spirited French action comedy with a Japanese name. This Luc Besson production stars Jean Reno in a wonderful performance as a tough-guy French cop who is as quick to use his tongue as his overeager fists. One day, out of the blue, Detective Fiorentino discovers that he has a 19 year-old daughter by a Japanese woman who left him almost 20 years ago, breaking his heart in the process. The girl, Yumi, turns out to be an orange-haired free spirit who hates cops and has been led to believe that her father raped her mother. Much of the film is spent with Hubert and Yumi getting to know one another, as they uncover secrets about her mother's past that seem to have made the young woman the target of some rather unsavory characters.

The plot is the least of the matter in this film. As directed by Gerard Krawczyk, `Wasabi' is really all about style. Besson's screenplay is fitfully amusing, doling out cleverness and cutesyness in roughly equal measure. Cinematographer Gerard Sterin brings out the colorful richness of the urban Japanese landscape and editor Yanne Herve doesn't linger longer on the jokes and sight gags than is absolutely necessary. These elements help to compensate for the somewhat desperate air that afflicts the screenplay from time to time.

The prime asset of `Wasabi' is Jean Reno's performance. Reno perfectly mines the comic potential inherent in the material through the tone of weary cynicism and superiority to all around him that he conveys throughout. As an actor who has played this type of rogue-cop character many times in his career, Reno obviously relishes this opportunity for a little good-natured self-ribbing. And he does a splendid job.

`Wasabi' is little more than a piffle when all is said and done, but Reno makes it worth seeing.

I never know how to rate these types of films. OK it's no masterpiece to bring some sort of existential meaning to your life and yes it is deeply flawed in many ways even by the standard at which it aims for but nonetheless, I found some endearing quality in its light hearted humour and entertaining style.

Any film with Jean Reno in the lead and Luc Besson behind the script is going to entertain and this does just that. Thankfully the film is kept short enough for none of the flaws to start to irritate and the kick ass French cop goes to Japan theme is done well enough to warrant a viewing.

My DVD had the option for French with English subtitles or English dubbed. Even though Jean Reno does his own over dubbing in the English version, I found the overall effect was a little stale. I restarted the film in French with subtitles and the energy and humour of the performances just shone through a lot better.

I am no Jean Reno fan, but I hired this one on DVD today and thoroughly enjoyed it. Although technically a French Film, it was mostly made in Japan and gives some insight into Japanese culture. The film provokes both tears and laughter in successive bouts. I didn't like the beginning with all its techno rubbish, but once that was out of the way and the story got going I really enjoyed myself. Reno was really quite amusing and the storyline, although nothing original, enables the spectator to enjoy him or herself. In addition, the Japanese actress was cute. Although the film cannot be considered a major work of art, it is sure to have international success as its theme is fairly universal and should be appreciated across a wide variety of cultures. There are many things which would make anyone laugh, whatever their culture or origin. There is little typically French about the film and indeed most of the action is in Tokyo. I can say fairely safely that all but the most cynical would get a great deal of fun out of this 90 minute stint. Bravo, and let's hope the film gets known worldwide !

The goal of this film is to entertain. And it works. Leave your brain at the door and enjoy. The soundtrack is appropriate and good. Jean Reno is at the apex of coolness and Ryoko Hirosue is hip and refreshing. One could say the movie is some kind of techno-cop film that takes some aspects of the traditional French cop movies and push it to the limit during a crazy few days in Tokyo. Great to see the mega-city by the way. The movie is a cross between your typical James Bond and a modern Japanese action flick. Seen at home, in Toronto, on April 4th, 2006.

74/100 (**½)