THE FILM

With "District B13" and last year's runaway train of parental purpose, "Taken," Pierre Morel positioned himself as a superior action director, and one of the few film minds able to process producer Luc Besson's harebrained story ideas and cockamamie characterizations. "From Paris with Love" is their latest collaboration, but the timing is off, the script's stupidity is more grating than endearing, and Morel is forced to contend with a giant slab of Hormel's finest (assuming the shape of John Travolta) for this action-comedy. These are simple ingredients, but Morel and Besson appear distracted for this round of Euro smash-em-up, making the film disappointingly clumsy and strangely unadventurous.

A clever assistant to the U.S. ambassador in France, James Reese (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is eager to join the big guns at the C.I.A., where his wits would be put to good use saving the world. An opportunity to prove himself comes with the arrival of partner Charlie Wax (John Travolta), a loose-cannon agent with little interest in criminal small talk. Tearing across Paris on the hunt for a terror cell of Islamic fundamentalists, Wax takes Reese on a journey of gunplay and superspy bravado, infiltrating the seedy side of the city while the overwhelmed agent-in-training tries to calm the escalating protests emerging from his girlfriend (Kasia Smutniak).

I'll give "From Paris with Love" this much: the movie moves. Morel has a masterful touch when it comes to pace, and his latest benefits from such refreshing acceleration. The opening sets up the characters in frustratingly vague ways, but once Wax hits the film, the screenplay (by Adi Hasak, who previously wrote 1997's "Shadow Conspiracy") takes off like a demon, arranging a series of unsavory characters for Wax and Reese to beat down and shoot up. The movement of Morel's direction is genuinely thrilling, leaping from location to location ready to make some noise, staging gunfire and action set-pieces with a slightly cartoon quality to match Travolta's nutty performance. There's a nice chunk of entertainment value to be found in the feature.

I'm not suggesting Morel's previous pictures were extraordinary achievements of cinema, but for matinee candy, they were beautifully executed, strongly acted, and contained genuine surprise. "From Paris with Love" is a little sleepy in the amazement department. Save for one wild bit of business that features Wax and Reese strung out on stolen coke, the film doesn't offer many jolts. Instead, the script is excruciatingly underlined, with the two main characters spelling out their every move for the audience, and in the case of Rhys Meyers, it's exposition emerging from the worst American accent imaginable (Gerard Butler, you've been replaced). "From Paris with Love" didn't need to be subtle, but it should've allowed for more gleefully bewildering behavior. Instead the script doles out tired puns, lame self-referential jokes, and a works a twist into the story that Reese doesn't even believe (that makes two of us) while nursing a bullet wound that erases any doubt.

"From Paris with Love" goes over-the-top with stunts and weaponry (Wax speeding down a Parisian highway toting a rocket launcher is a memorable visual), launches more than its fair share of profanity-laced one-liners, and indulges Travolta wherever it can (including his Jack Sparrow/Mr. Clean appearance), but it never congeals into a rousing action bonanza. Morel spoils the tone by including flashes of real world threat and violent consequence, which is a baffling choice for a film this one-dimensional. The brakes are applied intermittently throughout the picture, culminating with an embassy showdown that seeks to merge ridiculousness with poignancy. I don't know, can a teary finale peacefully coexist in a film where Wax names his gun "Mrs. Jones," serenading his weapon with the immortal Billy Paul classic? Turns out, no.

THE DVD

Visual:

The anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1 aspect ratio) presentation sustains the glossy filmmaking effort without any hiccups, offering a nicely detailed and colorful image that underscores the zany criminal interactions on display here. Skintones are a bit pink, but believable, while black levels are strong throughout, permitting the finer details their moments of discovery. Colors are solid and communicated well, with a few of the brighter sequences showing off a nice range of hues.

Audio:

The 5.1 Dolby Digital mix on this DVD is an aggressive effort, successfully conveying the carnage onscreen with a fully formed, dimensional track that gives the image a true punch. Fidelity is nice, with a smooth bottom end that assists the explosive sequences. Dialogue is well taken care of, with snappy banter always easy to discern, propped up in front without sacrificing the cohesive quality of the scoring and sound effects. Atmospherics are memorable, best when the mayhem heats up and the boys find themselves in diverse locations. A 2.0 mix is also offered.

Subtitles:

English and Spanish subtitles are included.

Extras:

The feature-length audio commentary with director Pierre Morel is an extremely sedate affair, though I'm impressed the filmmaker has the gas to talk about this picture for 90 straight minutes. Morel likes to point out the obvious differences in characterization, slipping into play-by-play mode at times to find his thoughts, which typically revolve around the challenges of shooting in Paris. The director seems proud of the film, but he's not the most animated of speakers, providing a soft monotone to chat up a rambunctious picture. There's simply not much here.

"Making of 'From Paris with Love'" (26:42) is a well-produced featurette covering the shooting of the film. Interviews with cast and crew (conducted on-set) fail to illuminate, but the BTS footage is excellent, showing how certain sequences were achieved, while providing an evocative feel of the production's presence in Paris.

"Spies, Spooks, and Special Ops: Life Under Cover" (16:06) attempts to merge the shenanigans from the movie with a real-world discussion of spying from former C.I.A. operatives. Useful? I suppose. It just seems a bit out of place on this disc.

"Secrets of the Spy Craft: Inside the International Spy Museum" (4:26) heads to Washington D.C. to look over the gadgets and weapons used to keep global peace. It looks like an incredibly cool place to visit.

And a Theatrical Trailer is included.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I wanted to enjoy "From Paris with Love" more than I actually did, but the schizophrenic nature of the picture, along with its need to dumb everything way down to appease the mass audience, wears on the senses after a short while. The R-rated bullet ballet is lively, and a bonkers Travolta is always good for a laugh or two, but the picture doesn't come through on its promise of a cartwheeling good time. It's a shame, since Morel and Besson are capable of such wonderful madness.