The One

Country: America
Genre: Action
Release Year: 2001
Type: Movie

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The One Review
In the near future, the universe is discovered not to be one single universe, but a multiverse. Traveling through wormholes to alternate universes is highly illegal and strictly policed. Gabriel Yulaw’s highest priority in life is to kill himself. Well, more specifically, it’s to kill forms of him that exist in alternate universes. Although Gabriel was once a member of the police force that helped to prevent against travel between universes, he realized that killing a form of himself in another universe made him stronger and faster as the dead person’s life force was transferred to the remaining versions of Yulaw in every universe. When all versions of him are killed, he will finally become The One.

The One is easily Jet Li’s most creative film work, and it has a very Hollywood-style feel. The film is quite different from the traditional martial arts film roles that Jet Li is known to create, but instead feels more like a Chinese version of The Matrix. Action abounds in the movie, but with the enhancement of incredible special effects, The One provides truly pulse-pounding action that will leave you breathless.

We all know that Jet Li can fight, and there is no exception in this movie. You have the usual amazing choreography but you also have the CGI which gives Jet Li moves that even Neo would be proud of. However, Jet Li really knows Kung-fu, and you can see him showing off maneuvers at blazing speeds which are just simply remarkable.

Unlike most Martial Arts movies where Jet Li can kill two hundred people easily, in this movie he faces a truly formidable adversary; himself. The last fight scene between these two guys was damn good, unfortunately, they don’t really fight seriously face-on before the final battle. There is less display of true martial arts skill in this film than in other Jet Li movies, but there is more pure, unadulterated action. What I mean by this is that Jet Li will often do some cool slow-motion maneuvers where he takes out a bunch of people Matrix-style. While this really isn’t martial arts, it’s definitely cool to watch.

The other characters were ok, but they simply don’t make as big of an impact on the movie as the two versions of Jet Li. Carla Gugino has a limited but important role in this movie as Gabriel Law’s wife, and Jason Statham has a role as Gabriel’s mentor and sidekick. Neither of these characters really stood out in any way, as their acting was overshadowed by the continuous action that Jet Li provided.

The music involves a lot of heavy rock music, including bands such as Papa Roach, Drowning Pool, and Disturbed. I really thought the music was fitting for such a movie, especially as background music for the evil Jet Li’s scenes. The music truly gave the character a badass feel, and it couldn’t have been more appropriate.

The One is definitely not a movie to be missed. If you haven’t seen this film it is highly recommended that you pick this one up. Jet Li is spectacular in his two roles in here, and if you like fighting movies or Jet Li, then your decision whether to see this movie should be a no-brainer.

Written by Lance

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