Critiqal

Synopsis:

Frank Martin (Statham) continues his job of delivering packages without questions in this third installment of the Transporter series.

Our Thoughts:

After having to sit through The Transporter (2002) back when it was in theaters, it didn’t even cross my mind there was going to be a sequel.

Then The Transporter 2 came out, and I stayed far far away. I eventually saw most of it on TV at one point, and actually thought they did a decent job with it. Not great, but at least better than the first film.

Now they are coming out with a third film, and I’m hesitant. While the third film could continue the upward trend of the series and be the best of the bunch, they’ve changed directors again, opting to go with Olivier Megaton.

Apparently Olivier Megaton’s biggest claim to fame to date was being a second-unit director on the awful Hitman (2007) - not exactly a resume that inspires confidence.

We’ve already seen what can happen when a directing newcomer tries to take on the Transporter series. After all, The Transporter (2002) was directed by stunt co-ordinator turned first-time director Cory Yuen, who went on to direct the equally bad DOA: Dead Or Alive (2007).

Louis Leterrier, on the other hand, took a break between directing Unleashed (2005) and the upcoming The Incredible Hulk (2008) to direct The Transporter 2, and his sequel trumped the first film easily.

So after showcasing what a director with some experience under his belt can do with the Transporter series, why are they going back to a first-time director for the third film? It doesn’t make sense - unless no accomplished directors wanted the job, which doesn’t make the script sound that good.

Chances are that The Transporter 2 will remain the best of the bunch, but the people who loved the idiotic The Transporter (2002) will probably eat up this new sequel anyway.

As for me, I’m probably going to wait for the DVD.