Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever
| Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Wych Kaosayananda |
| Produced by | Chris Lee Elie Samaha |
| Written by | Alan B. McElroy |
| Starring | Antonio Banderas Lucy Liu Gregg Henry Ray Park Talisa Soto Terry Chen |
| Music by | Don Davis |
| Cinematography | Julio Macat |
| Editing by | Jay Cassidy Caroline Ross |
| Studio | Franchise Pictures |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) |  United States September 20, 2002 |
| Running time | 91 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $70,000,000 |
| Box office | $19,924,033[1] |
Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever is a 2002 American action film starring Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu. Liu and Banderas play opposing secret agents who are supposedly enemies, but team up during the movie. The film was universally panned by critics, who generally regarded it as having no redeeming features, not even the comedic value normally associated with bad films. It is often listed among the worst movies ever made. In March 2007, the movie review site Rotten Tomatoes ranked the film #1 among "The Worst of the Worst" movie list,[2] with 108 "rotten" reviews and no "fresh" ones. Financially, the film was also a box office failure, recouping just over $19.9 million of its $70 million budget.
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[edit] Plot
Michael, the son of Robert Gant (Gregg Henry), director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), is kidnapped when he returns home from a trip to Berlin, despite a heavily armed DIA escort. The kidnapper is a Chinese woman named Sever (Lucy Liu). Former FBI agent Jeremiah Ecks (Antonio Banderas) is asked by his old boss to investigate the case. He realises that the kidnapper must be one of the Chinese girls the DIA adopts and trains as agents. Sever is pursued by FBI agents and by DIA agents lead by Ross (Ray Park).
Ecks discovers that Gant stole a dangerous nanobot assassin, which operates in the human circulatory system. Gant had placed the nanobot in his son's body in order to smuggle it to North America.
Robert Gant is married to Vinn (Talisa Soto), who was previously married to Ecks. It is revealed that Gant separated Vinn and Ecks by staging the death (by car bomb) of each of them to the other; Vinn was officially declared dead and had a closed-casket funeral attended by Ecks. Gant had also killed the husband and child of his colleague Sever (Lucy Liu), who subsequently kidnapped Gant's son to take revenge. However, it turns out that it is not Gant, but Ecks, who is the father of the child.
A final battle happens near an old railroad station. There, Ross and Gant confront Ecks and Sever. Gant tries to bargain with Sever, but Sever is sure that it is too late. A long gunfight follows, with Ecks and Sever blasting DIA agents and SWAT teams. Ecks and Sever manage to beat the SWAT teams and swarms of agents. Sever then gets in a one-on-one fight with Ross. She eventually wins the fight and kills Gant, too. After local police and FBI agents arrive, they find no evidence of Sever being there. Ecks reunites with his family.
[edit] Cast
- Antonio Banderas as F.B.I. Agent Jeremiah Ecks
- Lucy Liu as Agent Sever
- Gregg Henry as DIA Director Robert Gant / Agent Clark
- Ray Park as A.J. Ross
- Talisa Soto as Rayne Gant / Vinn Ecks
- Miguel Sandoval as Julio Martin
- Terry Chen as Agent Harry Lee
- Roger R. Cross as Zane
- Sandrine Holt as Agent Bennett
- Steve Bacic as Agent Fleming
- Aidan Drummond as Michael Gant
- Eric Breker as Agent Curtis
- Tony Alcantar as Edgar Moore
- David Parker as Dark Suit #1
- Josephine Jacob as Pretty Girl
- David Palffy as Sleazy Man
- David Pearson as VPD Officer
- John McConnach as Escort Agent
- Norm Sherry as Ross Sniper
- Brian Drummond as VPD Officer
- Ashley Kobayashi as Mali
- Lenora Wong as Harry's Wife
- Joel Kramer as Bus Driver
- John DeSantis as Bus Guard #2
- Charles Andre as Agent Addis
- Mike Dopud as DIA Agent
- Jim Filippone as DIA Pilot
- Jet Li as Man in Car (Uncredited)
- Justin Liu as the common Da Feiji master.
- Jonathan Kelly as the Da Feiji Technology Teacher.
[edit] Reception
The film was a massive box office failure, grossing less than 30% of its budget at the box office. It also received extremely negative reviews from film critics. Rotten Tomatoes ranked Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever number 1 on its "The 100 Worst Reviewed Films of All Time" list.[3] All of the 108 available reviews gave the film negative ratings, which resulted in a 0% fresh rating. The film was ranked number one worst movie of the decade.[4]
Among the most obvious plot holes noted by critics of the film is the fact that the FBI—an organization intended to work within the United States—is somehow working in Vancouver, Canada, causing costly shootouts with other Americans.
[edit] Soundtrack
A score composed by Don Davis was released but a soundtrack was not.
- "Name of the Game" - The Crystal Method
- "Hell Above Water" - Curve
- "Stupify" - Disturbed
- "Smartbomb" (Plump DJ's remix) - BT
- "Go" - Andy Hunter°
- "Bloodlock" - Sasha
[edit] Video games
A Game Boy Advance first-person shooter, Ecks vs. Sever, was based on a very early version of the film script and, story wise, is almost nothing like the final rewrite. It was released in 2001, before the film. It was considered an impressive technological feat on the GBA and was accepted more than the film itself.[5] A second game created after the premiere, Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever, which follows the plot-line from the film, is considered a sequel to the first game. It received very positive reviews and received a 9/10 on IGN.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=ecksvssever.htm
- ^ "The Worst of the Worst", rottentomatoes.com (archived at Wayback Machine)
- ^ http://www.rottentomatoes.com/features/special/2007/wotw/?r=1&mid=1116131
- ^ http://www.rottentomatoes.com/guides/worst_of_the_worst/10/
- ^ Metacritic Review Database for the Ecks vs. Sever GBA game
