Kiss of the Dragon

Kiss of the Dragon

-2001 martial arts action movie directed by Chris Nahon
-Stars Jet Li, Bridget Fonda, Luc Besson, Tcheky Karyo
-Made as a request by fans for movies with more realistic fight scenes
-Based on a story by Jet Li

Did You Know?
-The tunnel where Jet Li is ambushed by the French police is the same tunnel where Princess Diana died
-The only CGI scenes in the movie are when Jet Li drops down the laundry chute with the CG flames around him and in the hotel when Jet Li kicks the pool ball
-For the fight between Jet Li and Cyril Raffaelli, the director of the movie, Chris Nahon, had to slow down the camera because they were moving too fast

Plot
-Liu Siu-jian(Jet Li) is a Chinese intelligence officer, sent from Beijing to Paris to investigate and help apprehend a Chinese mob boss named Mr. Big(Ric Young), who is involved in heroin smuggling. There he meets Inspector Jean-Pierre Richard(Tcheky Karyo), who is a corrupt and violent French police detective. Richard tracks Liu into thinking that he is simply providing recon of a meet involving Mr. Big. The plans change when he is introduced to 2 prostitutes, Jessica Kamen(Bridget Fonda), an American woman, who takes him to his room to service him. When Liu and everyone are watching from another room, Mr. Big kicks everyone out except the 2 women. While one is on top of Mr. Big, she attempts to kill him. Watching the events from another room, Liu rushes over to stop the prostitutes. Richard enters shortly, to shoot Mr. Big, and the prostitute with Liu's police issue gun, thus framing Liu

-Realizing he has been set up, Liu manages to escape from the hotel with a tape showing Richard killing the Chinese mob boss. Soon Chinese liaisons are sent from Beijing after the events to investigate the situation, after Richard makes Liu look like a cold blooded, psychopathic killer. The Chinese agents do not believe Richard. Liu manages to to contact one of the agents, in an attempt to pass on the tape, but due to French police surveillance, the meeting is ruined and Liu is spotted. The agent is murdered and Liu is forced to escape, thus losing the tape and is forced to keep a low profile

-As he considers the situation he's in, he meets the American woman Jessica, who he later finds out her daughter Isabel was kidnapped by Richard to keep her in prostitution. Liu finds out that Jessica was the 2nd prostitute there the night Mr. Big was killed. He realizes she can prove his innocence, but she refuses to do anything unless he gets her daughter back. He sends Jessica into Richard's office to steal the tape, so Liu and Jessica head to an orphanage where Isabel is. Richard thought ahead after he finds the tape missing, and ambushes the couple. Jessica is shot in the chest after their escape, and Liu manages to get her to the nearest hospital and he is now driven to find her daughter. Liu arrives at police HQ where Richard is holding Isabel, and he fights his way through the henchmen to his office. Once there, Liu rescues the little girl, getting shot by Richard during this. To save her, Liu kills Richard with a move called the "kiss of the dragon", by which he sticks an acupuncture needle into the back of Richard's neck in a forbidden location, which stimulates the blood to flow to the brain and cause a painful death via brain aneurysm. Liu survives the gunshot and returns the girl to her mother

Cast

• Jet Li as Liu Siu-jian
• Bridget Fonda as Jessica Kamen
• Tchéky Karyo as Jean-Pierre Richard
• Max Ryan as Lupo
• Ric Young as Mister Big
• Burt Kwouk as Uncle Tai
• Kentaro as Chen
• Laurence Ashley as Aja
• Cyril Raffaelli as Twin
• Didier Azoulay as Twin
• John Forgeham as Max
• Paul Barrett as Pilot
• Colin Prince as Lupo's Assistant
• Vincent Glo as Pluto
• Vincent Wong as Minister Tang