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Jet Li, Morgan Freeman, Bob Hoskins, Kerry Condon, Vincent Regan, Dylan Brown, Tamer Hassan

A ruthless Scottish mobster, Bart (Bob Hoskins), has a specialization on extortion and uses a soul shattered, battered, and shackled man to squeeze the money of his victims with brutal force. This broken man is Danny (Jet Li) who Bart treats like a dog, as he even wears a dog collar. Whenever Bart decides to remove the collar Danny turns into a wild beast that neither feel remorse or pain, and simply beats up all until unconsciousness or death. Danny's violent and submissive persona completely brings the notion of a dog, but it also generates the thought of how did, and could, Bart create such a monster. One thing is for sure, Danny behaves much like a beaten dog with tremendous amounts of fear within, which manifests itself through vicious fury whenever unleashed. ***

Instead of depicting Danny's cruel upbringing where the violence roots, the director Louis Leterrier focuses on present time where Bart unleashes the fury and anger upon those who do not pay him. The opening of the film begins with such a scene where Bart simply unhooks the collar and whispers in Danny's ear, which is followed by an astonishingly mean fight scene. The martial arts choreographer Yuen Wo-ping, who has worked with films such as Matrix (1999) and Kung-Fu Hustle (2004), simply does an exceptional job creating these fight scenes in this film. One of the better fight scenes takes place in a tiny bathroom where Danny has to fight for his life in a very limited space. ***

The mystery in the film rests within Danny and what makes him behave in a violent and submissive manner, and to understand this more one must know about his psyche and past. Luc Besson, who wrote and directed Léon (1994) and The Fifth Element (1997), also wrote and produced this story, which depicts a very dark tale of one man's misfortune, but it seems as if Besson never really got the mystery clarified. Unfortunately, this is also where the film's weakness rests, as the story never takes its time to explore more of Danny's disturbing upbringing that shaped him. Instead, quick scenes with pop-psychology try to steer the audience in the desired direction, which only makes it feel awkward. ***

The first meeting between Danny and Sam (Morgan Freeman) tries to evolve on Danny's past as he sees something that evokes something within him. The second meeting that Danny and Sam have becomes a little awkward, as the state of Danny would make most people call the police. But then again, here is another element in the story which brings to mind a fantasy world; there are no police in Scotland. Yet, as a Good Samaritan, Sam takes in Danny and nurtures him for two days while Danny is unconscious. Here the film also struggles, as Sam unquestionably lets Danny, a stranger who bleeds profusely, move in without any concern. This happens as Sam also has a teenage daughter for whose safety he does not seem to be too worried about. ***

Those who have seen the South Korean Oldboy (2003) have experienced a similar tale of a man and how his psyche was shaped by some very disturbing motive. The main theme in each of these films are very different, yet there is a resemblance of the dark psychological nature in both films. Oldboy displays clever manipulation with careful story development, which can be seen when everything has been taken into consideration. Unleashed, on the other side, does not take into consideration what background knowledge the audience might have, as it leaves the viewer with an experience that felt half-finished. In conclusion, Unleashed had great potential to tell a remarkable story, but in the end only turns out to be another martial arts film that tried to be more, but fell short. *** ---

While the DVD transfer has some limited shimmering and edge enhancement Universal Home Entertainment has succeeded to put forth a terrific image on this DVD. Some viewers might be concerned by the films rough look, but that is a part of the cinematography that attempts to capture the gritty atmosphere in the story. The audio is absolutely brilliant, which comes in both a DTS soundtrack for those with DTS ability on their home theater equipment while a Dolby Digital 5.1 sound also has terrific sound. The film is packed with action sounds that will offer a good test for those with new home theater equipment, which flows nicely from all five speakers and uses the base well too. ***

After have seen this film, personally I wish the DVD contained a special feature on the cinematography alone. However, I was not that lucky. Instead the viewer can find a handful of extras that opens with Serve No Master where choreographer Yuen Wo Ping will go through the fight sequences with a heavy use of the scenes from the film. There is also a feature narrated by Morgan Freeman, The Collar Comes Off, which goes into the film, but also covers a lot on the fighting. A short interview with director Louis Leterrier conveys much about Jet Li and his character in the film. Here again, I wished that he had talked more about the camerawork used in the film. The two music videos by The RZA and Massive Attack end this extra review and are worth an extra look. *** ---

Unleashed is a very violent film, but it also tells a poignant tale of a beaten man. The ambivalent tone set by the director enhances the cinematic value, as it provides an intriguing perspective on violence, as Jet Li lends his face to this oppressed man. It is a film that is definitely worth a viewing, but if the viewer is sensitive to violence, then this film should not be recommended. ***