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Unleashed
Focus Features


8.4

based on 31 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 32 votes
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FILM:

MPAA RATING: R for strong violent content, language and some sexuality/nudity

Starring Jet Li, Morgan Freeman, Bob Hoskins, Kerry Condon, Andy Beckwith, Christian Gazio, Michael Jenn, and Carole Ann Wilson

On and beneath the meanest streets of Glasgow, fiery gangster Bart (Hoskins) is merciless with debtors, would-be rivals, and anyone else to whom he even takes a passing dislike. How does Bart maintain his chokehold? Through his unwitting enforcer Danny (Li), who he has "raised" since boyhood. (Rogue Pictures)

GENRE(S):	Action \| Drama \| Suspense/Thriller
WRITTEN BY:	Luc Besson
DIRECTED BY:	Louis Leterrier
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: October 11, 2005 Video: October 11, 2005 Theatrical: May 13, 2005
RUNNING TIME:	103 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	France / USA / UK / Hong Kong

Also known as "Danny the Dog"

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Entertainment Weekly Gregory Kirschling

Bounding out of the gate like a greyhound, Unleashed needs only its first 30 seconds or so to elevate itself well above the average action potboiler.

Film Threat Michael Ferraro

One of the best Sunday Afternoon action flicks since the glory days of Schwarzenegger.

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

The most enjoyable film Besson has had his name on in eons.

Chicago Reader Andrea Gronvall

Pierre Morel's diving, spiraling camera keeps pace with Yuen Wo-ping's rapid-fire fight choreography, all smartly directed by Louis Leterrier.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker

The simple, unpretentious storytelling of Unleashed is a rarity in the glut of underwritten and overproduced action films that dominate American screens today.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Ingenious in its construction.

San Francisco Chronicle Peter Hartlaub

When Danny takes off his collar for the last time, Besson's plan becomes clear: You may have paid for an hour and a half of escapist entertainment, but he just provided something much better.

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

The infinitely silly, unconscionably entertaining action film Unleashed earns most of its juice from the martial-arts star Jet Li.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

Pathos isn't a cheap gimmick when it comes from the soul, and Li knows how to channel it, through his brain, his limbs and his heart.

The Hollywood Reporter John DeFore

An action picture with the emotional simplicity of a bedtime story, painted in the grimy colors of the London underworld.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

Besson doesn't need dialogue to convey his worlds' nuances, because there are none, especially in Unleashed, which achieves such a sustained pitch of hysteria that it makes past masters of melodrama like Douglas Sirk, John Woo, and Sam Fuller look positively austere by comparison.

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

Unleashed suffers from a surfeit of sentimentality at times (blame Besson for that), but it's Li's first major Western role of any depth and he acquits himself admirably as both mad dog and melancholy master.

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

While Bresson's insistence on juxtaposing brute force with sublime grace isn't subtle, it is effective.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

The film contains enough quiet, reflective moments for us to become aware how preposterous the central conceit is, and that keeps us at arm's length.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Li is action poetry in motion. Damn them for spoiling our popcorn fun with salty tear-jerking.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

A preposterous mix of sentiment and brutality that casts martial-arts star Jet Li as a music-loving killing machine, turns out to be his most entertaining movie in quite some time.

New York Daily News Jami Bernard

Unleashed serves two masters, each one disappointingly: It's a brutal series of over-amped fights, and it's a touching story of human nature at war with itself.

USA Today Mike Clark

Ultimately, the movie doesn't make it, but there's enough going on to make it more arf than barf.

Variety Lisa Nesselson

Slick transitions and punchy pace leave just enough time for Hopkins and Freeman to make dopey dialogue sound far smarter than it is. And as both pit bull and puppy dog, Jet Li convinces.

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

Doing nothing special, Freeman manages to make the picture seem wiser, funnier, and more eloquent than it is.

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

The movie never recovers from its cheesy center.

Dallas Observer Luke Y. Thompson

Only Kerry Condon, as Freeman's geeky adopted daughter, plays anything approaching a realistic character.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

The film's bizarreness pales next to that of little-known exploitation film "Sonny Boy" (1990), which weaves similar material into something authentically nightmarish.

Washington Post Richard Harrington

A little less conversation, a lot more action, please.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

In its defence, the movie means to incorporate Jet's conversion into its theme, serving up his new pacifism as a choice morsel of irony. But it doesn't taste ironic, just bland, and we aren't biting either.

Chicago Tribune Allison Benedikt

Unleashed is like an old dog: No new tricks.

Philadelphia Inquirer David Hiltbrand

Freeman and Hoskins lend the film a level of artistry it doesn't really deserve. Unleashed has a vivid concept, but savagery and sentimentality make strange costars.

Los Angeles Times Carina Chocano

Includes a few scenes of impressively choreographed mayhem, but they're all but buried in Freeman and Condon's mystical grandpa and weirdo teeny bopper routines.

Empire Olly Richards

A promising idea that never develops beyond that.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Luc Besson's screenplay is dumb, but has just enough weird touches to give occasional glimmers of interest.

Village Voice Benjamin Strong

Cloying dreck.

The average user rating for this movie is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 32 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Baba gave it a9:
I really liked the story.The fight scenes were brutal and exciting and sometimes disturbing which added to the movie's realism. Overall, I found this movie to be a very enjoyable piece of cinematography.

Dan V gave it a5:
This was not a good movie...the fight scenes were hardly exciting and full of awkward scenes...i constantly squirmed watching the movie as so many scenes were just plain stupid...i really don't understand how ppl can give this movie such a high rating.

fink gave it a9:
Judging by what a few critics say, I can tell not everyone knows what a strong movie is; what a powerful movie is. This one had power every step of the way and truely is a work of art quite possibly even the best role I have ever seen Jet Li play. Absolutely, anyone who doesn't enjoy this movie, either has on the wrong pair of glasses and has their ears plugged or they just simply acting out of bias. Indeed, a most excellent film! It gets a 9 simply because of a few parts that were skipped, possibly due to keeping the movie to proper length.

[Anonymous] gave it an8:
Definitely a strong action movie, and Yuen Mo Ping's work is always welcome. The biggest surprise, though, is the story. It's not totally new, but it's quite well done for this genre, giving the whole film a fresh, even epic feel. THe premise of trying to fit in a new world and leaving the old behind also holds your interest.

Max S gave it a10:
One of the best films I've seen recently, with a lovely mix of wonderfully-done action and an excellent storyline that's both substantially different and substantially superior to the average martial arts film.

nathan h. gave it a9:
Great movie i enjoyed it alot..had an awesome story line and was very interesting and thie fight scenes were great.

Noël S gave it an8:
I think it's one of these action movies since years. Nice fighting scene's like we know from Jet Lee. And the acting lessons from Jet Lee to show more facial emotions are really paying off.

Unleashed Focus Features

Unleashed
Focus Features