Kiss of the Dragon (2001)

A betrayed intelligence officer enlists the aid of a prostitute to prove his innocence from a deadly conspiracy while returning a favor to her.

Director:

Chris Nahon

Writers:

Jet Li (story), Luc Besson (screenplay)

Stars:

Jet Li, Bridget Fonda, Tchéky Karyo

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jet Li	...	Liu Jian
Bridget Fonda	...	Jessica Kamen
Tchéky Karyo	...	Insp. Richard
Ric Young	...	Mister Big
Burt Kwouk	...	Uncle Tai
Laurence Ashley	...	Aja
Cyril Raffaelli	...	Twin
Didier Azoulay	...	Twin
John Forgeham	...	Max
Paul Barrett	...	Pilot
Max Ryan	...	Lupo
Colin Prince	...	Lupo's Assistant
Vincent Glo	...	Pluto
Vincent Wong	...	Minister Tang
Kentaro	...	Chen

Storyline

Liu Jian, a police officer from China, comes to Paris to help the vice squad apprehend a Chinese drug lord and his unknown French connection. The French connection is Richard, the head of the vice squad, who intends to kill the drug lord then frame Jian. Jian ducks a bullet and escapes with a tape of what really happened. By chance, Jian turns to Jessica - a US farm girl who is one of Richard's hookers - for help. She has her own problems, including the fact that Richard has her daughter locked in an orphanage to keep Jessica on the streets and silent about his activities. Can Jian protect Jessica, rescue her daughter, and give Richard the kiss of the dragon?

---

Plot Keywords:

chinese | action hero | one man army | forced prostitution | title spoken by character | 

---

Taglines:

Kono tatakai ni ai nado iranai [Japan]

---

Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, language, some sexuality and drug content

Details

Country:

France USA

Language:

English French Mandarin

Release Date:

6 July 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

KOD: Kiss of the Dragon

Filming Locations:

Bateaux Mouches, Seine River, Paris, France

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,304,027, 8 July 2001

Gross USA:

$36,845,124

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$64,437,847

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox, EuropaCorp, Quality Growth International Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Chris Nahon had to slow down the fight scene between Jet Li and Cyril Raffaelli because they were moving too fast for the camera.

---

Goofs

(at around 9 mins) Insp. Richard's men have just rushed into the hotel room. As the men line up behind Insp. Richard, it's obvious that not only do the "twins" look nothing alike, but the twin on the right is at least six inches taller than the twin on the left.

---

Quotes

Liu Jian: We need to get him to the hospital.
Richard: [refering to the Chinese customer] He doesn't want to go to a hospital. He want to go to heaven.
[Richard shoots the Chinese customer]
Liu Jian: [shocked] Why did you kill him?
Richard: The question is "Why did you kill him?" Thanks for the help, Johnny.

---

Alternate Versions

German theatrical version was edited for violence to secure a more commercial "Not under 16" rating. The "Not under 18" version, labeled 'uncut version', is still modified in one scene: when Richard shoots one of his men in the head you could originally see the blood splashing. However, in the German version the blood splash is out of frame.

---

Connections

References Fist of Fury (1972)

---

Soundtracks

Adore You
(Lisa Barbuscia (as L. Barbuscia) / I. Faith)
Performed by Lisa Barbuscia
Published by Copyright Control (PRS) / Farren Music (BMI)
Produced by ELICIT (Rob Hoffman & Heather Holley) & Ian Faith
Courtesy of Blossom Recordings

User Reviews

Bruce Lee nostalgia

I was hoping this movie to be better than 'Romeo Must Die' and I was not disappointed. I truly believe this is Jet Li's English coming out movie (too bad it was released in the summer when other bigger movies come out).

I did not go to see the movie for the story line and those who don't won't be disappointed either. The action was great especially the final scenes. Bridget Fonda did not do much (found her irritating in some scenes) but then again, did not watch the movie because she was there.

Believable, maybe not ... Jet Li as the new Bruce Lee, most definitely!

8/10