Exciting action, a good plot, and interesting characters make this film easily worth seeing and enjoying.

Transporter 3 (2008)

Frank Martin, played by Jason Statham, made his debut on the big screen in 2002 with "The Transporter". This was a thrilling movie that impressed a lot of people and was also ridiculed by many. The second installment in the series was met with a more widespread negative response; It had a less-believable story and more wacky scenes with over-the-top combat and vehicle stunts than the previous movie and this severely hampered the experience. "Transporter 3" finds a more than acceptable balance between ridiculous, stupid mayhem and realistic scenarios, edgy and impressive action, and well-rounded, real characters.

The point of an action thriller is to impress an audience with stunts, tricks, combat, a cool protagonist, and above all, beautiful women, right? Close to every action film ever produced possesses these qualities as they are easy to obtain. What most of these movies DON'T have is a cheese-less story, interesting plot line, and likable characters. These things are what a GOOD action movie really needs. An action movie doesn't even need completely realistic stunts, action scenes, and karate moves that make you go "Sweet!"

You'll be saying more than "sweet" after some of the cool, well-directed and performed action sequences throughout "Transporter 3." Few are things which could not easily happen in real life. All are fun, entertaining, and exciting scenes that America goes to action flicks for. They are not the best or most well-done cuts out there however, outclassed perhaps by the likes of the original "Die Hard" franchise or maybe even some of the "Mission: Impossible" films. Still, you will not be disappointed by the cars, the moves, and the explosions (Who doesn't like explosions? Come on."

The prime of this thriller, believe it or not, is the characters within it. They are interesting people who are portrayed excellently on every level as who they were written to be. Statham's character is, as always, the cool guy who likes things done and said his way and gets it that way. His talk is sometimes too bland and is at times a tad unbelievable, but never anywhere near bad. His newest "package", played by Natalya Rudakova, is a care-free, playful, and gorgeous party girl who got dragged into a bad situation because of the political position of her father. These two people are exact opposites and create a surprising attraction filled with visible chemistry and interest both physically and emotionally. This is a change for the character of Frank Martin and it is a welcome one which only adds wealth to the character and plot. The idea of fighting for a loved one is never not overdone in an action movie, but here it works much better because it is abnormal of the main character.

It's hard to find a movie of this type with characters you become attached to and worry for even when you know everything is going to be alright in the end. "Transporter 3" is a welcome addition to the series which is much more impressive than the previous installment and does a great job of entertaining and exciting someone who is open to fun, cheap albeit impressive, fresh thrills and a finely-directed piece of action cinema.

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Transporter 3 Trailer