Wasabi

Very funny movie, but with lots of action!

This is wonderful movie originally in French with English subtitles. If you like lips and words to synch I recommend you watch it with the subtitles. I thought it was neat that all the actors in this movie dubbed the English voices as well and you can tell when you hear it in English. My favorite two scenes are when Jean Reno's character finds all that money in his account thanks to his ex-girlfriend her infiltration of the Yakuza. Also I like the shootout scene in the gameplay place and the golf scene with the Yakuza leader. It's great movie if you like Japanese culture when it collides with Western or in this case French culture. All the Japanese actors speak French which is great too.Ryôko Hirosue (the actress that plays the 21 year old woman) is also in the award winning "Departures" movie and "Key of Life" another really great Japanese movie I recommend along with this. She is pretty famous in Japan and is also an accomplished singer too.Wonderful movie, watch soon as you can!!!

I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about films, but in purchasing Wasabi (2001), I had no prior knowledge about the movie other than it was written by Luc Besson and starred Jean Reno, who were both involved in Nikita (1990) and The Professional (1994), two wonderful films worth any action movie fan's time. Given the talent involved in Wasabi, I thought it would be a pretty worth looking into, and I wasn't disappointed.Reno stars a Hubert, a retired secret government operative who is now a no nonsense French cop who seems to follow the guidelines within the Dirty Harry Law Enforcement Manual, that's to say his methods, while extreme, get results. The films dives headfirst into the action as we see Hubert single-handedly bust up a transvestite bank robbery ring. While Hubert is very good at what he does, his superior notes that that is all he does, as Hubert has no life. That, along with pressures from a local politician with regards to Hubert's' old school tactics, forces Hubert's boss to put him on extended vacation, with a recommendation that he basically get a life.Soon Hubert gets word that a Japanese woman he once loved but who left him almost 20 years ago to which he still carried a torch for, has recently passed, and she has named him in her will. He travels from France to Japan to witness the reading of the will, and see his long, lost love, but gets more than he bargained for as he learns the woman had a daughter, Hubert's daughter. Not only that, but the woman has also left a mystery behind not only in why she left him in the first place, but why now the Yakuza is after the daughter. Hubert must learn his now deceased lover's involvement with the Yakuza, protect himself and his daughter, named Yumi, and deal with the fact that he's an instant father, and the complications of having to try and relate to a 19 year old girl.Wasabi mixes a very genuine blend of action, comedy, and a pinch of drama pretty successfully. The action is pretty steady throughout, and is more of the comic book variety, like what you might see in a Jackie Chan film. The comedy comes mostly in the form of Hubert's contact in Japan, a fellow Frenchman named Momo, whom Hubert worked with many years ago when he was a government operative. Momo reminded me of a chubbier version of Rob Schneider, except a bit funnier. The drama, while present but not over done, comes in the form of Hubert and Yumi trying to come to terms with the fact that they are now all they have. While the combination of these three elements doesn't allow for a whole lot of substance within the story, that mattered little as this was just a fun, exciting ride I enjoyed all the way to the end. Certainly one who has seen the Besson/Reno film The Professional will notice similarities, but more or less these two films relate superficially. What's really interesting is how much this French-made film looks like an American actioneer.The quality of the wide screen picture here looks great, and the audio is really excellent. Keep in mind the dialog is in French, with English subtitles available, but there is also a dubbed English track, for those of you who don't care to read while watching a film. I, myself, preferred to allow the original voices to come out, while reading the translation below. The dubbed voices sound a bit weird at times, especially since I am fairly familiar with how Jean Reno's voice sounds like, and the guy hired to dub him is way off. As far as extras go, there are some theatrical trailers available, for this film, and Formula 51 (2001), Swept Away (2002), and Trapped (2002). While Wasabi really isn't a cinematic feast, it's definitely a satisfying appetizer, and sometimes that's all you need.Cookieman108

Not available on streaming anywhere. My old copy got ruined so had to order another. Very fun movie.

I like this fun romp and saw a reasonably priced copy, so thought I'd add it to my dvd library. Unfortunately I misread or was misled into buying a version that I think will only play in Europe. It certainly won't play in the USA. I'll throw it in with a relative's Xmas gift as a bonus. Maybe they'll get some use out of it. I certainly won't. Too bad. It's a rather sweet take on the genre if I remember correctly. Not as perfect as 'The Professional', but fun none-the-less as the middle-aged protagonist tries to balance his tricky crime connections with instant fatherhood.

First it should be understood that this is a french film with subtitles, so go into this with that in mind. I had watched this several years ago and liked it so when I bought this, I was expecting part of that to be disillusioned nastolgia. I was wrong because it's still just as great as I remembered and a common reference point I use with my husband. Jean reno was fabulous in this and the witty banter and story is fantastic

The movie was easy to locate by the leading persons name. I find Jean Reno to be very good in his role as a detective, never getting over his love for a young lady he had not seen in 18 years and to later find out that he has a daughter by her and that she was murdered. I enjoyed him in the Professional as a hit man who finds a liking for a young girl who hires him to put a hit out on a policeman who kills her family in this movie. I just resently leaned how to surf the internet so tried Amazon again to find this movie. I do find it easy to locate what I need through this websit.

so glad to check out this movie ... watched it in the original french version ... eng. subs - no problem. plot is great ... amazed at all the japanese actors speak french so fluently. the japanese actress who played the jean reno's daughter .. don't believe the japanese actors' french are dupped ... looks like they're all bi-lingual in french and japanese. how awesome. highly recommended for those who have yet to see this movie. the dvd we bot from amazon is digitally remastered and plays great visual with good sound system. it is rated "R" for "some violence" on the dvd cover ... but the violence is nothin' compared to hollywood's. (imho)