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'Transporter Refueled' isn't successful reboot
What's in with Justin
transporter refuel
From the action to the characters, "The Transporter Refueled," is cliche ridden. - photo by Studio photo

“The Transporter Refueled” is being sold as a reboot of this high-octane series. This time around, there’s no Jason Statham as the star, and for die-hard fans of the series, that’s bad.

For general moviegoers, that’s really bad.

Newcomer Ed Skrein takes over the role of Frank Martin, a driver for people delivering different types of packages. His world is turned upside down after a femme fatale and her three-girl crew request his help in orchestrating an enormous bank heist against an evil crime lord. That has got to be one of the oldest clichés in all of action movies.

In addition to Martin, the girls have also kidnapped and recruited his father, Frank Martin Sr. (Ray Stevenson), for the ride. The plot also involves the girls getting revenge against the crime lord by bouncing his money to so many different accounts that he loses track. Again, action movie cliché No. 2. How many more are there, you ask? Don’t get me started.

“The Transporter Refueled” is one of those movies that, 30 minutes after it’s over, you can barely remember if you did see it. It’s got the typical action this series is known for, and it does deliver on a couple of moments, including one fight sequence in a nightclub and another sequence at an airport that is actually kind of original.

Nevertheless, the plot and the characters provide nothing more than an excuse for the stunts and action sequences. It’s like a video game in which no story is required, unless you count how much action is on the screen. This movie isn’t quite dull, but it’s far too dumb for its own good.

Grade: C-

(Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, sexual material, some language, a drug reference and thematic elements.)

Hall is a syndicated columnist in South Georgia.

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