Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
Your most dangerous enemies are the friends you've double-crossed.
Lucy Lui is Agent Sever. This September, she's going ballistic.
Antonio Banderas is Agent Ecks. This September, he's going ballistic
Jonathan Ecks (Antonio Banderas), an FBI agent, realizes that he must join with his lifelong enemy, Agent Sever (Lucy Liu), a rogue DIA agent with whom he is in mortal combat, in order to defeat a common enemy. That enemy has developed a "micro-device" that can be injected into victims in order to kill them at will.
| Antonio Banderas | Agent Jeremiah Ecks |
| Lucy Liu | Agent Sever |
| Gregg Henry | Robert Gant/Agent Clark |
| Ray Park | A.J. Ross |
| Talisa Soto | Vinn Gant/Rayne |
| Miguel Sandoval | Julio Martin |
| Terry Chen | Agent Harry Lee |
| Roger R. Cross | Zane |
| Sandrine Holt | Agent Bennett |
| Steve Bacic | Agent Fleming |
| Aidan Drummond | Michael Gant |
| Eric Breker | Agent Curtis |
| Tony Alcantar | Edgar Moore |
| David Parker | Dark Suit #1 |
| Josephine Jacob | Pretty Girl |
| Wych Kaosayananda |
3.40 out of 10 (6965 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu blow stuff up. People die.
posted on 24 Aug 2009This movie does have plot. It is about an FBI agent who pits two agents against each other to obtain a weapons system. The title is misleading, since it is only Ecks vs. Sever for the first half hour, then it becomes Ecks and Sever vs. the FBI. What ensues is a series of massive explosions and shootouts, with some subplots thrown in about Ecks' family. They are overshadowed however by the endless amounts of senseless violence. Overall, the movie could have been worse, but it could have been much better also. 4/10
Here's a do-it-yourself B:E vs S
posted on 08 Aug 2009Start out with the Lucy Liu character. Wear a long coat and slacks everywhere you go. Look into a mirror and erase every expression you have. Speak about once every few hours.Then you can do the Banderas character. Don't shave. Muss your hair. Put 15 jumbo olives in your mouth when you speak. Shuffle when you walk.Oh yeah special effects. Let the gas on your stove run for about 10 seconds without lighting it. Then light it. Say "Boom". Repeat 100 times.You can get a copy of the script really easy: Buy 10 comic books. Tear a couple of pages out of each one and staple the pieces together. Be sure that they don't fit too well together. They don't even have to be right side up.If you do this, you won't need to rent this stinker.
3.5/10? Come on people-it was more entertaining than that!
posted on 23 Jul 2009What's with people? Just because everyone's seen The Matrix every film is supposed to top it? Please. Say it with me, "de-sensitized". What's next, reality t.v. for bar-room brawls? Give me a break.The movie was not A+ and yes there were few actual lines on at least Lucy Liu's part but I don't remember the film being advertised as a courtroom drama...
Bad, bad and more bad.
posted on 09 Jul 2009This movie has it all: terrible acting, terrible directing, sloppy special effects, and most of all the weakest script this side of Ghost Ship. I'm so glad I didn't waste a cent on this bad movie (I got in for free!). What really surprised me that there was such a big budget ($70 million) and otherwise decent actors who both gave lousy performances here. I guess they forgot to spend some money on a script and a halfway decent director (never trust a guy who calls himself Kaos). This flick may look decent from the trailers (they've been running some more now that it's been released to DVD) but just take my advice: if you're over the age of 10 you are probably not going to like this movie. Don't rent it and certainly don't buy it unless you like wasting money.
I didn't think it was that bad.
posted on 05 Jul 2009Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever starts as Rayne Gant (Taliso Soto) arrives back home in the US after having been in Europe with her son Michael (Aidan Drummond), however her husband & his father ex-FBI turned freelance baddie Robert Gant (Gregg Henry) has secretly used his son to smuggle a small robotic device into the US in his bloodstream. Unfortunately it's a miniature electronic assassin which will kill it's target from the inside... Things get even worse when Michael is kidnapped by ex-FBI agent (ex-FBI agents grow on trees in this film) Sever (Lucy Liu) & holds him for ransom, meanwhile burned out ex-FBI agent Jeremiah Ecks (Antonio Banderas) is called out of retirement by agent Julio Martin (Miguel Sandoval) to find Sever, the kid & the robotic assassin. At first Ecks refuses but when Julio says his supposedly dead wife Vin is still alive & he can find her Ecks has no choice...This American German co-production was produced & directed by Wych Kaosayananda under the silly & somewhat childish name 'Kaos' so not only does it have one of the silliest & dullest titles in action film history it was directed by someone with the worst pseudonym in action film history. While many seem to think Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever is the worst film in history I didn't think it was too bad, I mean what did these people expect exactly? The script by Alan McElroy moves along like an absolute rocket & clocking in at about 90 minutes it doesn't outstay it's welcome, in fact one might say it moves along too fast & while there are plenty of large explosions, fights, chases, shoot-outs & action scenes the actual story is severely lacking as are the character's & dialogue which amount to virtually zero. Ecks & Sever are each given a clichéd background where someone they love was killed & despite the 'vs.' in the title they don't actually end up fighting each other at all & in fact start working together fairly early on the film to take out Gregg Henry's dull ex-FBI villain Gant. The story just doesn't hold up & is given so little attention that Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever ends up feeling like a collection of unconnected set-pieces albeit fairly impressive ones. I didn't think it was boring that's for sure & there are enough bangs & guns in it to pass the time harmlessly enough but just don't expect anything particularly memorable or deep as this ain't it.Director Kaos (please) does alright & there are some spectacular action scenes like when Banderas flies off a motorbike & two cars crash & flip over his head or a scene when a prison bus is attacked on a busy freeway while on the other hand some of the action scenes are a little dumb like the amount of time the prison bus skids for or how Lucy Liu can just disappear after shooting up an entire shopping centre & then freeway. The explosions are big, the martial arts fights are decent, it has fast paced dance music to accompany the action scenes & there are plenty of futuristic looking weaponry which get lots of use, on a dumb action flick level Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever on the surface is as good as anything out there but it just doesn't quite come off & is strangely lifeless, it doesn't have much energy & apart from the impressive set-pieces there really isn't anything going on at all.With an astronomical sounding budget of about $70,000,000 I'd have thought the executives at Warner Bros. sh*t themselves when they saw what their 70 big ones brought, I don't think it did anything at the box-office which isn't a surprise as bad word of mouth probably killed it. It's certainly well made & has that big budget Hollywood polish about it though, it was mostly shot in Vancouver in Canada. The acting is rather flat & nobody seems that interested in it, I will mention Talisa Soto though as I've always liked her & she's looking as hot as ever in this.Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever is a loud, fast paced action packed flick that could have been great if the makers had actually bothered to give it some sort of interesting story which they didn't so it isn't. I quite liked it if only for the explosions & action though & I certainly don't entertain this idea that it's 'the worst film ever' because it's far from the worst film ever.
One of the five worst movies I have ever seen!
posted on 23 Jun 2009Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever is with out a doubt one of the worst movies ever made, or even thought of for that matter. Firstly, a five year old child could have come up with that plot (or lack there of). Second, a seven year old could have written the script. I would like to see the actual script and count the total amount of actual dialogue in the entire film. Besides the lack of dialogue and plot, the action scenes and stunts were terrible also (which unfortunately the producers must have been counting on, oops). Another theory might be that they were counting on mega action stars Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu. What a joke! At least I got to watch this garbage on television and didn't make the mistake of paying to see this junk in a movie theater for nine bucks.
Lucy Liu Showcase gone awry
posted on 19 Jun 2009This is nothing more than a Lucy Liu Showcase films. Its one of those films that she did, but they did not know what to do with her. But lets talk about the film. Antonio Bandaras is 100 percent unconvincing in his role as a gruff FBI agent. The unshaven thing just does not work with him. The role works well for Lucy Liu if they have given her more to do, the movie would have been a lot better. They should have try to write SOME sort of a story. I mean, the only way that you could revive this plot is with 10,000 volts of electricity. This is the type of movie that you find, while channel surfing late night movie channels. Or the type of movie they play on those same channels, at 2 pm on Saturday, as a filler before they bring out the good films. It is utterly forgettable the moment the opening credits start and it is forgotten the moment the closing credit starts. It fits right in there with Stallone's Assassins, umm, and things like Tango and Cash. Its not so bad, its just that it is totally bland. If you don't see it, you are not missing anything. This film will never be brought up in anyone's conversations about films. Let me back up... perhaps it will when discussing Kill Bill and trying to think of films Lucy Liu has been it. I wouldn't say avoid it, I would say, don't make an effort to see it.
Gun scene copy of The Matrix
posted on 09 Jun 2009I saw this movie at 5 AM on TBS. When Sever was walking around shooting the inept SWAT team members and throwing guns away to techno music I thought this looked familiar. Then she took the mounted machine gun over and I said to my wife "I bet they have her firing the gun in slow motion and show the shells falling" sure enough two seconds later they did. TOTAL COPY OF THE MATRIX! This movie was so bad I kept watching just to see who they would rip off more and more. When Sever is fighting the second to last guy she's going to kill I totally knew he was going into the large pool of acid, that we all have handy, of course.This movie was too predictable, it really sucked. I like Lucy and Antonio, they both have had great action movies. How this made it past studio execs is beyond me.
Don`t waste your time with this s***
posted on 28 May 2009Very bad action film with quite good cast. Instead of some managed explosions and the body of Lucy Liu, there nothing that worth seeing.One of the most boring movies I have ever seen. So, do not waste your time with this. There are much better action titles than this wannabe "spectacle".4/10
salad bowl actioner comics style
posted on 26 May 2009This salad bowl movie is a mess out of everything: * the child infected with some nanotechnology weapon ( remember the movie DARYL? ) and looking like brain damaged. * they spent more on fireworks & carnival tricks than screenplay or a good cutting room man: AND IT SHOWS. All you get is a garbled mess of old (i mean REALLY old) subplots: some idiot looking like Bruce Willis ripoff (damn how i HATE & find PATHETIC when they employ those wannabe's just because they look like some bigger star at 1/12 the paycheck ) plays Gant. Banderas plays some bada$$ secret agent with issues (you know, the old subplot of the "hero in distress" ); Lucy Liu does some Matrix moves (actually say 225 Matrix scenes). The spinal chord of this mountain of mud is some twist slightly reminiscent of the (much better) Total Recall by Schwarzenegger...ex the one who was supposedly dead, isn't and the wife of this man is in reality the wife of that man or something. FOR THE NAIVE: Do secret agents in real life perform like that? Val Vasiliev, former REAL LIFE KGB specialist & trainer released a series of videos teaching his methods. I have seen navy seals videos & etc. Well, sure those people can kill a dozen ordinary people in a moment, but this movie shows a skinny Chinese blasting away say eight dozens of FBI agents equipped like Rambo. Bruce Lee was a good-to-nothing in comparison. I'd never watch this twice.
Barely a film at all
posted on 18 May 2009I saw ballistic yesterday and.. my god.. i didnt know that a film with 2 names that big and that many explosion could be so horribly bad.It doesnt even feel like a real film, ive seen commercials more involving.. Stay away!Best quote: Antonio Banderas: "Damn flames".. when hes lyeing down and his leg is on fire... I laught for minute or so.
"B" Action Flick
posted on 16 May 2009This is the kind of movie you see when you just want to see a bunch of buildings and cars blow up and people beating the crap out of each other. It's not great, but it is rather cathartic. It's a pity Lucy Liu (Sever) couldn't play this role with more humor or personality. She barely speaks, all she does is commit violence. Antonio Banderas (as Ecks, the agent that tries to catch her) is just too good for this kind of action role. He's kind of dour and intense, but he was the only one that showed any kind of personality or humor. This guy sure knows how to put every bit of irony into the lines "Good Luck!". He was the only thing that made the audience laugh. I wish this film was a little lighter in mood. There was so much of cars crashing, chasings, and buildings set on fire that the movie just became all style and practically no substance.
A non-stop roller coaster ride! (Read:dizzyness, headaches, vomiting)
posted on 02 May 2009This was one of the worst action movies I have ever seen. I'm glad I rented it on dvd instead of shelling out $15 to go see it in the theaters. Watching it on dvd did have its advantages, though. Since Antonio Banderas was basically incoherant throughout the entire movie (did he have dental work done prior to filming? Because thats how I talk after all the freezing and anesthetic), I was able to put the subtitles on so I could at least follow the story. I wish I hadn't.This movie seemed more like a scenic tour of Vancouver rather than a movie. It starts off in Yaletown, and downtown Vancouver, then moves to Stanley Park, where we get a nice visit to the Aquarium. We also get glimpses of the North Shore from Deep Cove, and the Train Yards as well. I was more interested in spotting landmarks and places that I recognized, than following the sotry!Don't waste your time. Shaquille O'Neil had better acting in Kazaam. I'm off to rent that again.
Nice cast - bad movie
posted on 22 Apr 2009All I can say is what were Liu and Banderas thinking. I'm a fan of both actors yet this was horrible. I must admit missed the beginning yet from what I've seen I wont be re-watching anytime soon.It looked to me like one of them try hard action movies. Lots of explosions, bad fight scenes and typical villain bad acting.You can tell the movie had some sort of budget. Camera work was good and special effect not all bad... Just a bad bad story. Oh and what the heck was it with the BOLD font in the credits!!??I was playing online poker whilst watching it on TV, and the poker was more interesting (wasn't even for real money).Only reason I kept watching was cause Lucy Liu's hot.
Wow.
posted on 18 Apr 2009KAOS seems to have the special skill of making martial arts, guns, and explosions incredibly boring. Editing is horrible (especially sound... I've seen freshman films here make less mistakes), fight scenes look like they were shot at half speed and undercranked, plot is totally incomprehensible (I prefer the Jackie Chan plot-only-there-to-justify-fighting)... Suffice it to say that after the first few fight scenes, I started fast-forwarding, only continuing to watch out of morbid fascination.
Badly executed, excessive action scenes with no plot.
posted on 10 Apr 2009After reading the main review I expected this movie to at least have some matrix-like action scenes with decent choreography maybe going a little overboard on explosions as mentioned.This is not at all what I felt as I watched this scriptless, plotless, flop. Lucy Liu it seemed had all of 10 lines in the entire movie and they were all very cheesy one-liners. The VERY minor character from the tactical force team who was with Eckert in some 3 short scenes had more dialogue than Liu's did. At first you are half interested in where each character fits into the plot, but they bluntly throw out the answers without any real "clues" to keep you interested prior. In the end you don't even really care about the characters anyway because they have no depth to them. They each have a different single motivation and all are cliche. Put simply, the movie is just a chain of explosive and cheesy action scenes.-----------------SPOILERS(you won't care)--------------I always wanted to give this movie a chance and I had hoped that maybe there might be at least one good shootout that might be fun to watch. I was wrong. The first big action scene is ridiculous as Lucy Liu walks nonchalantly out into the middle of the street with 10 cops and several snipers trying to shoot her. Somehow in the time she walks a few steps she takes out every single one of these armed men in bulletproof vests and blows up several cars while she's at it for good measure. She escapes unscathed of course, not even one of these incompetent federal agents can hit her. And worse yet, they do this entire scene in slow motion to accentuate how stupid this scene looks.I would also like to gripe about the conclusion of the film. The last fist fight scene between Liu and that other guy(who cares what his name is--you won't, I promise) was badly choreographed and looked too fake. Her opponent was too much of a bodybuilder, he seemed to move like molasses leaving Liu far too many openings that she never takes. Liu's own martial scenes were very lacking as well. I kept thinking back to how great her ones in "Charlie's Angels" were and wished I had rented that movie again instead of going to see this one.The real finale fight between Sever and Gant was also as equally bad as the rest of the film. There is no big fight scene, she just has him completely offguard and there is really nothing he can do. So she shoots him--oh she could have killed him with the shot, but no she instead cleverly laces the bullet she used with the nano device Gant has been trying to retrieve from her. I suppose the script writer wanted it to be ironic, but it makes for a horribly anticlimactic end.Unless you like seeing a long series of poorly done explosions and boring shootouts I wouldn't waste your time.
Ambient low-key acting, good action but stereotypical bad guys
posted on 04 Apr 2009The acting of both Lucy Liu and Antonio Banderas is very low-key - same as you would expect from main roles in a Western; very simplistic and sparse, seemingly shallow were it not for the implicit references to shared knowledge, which the audience is only let in on through flash-backs or from other characters. This way of acting suits them both excellently, and creates an attractive ambient atmosphere, energized by their martial encounters and growing mutual sympathy.The bad guys (Gregg Henry as Gant and Ray Park as his right hand Ross) do not contribute a whole lot to this movie. Gant is the sinister/smug/self-absorbed crook which Gregg also embodied as Val Resnick in Payback, and Ross' vocabulary is annoyingly redundant, particularly his constant use of the euphemism 'cancel' (one might be inclined to blame this on the script, but more subtle acting could have pulled it off by not emphasizing 'cancel' each time).Perhaps what I like most about this movie is that Lucy has a major role. In her other movies she is mostly spice to the plot, although Lucky Number Slevin does allow her personality to surface. To me, Ballistic is the best Lucy-movie. She makes a very lovely femme fatale, even agonizingly crisp in a catsuit.Do not watch this movie if you consider lack of dialog synonymous with shallow acting, or if you are just not a fan of low-key acting. If, on the other hand, you enjoy good atmosphere in a movie, Ballistic may be one of those you want to return to from time to time.I give it a low 7, and would have gone higher if the feel of the movie were not occasionally fractured by the Gant and Ross characters.
This movie would stink on ice...
posted on 30 Aug 2009Never have I had such great expectations for a cast like this and have it fall so flat that I for once agree with all the low votes. This movie was bad...uninspiring, boring, pitiful. I really like Lucy Liu and Antonio Banderas, a lot. But this movie takes the cake for being awful, and boringly awful at that. Every scene is so disjointed, there's almost no plot movement or logical reason for the movie at all. Some people get shot, some stuff gets blown up, Antonio and Liu fight, then they don't fight. That's it, nothing worth watching. Thank goodness they both have careers they can actually be proud of; this movie won't help or hurt them any I don't think.