Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever Information

Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever is a 2002 American action film starring Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu. Liu and Banderas play opposing secret agents who are supposedly enemies, but team up during the movie to fight a common enemy. The film was universally panned by critics, often listed among the worst movies ever made. In March 2007, the movie review site Rotten Tomatoes ranked the film #1 among "The Worst of the Worst" movie list, with 108 "rotten" reviews and no "fresh" ones. Financially, the film was also a box office failure, recouping just over $19.9 million of its $70 million budget.

Plot

Michael, the son of Robert Gant (Greg Henry), director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), is kidnapped when he returns home from a trip to Berlin, despite a heavily armed DIA escort. The kidnapper is a former DIA agent named Sever (Lucy Liu). Former FBI agent Jeremiah Ecks (Antonio Banderas) is asked by his old boss, Martin, to investigate the case. Ecks realizes that the kidnapper must be one of the Chinese girls the DIA adopts and trains as secret agents and assassins. Gant orders his DIA agents led by his right hand man, Ross, to pursue Sever.

Ecks discovers that Gant stole a dangerous nanobot assassin, which operates in the human circulatory system. Gant had placed the nanobot in Michael's body in order to smuggle it into the country.

At the outset of the film we see that Gant is married to Vinn (Talisa Soto), who was previously married to Ecks. It is later revealed that Gant separated Vinn and Ecks by staging their deaths by car bomb so that each of them thought the other was dead. Vinn was officially declared dead and had a closed-casket funeral attended by Ecks. Gant had also facilitated a mission in which Sever's husband and child are killed. Sever blames Gant for their deaths so it initially appears that Sever has kidnapped Gant's son, Michael, for revenge but we later learn that Michael is not Gant's son but it is actually Ecks who is Michael's father and Sever has kidnapped Michael to keep him safe from Gant.

A final battle happens near an old railroad station. There, Ross and Gant confront Ecks and Sever who have teamed up to defeat Gant. A long battle with explosions and gunfire follows, with Ecks and Sever eventually getting the upper hand on the DIA agents sent to kill them. Ross confronts Sever inside a laboratory and hand-to-hand combat ensues. Eventually Sever wins the fight and kills Ross with a death strike to the neck. It is then revealed that Gant has placed the nanobot inside Michael's arm but as he attempts to retrieve it, he is surprised to learn that it isn't there. Sever then shoots Gant in the arm with the bullet prepared earlier with the nanobot, produces the remote for the nanobot and presses the button - killing him. Sever escapes as the police and FBI arrive. The film concludes with Ecks and Sever overlooking the sea and Ecks thanking Sever for reuniting him with his family.

Cast

• Antonio Banderas as F.B.I. Agent Jeremiah Ecks
• Lucy Liu as Agent Sever
• Gregg Henry as DIA Director Robert Gant / Agent Clark
• Ray Park as A.J. Ross
• Talisa Soto as Rayne Gant / Vinn Ecks
• Miguel Sandoval as Julio Martin
• Terry Chen as Agent Harry Lee
• Roger R. Cross as Zane
• Sandrine Holt as Agent Bennett
• Steve Bacic as Agent Fleming
• Tony Alcantar as Edgar Moore
• David Palffy as Sleazy Man
• David Pearson as VPD Officer
• Norm Sherry as Ross Sniper
• Brian Drummond as VPD Officer
• Joel Kramer as Bus Driver
• John DeSantis as Bus Guard #2
• Charles Andre as Agent Addis
• Mike Dopud as DIA Agent
• Jonathan Kelly as the Da Feiji technology teacher
• Jet Li as Man in car (Uncredited)
• Aidan Drummond as Michael Gant
• Eric Breker as Agent Curtis
• David Parker as Dark Suit #1
• Josephine Jacob as Pretty Girl
• John McConnach as Escort Agent
• Ashley Kobayashi as Mali
• Lenora Wong as Harry's Wife
• Jim Filippone as DIA Pilot
• Justin Liu as the common Da Feiji master

Reception

The film was a massive box office failure, grossing less than 30% of its budget at the box office. It also received overwhelmingly negative reviews from film critics, and has been declared one of the worst movies ever made. Rotten Tomatoes ranked Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever #1 on its "The 100 Worst Reviewed Films of All Time" list. All of the 108 available reviews gave the film negative ratings, which resulted in a 0% fresh rating. The film was ranked number one worst movie of the decade. On Ebert & Roeper's "Worst of 2002", Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever was among the list, in the category BAD BONDING.

Among the most obvious plot holes noted by critics of the film is the fact that the FBI - an organization intended to work within the United States - is somehow working in Vancouver, Canada, causing costly shootouts with other Americans.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack includes the following tracks:

1. Main Title
2. Name of the Game
3. Smartbomb [Plump Dj's Remix]
4. Heaven Scent [Original Mix]
5. The Flow
6. I Think of You [Screamer Remix]
7. Hell Above Water
8. Go
9. Bloodlock
10. I Need Love
11. The Aquarium
12. Time
13. Anytime

Video games

A Game Boy Advance first-person shooter, Ecks vs. Sever, was based on a very early version of the film script and, story wise, is almost nothing like the final rewrite. It was released in 2001, before the film. It was considered an impressive technological feat on the GBA and was accepted more than the film itself. A second game created after the premiere, Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever, which follows the plot-line from the film, is considered a sequel to the first game. It received very positive reviews and received a 9/10 on IGN.

See also

• List of films considered the worst
• List of American films of 2002

References