First Hit: Although not an intelligent film or full of interesting plot twists, I enjoyed its silliness, self depreciating humor and suspenseful attempts.
Jonathan Rhys Meyers plays James Reece an attaché to the US Ambassador to France. He doubles as a special agent doing some low level work like switching license plates on vehicles of suspected individuals or by planting bugs in an office.
Reece is involved in a serious relationship with a French woman named Caroline (Kasia Smutniak). One evening he gets a call from his special agent boss who tells him he’s been promoted and will work with a partner named Charlie Wax (played by John Travolta).
He picks Wax up at the airport where he is giving the customs people a hard time about cans of energy drink. This scene is where Wax provides the audience a look at his character; bold, brash, single minded, and seriously violent. This takes Reece by surprise but as he spends time with Wax there is an understanding that Wax is clearly on a mission.
The trail Wax is following begins with drugs and drug dealers and ends with a possible terrorist plot to kill a US delegation and involves Reece's girlfriend. Plausible? Probably not, but the fun of this film is the bold brash ways of Charlie Wax.
Travolta is funny and mostly unbelievable but this wasn’t supposed to be a real life story. Meyers is OK although he looked 18 years old in a couple scenes but in other scenes he looked more age appropriate. The story line is not plausible or really serious, almost comic book in nature but that is what made it fun to watch.
Overall: It was amusing, implausible, seriously violent, and makes fun of itself. A romp which had me laughing more than once.