One doesn't go to a Jet Li movie to examine the logic of plots and characters, but when illogic is so blatant as to be distracting, what choice does one have? Kiss of the Dragon has a French Inspector, doing a little drug dealing, pimping, and murdering on the side, spends the entire movie concerned with disposing of proof of his guilt, but he doesn't have a problem with having mad shoot-outs in public places where civilians get hurt in the crossfire. And when he does recover a tape of himself shooting someone, he keeps it safely in a drawer instead of destroying it.

There is a fire in a laundry chute that does not generate heat, a grenade that only seems to explode downward, and a pimp who apparently thinks he'll do better business if he keeps the bruises on his hookers' faces fresh.

I might have been willing to forgive all of the above if the action scenes were up to snuff, because, after all, that's what this movie is for. A couple are pretty good, but most are too choppy, brutal, or mechanical. Li has a few nice moves, but the best scene in the movie is a quiet one, a simple moment between Li and Bridget Fonda -- playing a prostitute with a heart of gold, of course -- as she sews up an injury of his. I liked the dialogue, Fonda's acting, and Li's reserved demeanor. I think something was working there, but, then again, maybe I was just relieved to have a break from all the audio-visual noise.