Romeo Must Die

Plot

An avenging cop seeks out his brother's killer and falls for the daughter of a businessman who is involved in a money-deal with his father.

Release Year: 2000

Rating: 5.9/10 (33,479 voted)

Critic's Score: 52/100

Director:
Andrzej Bartkowiak

Stars: Jet Li, Aaliyah, Isaiah Washington

Storyline
In this modern day Romeo and Juliet, kung fu action star Jet Li plays Romeo to hip-hop singer, Aaliyah Haughton's Juliet. Li is an ex-cop investigating the murder of his brother, who had ties with the Chinese mafia in America. Aaliyah plays the daughter of the American mob boss. Neither side approves of their romance, so, obviously, kung fu action ensues, with a soundtrack by Aaliyah.

Writers: Mitchell Kapner, Eric Bernt

Cast:

Jet Li
–

Han Sing

Aaliyah
–

Trish O'Day

Isaiah Washington
–

Mac

Russell Wong
–

Kai

Delroy Lindo
–

Isaak O'Day

D.B. Woodside
–

Colin

(as DB Woodside)

Henry O
–

Ch'u Sing

Jon Kit Lee
–

Po Sing

Edoardo Ballerini
–

Vincent Roth

Anthony Anderson
–

Maurice

DMX
–

Silk

Matthew Harrison
–

Dave

Terry Chen
–

Kung

Derek Lowe
–

Chinese Messenger

Ronin Wong
–

New Prisoner

Taglines:
In A World Of Vicious Rivalries And Violent Betrayals Only One Thing Is Sure.

Details

Official Website:
Warner Bros. |

Release Date: 22 March 2000

Filming Locations: Embarcadero Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office Details

Budget: $25,000,000

(estimated)

Opening Weekend: $18,014,503
(USA)
(26 March 2000)
(2641 Screens)

Gross: $55,973,336
(USA)
(18 June 2000)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Did You Know?

Trivia:

In one scene, Han breaks into apartment number 2600 by picking the lock. The number 2600 comes from Computer Hacking subculture, and is a symbol for the type of technical insight involved in circumventing security measures (such as picking a lock).

Goofs:

Continuity:
The clouds in the sky during the kung fu football scene.

Quotes:

Trish:
Can you break one of those boards with your head?

Han Sing:
Sure.

Trish:
I'd have to see that.

User Review

Action with Depth.

Rating: 10/10


Not usually a fan of this type of all-out Action movie, "Romeo Must
Die" knocked me off balance when I found it to be one of the best films
I have ever enjoyed. Producer Joel Silver (Who also produced "The
Matrix") describes the film as an "Urban rendition of Romeo and Juliet"
and although this is a very simple way of looking at the film, it's not
far off the mark. Like the great Shakespeare work, there are two
opposing families in this film, each looking to make big commercial
gains in the world of real estate development. Caught up in their lies,
greed and violence are Trish O'Day (Played by Aaliyah) and Han Sing
(Played by Jet Li). The story revolves around their quickly blooming
relationship and the opposing families around them.

The film boasts some serious eye candy with some of the best special
effects you'll see. Luckily, this is not the only good thing going for
the movie as the eye candy is wonderfully supported by some fantastic
performances from the cast. In her first feature movie, Aaliyah is
absolutely breath taking as Trish O'Day. Showing the kind of charm and
'x' factor that few will ever have, she alone makes this film a must
see. Jet Li's performance is, as always, about his skills as a martial
artist but his scripted acting continues to improve. Another stand out
performance for me was that of D.B. Woodside who plays Trish O'Days
brother – Colin. Although not such a major role, D.B. excels in this
role. High end production values mean the film has a real style and
"gloss" to it and everything fits in place and the story moves along at
just the right pace. In fact, "Romeo Must Die" is a shining example of
how good story telling does not need to be lost in a sea of special
effects and glossy American values. Jonathon Ross describes the film as
"Fast, Furious, Fun", which is definitely true, but there is more to
this film that the audience can take away with them. The reason the
film works is that it works on two levels – storyline and action. You
can enjoy both aspects and take from them what you like. This is a
brilliant film and I highly recommend it.