It is said that there is not just one universe, but a whole series of parallel dimensions where nothing is the same, different versions of us exist in many of these different universes, this is known as the ‘Multiverse’. In one dimension, the means to travel through wormholes between the various versions of our world has been created, and a special elite group polices them to make sure that ‘balance’ is retained. Lets take a look at one of these universes shall we? Policemen in riot gear walk through a prison, passing a TV where President Gore is making a speech (that joke never seems to get old). The men enter the cell of a man named Lawless, played by Jet Li. He is due to be escorted to his execution, but as he is taken out to a police truck he is shot dead from a ventilation shaft. The killer is none other than another Jet Li, who viciously dispatches the police with incredible speed and strength, and then flees as more cops come in pursuit. Also following him are two men who know exactly who he is, MVA agents Harry Roedecker (Delroy Lindow!) and Evan Funsch. These two eventually corner him, and just in time too, as a wormhole opens and the three are taken back to their home dimension in what looks like an extremely painful manner that leaves the three pained and disorientated.

This Jet is Gabriel Yulaw, an MVA agent until he made a discovery. You see every version of a person throughout the Multiverse has a share of life energy, evenly distributed between each of them. Through an accident, Yulaw discovered that by killing another version of himself, he became stronger, faster and more intelligent as the life energy that was possessed by the victim is distributed evenly amongst the rest of the alternate versions. Yulaw, drunk with power, starts to systematically murder each different version of himself (125 in all) becoming smarter, stronger, faster, and more dangerous each time. Put on trial for killing 123 different hims and violating Multiverse travel law, he is due to be sent to a penal dimension for the rest of his life until his girlfriend helps him escape, travelling to the dimension of the last other version of himself. This version is Gabe Law, sheriff deputy, animal lover, and all-round nice guy. In a scene almost identical to the one earlier, he is one of the men escorting a criminal out of a prison when Yulaw attacks again, but this time failing to eliminate his target due to Law’s own increased abilities, a bullet proof vest that deflects Yulaw’s bullet, and the intervention of Roedecker and Funsch. Law sees the attacker though, and can’t believe his eyes when he realises its himself that was shooting at him, and he even felt his presence before the attack. He goes in for an MRI and this gives Yulaw another chance to strike. However both Law and Yulaw are dressed the same, and when gunshots are heard, its presumed something is wrong with Law relating to his being shot. Law and Yulaw both split when both the MVA agents and the local Sheriffs are running around the hospital looking for them. Roedecker and Funsch split up, Roedecker goes after Yulaw while Funsch, eager to just kill both of them, tracks down Law and tries to explain what’s happening. Roedecker does not fare well against Yulaw, and when Yulaw returns to Law’s house and does something very, very bad, Law is convinced he must and could very well be the only man who can stop Yulaw once and for all.

Jet Li had the choice between supporting roles in the next two The Matrix sequels, or a couple of leading parts in both this and Kiss of the Dragon. He definitely made the right choice. Originally intended for The Rock of wrestling and The Scorpion King fame, I just can’t imagine this film being as good if Dwayne had been in there instead of Jet. While not looking entirely comfortable speaking English, and I can’t say I blame him, Jet does himself justice by successfully making a distinction between the hero and villain, both in facial expression and the way they talk, I never thought Jet wasn’t up to it. Visually, this film is an absolute treat, while not becoming excessive, not too much CGI and not too many headache-inducing quick cutting. As usual, Jet looks great in the action sequences, and while there are the usual ‘Matrix-style’ CGI embellishments, they are used only as much as necessary and don’t feel intrusive in the way they did in films like Blade 2. Enough faith was put in Jet’s abilities, and those of the choreographers and stunt team, that most of the CGI is used to show how fast and powerful Jet is compared to normal people, as they move in slow motion while Yulaw/Law runs rings around them effortlessly – its done is such a way that you can see there’s just an influence there rather than a shameless rehash. The final fight showdown between the two Laws is great though as they square off hand to hand and do one of my most favourite martial arts movie tricks – switching Kung Fu form and style in order to beat the opponent, I just love that attention to detail that you rarely see in Hollywood movies. The rest of the main cast, Delroy Lindo, Jason Strathan (who’s from London but is putting on some weird pseudo-yank accent) and Carla Guigno are functional, even quite good, but it’s the action that’s important here and you shouldn’t be disappointed.

Its not all good though however. First off is the story itself. Wong and Morgan have previously brought us numerous episodes of The X-Files and the weird teen horror Final Destination. One thing that infuriated me about their previous work in both areas was their amazing ability to come up with a complex idea behind the story, and then totally fail to explain it properly. The One has a couple of confusing elements within it which just go totally unexplained. Now, there only being a certain number of Jets is on thing, I can handle that because there’s no reason why you or I should exist in every single alternate universe, but there are ambiguities. Early on when we see Lawless in prison, if he was one of the last three Laws left, he will have been extremely strong and powerful already, but he happily sits in jail when surely he could easily escape! Also, when you see the ending, though I was just about able to explain it to the friend I was watching it with, it still makes very little sense and all ties together rather too neatly. Also, though they talk of 'increased intelligence', it never manifests itself in the plot, which seems a bit pointless. Plus the whole idea of someone dying and their energy being transferred to their alternate versions, what about death by natural causes? Accidental death? Say another version of me in a different reality gets hit by a bus, can I suddenly pee faster, throw my cat further, and easily complete crossword puzzles? I guess we’ll never know, though really, its all a case of whether you can tolerate rather large plot ambiguities and while they didn’t disrupt my viewing and enjoyment of the movie, they only bothered me when I thought about them afterwards. I also have to say that at just over 80 minutes, it felt disappointingly short.

The One is a fun, exciting popcorn movie with an engaging star and some neat action sequences. While it certainly isn’t on terms with the likes of Once Upon a Time in China, you shouldn’t expect it to be and if you can just sit back and swtich your brain off, you’ll have a blast.