The running time is 1 hr. 32 mins..
Let me quickly toss aside the question of whether or not this is a good picture or not. If I were to be giving this movie a grade it would probably range in the C+ or B- area, and that is simply due to the fact that it is a mindless action picture, but that doesn't mean I don't like it, it just fits right into that meaty "average" range of the grading scale. Trust me, there are more than enough action pictures that only wish they could get a C+.
That said, it doesn't necessarily surprise me the makers of The Transporter were able to get a second one to go, especially with leading man Jason Statham at the wheel. Statham has yet to truly make it big at the United States box-office. Hell, if you were to say his name several people probably wouldn't even know who he was until you said, "Come on, you know, that bald British dude from The Italian Job." As you watch the light bulb switch on the other person is beginning to agree with you, "Yeah that guy was damn cool," and there you have Transporter 2.
Now for The Transporter, we find Mr. Statham as Frank Martin, the man that can get your illegal goods anywhere, be it drugs, guns or even the lowly incompetent bank robber. Dodging the law is this man's job and you better believe he is going to get it done and done quickly. Frank works on a very strict rule structure built around anonymity to protect himself and his clients, but all that changes when he suffers a flat tire transporting his latest package, which turns out to be a young and beautiful woman. Breaking his own rules he soon finds himself in the middle of a slave trade operation in which he must decide just how much further he wants to go to protect those that cannot protect themselves.
See what I mean, your regular old actioner, and with it being set in France it actually adds a lot to the feature, for me at least. I love a chance to see a foreign countryside whizzing by and not have the end result be Diane Lane getting nailed by some Italian at the end of it all, not that I don't like the rom-com, it is just nice to have a change of pace every now and again.
As for this special edition DVD you are going to get a few goodies action and Statham lovers are bound to enjoy. First off is the audio commentary with Statham and producer Steven Chasman. The comments are great and these two have a lot of fun throughout making for a lively and entertaining commentary, which doesn't stop at the end of the film. With the 15 minutes of extended and unrated fight sequences on the DVD you have the choice to listen to these two yak it up some more along with director Cory Yuen at times, which is really your best choice since there is no audio on these sequences, only a music track.
Following those is a cool behind-the-scenes featurette as well as a storyboard-to-film comparison. Nothing too out of the ordinary here, the featurette is good as it takes a look at everything having to do with the feature, the best of which are the looks at the stunts toward the end of the featurette.
Finally there is a sneak peek at Transporter 2, as if you didn't see that coming.
Overall, I am happy to own this edition, Transporter is right up there with the likes of Once Upon a Time in Mexico and xXx in my book. Films that in no way bring a tear to the eye or are examples of excellent filmmaking, these films simply manage to take the over-the-top ideas of actioners and execute them well enough to entertain for a good hour and a half, and that is all they set out to do.
If you are one of those naysayers that think mindless action is bad in any form then put your money away, but for those of you that like to turn your brain off every so often and enjoy an action picture that is pieced together well and stars one of the coolest cats from the other side of the pond then The Transporter Special Edition DVD is the one for you, enjoy!