DOA: Dead or Alive (2006)

User Rating:

4.9/10   

Director:

Corey Yuen

Writers (WGA):

J.F. Lawton (screenplay) and
Adam Gross (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

7 September 2006 (Australia)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Tagline:

You're Invited.

Plot:

The movie adaptation of the best selling video game series Dead or Alive.

Plot Keywords:

Tournament | Island | Parachute | Martial Arts | Ninja

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Jaime Pressly	...	Tina Armstrong
Devon Aoki	...	Kasumi
Holly Valance	...	Christie Allen
Sarah Carter	...	Helena Douglas
Natassia Malthe	...	Ayane
Kane Kosugi	...	Ryu Hayabusa
Matthew Marsden	...	Max
Eric Roberts	...	Donovan
Steve Howey	...	Weatherby
Brian J. White	...	Zack (as Brian White)
Kevin Nash	...	Bass Armstrong
Collin Chou	...	Hayate
Derek Boyer	...	Bayman
Silvio Simac	...	Leon
Fang Liu	...	Gen Fu

Also Known As:

DOA (USA) (short title)
Dead or Alive (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for pervasive martial arts and action violence, some sexuality and nudity.

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA | Germany | UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Malaysia:U | Singapore:PG | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Portugal:M/12 | Australia:M | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | South Africa:13V | Finland:K-13 | Canada:G (Quebec) | South Korea:12 | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Heng Dian, China

Company:

Constantin Film Produktion

Trivia:

Milo Ventimiglia was originally supposed to be Weatherby but dropped out because he didn't like the way the character was developed. He appeared in Stay Alive (2006) instead, another video game movie.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Bass is drinking beer on the airplane, the hand his beer is in changes repeatedly each time the camera changes angles.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Ryu Hayabusa: Princess Kasumi, your brother is dead. Your destiny is to lead your people.
Kasumi: I will not believe he is dead, until I see his body.
Ryu Hayabusa: There is no body.
Kasumi: Then he is not dead.

Movie Connections:

References Jerry Maguire (1996)

Fan Service

I've been playing Dead or Alive since the Playstation release back in 1998 (I still do~~) and was shocked when I heard someone's gonna turn it into a movie. As a fan, the first thing, the major concern I had happens to be the actors playing the fighters. Not that it was a complete let down (especially since most of the attitudes of the characters in the game and movie were quite different), I had to anticipate it being (forgive the term) somewhat 'Americanized'. But ah, well. That's how it was. Don't know if Tomonobu Itagaki liked seeing Hayate not so often in the film, though (Hayate WAS modeled after him, the DOA creator). So when it was released, I avoided watching it, until now.

Corey Yuen did an amazing job directing this one. The choreography of the fight scenes were really good, but the script and the plot... those needed work. It was fun seeing Robin Shou and Collin Chou in this film. But props to Jaime Pressly for the amazing portrayal of Tina! She, in my opinion, stole the show from Devon Aoki.

But really, this is more of a fan service (in glorified kick-ass fights!) than a supposed movie in its own right. But it was better than most game adaptations and it was fun to watch.

One thing's certain- I didn't like the portrayal of Ayane.