A remake of a 1998 French film of the same name, Tim Story's Taxi is a bland, half-finished film that seems to have been conceived as off-peak cable fodder. Jimmy Fallon of Saturday Night Live plays Washburn, a New York City cop whose driver's license has been revoked after a number of traffic mishaps; summoned to a bank robbery, he impulsively hops a cab piloted by Belle (Queen Latifah), an aspiring Nascar driver who has customized her vehicle with a supercharged engine and a host of questionable modifications.
Belle likes driving fast, and Washburn likes being driven, so soon the two of them have formed an unofficial team. They set out in pursuit of the bank robbers, who turn out to be a gang of leggy Brazilian fashion models, led by fashion model Gisele Bundchen, making her first film appearance outside of a Victoria's Secret lingerie show.
In the original French film, which was written by Luc Besson (The Fifth Element) and directed by Gerard Pires, the Queen Latifah role was played by Samy Naceri, a popular French comedian of Algerian descent. It's interesting -- and a bit depressing -- to see how easily one country's ethnic cliches can be superimposed on another's.
PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX MOVIES
Here, Queen Latifah has been drafted (as she has been drafted many times before) to represent some kind of irrepressible life force, supposedly unavailable to uptight white folks. Her bursting ethnicity somehow liberates Fallon's character, a timid young man who lives next door to his alcoholic mother (Ann-Margret, in a bizarrely misconceived comic turn). By the end of the film, Washburn has been transformed into a daredevil driver in his own right, affirming life and liberty by endangering innocent pedestrians as he caroms like a billiard ball through crowded Midtown streets.
After a few routine car chases, Taxi ends abruptly, as if the director Tim Story, of Barbershop, had simply thrown in the towel without bothering to wait around for the tired resolution of the tired plot. It's as if he has walked out on his own film, something many viewers of Taxi will be tempted to do as well. Taxi has been rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned) for some strong language and violence.
Jason Han says that the e-arrival card spat between South Korea and Taiwan shows that Seoul is signaling adherence to its “one-China” policy, while Taiwan’s response reflects a reciprocal approach. “Attempts to alter the diplomatic status quo often lead to tit-for-tat responses,” the analyst on international affairs tells the Taipei Times, adding that Taiwan may become more cautious in its dealings with South Korea going forward. Taipei has called on Seoul to correct its electronic entry system, which currently lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan),” warning that reciprocal measures may follow if the wording is not changed before March 31. As of yesterday,
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Nuclear power is getting a second look in Southeast Asia as countries prepare to meet surging energy demand as they vie for artificial intelligence-focused data centers. Several Southeast Asian nations are reviving mothballed nuclear plans and setting ambitious targets and nearly half of the region could, if they pursue those goals, have nuclear energy in the 2030s. Even countries without current plans have signaled their interest. Southeast Asia has never produced a single watt of nuclear energy, despite long-held atomic ambitions. But that may soon change as pressure mounts to reduce emissions that contribute to climate change, while meeting growing power needs. The
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