A Man Apart 2003

Bruce Newman, San Jose Mercury News: The one secret the movie has tried to hold in reserve is the identity of El Diablo, but like all of its other surprises, this one seems less startling than it's intended to be. Read more

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: In a sense, A Man Apart is aptly titled for Diesel. Nobody has chemistry with him. Then again, you try acting with a tree. Read more

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: Did executives at New Line Cinema purposely keep A Man Apart on the shelf for more than a year because they were hoping to capitalize on Diesel's popularity after last summer's XXX? Read more

Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper: [I]t's well made, but we've seen all of this, so many times before. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: This movie is so testosterone-laden that one character is seen carrying a gun and a beer in the same hand. Read more

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune: Diesel is moodier and more morose than he was in his big, star-making movies. In a way, you can see why. There's not much joy or exhilaration in A Man Apart. Read more

Dave Kehr, New York Times: Relatively actionless. Read more

J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader: The script for this action vehicle is like something you'd find under the cushions of Steven Seagal's couch, but Diesel, to his credit, digs into his role as if it were Hamlet. Read more

Bob Longino, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Old-school action flick with a heart -- and better than all the Chuck Norris movies combined. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: We may still be, as the film's voice-over doesn't let us forget, the No. 1 drug-consuming nation on Earth, but that doesn't mean we're eager to sit through yet another overly familiar story of drug kingpins and Mexican cartels. Read more

Eric Harrison, Houston Chronicle: The movie has more than its share of action scenes, but they're grafted onto a gritty crime drama that has no room for outsized heroics. Read more

Scott Brown, Entertainment Weekly: Man is a threadbare hand-me-down of an action thriller -- even its obligatory twists feel preworn. Read more

Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail: The swaggering humour that made Diesel a star in Pitch Black, The Fast and the Furious and XXX is barely evident here. Read more

Tom Maurstad, Dallas Morning News: Pointless, predictable mayhem of an action film and the leaden pretensions of an art-house wannabe. Read more

Ernest Hardy, L.A. Weekly: A Man Apart isn't awful, but it is almost reflexively rote, evoking countless other outlaw-cop films that are smarter, tighter and more fun. Read more

Jan Stuart, Newsday: If you take the picture at face value, it delivers the goods. Read more

Jami Bernard, New York Daily News: The film would be totally unwatchable without the very real charisma of Diesel. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: While A Man Apart is effectively paced and nicely choreographed, the fundamental letdown of the ending results in a mild sense of dissatisfaction. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: This movie has been filmed and released, but it has not been finished. Read more

Jeff Stark, Salon.com: Yes, Vin Diesel still rocks. But you wouldn't know it from this dreary, predictable sub-Traffic action flick. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: It's hard to approach a movie like this expecting Citizen Kane ... But I did expect a good Vin Diesel movie, a showcase for this magnetic actor's personality. That's where A Man Apart falls short. Read more

Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star: Although more fun than the preachy Training Day, A Man Apart never quite reaches the seedy depths of Narc. Read more

Derek Adams, Time Out: This is disappointingly routine stuff from Gray, but the movie does boast one disaster area of a shoot-out and a nifty denouement. Read more

Mike Clark, USA Today: It's all fast and furious up to its draggy finale, and yes, it could spark a sequel. Prepare yourself for coming dread in 18 months: A Man Together. Read more

Robert Koehler, Variety: Once thoughts of revenge fill the head of Diesel's Sean Vetter, the direction of the story unfortunately goes south. Read more

Justine Elias, Village Voice: Slow-going indeed. Read more

Desson Thomson, Washington Post: While you're enduring the usual formulaic yada yada ... at least there are yuks to enjoy. Read more