The Art of War

R

Released Aug 25, 2000

1h 57m

Mystery & Thriller

Action

List

16%

Tomatometer

81 Reviews

35%

Audience Score

25,000+ Ratings

He is both agent and weapon - a critical line of defense for the Secretary General of the United Nations. He does not even officially exist. Neil Shaw, an American agent who must uncover an international plot to bring down the United Nations on the eve of an historic summit with China. A mysterious chain of events leads to the murder of the Chinese U.N. Ambassador. When Shaw is accused of the crime, he must go underground -- in effect, vanish from his own life.

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Critics Consensus

Excessively noisy and overly reliant on genre clichés, The Art of War wastes its star's charisma on a ridiculous, convoluted plot and poorly edited action sequences.

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Emanuel Levy

Variety

In this pretentiously titled international thriller, which is sloppily directed, Wesley Snipes plays an American agent who gets involved in the emerging relations between China and the Western world, with a shaky U.N. placed right in the middle.

Rated: C-

Feb 12, 2007

Full Review

Globe and Mail

Rated: 2/4

Mar 22, 2002

Full Review

Michael Thomson

BBC.com

Rated: 2/5

Apr 17, 2001

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Even the mystery of the double and triple-crosses doesn't really matter; it devolves into a bullet-dodging, body-battering, scenery-demolishing collection of brawls.

Rated: 3/10

Sep 25, 2020

Full Review

Gerry Gallo

Hollywood.com

Rated: 2/5

Nov 20, 2008

Full Review

David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

...[features] several unexpectedly enthralling action sequences...

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 11, 2008

Full Review

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Steve D

Ok action film but not a lot too it.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The worst 01 hour: and 57 minutes ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This movie is confusing and lacks the action it said it give. It sucks big time!

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I find it to be the biggest insult to action films when an action film with a punchy title of "The Art of War" and featuring Wesley Snipes, can be so utterly boring and forgettable.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

Full Review

William L

At various points excessively stylistically dated, obvious, and poorly constructed, The Art of War falls short of its ambitious scale despite opting for some good set design and practical effects, and picking up a charismatic lead with a proven track record in Snipes. The film is abjectly terrible at creating any sort of empathy for supporting characters, which robs any sort of emotional investment (Biehn just feels straight-up miscast). I do wish Tagawa had a higher profile career, he's got a great voice and stage presence; likewise, always love seeing Hong in a supporting role, the man is an icon based on sheer range and longevity alone. If you want a nostalgia trip based on early-stage internet, colored, spikey hair, and tinted glasses, you may be pleasantly surprised. (2/5)

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

09/16/20

Full Review

Audience Member

The Art of War, a somewhat pretentiously slick and stylish thriller is a nice action film from the first year of the new millennium. Grafting current events onto that old stand-by plot device, the accused innocent man, and adding lots of gratuitously arty cinematography, Duguay has come up with a film that manages to be diverting - provided, of course, you don't think too deeply about the plot. When the film works, it's because of the tight pacing and expertly choreographed action scenes. The "surprise" twists in the plot are nothing of the sort - anyone who doesn't expect the return from the dead of one character and the betrayal by another hasn't seen many of these movies. This is a good Wesley Snipes film, rather forgotten. (A somewhat underrated Wesley Snipes movie).

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/18/23

Full Review

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Christian Duguay

Director

Wesley Snipes

Shaw

Anne Archer

Eleanor Hooks

Maury Chaykin

Cappella

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

Chan

Donald Sutherland

Douglas Thomas

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Synopsis

He is both agent and weapon - a critical line of defense for the Secretary General of the United Nations. He does not even officially exist. Neil Shaw, an American agent who must uncover an international plot to bring down the United Nations on the eve of an historic summit with China. A mysterious chain of events leads to the murder of the Chinese U.N. Ambassador. When Shaw is accused of the crime, he must go underground -- in effect, vanish from his own life.

Director: Christian Duguay
Producer: Nicolas Clermont, Oliver Stone
Screenwriter: Wayne Beach, Wayne Beach, Simon Barry
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Bros., Filmline International, Morgan Creek Productions, Franchise Pictures, Quebec Film and Television Tax Credit, Imperial Entertainment, Amen Ra Films
Rating: R (Language|Brief Drug Content|Some Sexuality|Violence)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 25, 2000, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 2, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $30.2M
Runtime: 1h 57m
Sound Mix: SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby EX, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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