This evening I watched what is probably the best film Sylvester Stallone has been in for the last ten years. Not Rocky Balboa: I haven’t seen that. I haven’t even seen the first 5 yet. It is a film from 2003 which I didn’t even know existed until I saw it in the three-for-twenty-quid racks at HMV today.

I’m not knocking Stallone, by the way. First Blood is, in my opinion, a first-rate film which makes some serious points about Vietnam and the treatment of returning troops. By all accounts Rocky was a classic as well. Later films might not have had the same depth, but I still find stuff like The Assassins or Demolition Man entertaining.

Anyway, the film I watched tonight was Taxi 3. (Check it out on IMDb, and check out the site’s new look at the same time). Stallone only has an uncredited cameo because, lets face it, the film is really about the speed demon taxi driver and the bumbling coppers like the first two were, but he plays it straight and gets some laughs as a result.

Its a bit strange to see him talking French with English sub-titles, especially as his voice appeared to be dubbed in the first place – and apologies to SS if I am wrong and his accent really is that good.

I can’t say any more about Stallone’s appearance: it would spoil the movie in the unlikely event of anyone watching it after reading about it here.

Taxi 3 is really a pale imitation of the first Taxi film, but that was so good that even a pale imitation has enough in it to be well worth watching. Its a bit like how the James Bond films became more and more gimmicky but are still enjoyable even as they got further and further away from plausibility and audiences could simultaneously enjoy a Roger Moore film while really wishing it was still Sean Connery.

There is a reason for the James Bond comparison. Some of the action sequences, which are all really chases, would not look out of place in a James Bond film, and the same goes for the gadgets installed in the taxi itself. On top of that the film starts with a cracking pre-title chase sequence involving roller-blades, mountain bikes, and a certain Renault which is a Bond homage before going into a title sequence which is a blatant and amusing parody of the 007 films.

One reason for the quality of the original film was that the two main characters were played by very likeable and charming actors, supported by a good comic actor playing the police chief, provided with some great lines by the writer. Although there were amazing driving sequences, that film was really about the characters as much as the cars. This new film has more emphasis on the gadgets and the comedy, but it is rescued from being a crock by virtue of keeping all the original characters, still played by the same actors, and the same writer РLuc Besson. If anything Fr̩d̩ric Diefenthal as Emilien and Bernard Farcy as Commissaire Gilbert have grown into their parts more as the series continues (Samy Naceri as Daniel has been perfect from the start).

The irony is that seeing a Renault Taxi going down a ski run might be a technical achievement, and the sort of thing you would find in Bond, but actually it is the sequences on real roads which are most impressive. Seeing a car do 80mph though a city centre is more exciting than seeing it do 180mph on a motorway or country road. But then sequels are always disappointing no matter how good they are – except for Aliens. Fortunately Taxi 3 still has some hair-raising drives through Marseilles to cater for fans of the first two films.

Despite all the shortcomings, I found the film to be entertaining enough, and it supplied several bouts of involuntary laughter. It is certainly miles better than the remake of the original film with Queen Latifah. Even those Americans who have seen both prefer the French version.

The most disappointing thing about the film must be the lack of any sort of promotion for any of them. Are we really so insular that we would rather see a piss-poor american remake of the first Taxi film than the superior original just because it has sub-titles? If it was not for HMV’s promotion of these films hardly anyone here would have seen them, and its us who suffer by missing out on a great little series of films.

Admittedly movies like Bout de Souffle or Au Revoir Les Enfants might appear a bit daunting, whether subtitled or dubbed, but the Taxis are as approachable as a film can be.

Having delved into IMDb a bit, I now know that Taxi 4 is in the works, and due for release this year. Maybe the presence of Liverpool’s Djibril Cisse in the cast will get it more attention here, but whatever happens I shan’t leave it 4 years before watching it!