The One (2001)
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A rogue agent travels across parallel realities to kill every version of himself to achieve godlike power.
The story
Gabriel Yulaw, a former agent of the MultiVerse Authority (MVA) that polices interdimensional travel, seeks to hunt down 124 variants of himself across parallel universes. By killing these other selves and absorbing their life energies, Yulaw believes he will transform into a super-powered, godlike being called "The One." After capturing a convict in the Anubis Universe, Yulaw is caught by MVA agents and sentenced to a penal colony. However, he escapes and teleports to the Charis Universe, where he encounters the final known variant of himself: Gabe Law, a deputy sheriff who has begun experiencing mysterious increases in strength and mental ability.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Gabriel Yulaw, a former MultiVerse Authority (MVA) agent, seeks to become the godlike "The One" by killing 124 variants of himself across parallel universes to absorb their life energies. After killing the 123rd variant, Lawless, Yulaw is captured by MVA agents Roedecker and Funsch and sentenced to the Hades Universe's Stygian penal colony. He escapes to the Charis Universe, where he finds the final variant, Gabe Law, a deputy sheriff who is unknowingly gaining powers. Yulaw tracks Gabe down, and after a confrontation where Roedecker and Funsch intervene, Yulaw realizes that if Gabe dies, Gabe becomes the One. The two identical men escape the hospital, confusing local police. Roedecker is killed by Yulaw, while Funsch teams up with Gabe to stop him. Yulaw tricks Gabe's wife, T.K., into hiding him, but she is captured. Gabe and Funsch confront Yulaw at an industrial plant. They are sucked into a wormhole and end up at the MVA headquarters. Yulaw is sent to the Hades Universe, where he begins battling inmates on a ziggurat. The MVA prepares to send Gabe back to his own universe to take the fall, but Funsch instead sends him to a different universe where he can live a normal life with T.K.
- First release year
- 2001
- Runtime (minutes)
- 87
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- James Wong
- Writers
- Glen Morgan · writer; James Wong · writer
- Cast and characters
- Jet Li · Gabe Law, Gabriel Yulaw, Yu Fook Law, Swen Law, Ni Dilaw, Kia Jilaw, Seth Law, Frun Law, Lawless; Delroy Lindo · Harry Roedecker, Arri; Carla Gugino · T.K. Law, Massie Walsh, Carla; Jason Statham · Evan Funsch
- Genres
- science fiction; action; martial arts; superhero
- Themes
- multiverse; identity; power
- Tone and mood
- action-packed; tongue-in-cheek
- Premise and plot tags
- multiverse travel; alternate realities; martial arts; superhero origin
- Reception
- The film received largely negative reviews from mainstream critics, though it has gained a cult following for its martial arts action.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 14% · review count: 89; Metacritic · score: 25 · scale: 100 · review count: 21; CinemaScore · score: B · scale: A to F
- Production trivia
- Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson was originally cast before Jet Li assumed the lead.; The hospital scenes were filmed at the North Hollywood Medical Center.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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