A Man Apart is a picture that's been sitting on the shelf for quite sometime. In fact, the reason it's seeing the green light of day is because of star Vin Diesel's steady rise. It's the same sort of scenario that occurred with last year's little scene gem Knockaround Guys. Unfortunately, A Man Apart should have stayed on the shelf.

A Man Apart is a typical revenge thriller in which Diesel plays a cop who's out to avenge the death of loved ones. His vengence leads him into the world of drug dealing.

A Man Apart is a movie I had a very hard time figuring out. It's too stupid to be taken seriously. Since when does a cop have the authority to give a murderer/drug dealer a prison transfer? And since when do American police officers have authority to go into other countries and conduct drug raids?

On the other hand, A Man Apart tries too hard to be classified as a typical action vehicle picture starring a Steven Segal or an Arnold Schwarzenegger. Vin Diesel actually makes an effort to bring a dramatic element to his part.

In the end, A Man Apart doesn't work for a number of reasons. The big one being it's convoluted story. This movie is all over the map, and many of it's characters are unnessesary. And don't get me started on a completely nonsensical ending that had me, Kyle, and the three other people in the theater completely dumbfounded.

Director F. Gary Gray has proven to be more than competent with the action genre (see The Negotiator), but here he seems completely clueless. A Man Apart goes in so many silly, unrealistic directions, that it just shoots itself in the foot.

As for Diesel, I'm still trying to figure him out. Certainly he's shown potential (check out his sensational work in Boiler Room) but I'm becoming increasingly tired of his big, showboat vehicle productions (why XXX was a hit is beyond me). Thankfully, his work in A Man Apart is much more understated than his previous starring roles, but thus far, I like him in supporting roles (check out Knockaround Guys or Pitch Black).