The Films of Jackie Chan
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- The Films of Jackie Chan
Here are some reviews and information about all the films that Jackie Chan has made over the years. I’ve taken out any ones that he only had stunt work in, these are the ones where he actually had a starring role.
Around the World in 80 Days (2004), Passepartout
This is quite an entertaining film although it’s firmly in the category of family adventure rather than being a more adult film and as such I’m not a huge fan of it. The film is a re-telling of the classic tale ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ and stars Steve (A-ha!) Coogan as Phileas Fogg with Jackie playing his man servent.
There are a number of cameo apperances in the film from the likes of Macy Gray, Arnold Shwarzenegger, Rob Shneider, Owen Wilson, Kathy Bates, Richard Branson and John Cleese. Most pleasingly though Sammo Hung has a small part as kung fu legend Wong Fei Hung and it was great to see Jackie and Sammo back on screen together.
Weaponry
During the section in China there is some fighting with a traditional horse bench! This was great to see as it was often included in earlier films such The Young Master, but rarely has the opportunity to make an appearance in the newer films.
The horse bench is a small bench consisting of a short plank and four short legs. It appears in kung fu films often as they were found in bars in ancient China, and since fighting often broke out in the bars being able to pick one up and use it as a weapon was a valuable skill to have!
Shanghai Knights (2003), Chon Wang
This new one is cool, I really really enjoyed it :)
Jackie and Owen both return to their roles from Shanghai Noon, and although there was a three year gap between the releases of the films, the characters still seem fmailiar and well established. In this film, Jackie’s father is murdered, and the imperial seal which he is keeper of is stolen and taken to London. Jackie and Owen go to London after the seal and the killer, joined by Jackie’s sister Chon Lin (played by the very beautiful Fann Wong, not ‘her out of Crouching Tiger’ as I’ve heard some people say!).
The film is full of action and very funny, and I would even go so far as to say it’s even better than the original. I was also impressed with the quality of the sets throughout, they’d obviously put a lot of effort into that and it worked well.
Weaponry
One of the best bits in the film is when Jackie fights some London thugs using an umbrella, and then turns it into a Gene Kelly homage with a Singing in the Rain routine, very clever!Trivia
It might have confused some people that Chon Wang’s sister is introduced as Chon Lin. In China, people give their names as Surname, Forename rather than Forename, Surname as is customary in the West, so their family name is Chon and their Christian names are Wang and Lin. This is why it’s funny in Shanghai Noon when Roy thinks that Chon Wang is actually called John Wayne, because Chon isn’t even his first name!The Tuxedo (2002), Jimmy Tong
In this film Jackie plays a chauffer who finds a hi-tech suit belonging to his boss, which gives the wearer special abilities. Together with the suit and the the gorgeous Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jackie brings down an evil corporation who are trying to pollute natural water sources.
This isn’t one of my favourite Jackie Chan films, but it’s certainly watchable. It’s made all the better by having Jennifer Love Hewitt in; a female sidekick makes a nice change from Jackie’s usual male partners (Chris Rock, Owen Wilson etc.).
Rush Hour 2 (2001), Chief Inspector Lee
Jackie re-joins partner Chris Tucker from Rush Hour 1 for this action packed sequal. I love both of the Rush Hour films, and I wouldn’t like to pick one over the other as a favourite; certainly as a sequal this doesn’t dissappoint!
The film begins exactly where the first film left off, with Jackie and Chris on a plane bound for Hong Kong, supposedly to take a holiday! Pretty soon they end up back on the job though, with both officers joining forces to take down local Triad member Ricky Tan.
The film is just as funny as the first, with just as much action, and I highly recommend it (although if you don’t find Chris Tucker to be funny, then this film may annoy rather than ammuse). The film also stars Zhang Ziyi, fresh from finding fame in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
The Stunts!
Not one of Jackie’s most dangerous stunts, but worth mentioning since he did manage to persuade Chris Tucker to perform the stunt with him. Jackie and Chris hang over a busy Hong Kong street, clinging on to bamboo scaffolding poles. “Don’t worry! Chinese bamboo is very strong!” assures Jackie before the supports come undone and they plummet down to the street on the bamboo.The Accidental Spy (2001), Buck Yuen
In this film, Jackie plays an orphan, who is called to the death bed of a man who could possibly be his father. The man sends Jackie on a kind of treasure hunt to try and find his inheritance, but Jackie ends up dealing with some of the mess that the man got himself into before he died.
I enjoyed this one, there’s some cool fight scenes in it, and also a ‘Speed’ style scene with a tanker that can’t slow down.
The Stunts!
Jackie jumps from the roof of a building onto a high crane and then sits inside the crane as it crashes through the front of an office block.He also swings from a huge bridge on a rope, falling down as the pins holding the rope come undone (the out-takes show that this took a few attempts!)
Shanghai Noon (2000), Chon Wang
This is one of my favourite Jackie Chan films, it’s very well put together and I think that Jackie works very well with Owen Wilson, who plays his cowboy partner in this period Western.
Jackie plays the part of an Imperial Guardsman at the Forbidden Palace in China, during the 19th century. When the princess is lured away to America under false pretences, and held for ransom, Jackie and several other of the Guardsmen follow her to America to rescue her. However, Jackie quickly becomes seperated from the others, and teams up with cowboy Owen Wilson to learn the ways of the Old West.
Weaponry
During the film, Jackie ties a horse shoe to the end of a length of rope, and uses it to defeat a band of the Sherrif’s men in much the same way that a traditional Chinese steel whip can be used. As the out-takes at the end of the film show, it was harder than it looked!Jackie Chan: My Stunts (1999)
A documentary by Jackie Chan discussing some of his stunts from over the years, and also divulging some tricks of the trade using his own ‘Jackie Chan Stunt Team’. Very entertaining if you like behind-the-scenes stuff, I enjoyed it.
Jackie Chan: My Story (1998)
A documentary by Jackie Chan detailing his life story. People who are interested in Jackie’s life might also like to read his auto-biography, ‘Jackie Chan: My Life in Action’, which is an excellent book.
Rush Hour (1998), Chief Inspector Lee
When Hong Kong passes back into Chinese rule, the daughter of the Chinese Consul is kidnapped and taken to America by a crime lord. Jackie follows her to America, and teams up with American cop Chris Tucker to rescue her.
This film is full of action and is also a great laugh, thanks to Chris Tucker. Not everybody likes his style, but he makes me laugh all the way through! A very enjoyable film which was followed up with a great sequal.
Who Am I? (1998), Whoami
In this film, Jackie plays a CIA operative who get amnesia when he falls out of a helicopter. Basically, for the rest of the film, Jackie walks around saying “Who Am I?” a lot while a corrupt CIA undercover agent trys to have him killed.
I’m not a big fan of this film to be honest, I think it starts too slowly,
it’s pretty poorly written and there aren’t enough fight scenes in it.
That said, the fight scenes that are in there are excellent, and the end
finale is awsome. In the finale Jackie fights two hit men on a rooftop,
one who only uses his hands and one who only uses his legs. This is fast
paced, well choreographed and very exciting!
There are also some good car chase/car wrecking sequences.
The Stunts!
At the end of the film, Jackie slides down the near vertical side of a glass building in Rotterdam, which narrows as he gets closer towards the ground. Had he fallen off the side, he would have faced a pretty big drop to the street below!Weaponry
At one point, Jackie puts on a pair of wooden clogs that are too small from him and uses them to kick the crap out of some bad guys!Mr. Nice Guy (1997), Jackie
This one isn’t great, but it’s watchable. Jackie plays a TV chef who gets caught up in some sort of a storyline whereby he comes into possesion of a video tape which he believes is of his cooking show, but is actually a tape of a murder recorded by a reporter. The reporter follows Jackie to try and get the tape back and he ends up protecting her from the crime lord (played by the omnipresent Richard Ng!) who commited the murder.
The Stunts!
At the end of the film, Jackie destroys the crime lord’s house by driving the biggest digger type thing you’ve ever seen through it. I mean, this thing is huge, I didn’t know they made machines that big for building sites! Anyway, Jackie does a stunt where he lays under the wheel, and as the truck attempts to drive over him he scooches back out of the way by kicking away from the tyres.First Strike (1996), Jackie Chan Ka Kui
(aka Police Story 4)
In this film, Jackie reprises his role as the Hong Kong policeman from the first three ‘Police Story’ films. The action takes place in various locations around the World as Jackie chases a stolen nuclear warhead.
This film is pretty enjoyable, and I think it’s made more so because of the varied filming locations, all the way from Russia to Australia. There are some good fight sequences, with Jackie taking on two giant hitmen, and also fighting off enemies inside a Sea Life Center.
The Stunts!
Jackie falls from a helicopter into an ice cold artic lake, wearing a t-shirt and a waistcoat! He also does some climbing around the outside of the hotel building he’s staying in when the hit men come to try and wipe him out.Rumble in the Bronx (1996), Ah Keung
This was the film that finally made Jackie a star in America, after first
trying some 16 years previously with Battle Creek Brawl and other films
since such as the Cannonbal Run series. The film wasn’t made with
America in mind, but was released by a major Hollwood studio at their
request and so became a hit in the States.
The film sees Jackie going over to visit his uncle in the Bronx (played by Bill Tung who also
stars along side Jackie in the Police Story series) who is getting married, but while he’s there
he ends up defending his Uncle’s supermarket from local gangs.
This isn’t one of Jackie’s best films, but it is enjoyable and it can’t be underestimated for its historical importance in Jackie’s career. There are some good fight scenes, but I can’t help thinking the film could have been improved by hiring better actors to play the bad guys.
The Stunts!
Jackie jumps from the roof of a car park right accross an alley and lands on a balcony of the building accross the street. The jump was dangerous because Jackie couldn’t see the landing spot from the roof of the car park, and had to jump when he hit a marker on the floor, but never the less he managed it perfectly, first time.Drunken Master II (1994), Wong Fei-hung
(aka The Legend of Drunken Master)
In this film, Jackie returns to the role of Kung Fu legend Wong Fei-Hung (also featured in Jet Li’s ‘Once Upon a Time in China’ series, and many other films also), for an enjoyable farse based around some missing ginseng and a jade seal.
I really enjoyed this film, because although the plot is a little ropey, it’s basically a martial arts showcase with Jackie demonstrating both straight Southern style Kung Fu and also his famous ‘Drunken Boxing’. The version that I watched was also dubbed into English with Jackie’s own voice, which made it easier to watch than some of his earlier films for me.
Weaponry
A wide variety of weapons is used in the film, including traditional Chinese Broadswords, and also spears. More interestingly, there are scenes involving oversized bamboo poles, and also rods of hot iron straight out of a furnace that set people’s clothes on fire when they get struck!Supercop 2 (1993), Inspector Chan
(aka Once a Cop, Project S, Police Story 3 Part 2 )
OK, this confused me. I bought a cheap DVD that I says on the front ‘Supercop’, only it’s not Supercop at all, it’s this film which is, for want of a better title (from the 6 or so titles that it’s been released under) Supercop 2.
This shouldn’t be in here really, because it’s not a Jackie Chan film, it’s a Michelle Yeoh film. Jackie is in it for about 2 minutes, dressed in drag, doing some not that hilarious stake-out sketch in a jewellery store. In other words, a cameo.
Having said that, the film is still pretty good. It’s directed by Stanley
Tong who directed the first Supercop film (Police Story 3), so there’s
loads of great fight scenes in it. There’s also a really cool car chase filmed
using in-car cameras, you really feel like you’re about to crash!
Michelle plays the same Chinese cop from Police Story 3, who travells to
Hong Kong to work on a case. However, once she gets there she finds out
that the head of the crime ring they’re after is actually hew boyfriend
from China, who had supposedly left for Hong Kong to become a businessman.
Crime Story (1993), Inspector Eddie Chan
(aka New Police Story, Police Dragon, Serious Crimes Squad)
Awaiting review…
Police Story 3 (1992), Kevin Chan Ka Kui
(aka Supercop)
This is a great action film which stars Jackie alongside Michelle Yeoh. There’s not a whole lot of martial arts in, but this is compensated for with loads of explosions, cars and motorbikes! The fight scenes that are in there are very good though, including one on top of a moving train, and another excellent one in which Jackie takes on the martial arts instructor at the police training school!
In the film, Jackie (a cop) has to spring a crime lord from a prison, and then go underground pretending to be one of his gang. Michelle Yeoh plays the part of his sister, but when Jackie takes the crime lord back to his home village to stay at his house, the family is all played by cops (including Bill Tung who plays his Nan! hehe). Also, when the gang go to stay at a hotel, Jackie’s girlfriend (who is a tour guide) spots him with Michelle Yeoh and decides that he’s having an affair behind her back, which leads to some great scenes.
The Stunts!
This film contains one of Jackie’s most dangerous stunts ever, in which he runs along a rooftop, jumps off of the edge and catches the bottom of a rope ladder hanging from a helicopter some distance away from the building. He then flies around suspended from the helicopter on the bottom of the rope ladder. Michelle Yeoh also ramps a motorbike off a grass verge and onto the top of a moving train, no mean feat in itself!Twin Dragons (1992), John Ma/Boomer
(aka Brother Vs. Brother, Double Dragon, Duel of Dragons, When Dragons Collide)
In this film, Jackie plays two roles; those of identical twins who were seperated at birth. One twin became some sort of wide boy, and the other a concernt pianist.
I don’t like this film, it’s pretty crappy to be honest! There’s not a lot of fighting in it at all, and it’s just a load of cheap mistaken identity gags that aren’t really funny.
Armour of God II: Operation Condor (1990), Jackie ‘Asian Hawk’
(aka Operation Eagle, Project Eagle)
Jackie reprises his role as the ‘Asian Hawk’ for this sequal to the much superior 1986 film ‘Armour of God’.
Waiting storyline outline.
Trivia
Jackie got into trouble when a load of paper money that was made for the film was picked up by the local people and used as currency!Island of Fire (1990), Lung/Steve
(aka The Prisoner (2000), The Burning Island, When Dragons Meet)
Awaiting review…
Miracles (1989), ‘Charlie’ Cheng Wah Kuo
(aka Black Dragon, Mr. Canton and Lady Rose)
Awaiting review…
Police Story 2 (1988), Kevin (Jackie) Chan Ka Kui
(aka Kowloon’s Eye, Police Force II)
Awaiting review…
Dragons Forever (1987), Jackie Lung
(aka 3 Brothers, Cyclone Z)
This the last of three great films starring the ‘three brothers’ Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yeun Biao (the others being ‘Project A’ and ‘Wheels on Meals’). It’s packed with action, and has some really great fight scenes in, including some Yuen Biao showing off some of his fanciest kicks. Well worth watching, if you can find a copy…
The Armour of God (1986), Jackie ‘Asian Hawk’
This is one of the best Jackie Chan films from the 80s, and was made after the success of the first two films in the Indiana Jones series starring Harrison Ford. Well, Indiana Jones never kicked arse like Jackie does in Armour of God!
In the film, Jackie plays a guy who aquires artefacts (sound familiar?), and is hired to try and complete the set of five pieces of the Armour of God. It’s full of action and has great fight scenes throughout.
The Stunts!
This is the film which has that stunt, the one which very nearly killed Jackie. It shouldn’t have been that hard, he was to leap from a high stone wall into a tree, and then use the branch he caught to swing over to a parallell stone wall. The first time Jackie did the stunt, everything went OK, except he wasn’t happy with the way he landed on the wall at the other side, and so decided to re-do the stunt. The second time that Jackie jumped into the tree, the branch gave way under his weight, and he fell down to the ground and hit his head on a stone. He had to be rushed to hospital to have surgery on his head, and to this day has some sort of rubber bung plugging the hole in his skull!My Lucky Stars 2: Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars (1985), Muscles
(aka The Target)
Awaiting review…
Wheels on Meals (1984), Thomas
(aka Million Dollar Heiress, Spartan X, Weapon X)
This is the second great film starring Jackie, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, and is one of my favourite Jackie Chan films. The film was directed by Sammo.
Jackie and Yuen Biao run a mobile fast food wagon in Barcelona, whilst Sammo plays the part of a private investigator. Jackie and Biao mistakenly befriend a pickpocket prostitute, and then have to go rescue her when she gets captured! Trust me, it’s a lot better than it sounds…
There are some really fantastic fight sequences in the film, and it’s also very funny. Again, I’d highly recommend this if you can manage to get hold of a copy, some films this old are really hard to find although DVD re-releases are making it easier all the time.
Project A (1983), Jackie Dragon Ma
(aka Pirate Patrol)
This is the first of the three great films starring Jackie along side Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. The three play members of the coast guard in 1930s Hong Kong, who must deal with a local pirate played by veteren evil guy Dick Wei.
The film is very well made, and has lots of great action and fight scenes. Jackie also plays tribute to his silent movie star heroes such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton in this film, and incorporates classic sight gags from their era into the bicycle chase scene.
The Stunts!
In Project A, Jackie performs the ‘clock tower’ stunt, falling from the hands of a clock tower through several stripey window canopies before hitting the ground.The Young Master (1980), Dragon
This is my favourite Jackie Chan film released to date. It was the first film that Jackie made for Golden Harvest Studios, and as such he really pulled out all the stops.
Jackie plays Dragon, who goes off in search of one of the other students
from his kung fu gym when he leaves in shame for accepting a pay-off to
lose in the lion dance against a rival gym.
There are loads of really excellent fight scenes, and at the end of the
film Jackie fights Master Kim, played by Korean Hapkido master Wong In-Sik
(who can also be seen in the 1982 film ‘Dragon Lord’). The fight in un-cut
versions of the film is over quater of an hour long, and really is one
of the crowning moments in the history of Hong Kong cinema.
The film also stars some other famous faces, including Kien Shih (Mr. Han-man
from ‘Enter the Dragon’) as the local policeman, and Jackie’s kung fu brother
Yuen Biao as the policeman’s son.
Weaponry
Throughout the film, Jackie fights with a large, white, antique fan, as well as several other traditonal weapons including the Chinese broadsword. Cinema legend has it that one scene with the fan took over a million takes, although I don’t believe that! It certainly took a lot though. There is also a great scene in which Yuen Biao fights with a traditonal horse bench, and another in which Jackie fights with an unbreakable pipe!Snake And Crane Arts of Shaolin (1978), Hsu Yin-Fung
Snake and Crane Arts is important to me, because if you ask Jackie which
his favourite film is that he’s ever made, he’ll tell you it’s this
one. The film contains fifteen fight scenes which Jackie painstakingly
choreographed, and the end result is a great Kung Fu showcase, with
lots of weapons fighting and hand-to-hand.
The picture quality is pretty poor, because it’s so old, but there are digitally re-mastered
versions available on DVD.
Drunken Master (1978), Wong Fei-Hong
Jackie plays Kung Fu legend Wong Fei-Hung, who is taught the style of ‘drunken boxing’ by, well, a drunken old man! This is pretty good, with Jackie displaying the style well (it is a real style, it wasn’t just made up for Kung Fu films).
Jackie also displays some of the athletic prowess that he was famous for in his youth, by hanging upside down by his knees, scooping water out of a bucket on the floor and then pouring it into a bucket up by his feet. I can not imagine how physically fit you would have to be to do that, I think I could probably manage it twice, but Jackie performs it time after time infront of the camera. That’s Peking Opera School training in action for you!
Shaolin Wooden Men (1976)
(aka 36 Wooden Men, Shaolin Chamber of Death)
Shaolin wooden men starts Jackie as a student learning kung fu at the Shaolin temple. He must learn various styles from kung fu masters at the temple so that he may pass through the deadly hall of animatronic wooden dummies and be allowed to leave the temple. The film is enjoyable and is very much a traditional martial arts film in every respect.
Hand of Death (1975), Tan
(aka Countdown in Kung Fu, Shaolin Men, Strike of Death)
I had this on a cheap VHS tape which I put in a charity bag once I’d watched it. Awfully low budget, poorly made, and generally crap.
Master with Cracked Fingers (1974), Jackie Chan
(Little Tiger from Canton, Snake Fist Fighter, Ten Fingers of Death)
Awaiting review…
Rumble in Hong Kong (1974)
This is awful, I couldn’t even finish watching it! Jackie plays some sort of villain who walks around with an inexplicably large, hairy mole covering half of his face. It must’ve cost bugger all to make, and is just terrible! Shockingly I’ve seen it marketed in several places as being somewhat comparable to Rumble in the Bronx (as in ‘Before there was Rumble in the Bronx there was Rumble in Hong Kong!!’) but it really isn’t!
Eagle Shadow Fist (1973), Si To
(aka Fist of Anger, Not Scared to Die, Return to China)
Awaiting review…