Shanghai Surprise
From January 17 through January 21, Neon Splatter is celebrating all things Jackie Chan. His movies, his many other projects, and his impact on film as well as film lovers. This is #JackieChanuary.
Analog fandom is hard to communicate nowadays. In the first half of the ‘90s, you had to put real effort into following Jackie Chan or John Woo. Their best work trickled over in dribbles. Every time a friend discovered a new dubbed down VHS on the fan circuit, each title was a blurry discovery. When you were super lucky, a title was booked in a revival house. In that event, every martial arts fan in town packed these screenings. These are some of the seminal experiences I’ve ever had in a movie theater. ENDGAME can’t even compare. The Golden Harvest logo alone would deliver a standing ovation. At one screening of the VERY silly CITY HUNTER (1993), my friends and I laughed at the Street Fighter 2 sequence so hard that we slid onto the floor in hysterics.
So why didn’t Jackie cross over into America better? From 1996 on, I’d catch every Jackie movie in the cineplex, hoping this would be the one that would blow up big. I mean, yeah he was in the RUSH HOUR movies. But those weren’t “Jackie Chan” movies. You could feel the restrictions of the American filmmaking style and insurance restrictions. Jackie would never do a stunt in a wide shot. It was always cut up for safety reasons (and Chris Tucker’s lack of action prowess). You’d get a fleeting taste of Jackie’s work for maybe a minute. It would only leave you longing for something more substantial.
When you look back at Chan’s Hong Kong work, he was emulating American action filmmaking. CITY HUNTER may be an anime, but it’s also an extended riff on Die Hard films.
The ARMOUR OF GOD series was deeply indebted to the Indiana Jones films. SUPER COP (CRIME STORY 3) takes A LOT from Joel Silver.
These references are ALL on the surface. Jackie isn’t hiding it. But his versions were always better. More dangerous. His stunts were always deliriously close to disaster and with each closing credit blooper reel, you saw this shit was real. Meanwhile, big-budget American movies like TANGO & CASH and BAD BOYS 2 were, in turn, ripping off gags and whole sequences. Unlike Jackie’s movies, you weren’t holding your breath. You knew those actors were safe.
However, two American movies of Jackie's did capture his unique appeal: 2000’s SHANGHAI NOON and its 2003 follow-up SHANGHAI KNIGHTS. Interesting, they are both action/comedy hybrids that reference a genre Chan never performed in previously: The Western. Admittedly, KNIGHTS has some similarities with Chan’s excellent PROJECT A movies but those are period movies, harkening back more silent cinema and penny dreadfuls, a genre both markets rarely reference.
The real secret ingredient to this franchise’s success is the unexpected chemistry between Chan and his co-star. On paper, I’d pause a moment to consider Owen Wilson and Jackie Chan as a classic comedy team. Their skill sets are diametrically opposite. Wilson excels plays at motormouth neurotic dimwits while Chan is a virtuoso of physical comedy timing. But that is key to their chemistry. Unlike Chan and Chris Tucker, these two performers clearly respect the other’s talent.
They are similar in that their personas both project a sunny disposition. Even while their characters butt heads, you can tell the actors are holding back a smile. Every time Jackie stunts it up, you can imagine Wilson is holding back a “Wow.” And Jackie clearly marvels at Wilson’s ad-libbing dexterity, allowing him to steal all of their dialogue scenes:
Chan relegates himself to being the straight man meanwhile Wilson is the intentionally anachronistic element with his sing-song slacker commenting on the silliness of the proceedings. Outside of ZOOLANDER, this is the best use of Owen’s comedy skills. There’s a line from KNIGHTS I still use regularly: “What in our history together makes you think I'm capable of something like that?”
The supporting cast generally plays it straight and their pedigree is high: Lucy Liu, Xander Berkley, Walton Goggins, Donnie Yen, Aidan Gillen, and a very young Aaron Taylor-Johnson to name a few. It’s also one of the rare American productions that use Jackie’s stunt crew to appropriate effect. This is especially the case in KNIGHTS. While NOON was filmed in America, KNIGHTS was shot in Prague and the action scenes have the dexterous all-in-a-master action staging we’re used to from Jackie’s Hong Kong productions.
These scenes have the very apparent fingerprints of the Brad Allan in his first outings as fight choreographer (RIP, you were taken from us too soon). These scenes run the more typical length of his Hong Kong set pieces, allowing Jackie to set up and pay off dozens of prop heavy gags. There are even shots where Caucasian actors change ethnicity when they cut to the stunt double, which frankly just adds to the charm.
There are some dated representation issues (NOON has some cringey moments) but the overall demeanor of these movies is fun.
They're light and propulsive and should have spawned a low-cost, high-yield action franchise. While these two films were moderate hits, they weren’t enough for Disney to push for a third installment.
Not for a lack of trying on Chan’s part. I remember hearing that, during a press junket for THE TUXEDO, all Chan wanted to talk about was how he wanted to do a third chapter called SHANGHAI DAWN.
I’ll put that hypothetical final movie in my mind palace of sequels that would have happened in a better world. Alongside sequels to BUCKAROO BANZAI and BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA and a THE NICE GUY series of films that released a new chapter every two years. I believe Chan would appreciate that.
