Jackie Chan's best Western outing. (Shanghai Noon (DVD))

Member Name: RussellC

Product:	Shanghai Noon (DVD)
Date:	08/09/00 (73 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Highly entertaining, very funny.

Disadvantages: Chan seems to be slowing down a bit, not enough action.

I've long been a fan of Jackie Chan's movies, his talent for physical comedy and martial arts is impressive, so it's no surprise that I wanted to see shanghai Noon. I have to admit though that some of Jackie's recent films, particularly those made in the west hadn't quite captured the spirit and fun of his earlier work in Hong Kong. 'Rush Hour' had particularly put me off, apart from anything else I found Chris tusker's character in that film highly irritating. Fortunately 'Shanghai Noon' gets both the comedy and the action right and in my opinion is the best Chan has done in a while.

If you've never seen a Chan film before there are a couple of things to bear in mind, firstly the plot will be very simple and have a happy ending, and secondly the comedy is very basic. As long as you go in not expecting anything very deep you're not likely to be disappointed. The plot of Shanghai Noon is nothing more than your typical underdog hero rescues the princess story. Chan plays Chon Wang, an Imperial Guard in the forbidden City in China, witnessing Princess Pei Pei (Lucy Lui) leaving the fortress he manages to gain a place on the rescue mission when it turns out she's been kidnapped. Moving swiftly to the West, Chan's Uncle is killed by bandits lead by Roy O'Bannon (Owen Wilson) and he sets out on his own to find the Princess.
Wang bumps into O'Bannon again on his journey and after at first fighting they set off to rescue the Princess together. It isn't long before they're wanted men with Wang known as the Shanghai Kid though. All of this leads to plenty of opportunities for fights and disagreements between the two leads.

The action is as excellent as usual, though I have to admit it did seem toned down compared to some of the impressive stunts Chan has pulled off in the past in films such as Project A. Perhaps as others have suggested Chan is showing his age now. That's not t
o detract from the action in the film though, it's still very impressive and often highly amusing. Chan does his usual routines involving props in the fight, this time they are western props though. What helps raise this film above the likes of 'Rush Hour' is a far more amusing partner for Chan, Owen Wilson makes a highly amusing inept Bandit, with a nicely dry sense of humour. The interaction between the two works very well, Wilson gets most of the funny lines, whilst Jackie gets the best of the action.

Overall it's a highly enjoyable hour and 50 minutes of entertainment. The actions not as good as in his early films like Drunken Master (available on DVD in the UK) or even some of his more recent works like Rumble in the Bronx. The plot and characters in this film are a little stronger than in some of his previous works. If you're already a Chan fan then you should go and see this one, it's better than Rush Hour. If you've never seen Chan before then I'd recommend it if you're looking for a lightweight bit of comedy and action, something that doesn't need too much thought.

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