Shanghai Knights
Cast
Jackie Chan as Chon Wang
Owen Wilson as Roy O'Bannon
Fann Wong as Chon Lin
Donnie Yen as Wu Yip
Aaron Johnson as Charlie Chaplin
Aidan Gillen as Rathbone
Directed by
David Dobkin
Rater #2 has description and review
Rater #1
Has Not Seen Movie.
Rater #2
7/10. Fresh out after his box-office bomb The Tuxedo, Jackie Chan is back,
again playing the role of Chon Wang. In this sequel to Shanghai Noon,
Wang and Roy O'Bannon (Owen Wilson) are in different parts of the
country: Chon in Nevada, Roy in New York. However, after Chon's
father is killed by Lord Rathbone (Aidan Gillen), he must go to
London to find Rathbone to avenge the death of the father. Along the
way, Chon's sister Lin (Fann Wong) comes in. Guess who is smitten by
her?
Another reason why Chon has to kill Rathbone is that he has a sacred
Seal of the Emperor. That's just thrown in to make the plot make more
sense. Mucho fight scenes and hilarity ensues.
Chan does better in buddy action comedies like this, instead of
straight action. He's noted for using props around him in his fight
scenes; this movie is no exception. Chan just takes any old prop he
sees and does, what looks like, improv. It's hard to imagine all of
these scenes choreographed perfectly; they seem so slipshod (in a
good way). All of the fight scenes have Chan's usual charm and wit,
you can't help but smile whenever he does seemingly impossible stunts.
Many of the characters were one-dimensional. Rathbone doesn't really
have any depth, except that everyone likes him. However, in movies
like this, you don't really need twists and turns. Lin's beautiful,
but what is her background? Someone working for Rathbone has no depth
whatsoever and just pops in. And, of course, there's the little
pickpocket (Aaron Johnson) whose name is quite funny. He just comes
and goes.
The opening credits were almost exactly like the ones for Shanghai
Noon, with sweeps over Chinese letters. Something I enjoyed was how
they incorporated famous figures, though a little bit goes a long
way. About halfway through, it takes one of those obligatory buddy
turns, where they end up hating each other. However, this time, the
roles are reversed from Shanghai Noon and it lasts for about two
minutes, which leaves you wondering why it was even put in. They took
the clich� light-heartedly. At times, it did get heavy-handed
(especially at the beginning), but managed to pull through.
The sets were very authentic. Unlike the first, where they could just
use cheap facades, they had to create a whole new world, and they did
so. You could really believe that the clan was in England. I also
liked the transitions in between scenes. They were all "swishes", but
as the movie progressed and got more "complex", so did the
transitions, from going out on both sides to diagonal. It may seem
rather juvenile to put it in, and even more so to mention it, but I
thought they were quite cool.
I do wish, however, that they had spent more time in the West. If
they had had more about the horse from the first one (also, whatever
happened to Chon's wife, Falling Leaves?), it would have been better.
However, it almost immediately left the West for the East. Like The
Tuxedo, Chan allows himself to be pushed around and beaten.
Chan is great, as usual. He's a great diversion from the real life.
He can make us believe that what is done can be done. Technically, he
can, because he does his own stunts. Wilson is in top comedic form
here, as usual, also. He's quickly becoming an item in Hollywood, and
his name's getting out there. Then again, he did do I Spy.
I laughed a lot during Shanghai Knights. Many came from the fight
scenes, and others were from Wilson's one-liners. I love how the
writers can merge action and comedy seamlessly. I hope for a Shanghai
Five, where they go to Hawaii, or some sequel, since this franchise
is going somewhere.
Rater #3
Has Not Seen Movie.
Rater #4
Has Not Seen Movie
Rated PG-13 for action violence and sexual content.
Running time: ? minutes
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