3 comments about Wheels on Meals.

1. A classic collaboration between "the brothers", Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan, and Yuan Biao, directed by Hung and packed with all the familiar faces of 80's Hong Kong cinema and also the amazing skills of real life kickboxing champion Benny "the Jet" Urquidez.
   
   The story, set in Spain, is one of how two workaholic Chinese (Chan and Biao) and their gormless detective friend Moby (Hung) get pulled around by the nose by a working girl/countess while trying to protect her from her evil uncle, a count, who wants to stop her inheriting what is rightfully hers.
   
   Plenty of action, plenty of Hong Kong humour, plenty of kicking and jumping around. The finale fight is one of the best ever recorded, and is from a team that didn't use CGI, didn't use wires and didn't let unfit actors do their own fighting. These guys know what they are doing, and it shows. Highly recommendable.



2. The whole movie is a classic and is a must-have for any Jackie Chan collection or movie collection that is. Youtube the fight scene between Jackie and Benny "the Jet" and you'll realize why you have to have this movie.



3. It's a Golden Harvest production. That tells you everything. You could watch it with the sound off and keep up with the plot. If you like Jackie Chan you'll like this movie and should be in your collection. Everything is standard fare throughout the movie until the fight scene between Jackie and Benny. WOW!

3 comments about The Art of Action: Martial Arts in the Movies.

1. Presented by Samuel L. Jackson, THE ART OF ACTION is an enjoyable and entertaining look at the history of matial arts films from its origins in Peking Opera in China, which was performed by men in women's clothing. Strangely, the first kung fu features were made with the WOMEN doing all the fighting as film was then considered a lower medium in China, and it was "dishonorable" for men to stoop to that level!
   Of course, no film about martial arts could be made without Bruce Lee, "The James Bond Of Martial Arts". Here viewers are treated to footage from RETURN OF THE DRAGON where Lee beats the bejesus out of a young Chuck Norris, as well as hearing Lee's philosophies on kung fu, which remain intriguing and inspiring no matter how many times you hear them.
   THE ART OF ACTION also features appearances from Jackie Chan, recounting his experiences as part of a Peking Opera troupe at age 7, as well as ruminations by John Woo, Ang Lee and Steven Seagal. There's plenty here to educate and entertain viewers, though stranglely Hammer's martial arts/ horror film LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES is overlooked here... but Cynthia Rothrock's cruddy movies get some attention! I just don't get it! That remains my only quibble. Also features clips from more recent films like RUSH HOUR 2 and CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON.
   If you like this, you may want to check out the similar documentary CINEMA OF VENGEANCE which is about the history of martial arts and Hong Kong action films, though personally I found THE ART OF ACTION to be more entertaining. Both movies are highly recommended.



2. This in-depth documentary gives a behind-the-scenes look at the history of the martial arts films. It shows what the early pioneers of martial arts had to do to pass on the skills when the then rulers wanted to forbid the practice. The journey is one of rebellious beginnings to high flying stunts in movies today. It also features the work of Bruce Lee, Jet Li, Jackie Chan,Sammo Hung and others. This is a great documentary to watch if you want to learn more about the world of martial arts in films.



3. This movie does not show like many great clips but is a pretty good documentary. It starts out talking about the the first shaw movies and lau kar-leung, and also the origins of kung fu(briefly), women in the 20's making these movies, and of course kwan tak-hing. The only thing that I really had a problem with is that they just passed over the jimmy wang yu, lo lieh, chen kwan tai, hwang jang lee, etc. I don;t think it even mentions the venoms!! They show some good clips from one armed swordsman, but even though they show their dramatic scene, they don't even mention jimmy or lie's name. So it goes way to quickly into the new school stuff like crouching tiger but does not capitilize on the golden age of kung fu.

5 comments about Gorgeous.

1. So I was pretty impressed with Gorgeous until the end came around. I enjoyed the non violence theme and could definitely get with the humor that I was being given. Odd, but still funny and enjoyable. Seeing Jackie in a non comedic role was very interesting. You won't find that very often. The first fight Jackie has with Brad Allen is certainly gorgeous but the finale is just pure crapola. I really wish they wouldn't have turned to the comedy and made Jackie into the stupid character he always plays. Shu Qi does a very good job in trying to make herself Jackie's love interest. Fun movie, could have been way better though.
   
   I was really looking forward to the Jackie commentary and while it was very informative, it was just an interview and he wasn't actually watching the movie with us, at least it seemed that way. The making of also gives you an more of an inside view of the film. You can tell that the cast and crew had one heck of a good time making this movie.



2. What a great little gem of a film,I'm a huge Jackie Chan fan.and this film is quite a rare feat,A Jackie Chan romance film,but of course it has plenty of that trademark Chan action and humor,but it has lots of heart too,quite rare for an action film,but it works quite well here!!!Contains BOTH Widescreen and Full Frame versions of the film,as well as the Original Cantonese and English dubbed soundtracks,as well as a cool half-hour "making-of" Documentary,so everyone will be happy!!! One of his great Hong Kong films,that was made after "Rush Hour" by the way,and it's just as good!!! "Gorgeous" delivers!!! Long live Jackie Chan!!! Five stars!!! A+



3. What a delightful 99 minutes! If you can come to Jackie Chan with an open mind, not expecting the same ol', same ol', then you will be see something new. Gorgeous, even.
   
   The story revolves around an old legend of the reuniting, after their deaths, of man and woman in the deep as dolpins. The story passes on to the female lead, Shu Qi as Bu, whose name means dolphin, making her a living legend. When her dolphin friend Abu brings her a bottle with a message, she believes her destined love has sent for her. She leaves Taiwan for Hong Kong and (in that huge, giant city) finds the sender who is actually a handsome...gay man. They become fast friends.
   
   One thing leads to another and Bu saves C.N. Chan (Jackie Chan), who is a millionaire playboy. They are charmed by and with each other. A romance begins, not by today's standards when romance means meet, have sex, maybe get to know each other, then go separate ways. Their romance is truly charming and innocent, as in bygone days. When Jackie's character shows great respect and humility at the end, the viewer knows what the outcome is.
   
   Oh yes, the fight scenes. Apparently, martial arts fans come to this movie expecting more. The fight scenes also show restraint and respect and even laugh out loud humor. Frankly, I was reminded of the hilarious fight scenes of the first half of "Ong-Bak: Thai Warrior." How much slapstick humor could be incorporated into the sequences and for the fighting to show no blood or even breaks in skin? That is what the viewer gets here. The music behind the fighting is also different--a more playful sound, including Chinese drums.
   
   The best fights are between Jackie and an American, both respectful and considerate of each other. This type of fighting was pleasant to watch--seeing great talent and control to best each other without that wretched drive to kill and destroy. One reviewer indicated the use of wires and speeding the recording of the fighting. Is that done here?
   
   Even though I really enjoyed this film, I must state what I saw as a shortcoming. Jackie and his supposed school-time buddy are nowhere near the same age. Shu Qi is much too young to play his love interest. I was a bit embarrassed for him. Is Jackie, like the rest of us, having a hard time dealing with his age?
   
   Even so, the film has its gorgeous points: Bu's purity and self-confidence, the honesty of the fights, Jackie's change of heart, the wardrobes of the gay men, and, of course, the beauty of the dolphins and the legend surrounding them.



4. I actually buy the movie just to enjoy the action sequence between jackie chan and brad allen. The story is kinda boring.



5. GORGEOUS is a change of pace for Jackie Chan. Oh, this one still boasts your basically incredible martial arts sequences, but, really, this film marks Jackie Chan's foray into romantic comedy territory. And, despite that Jackie doesn't seem to have the acting range to pull off this type of leading man role, the other elements in this picture lift it into something I find quite entertaining.
   
   The plot revolves around a young starry-eyed village girl named Bu (Qi Shu), who finds a message in a bottle and flies to Hong Kong to meet the message's author. In Hong Kong Bu meets and falls for C.N. (Jackie Chan), a wealthy, lonely playboy businessman heading up a trash recycling empire. But as Bu and C.N. become close, their fledgling romance is interrupted by C.N.'s lifelong rival, who persists in sending his clumsy thugs after C.N.
   
   Whether you like GORGEOUS or not will hinge on how you feel about the lead actress, Qi Shu, as this film is as much a showcase for her as it is for Jackie Chan. My feeling on this is that Qi Shu wafts in like a breath of fresh air and is instantly captivating. There's an infectious exuberance about her, and a certain naturalness. I could watch her expressive face all day long. She definitely sets the mood of this film, which is mostly bright and whimsical and sweet. Wonderful actor Tony Leung also deserves his propers, as his gay fashion shutterbug provides a good share of the funnies (I couldn't help cracking up at his elevator scene with Jackie). In fact, some of the best moments happen when Leung and Qi Shu are playfully sharing the screen.
   
   Jackie Chan is never better than when he's performing his breathtaking stunts and acrobatics. Let's face it, dude's strength isn't in delivering lines. I'll say this, though, I've never seen Jackie so wistful and low-key than in this role, and he manages to tone down his usual mugging. Jackie has stated publicly that the character of C.N. is like him in many ways (both are clean-living, keep fit, like to wear white outfits, are environmentally aware). Sadly, though, this doesn't translate into an adept acting performance. As a romantic leading man, yeah, he's pretty wooden. Perhaps aware of this lack, Jackie makes sure that Qi Shu and Leung get plenty of camera time.
   
   Thankfully for Jackie, he does engage in several lighthearted scuffles (although not as many as we'd like). Jackie, as ever, is amazingly inventive and agile with his choreography. This time, he uses baseball bats, a boat, and a motorbike as supporting characters in his fight scenes. His opponent in two of these brawls is the tiny dynamo Bradley James Allan, who in real life happens to be the first ever non-Asian member of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team. In GORGEOUS, he plays martial artist "Allan," hired by C.N.'s rival to beat up C.N. and partly because his shorter stature would make C.N.'s defeat even more ignominious. As several persons have remarked, it's refreshing that Jackie and Allan's combat is marked with mutual respect and a spirit of competition. It reminds me a little of Return of the Dragon, of Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris's classic colosseum fight to the death. The only downside to Jackie and Allan's two otherwise excellent fights is that the camera was sped up in spots.
   
   Again, GORGEOUS isn't your typical Jackie Chan martial-arts action-comedy. It's more sedate in its pacing and, would you believe, more character driven. Some fans won't dig it, won't like the more contemplative Jackie Chan on screen and that it's not more action-oriented. But I like GORGEOUS a lot. Jackie Chan tried to change up his style, and, even if he wasn't completely successful, I'm still glad he had the guts to experiment and branch out. I say, check out this flick. You might even develop a craving for Chinese pot rice.

5 comments about Around the World in 80 Days (Full Screen Edition).

1. This movie is pure fun! Don't expect the Jules Verne version, or a "classic" Jackie Chan movie though! The "idea" from the book is there, and there is plenty of martial arts sequences, but not much else in either case. Still, there is plenty of light-hearted entertainment here... continuous action, chemistry, wit, suspense, surprise, tenderness... My family and I enjoy this film everytime we watch it!



2. There isn't a single thing right with this movie. Bad computer graphics make real location shots look fake. The actors playing the two main heroes (Chan and Coogan) are horribly miscast. The fight scenes look boring (it's a miracle, considering Jackie Chan's participation, and I'll attribute it to the towering ineptitude of Frank Coraci as the director). The plot (I am being charitable using this word) takes totally unnecessary liberties with the setting and with the original material (the classic 1873 Jules Verne novel).
   
   Do yourself a favor. Stay away from this turkey - buy the DVD of the 1956 multiple Oscar-winning adaptation of the same novel instead!



3. Jackie's martial arts antics remain admirable, but you can enjoy those and still laugh in his "Shanghi" movies. He's fun to watch, but he also falls prey to so many movies that just aren't funny-and this is one of them. The dialog stinks, the jokes fall way short, and the slap stick bites, to put it mildly. In this manner, it does strongly resemble the original, but when the movie itself is so bad, star cameos cannot save it. Do not waste your money or your time. What a waste, for an otherwise lovable guy.



4. This is a funny, family movie with martial arts, a pretty blue-eyed French woman, and many hilarious encounters. At times there are flowing scenery shots that are lightly animated, a way of forwarding through time in the movie. Something I did not like and thought was stupid was the animated chicken, which appears in an alternate beginning option on the DVD and appears later in the movie, I think when they're crossing the Atlantic towards England. However, the acting, direction, and signature Jackie Chan stunts all make up for any minor problems with the movie. The DVD also includes a few deleted scenes, and a good widescreen presentation.



5. I remember watching the original "Around the World in 80 Days" on television with my father in the 1970's. Dad and I both agreed the movie was a "yawner" and we were both asleep before it finished. While doing a library search for the Jules Verne book to tie in with the "Galloping the Globe" theme for school I was delighted when I discovered the Walden Media/Walt Disney version of the film.
   The movie is based on the Jules Verne classic but with engaging twists and turns in the stories plot to keep you interested in the story. For this version Fogg's valet is none other than Passport 2 aka Jackie Chan. Chan brings his signature martial arts, stunt man antics and wacky humor to the storyline. Steve Coogan, a British actor widely known for his BBC comedy series "I'm Alan Partridge" replaces David Niven in the role of Phileas Fogg, brillant mechanical engineer, inventor and scientist.
   The movie includes a cast of brillant character and comic actors, Robb Schneider of SNL fame, John Cleese of Fawlty Towers fame, and veteran actors Ian McNeice and Jim Brodbent. This movie is a world wind adventure for the entire family!

5 comments about Thunderbolt (1995).

1. Here be SPOILERS.
   
   Made in 1995, THUNDERBOLT is the redheaded stepchild of Jackie Chan's film oeuvre; it's not your typical happy-go-lucky Jackie Chan flick. This film spews out a vigorous blend of frenetic car chases, pulse-pounding fight sequences, and, oddly enough, a dramatic acting turn by Jackie Chan. THUNDERBOLT tells the story of former race car champion Chan Foh To (Jackie Chan) who ends up on a gangster's crap list. It all starts when Foh, now an auto repair mechanic, accompanies his father, who, every now and then, is called upon by the police to identify specially modified cars which are then towed away on suspicion of illegal street drag racing. On one such occasion, Foh witnesses a speed racer who evades capture and fatally runs down a policeman. Later, Foh engages the same speedster in a hazardous street race and manages to lead him straight to the police, where he is summarily apprehended.
   
   Things get even more serious when it's discovered that the speed freak is none other than Warner "Cougar" Krugman, an influential criminal wanted by Interpol. A bribery attempt by Cougar's henchmen fails to dissuade Foh from coming forward as a witness against Cougar. However, Cougar means to get his vengeance on against Foh and, furthermore, aims to get another shot at racing him. With those intentions in mind, he kidnaps Foh's two younger sisters. But Cougar underestimates the resiliency and determination, not to mention the driving skills and arse-whoopin' talent, of Chan Foh To...
   
   Don't mistake THUNDERBOLT for one of Jackie's patented, lighthearted comedy-action romps. He's pretty serious here as he and the dramatic storyline dismiss all tendencies to go for the giggles. As apropos to Jackie Chan's films, the action sequences are again exhilarating to watch. I understand that some if not most of the stunts are, this time, performed by a double as Jackie had incurred an ankle injury in his prior feature RUMBLE IN THE BRONX and wasn't able to fully step up to the plate. But the stunts mostly don't suffer for it as we get to murmur appreciatively at the high standard sequences in Foh's garage and in the pachinko parlor (for pachinko, think pinball machines). One complaint is that, at times, the action director resorted to that disjointed, blurry, slo-mo stuff - I'm not impressed. Meanwhile, the film's somber tone really sinks in during Cougar's traumatic razing of Foh's residence and place of business. I had never seen Jackie so beat up and so vulnerable as in that sequence and also in the ensuing emotionally wracked scenes at the hospital. Jackie has never invested so much emoting than when he was grieving over his cardiac-arrested father or, subsequently, when he is questioned by intrepid Interpol agent Steve Cannon (Michael Wong, who, by the way, doesn't really look Caucasian).
   
   Another move off the beaten path for Chan (or, at least, in my viewing experience of his flicks) is the minutiae in which he involves the viewer regarding race car driving. This movie contains a decided element of THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS, which THUNDERBOLT does precede. There are two races showcased here: a fairly exciting one early on which takes place in the streets of Hong Kong, the other an extended (it's friggin' 13 minutes long!) official race car competition on a Japanese speedway. Now, NASCAR fans might warm to the auto chases, but, to me, it only meant that a bit of human kinetic vitality was drained away to make room for the vroom-vroom! energy of the film and, now, there's even less time for further fight scenes.
   
   As mentioned, Jackie's acting is above par this time, and I must say the audience's viewing experience will be enchanced by screening the film in sub-title format, rather than in dub. Jackie, like most actors, instantaneously improves as an actor when seen and heard in his native language. Anita Yuen is the half-hearted romantic interest/obligatory female fluff here and plays the annoying, go-getter reporter Amy Yip, who kinda redeems herself at the end. Thorsten Nickel portrays the villain Cougar the same way a cabbage would portray the villain Cougar, and he unwittingly provides most of the rare humor that's in the film. Nickel's pretty dang abysmal.
   
   I'm giving THUNDERBOLT three stars. I feel the only things that hold it up are Jackie's unusual foray into serious drama (which might draw in the curious) and the always reliable chop-socky beatdowns. The plot is blah, the pace of the film is jarring at times, and there aren't enough good acting performances. It's also the fact that I found out Jackie didn't do all his stunts this time out. And, maybe, in the end, I really was too disconcerted by the lack of Jackie's brand of over-the-top comedy. Yeah, maybe that's it.



2. Thunderbolt is made in 1994, not 1995, I'm not chinese, but I saw the movie when I was 4 years. Thi s movie is all about action and drama. Chinese people like to make movie that have action and drama, they pretty much don't care about how the viewer understand the story, but understand the action, not the words. This movie is rent if you can find them at blockbuster, but why not spent $17.99 without looking for it. If you saw the Fast and Furious, this movie made before the Fast and Furious, and they use no special effect, and the best racing movie I've ever see. But forget about the racing, is the action is very Hollywood like, not joking, it the truth. Shooting and moving house is had very good action-effect realistic movie. The moving house is when Jackie Chan's in a Truck storage and sleep in it. The Bad guy pick his room up and crush to his Father and sister roomes. But most chinese movie had few or no good guy die in the movie, because if they did have alot of good guy die in the movie,than is not chinese movie and end up like making very sucky Hollywood movie that were made by the chinese. This movie is worth your time. See it! Buy or rent's your choice. It's all about racing, fighting, shooting, Japanese gambleming, and coolest.



3. I have to agree with others that this is the definitive version of Thunderbolt. I first saw it years ago on TNT edited down to 90 minutes and dubbed. So I bought the Taiwan version years ago. The setback of that one (like most Asian DVDs of old films) was that everyone was dubbed over in Mandarin by different actors, the picture looks old, and the subtitles are so-so. With the New Line DVD, you get the entire film, original dialogue, and better subtitling. On top of that, the picture is clean. The only thing that has been replaced are the opening and closing credits (and that is understanable since the original credits are in Chinese).
   
   It's a top notch DVD.



4. Jackie Chan is a tow truck driver and lives with his dad and sisters at their junkyard. He also enjoys race car driving and helps the police capture a killer who also likes to race cars. When Jackie outdrives the killer and helps the police catch him, the killer tells Jackie that he wants a real race. In a couple of very illogical scenes the killer gets broken out of prison and kidnaps Jackie's sister. Jackie has to race him to get his sister back. The story is really bad and the only good thing about the movie is the action, but even that has its flaws.
   
   There is one very long action sequence where Jackie tries to rescue his sister. Jackie fights about 20 people including Ken Lo who gets to show off his amazing kicking skills. Jackie is doubled a lot, but it is the wirework and the way they shoot the scene that bugged me. They use a weird frame rate and this action scene is way too stylized for my tastes. On the positive side, there is some great stuntwork in this scene and a fantastic finsish.
   
   There is a lot of car racing and the car stunts are done very well. Most Jackie Chan movies have a big final fight at the end, but this one ends with a mildly exciting car race. But this race would have been a lot more exciting if it was better directed and if the story had more thought put into it. This was a hard movie to sit through.
   
   2.5/5
   
   Picture quality on the New Line DVD is perfect. Both the English and Cantonese tracks sound perfect. SUbtitles are well written.



5. This film has a lot of fast cars, criminals, and of course Mr. Chan, himself. There are some slow parts but this is still a great movie.

5 comments about Snake in the Eagle's Shadow.

1. Jackie Chan who was in this movie very good with is Kung Fu Skills in the action seens.



2. This movie is a classic Jackie Chan movie. I was extremely disappointed to find out it was a pirated copy! Shame on Amazon for selling it!



3. Snake in the Eagle's Shadow 1978 - 5/5
   Cast: Jackie Chan, Simon Yuen Sui Tin, Hwang Jang Lee, Roy Horan
   Director: Yuen Woo Ping
   Producer: Chen Chuan
   Writer: Ng See-Yuen (producer of Drunken Master)
   
   Everyone smokes Opium-(a brownish gummy extract from the unripe seed pods of the opium poppy that contains several highly addictive narcotic alkaloid substances, for example, morphine and codeine.) The Beggar so(Simon Yuen Sui Tin) Which is Yuen Woo Ping Father smokes it. Jackie Chans Master at his schools smokes it, as well as People on the street. Well the script written was based on the story created by Jackie Chan is good. It's so good in facts it's probable, in my opinion ,better than the other famous collaboration between Yuen Woo Ping and Jackie Chan(Drunken Master). The movie starts with Jackie Chan knowing nothing about kung Fu. He was the clean up boy in his master school of martial arts. One day he's walking and helps in old man escape from a fight. This old man is the legendary Simon Yuen Sui Tin who is the last surviving expert of the Snake Fist Style of Kung Fu. The master of the other style ,Eagles Claw, wants to kill all the remaining members of Snake Fist style. After stating that he has all ready killed 3,000 members he kills another, until there's only one left. Simon Yuen Sui Tin teaches the style to Jackie. This is a quote from Jackie Chan about his favorite lines in the movie "My favorite lines in the movie comes when I am using my newly learned snake fist against my opponent : my character shouts "I'm a poisonous snake" then gives him a quick punch to the groin and says :"That's called finding the snake."
   
   Well Jackie figures out how to combine a fighting style beggar so taught him and a style he witness his cat using. In which he sees his cat fighting a cobra. It was a real cat fighting a real cobra! He names it Snake fist in Cats paw. The old master doesn't like it so they change it to Snake in the Eagle's Shadow. Hence the Title.



4. I've purchase and received this movie twice and when i insert the movie in my dvd it's not the right movie that's playing. It's some person having a concert. Is anyone else having this problem, shame on Amazon for distributing illegal dvd copies and selling it to customers.



5. NOTE - THIS IS NOT A REVIEW OF THE MOVIE BUT A WARNING THAT WHAT AMAZON IS SHIPPING IS AN INCREDIBLY CHEAP AND OBVIOUS BOOTLEG.
   
   Seriously. I figured the few people who had reported this were kooks, but they're not - this *is* a bootleg, and a terrible one at that. You can find better bootlegs on streetcorners in NY. The cover is obviously photocopied, and the disc itself is a DVD-R that comes conveniently pre-scratched. Worse than that, though, is the fact that this is *obviously* a rip of a VHS tape that was poorly transferred and completely uncropped. I'll be filing a complaint with Amazon.

5 comments about The Medallion.

1. I really like most Jackie Chan movies, but nothing could redeem this stinker. The less said about the plot, the better. The dialogue was awful. And the action scenes aren't even very good. The most enjoyment I got out of this movie was sitting around afterwards drinking to forget and hoping that in our drunken stupors, the movie would magically make sense and be entertaining.



2. Before I began to bash this film, its not because it is just a gosh awful film, but in comparison to most Chan films this is possibly his weakest entry. Sure, he is getting a little older these days, but he can still put out films like New Police Story, I just don't understand. If he was aiming for a kids movie with Medallion, then he has succeeded. And if there was anything I did enjoy most from this film, it didn't necassarily come from Chan himself.
   
   Bascially, this really did seem like something made for kids. The idea of The Medallion did not appeal to me at all, and seemed rather corny and cheesy. It is about a young boy who holds the power of life and death in a medallion, which he is the chosen protector of. There wasn't much exploration throughout the film about the medallion. We get to see it used twice, bringing the Chan character back to life early on and again briefly for the villain. Other than that, this is basically a back and forth chase movie, as bad guys and good guys try to claim the boy and medallion.
   
   Most Chan movies have lots of chases - by foot, bicycle, car and who knows what. In Medallion, the action sequences and chases are kind of boring for a Chan film. Lots of wirework and digital graphics are used, which means hardly any real stunts from Jackie. There is a foot chase early on that lasts for several minutes where Chan walks across a row of bicycles and does some other nice things, but thats about it. As far as fights go, I was also dissapointed. Chan fights the bad guy (Jullian Sands) twice, but both scenes are laughably bad. There was no skill involved, as everyhting was digital and bad camera work.
   
   In addition to a weak story, the characters were quite uninteresting and there was little development between them. The humor you expect from Chan films is a different kind of humor, provided mostly by the Lee Evans character, who is Chan's partner. For awhile I thought his humor was kind of stupid, but eventually it should give some laughs, and ends up being about the only enjoybale thing out of this film.
   
   Don't expect anything serious, anything great, or any teriffic action. This is a lousy film that is worth watching once and probably it. I definetly see this designed more for kids. It was just too cheesy and poor for my taste. Jackie Chan fans will most likely be dissapointed.



3. I usually like Jackie Chan movies, clean, funny, action, good stuff. And this one had Claire Forlani, awesome, and then Lee Evans. I think the story line didn't fit the acts and was just too much for people to take in. Acting was okay, but there was just too much far fetched and unanswered questions to make this believible or interesting. Really, skip this movie, don't watch, don't buy!



4. It's one of the worst movies starring Jackie Chan. It's not funny. The fighting scenes are not great either.
   
   I regret watching this movie in the theatre.



5. Aside from other reviewers who apparently have it in for this movie, I actually rather enjoyed it. Granted, I agree that the dub was pretty so-so and a bit corny. But, well, it's a Jackie Chan movie! Were we really expecting Citizen Kane?
   
   I thought the action was good, and generally enjoyed it. Sure, the villain was a bit over-the-top, and the plot premise was a bit hard to believe (not entirely unlike the premise of The Golden Child, with Eddie Murphy), but then again, when is that ever NOT the case in a Jackie Chan movie?
   
   In all, I like the movie. Perhaps not as much as The Forbidden Kingdom. The Myth or the Rush Hour series. But, I figure it's another decent Jackie Chan movie. Happy to have it in the collection.

5 comments about Vampire Effect.

1. I saw this movie on tv and thought it was awesome! I've been looking for it everywhere and I'm so glad that Amazon has it!!! If you like Kung Fu Hustle, you'll like this too! It has awesome fight scenes and some humor thrown in there too!
   Yeah...I wouldn't say it's the best movie ever, but it sure was entertaining.



2. This vampire action comedy is one of my favorites for the very fact that I was thoroughly entertained throughout the entire movie. First of all, the characters are memorable, contributing a myriad of classic scenes. Charlene and Gillian are naturally cute, charismatic, and humorous. This movie was my first exposure to them, and all I wanted to do was reach through my television screen and give them a REALLY BIG HUG. The remaining cast did well in their supporting roles, including Jackie Chan, Karen Mok, "The Duke", Josie Ho, Edison Chen, Anthony Wong, and the vampire bad guys (one of which looks eerily familiar to Will Ferrell). Even the abominably horrible Ekin Cheng was good in this one. Good characters are important, of course, because they avoid the feeling of boredom by keeping things interesting between action sequences.
   
   And speaking of action, this film has plenty of it. More importantly, there is an emphasis of quality in the fight choreography. One aspect that helped in this regard is the featured weapon of the protagonists - a sword with a retractable spear-ended rope. This weapon, in and of itself, opened up a variety of moves that would have been otherwise impossible. Josie Ho and Gillian Chung, in particular, perform some wicked aerial maneuvers using these devices.
   
   In addition, the swordplay is superb, and is highlighted by two great sword fights - one taking place during the opening train station sequence and the other occurring in the church finale. In fact, the blade-wielding maneuvers showcased in this film put some other highly overrated fan favorites to great shame, and I truly feel sorry for those who would cite the horribly choreographed garbage seen in Ashes of Time, Storm Riders, or A Man Called Hero with the well-planned, precisely executed sequences seen in The Twins Effect. It's not even close.
   
   This film was so good that it actually set me up for being disappointed at other Chinese movies with the same actors and actresses. This especially applies to Ekin Cheng, whose other films almost always suck - and yes, this includes the obscenely overrated and exploitative wuxia crap mentioned in the previous paragraph. Even The Twins have never been able to match the value of this movie when both were lead actresses in a film, although they have managed to hit some good films when either one or the other takes the leading role (e.g., Beyond Our Ken, Good Times Bed Times, House of Fury) or when one or both are in supporting roles (e.g., Colour of the Truth, New Police Story, Just One Look). The Twins Effect 2 should have been a direct sequel, instead of a family fantasy. I am still yearning to see Charlene and Gillian team up and kick some butt in another movie, but the fact remains that The Twins Effect hits on all cylinders, optimizing their charisma while avoiding a descent into annoyance (as in Protégé de la Rose Noire).
   
   All in all, this film has everything one needs to be entertained. And may I remind the reader that it is precisely this - ENTERTAINMENT - that judges the greatness of a movie, more so than artsy dramatic elements or meaningless awards from established academies of critics who usually have no idea what they are talking about.
   
   In the end, the Twins Effect is a CLASSIC not to be missed.
   
   Rating = 5/5 stars
   
   P.S. - The Hollywood execs decided to slaughter this film when it was released in the U.S. by renaming it The Vampire Effect and cutting out 20 minutes of footage, which includes parts of the action scenes. However, the final fight of the U.S. version does have a better soundtrack than the original version. Therefore, I purchased both versions, which allows me to first watch the original until about the 1:20 mark, and then swap discs to watch the final fight on the U.S. version.



3. The Twins and Ekin Cheng team up to take on vampires. Now first of all the story is the only thing I had a problem with in this movie. They don't explain a whole lot but they really don't need to. It is not a long movie and they mainly just focus on one plot point and the rest of the movie is fighting vampires. Ekin Cheng is a vampire hunter and when his partner dies he gets a new one. She is a little wild and does not like Ekin's sister. They have a fight on the rooftop with poles and while you can tell they don't know martial arts, this scene is a lot better than it should be with Donnie Yen's choreography. Ekin Chen though just surprises me more and more everytime I see him. He has a great one on one grappling type of fight and just looks outstanding in the opening scene. His acting is of course excellent as well. So Ekin's sister actually falls in love with a vamire who is being hunted by the like super vampire. I don't know what video game they took the story from but it makes for a great final fight. And I mean AWESOME!!!! The vampire grappling was great. NONE of the fights are going to blow your mind but there is just something about those twins getting down and dirty. Also look out for a great cameo from Jackie Chan and Karen Mok.



4. this move was so nice, a comedy and action film. jacky (kong sang) chan has a small part, put that does not really matter.



5. This movie is pretty entertaining. Although Jackie Chan is on the cover, his appearance in the movie is minimal. I got a good laugh from the goofieness of it all. I would recommend this movie if you like goofy movies.

5 comments about Robin B Hood.

1. From an American point of view, this movie is confusing, disconnected, and a bit melodramatic. But this isn't an American movie. Jackie Chan is Taiwanese. This is that type of movie. Watching this movie as a foreign film is quite enjoyable. A little strange, but fun!



2. I did not enjoy the previous effort of a Benny Chan directed Jackie Chan film in "New Police Story" that I was definitely worried about a "Three Men and a Baby" inspired effort. The result was mixed, but going in with low expectations I was pleasantly surprised. "Rob-B-Hood" (US release name is a bizarre name change to "Robin-B-Hood" though in this movie there is no stealing from the rich to give to the poor; neither title is very good) is the third film in the collaboration between Benny Chan and Jackie Chan and Benny's first attempt at a comedic action film. While this film was successful in Asia it was not theatrically released in North America and most of Europe.
   
   Jackie Chan and Louis Koo Tin-Lok star as mediocre bad guys Thongs and Octopus. Jackie Chan tired of stereotypical nice guy roles wanted to play a criminal, though his character Thongs is a burglar and compulsive gambler, the "good guy" nature of his character comes through quite clearly and his performance does not veer far from most of Jackie's previous personae. This role is a good step in broadening his experience as an actor. Octopus is a married womanizer who works with Thongs. He married very young to Pak Yin (the terminally cute Charlene Choi) and is doing his best to woo wealthy young women while avoiding his wife. Thongs and Octopus both work under the guidance of the Landlord (Michael Hui) a conservative criminal who hoards his theft while the other two spend their "earnings".
   
   The Landlord has had his loot stolen by another criminal (he suspects everyone after this) so he allows himself to get contracted to a nefarious case to kidnap a baby for seven million dollars and give the infant to the possible grandfather to test if the baby is his sons (the son is dead and currently frozen in a very expensive decorated freezer). Thongs and Octopus both need the money so they acquiesce and help the Landlord with the felony. Of course, Thongs and Octopus, through a partially botched kidnapping attempt, are forced to take care of the cute defecating infant until they can reestablish getting the kid to who hired them. And, of course, they get attached to the baby (I cannot believe the baby got nominated for Hong Kong Film Award's Best New Performer category).
   
   Some of the negatives of this film include the ill-defined female characters (it seems they would have been better characterization in the original three-hour workprint, but that meant a whole lot more exposition); especially Gao Yuan-Yuan's Melody character who I had trouble figuring out what her relationship with Thongs was the first time I watched this. Some of the baby poop jokes were overdone as well as some of the infant's scenes in general (reportedly the child was an enfant terrible on the set; delaying shooting and helping push the film over budget). There is only so much you can do with a babbling, spitting, crying child with flatulence. Yuen Biao's Inspector Steve Mok character is definitely underused (as well as Michael Hui), though at least he gets more than a cameo in this film. And then there is the horrible overuse of Pepsi advertising including one scene where Jackie slides down a pole revealing the largest Pepsi graffiti I have ever seen.
   
   I did end up liking this film though. There is a certain congenial innocence with the lead characters that works well in this comedic action hybrid. In most Jackie Chan movies there are little stunts that sometimes seem as throwaways but are quite dangerous and are done with Keatonesque ease. In this movie Jackie slides down a staircase column and props himself up with ease at the end. If he fell on the wrong side he could have been seriously injured, but since it is so effortlessly it seems so simple. Jackie Chan has used more wires in his stunts and it definitely shows in this film, but I do not fault him for it, since his body cannot handle the punishment like it used to. The stunt where he jumps from air conditioner to air conditioner to the bottom of the street is impressive (even if a wire was used) and his and Louis Koo's stunts in the amusement park owned by the grandfather (location was Ocean Park) were quite good. In fact Jackie was said to be impressed of Koo who was willing to do many of his own stunts in the movie.
   
   There could have been more fighting in this movie but there is a good scene in the apartment of Jackie between Jackie, Yuen Biao, Ken Lo and more. It is inspired by a similar scene in Project A (this is also mentioned in the Benny Chan commentary), but still pleasant. While there are many faults in this film and I think that many action purists will not like this film, I found much that was enjoyable from the comedy to the action and stunts. Now please Jackie no more movies with babies.
   
   ***½/*****
   
   The extras on the Dragon Dynasty DVD are quite good though they have stupendously stupid names. The best is a 39 minute interview with Jackie Chan named "Crashing the Hood." In this he talks about how he wanted to be more serious as an actor and how he wanted to play more of a bad guy (this would be repeated on most of the extras) and how he had trouble passing the script through China. He talks about how he wants to work with more of his Peking school brothers (Sammo Hung and Yuen Wah) and some of his experiences with Michael Hui on "Cannonball Run." He even talks about his changing belief in CGI, how he channeled his Mom's stroke into this character and his non-use of storyboarding. He does make a mistake stating that this is his first main bad guy role (that would be "Killer Meteors" (1977) plus he did a couple of "thug" roles even earlier in his career). The most telling quote is when he states "I control the whole movie" dispelling any notion of the director as auteur for this film especially since this movie is produced by Jackie's company JCE Movies Limited.
   
   "The Hand That Mocks The Cradle" is a 16 minute interview with Benny Chan that repeats much of what is in the commentary except that he does state that Jackie Chan micromanages much less now then he did when he first directed him in "Who Am I." "Baby Boomer: A featurette with costar Conroy Chan" (14m) is interesting because of so much of what Conroy actually does. He is an X-Games promoter, was an electrical engineer in college, is a rap group member and has an Australian accent. However, he has a small role in the film. "Playtime for Adults: On the Site of Robin B. Hood" (22m) and "Robin-B-Hood: An Original Making Of" (22m) are typical "making of" fare that were originally (along with the director's commentary) put out on the R3 release. Luckily those two features have scenes of Yuen Biao being interviewed.
   
   Now where are the deleted scenes?
   
   The audio commentary by Benny Chan (with two interviewers who do not state their names), which was ported over from the R3 disc, is informative if not a bit dry. The Dragon Dynasty cover has a mistake in advertising stating that Bey Logan is on the commentary. He is not -- to the condemnation of some and to the happiness of others. Benny Chan talks much about how many scenes were cut (the work print of the film was three hours long; though he states he prefers the shorter version; thank goodness) and that most of the cut scenes were non-action. He also talks about some of the influence of Project A and Winners and Sinners. It was the first comedy for Benny Chan and Benny talked about how the baby was very difficult - this was echoed in much of the extras. Most of the commentary was scene-by-scene discussing where the missing scenes were, who some of the cameo actors are and his personal feelings on several scenes such as his struggling with the rationale of the "shocking" scene toward the end.



3. I got to this review page searching for when this movie was really made.
   
   I considered JC's action scenes in Rush Hour III as an indication he was ready for the "Over-the-Hill Gang", and told myself Robin B Hood was dragged out of a Taiwan vault.
   
   But I was sucked in by the hype on the box, and it did live up to it. The action scenes are reminiscent of earlier films, and it was good to see it was made recently.
   
   Confusing? Absolutely, especially in the first half. Thongs, Landlord and Octopus' characters in the early action scenes segue not at all into some of the other first-half "personal" scenes. I had to rewind to connect Octopus to the early action scenes with the later scenes of him being a total jerk to his wife. Is this that guy we saw earlier, dear?
   
   But, I agree with another reviewer: this is not an American film. Maybe we are too used to characters and plots that follow steps 1,2 and 3.
   
   In the end, I think the plot and character relationships were resolved satisfactorily. Not perhaps to the standard of a professional thriller, but definitely beyond the expectations of a B-action movie.



4. The great, unbeatable, real life actionman Jackie Chan is ageing. This of course is not new or shocking information, but it is true. Therefore he has shifted focus a bit in his new film, "Robin B Hood" (for which the English name in China interestingly enough was 'Rob-B-Hood', which to my ears at least sounds a bit better). Although he still fights and leaps and such, it is no longer the main act. The comedy takes over, and I must say, quite succesfully.
   
   There is one big problem with this though. While action and leaping around is universally understood, humour varies from one end of the world to another, and I think that there is a bit of that going on here. If you understand Chinese and Chinese culture and or cinema history, you will probably see more funny things in this film than if you don't. There are still plenty of things that are easily recognized as humourous, but many of the references and a lot of the dialogue is better if you speak Chinese. Nothing surprising about that really.
   
   I think there are enough leaping and figthing (and a visit from Yuan Biao) to keep genre fans happy, and enough humour to keep anyone else satisfied. In short: I think it is a good film. Highly recommendable.



5. After regaining some of the ground he lost in Hollywood with his last couple of Hong Kong films, Jackie Chan takes a big step backwards with the overlong Rob-B-Hood, a downmarket three bad men and a baby romp that offers limp gay jokes, comic relief mental illness, family bonding and child endangerment for all the family. There is one fairly good action sequence at the halfway point as well as a neat stunt that sees him jumping down a building via the air conditioning units, but you definitely get the feeling that Chan's no longer pushing himself but is just doing what he knows he can still do while Yuen Biao is mostly wasted in a nothing bit part. He's made worse, but that's hardly a recommendation.
   
   Dragon Dynasty's 2-disc set the theatrical version with audio commentary. There's also a variety of interviews and featurettes, but the film is such heavy going you quite possibly won't want to spend any longer on it once you've seen it.

5 comments about Jackie Chan's Project A2.

1. This film is just as good as it's previous one. A hialarious scene is when Jackie was fighting the bad guys he had to eat REAL red hot chillies, spit the juice into his hands and rub the juice onto the bad guys eyes'. The plot is quite simiar to the other one but don't worry it's still is a real treat!



2. Alright... I'm keeping myself anonymous as I've been against Dimension Films' treatment of pretty much all Hong Kong imports, yet this release wasn't as bad... First off, I'm not sure if the print was cut at all, but at least the run time was over 100 min. Yes, this version has a new dub created by Dimension, HOWEVER, it has retained the original Hong Kong score. I don't believe Dimension has ever done this. The only thing close to this was the opposite with "Iron Monkey" in which the Cantonese track had been retained, but the music had changed. Also, the score was blasting in 5.1 surround sound, no less. And even the original sound effects were kept and with very good bass coming from the subwoofer. As for the picture, it looked almost like a brand new film. It might not've hit the standards of the Region 2 company "Hong Kong Legends", but was still highly impressive. As for extras... this is where it falls flat on its face... NOTHING! Also, I had feared that Dimension would chop out the outtakes since Jackie is seen singing in Cantonese in the original version, yet it was left in! Unfortunately, Dimension was too lazy to get subtitles for it. Well, it looks like Dimension may be getting closer to getting things right... but not until they release a Hong Kong film on DVD UNCUT and with BOTH English and Cantonese/Mandarin audio tracks. If Disney/Miramax, can take Japanese anime films ("Spirited Away", "Castle in the Sky", etc.) and give them high-class two disc releases, then why not Hong Kong live action films? They'd sell better that way as well. All we can do is wait... but it's getting harder and harder to hold my breath. As for this DVD... if you can find it for a decent price or you have a gift card and can't find anything else, it's actually worth the purchase. But, if you want original language over video quality, I guess you'll have to find the Mega Star Hong Kong DVD... either way, IT'S UP TO YOU!!



3. I had seen Project A many times, so when, seeing Project A2 for the first time, was expecting more of the same (I also gave Project A five stars as well - how can anyone go wrong with a Jackie Chan film?!?!?!). But Project A2, IMHO, is much better, with more action and more amazing stunts (too bad I can't give it 6 stars!!). I have the subtitled version, and I've always liked those versions better, rather than the dubbed versions.

   Don't think twice - get this movie (especially if you can find the subtitled version!!!).




4. Why American production make HK movies look so cheap? First of all, they cut off so much scene, second of all ruin it by making look acting so dumb by English Dubb. ALWAYS stick with ORIGINAL LICENSED HK RELEASE. Be careful with cheap imports, boots though.



5. David Lam stars as a crooked cop and Jackie is sent in to work alongside him so he can eventually take him down. He has a lot of cleaning up to do in his new district and starts with Chan Wei Man and his gang. The movie is slow going, but there are tons of hilarious scenes that keep things moving along. The plot finally kicks into gear when we find out Maggie Cheung and Rosamund Kwan's plans. This movie is your standard Jackie vs. everybody scenario. There is also a gang of pirates after Jackie because he killed their leader at the end of Project A.
   
   While there are no lengthy 1 on 1 matches, the action is all very good and also has a big emphasis on comedy. There are a couple of very long drawn out comic sequences, but it always ends in a big payoff. Thanks to the comedy, the movie moves along at a good pace. Make sure not to blink early on because there is a 5 second exchange between Jackie Chan and Chan Wei Man that is amazing. The stuntwork is superb. Just don't go into this expecting anything that comes close to matching the 3 on 1 final fight or the clocktower stunt from the first Project A. There is a nice 10 minute sequence towards the end that is filled with crazy stunts and also a few fights. Not his best, but definitely one of Jackie Chan's better movies.
   
   On top of the names already given, the cast also includes Mars, Bill Tung, Fan Mei-Sheng, Ken Lo, Ben Lam, John Chiang, Lee Hoi San and Tiet Wo Chu. Ken Lo and Ben Lam unfortunately don't get in on the action.
   
   4/5
   
   The DVD from Dimension Video is not cut very much and the original music is intact, but the British dubbing gets extremely annoying. Picture quality is very good and perfectly widescreened.