Monday, February 17, 2003

Shanghi Knights

In a Nutshell: Classic Jackie Chan, and oh so much fun. The anachronisms alone are hilarious (if quite over the top), the stunts and fights are amazing, and Lin kicks butt!

Quick Plot: In this sequel to Shanghi Noon, Chon Wang's (Jackie Chan) estranged father is killed in China. The murderer escapes to England, and Chon's sister Lin (Fann Wong) follows, after sending word to her brother back in the American west. Chon enlists the help of "his favorite side kick" Roy O'Bannon (Owen Wilson), who is more than happy to help out "his favorite side kick" Chon on this adventure.

In Detail: I really like Jackie Chan. I should thank my husband more often for introducing he to his films. He is so much fun, and such an amazing athlete. Many of the fight scenes look almost like dances (and it even plays on this theme at one point), they are so beautifully choreographed and, as always, exceptionally well executed. So the plot is hokey, that's not why you go to see movies like this. You go for the amazing Jackie Chan, and the wonderful interaction between him and Owen Wilson. I also liked the spark that Fann Wong added to the mix. She's beautiful, she's tough, and she's an amazing fighter in her own right. An all-round good time, and a very enjoyable afternoon. Also, you don't really have to have seen the first film to enjoy the second. You may miss a couple of passing references, but it's mostly a separate entity. We haven't seen Shanghi Noon since we saw it in the theater in 2000, despite how much we liked it. I wish I had seen it again before watching this film, but I don't think we really missed anything major. I just hoped to be able to compare it to the first, but it's been too long. Maybe we'll catch "Noon" again soon, and I'll let you know. And yes, outtakes are shown at the end of the film before the credits.

Will I Buy It? Probably; we'll most likely wait for the inevitable box set and get the two together.

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