Rumble in the Bronx

I've read reviews from a number of people who were fans of Jackie Chan before he was well known in the west, that express disappointment that Rumble in the Bronx is the film that finally made Chan a household name in America, because they feel the film is quite a come-down from the "Police Story" films that formed the main link between Chan and his past before making this film.

I must strongly disagree. Yes - the Anglo actors aren't very good; the plot is silly at times; the dialog is weak, some of the characters are unbelievable.

But there's seems no question that the stunt-work is excellent, and the fight scenes are excellent - these really form the reason for making the film in the first place.

Furthermore, I think that, of all the protagonists he's played, Chan's character here is the closest to being a true hero of the highest caliber - incorruptible, unstoppable, compassionate, smart - if all our heroes were like this, this would be a different world; if we were all like this, it would be heaven.

And I'm not getting all that ironic here - I sincerely mean that Chan returns a kind of virtuous character to the silver screen, that hasn't been seen for a very long time.

Consequently, despite occasional violence, I would not stop children from seeing this film - I would encourage them to do so. They can learn a lot about ethics and character from watching this film - and that is actually quite remarkable, to be able to say that of a Martial Arts film.

I'd guess you'd have to call 'Rumble in the Bronx' an extreme example of a guilty pleasure. Though back in the 1990s, it was not my first introduction to Jackie Chan (the inferior 'Supercop' was) it was the one that got me hooked on his work. All the way through this viewing – the first in many years, the word "silly" kept popping up in my mind. It's dialogue, acting, stereotypes and shoddy cop work was so hilariously bad, I could only think this had to be written by someone who's only contact with the U.S.A. involves watching old 1970s cop hour-long dramas. And while some scenes were actually funny (SEE: the wrench threat) some were downright unintentionally funny (SEE: the toddler-toss and the entire closing on the golf course.) Leaving all that negative behind, it was an extreme joy watching Chan perform his own stunts in many, many inventive ways while simultaneously creating a very human and good-hearted character. The stunts were simply amazing and if one were to watch today for the first time, they need to know: he did them all himself, without a green screens, cables, etc. As arrogant as Chan is – I've read his biography, it's dripping with arrogance, he does have great gifts in originality, showmanship, pride in his work and making sure he never uses traditional American trickery/stunts. (This changes later in his work, when he was forced and got older, but this work and ones around it were all pure Chan.) Synopsis: Good-natured nephew Chan visits NYC and gets thrown in extraordinary circumstances: fighting both gangs and mob bosses while helping 2 women, his Uncle and a handicapped child. All that's irrelevant; what matters is once the action starts, it never lets up. And with an open-mind, what a fun rumble you'll have.

Side Note: Wow.. not only was it painful for all the actors to get hurt during production (not to mention the roughly 16 dozen vehicles) it was also gut wrenching to watch the closing credits that showed mostly the unintentional crashes, broken bones, etc. You really have to hand it to the devotion of the crew, cast and Chan. Definitely Chan. My comments about his arrogance does not mean I don't admire the man, especially his extremely poor and underprivileged beginnings to the entertainer he became. He's one of the very few actors/action stars that no matter how incredibly silly his movies look to me – it has to be a culture thing, it's always a rush to see how long his fight scenes last, how inventive he becomes and simply how exciting they are.

This was the first film I saw of Jackie's (first one released in the US that I can remember despite The Protector and The Big Brawl in the 80s) and I have to say it's a great introduction to Chan's work. The fighting is great and well shot while the stunts are amazing. The humor (a Jackie trademark) is also hilarious. People from the US really don't know what a good martial arts film is. Some have grown up with Bruce Lee and it's appreciated but many of them are constantly renting Van Damme and Steven Segal films (working at a video store, I see it all the time). Seeing someone who really is impressive at martial arts, dosen't need fast cuts and choppy editing, and does his own stunts puts all the Van Damme's and Segal's to shame. Take the warehouse fight for example and compare it to any American martial arts film and you will see the difference.

For those who haven't seen this film yet and love martial arts films - rent this movie. For those who have seen it and want to see more Jackie - I recommend Drunken Master I and II (II is very hard to find in the US), The Young Master (great final fight), Who Am I? (unbelieveable stunts), Police Story I, II, and III (all around Jackie Chan films, III is known in the US as just Supercop), Operation Condor (tons of martial arts), and Project A I and II (II is another hard to find one in the US). You may also want to check out Rush Hour and Shanghai Noon - they aren't as good as the ones listed above but they are entertaining and Jackie Chan films nonetheless. As for Rumble In The Bronx, make it your first Chan film.

Jackie Chan is, without a doubt, one of the greatest action stars of our time - but that is not all he does, by far. He is the only actor I can think of who has so seamlessly blended heartstopping action with rolling-on-the-floor comedy. However, having seen some of his later work, I must say that in certain respects this movie did not live up to the expectations I had set for Jackie Chan.

While the action sequences were excellent, they were a bit sparse, and there was too much plot between them. Normally that wouldn't be something to complain about too much, but in this case the plot was almost nonexistent. I've decided that the movie was basically an excuse for two big scenes: the kung-fu battle with the gang, and the hovercraft scene.

There were several scenes in the movie which had me laughing out loud - the kind of clever humor and subtlety that has become Jackie Chan's trademark. But during a great portion of the movie, I was scratching my head wondering where that refreshing humor had gone. Some scenes were just too serious for a Jackie Chan movie.

All that said, I really did enjoy the movie, and would give it 6 stars out of 10. The action sequences did have me on the edge of my seat, and the funny parts did have me laughing. I won't say that it was Jackie Chan's best work, but it was certainly enough to get him onto the American radar, and I'm very glad that that's where he is now. So I would recommend seeing this movie, but if someone were seeing their first Jackie Chan movie, I would recommend something else, possibly starting with a newer, non-dubbed American film first.

Well here we go once again with the undisputed king of action comedy. The one and only Jackie Chan. While this is nowhere near Chan's best movie we can be grateful for the fact that this is the film that finally gave Chan his much deserved break in the USA. This is the story on Chan's character Keung who comes to the Bronx for his uncle's wedding and ends up caught up in a series of events that involve biker gangs, and diamond robbers. But really none of this matters this is just an excuse for Jackie to show of his amazing action skills (in the fight scenes which he also choreographed), and this he does to his usual amazing standards. There seems to be more edits in the fight scenes that is normal for Jackie but I suspect this might be down to one of two things. One making the film more palatable for a western audience. Or two that Jackie broke his ankle in the filming of this movie. Still tell me the last time you saw a western movie star leap from a roof on to the fire escape of the next building!!! Truly amazing stuff. On the down side the western characters and acting are very wooden but hey just enjoy Chan and hopefully then go seek out his Hong Kong movies.