Shanghai Noon (2000) September 17, 2008
Posted by Cal in : Comedy, Action, Non-Asian, 2000s films , trackbackDirector: Tom Dey Main Cast: Jackie Chan; Owen Wilson; Lucy Liu Territory: USA
Princess Pei Pei (Lucy Liu) is kidnapped and taken to America. Three Imperial Guards are sent to bring her back. Loyal subject Chon Wang (Jackie Chan) also goes along for the ride, but finds trouble in the shape of not-so-desperate outlaw Roy O’Bannon (Owen Wilson). The two become unlikely partners, however, when O’Bannon learns of the fabulous fortune he can obtain if he helps rescue her.
The fan response to Shanghai Noon on its release in 2000 was a little muted. There was disappointment over an obviously CGI stunt involving a jump between two separated carriages on a train, a couple of recycled gags from Jackie’s Hong Kong movies, and an apparently staged outtake with a locked door. However, you can’t help but look upon the film now, out of context, and think of it as a highlight of his output from the noughties.
Where Rush Hour had Chris Tucker, Shanghai Noon has Owen Wilson. Wilson can be described as the anti-Tucker, with his laconic Texan drawl the antithesis of Tucker’s frenetic motormouth. It’s all subjective, but I would take Wilson over Tucker any time; although people who like deliberately annoying characters may disagree.
The plot will win no awards for originality, and the whole thing is just another fish-out-of-water cop-buddy comedy movie with the action taking place in the old West instead of modern urban America. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though, and the script has enough gags to gloss over any deficiencies. While I feel the action scenes in Shanghai Noon aren’t as good as those in Rush Hour, the film hangs together much better and is genuinely funnier (although, again, Tucker fans (if they do actually exist) may disagree). When Chon tells O’Bannon his name, the latter scoffs: “John Wayne? That’s a terrible cowboy name!” and the scenes involving Chan’s scene-stealing horse are a delight.
The sense of fun generated by Shanghai Noon is infectious and the result is a thoroughly enjoyable film.
Comments»
In the book ‘Kung Fu Cult Masters’ by Leon Hunt he alleges that Jackie actually came up with the story of a chinese man who wakes up with amnesia in the wild west, and that Sammo Hung basically stole it to make ‘Once Upon a Time in China and the West’ (OUATIC pt 6). “Both films initiate their heroes into Native American Tribes, both feature a blonde cowboy who finds himself attracted to Chinese culture and both feature an exploitative Chinese turncoat (played by the same actor, Roger Yuan).” from page 174.
I really adore this movie. It was the first kung fu film I ever saw
Thanks for bringing that up, Adrien. I meant to include some references in my review but I kind of lost the plot when I took so long writing this one up. Yes, there’s a definite link between this, OUATICAA and Who Am I?, and I believe this is another reason why Jackie and Sammo’s relationship cooled considerably in the 90’s. I do definitely remember reading about Jackie’s intention of doing an “Eastern Western” long before OUATICAA was made, but I don’t remember any specifics of the plot. I’m actually a bit of a fan of the final OUATIC film despite the typically bad acting by some of the Westerners, but I think I’d take this over that one if I was asked.
James: my fist kung fu film was a JC film - there’s no better introduction!
I remember seeing this at the cinema and being pleasantly surprised that it was a big improvement on Rush Hour. I’d still rate it as Chan’s best American film.
Off-topic but I read somewhere that Who Am I was originally going to be a two hour-plus film or a two-part film series. Apparently a lot more was filmed than ended up on screen (possibly due to it being too dark - it’s interesting to note that Purple Storm was a semi-remake).
Forgot to mention that I just recently watched ‘The Stranger and the Gunfighter’ (aka Blood Money) a precursor to both OUATIC 6 and Shanghai Noon, with Lo Lieh and Lee Van Cleef in the Jackie and Owen Wilson parts, respectively. It’s also a comedy (although the humor is terrible) but mildly entertaining an of interest if you want to see Lo Lieh play against type (he’s the very opposite of his usual menacing, bad-ass self, he might as well be a teddy bear who knows kung fu) and for a look at the Chinese hero in the wild west done back in 1975.
Adrien: I had no idea that movie even existed! I’m going to have to have a look at that at some point, it looks really interesting.
Chris: yes, now that I think about it, I seem to recall WHO AM I? was originally intended to be a two-parter. I watch the 2-hour HK version and even though I still maintain it was Jackie’s last truly great film, it hardly makes sense a lot of the time does it? And wasn’t there something about him riding a rhino in that got left on the cutting-room floor?
There is a two hour Hong Kong version? It’s been a while but last time I looked for it on YesAsia the running time seemed to only be increased by about 10 minutes (of course, they may have listed it incorrectly). Like you say, the extra scenes mainly consisted of Jackie spending more time with the tribe (from what I’ve heard).
And I’m glad someone else think it was his last great film; along with Crime Story and Miracles it’s also one of his most underrated.