Where? In London. In London? In London. In London? Yes, in London! Well, that's where fish, chips, shoddy food, bad weather, Mary "the fuck her shit" Poppins! In London!
The sequel to the dashing western with Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson, Shanghai Noon, came out 3 years after the original, but unfortunately, I learned about it relatively recently. And the beautiful return of the duo was brightened by the British Empire, as the action takes the viewer to London.
The plot is funny, albeit predictable, but Jackie Chan is portrayed as the leading hero, attributing the death of a loved one as an excuse for traveling to England. Jokes migrated from the first film, different mentalities, different worldviews from Chan and Wilson, which gives us the level of the first part, but this is not a Western, but London dashing times. All in the spirit of action movies with Jackie, but for comparison, the duo Chan – Wilson does not reach the level of Chan – Tucker, although this is a pleasant adventure that the film gives.
London. I love this city for books, movies, and a movie with a favorite Chinese gives you the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. The cliche of the city, its traditions, legends roll over the main characters. We're still following the vendetta, but with stories about the dirty Thames, Jack the Ripper, the poor and rich classes. You seem to move into a novel by Charles Dickens only with action, funny Jackie and an intriguing attempt to catch the villain.
Stunts, fights, shots - all this is mixed with a dynamic narrative. Although the film does not try to copy the original, but repetitions of the same jokes can be seen with the naked eye. But we have Sherlock Holmes. Yes, it is very appropriate to mention the famous detective. No special remarks, easy storytelling, funny tricks, revealing personalities like Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Funny elements brought from the original open your eyes to the hero Owen, which is surprising, creating an element of comedy. It seems that the director pays attention to the secondary characters even more than the main ones, exposing the images already familiar to us in a funny interpretation. Scotland Yard stands out in tone, referring to the Soviet "Sherlock Holmes", the 2009 version of Guy Ritchie and the series "Sherlock" with Benedict Cumberbatch, it is the comparisons that are fun. References, a bit of nostalgia and a cheerful ending give a great mood when watching.
Should you watch Shanghai Noon? Yes, it's a continuation of the story, plus Jackie Chan's filmography and funny comedy.
After the successful film Shanghai Noon, the studio bosses could not miss the opportunity to shoot a sequel, which happened three years later. And although sequels rarely support the level of the original, this sequel I liked even more than the first tape. The director's chair was taken by David Dobkin, who perfectly established himself as the author of video clips and commercials. I must give him credit, the director found a complete understanding with the star actors and managed to shoot a high-quality entertaining film, in no way inferior to the first film.
If in the first film the main events developed in the Wild West, then in this film we are sent together with the characters of the tape to Victorian London, the sample of 1887. There was almost nothing left of the Western. Instead, we got an interesting symbiosis of a comedy action movie, an adventure film and martial arts paintings. Humor and jokes here are more than in the first part, and fascinating action scenes and well-made fights are more than enough. In general, the plot is quite banal, the duo of heroes goes for an important Chinese relic, getting into all sorts of troubles. Here you and the story of revenge, and the love line, and an inventive system of references to historical facts.
Visually, the tape looks hurried. Funny situations in which the main characters are constantly causing a smile, which is successfully combined with the classic for films with Jackie Chan / b scenes of fights using all kinds of objects. Nothing new, but it looks interesting. The director and screenwriters managed to combine the cultural elements of the Wild West, the European continent and the Asian region.
I really like the historical and cultural references that fill this film. As the characters involved, there are such historical figures as Arthur Conan Doyle and Charlie Chaplin, and in a kind of cameo such an interesting character as Jack the Ripper was lit up. Musical accompaniment maintains a high level of dynamics, and successfully selected compositions add charm.
Jackie Chan performed in a classic role for himself, he once again demonstrates his skills as a stuntman, a director of combat stunts and a charismatic comedian. Not far behind him and Owen Wilson, whose jokes can cause a portion of laughter. For the second time, the wonderful actor duo showed a high level of skill and full mutual understanding in the frame. Good and villains, in the role of which were another famous Chinese actor Donnie Yen and Aidan Gillen .
Shanghai Knights is a great entertaining film, which is not inferior to the first part, and somewhere surpasses it. The painting has all the necessary elements. Dynamic storytelling style, inventive action, excellent humor and successful cultural and historical references make the tape an ideal example of the entertainment genre. The picture gives positive emotions and is great for evening viewing.
Major General Sherlock Holmes and His Majesty the Maharaja of Nevada!
After the box office success of Rush Hour, which still allowed the restless Chinese superman to cut a window into America, Jackie Chan did not slow down and very productively worked in a duet with another rising star - Owen Wilson. And although their “Shanghai Noon” financially lost the adventures of Jackie and Tucker, the tape was loved by both viewers and critics, and therefore the continuation did not take long to wait.
“Shanghai Knights” was released 3 years after the first part and became a direct continuation of the events of the first part. However, the film did not achieve the expected success and was criticized for being too dismissive of historical facts and general frivolity of what was happening. It is pointless to argue with this, because in order to tear the tape down to dust, you do not need to have a doctorate or master's degree. The film is unworthy, stupid and yet... beautiful. Yeah, yeah, that's not a joke. As an entertaining comedy, the fruit of David Dobkin’s fantasy will give a head start to almost any Jackie Chan tape. If in Chan’s previous projects, for example, the same “Police History” or “Showdown in the Bronx”, in addition to the comedic component, a number of frankly harsh scenes were traced, where his character had to be seriously worried, then in “Shanghai Knights” everything is quite sweet and vanilla. From the moment Roy and John arrive at Chering Cross Station under the unforgettable “England Swings”, a hell of a funny thrash begins. The film gushes over the poor English, al-I Daniel, laughing at red Mercedes, but does it very good-naturedly, as if childishly hugging the shoulders. Each character, despite the fact that he could not be there, perfectly fits into the plot. I mean, look at the images! Both the crook Chaplin and Sir Conan Doyle and even the intimidating Ripper evoke a sweet grin. The whole casting in the movie is just gorgeous. Instead of one villain, we have two, and even such diverse. The formidable Donnie Yen as a Chinese usurper and the narcissistic, cynical and ruthless Aidan Gillen, playing Lord Nelson - "the man who wanted to be queen." Each of them managed to give the film a gloomy sweep, pushing the border of farce to the proper level.
Jackie in this film did not demonstrate extraordinary tricks, making his kulbits mostly humorous. A fight with policemen between the revolving doors, as a tribute to Chaplin’s work, a showdown with bandits in the market and subsequent getting into the coffin, fencing in the clock tower and, attention, Chan’s business card – a fall from a great height. This time, the British flag was an attribute of salvation, sending John and Roy straight into the carriage to the Queen herself. Wilson, by the way, in this film opened not even 100, but all 200%, jumping above his head and surpassing himself from the first part. Owen has always been a great comedian, despite the fact that he often starred in outright bullshit. The role of Roy O’Bannon allowed him to fully reveal his talent. In the first film, he prepared the site, keeping a bit of seriousness, and in the second finally appeared before us a kind of American François Perrin - a sweet and charming eccentric, sprinkling sharpness to the right and left. From Roy's phrases, it is possible to create a book whose circulation would not be inferior to Serge McAllister's notorious writing about Roy's battle with mummies. Philosophizing about the meaning of life on the clock, ranting in the mansion, blatant mockery of Holmes and trolling Stonehenge – Wilson’s character alone and spreads the entire English history, while doing it brightly, catchyly and, I emphasize again, completely harmless.
“Shanghai Knights” is a wonderful entertaining comedy action movie and simultaneously one of the best films in Chan’s career, who, together with Wilson, created one of the most sparkling comedy duets, not inferior to such masters as Richard Depardieu, Reno-Clavier, Phineas-Bourville. A worthy representative who can compete with the “Beverly Hills Cop”, the same “Rush Hour”, or “Taxi” for the title of the best comedy action movie, and is also one of the last representatives of American comedies that did not sink to the level of drinking bears and depraved teachers.
10 out of 10
P.S. You hear me, England. You won't take me! Not bad weather, not killers-perverts, not his spotted sausage!
If there was no sequel in the previous film, but it was a financial success, then all you have to do is improvise and present ideas in a way that was planned from the beginning. This is the rule that guided Alfred Gough and Michael Millar when they began creating the sequel to Shanghai Half Day. What did the writers of the film think of?
Well, look, in the Forbidden City again trouble - the imperial seal, a symbol of power, was stolen. Um, this strange Forbidden City, more like a courtyard, where bandits and criminals of various stripes come to deform and steal something related to the emperor, I would not be surprised if the favorite grandmother of the emperor is kidnapped in the triquel (If one appears, which I am not very sure of). However, given how the national treasures of the imperial family are protected, whether it is a daughter or a seal, it is not surprising, but the details. The main thing is not so much this, but that Chon Wang’s father (Jackie Chan) was killed, and his sister (Jackie, not his father) went to England to find and punish the killer. Well, prequel sequels often have distant/close relatives that no one has heard of before. No, it is clear that the hero Jackie Chan in China remained relatives, but if they were as close as the culprit claims, then Chung Wang would mention them in the first part. I think a sequel would be more appropriate. And so Chun Wang appears before the viewer as a slightly irresponsible person - in the first film he kills his uncle, about which the hero, and with him the writers, forgets very quickly, just as he forgets about the family left at home, which the hero Jackie Chan did not even write. Although... maybe Chun Wang is simply not a family man, because he does not live with his Indian wife, but instead works as a sheriff and dreams of a princess who forgot to think about the hero Jackie Chan? Anything can be.
In any case, after receiving the black news, Jackie Chan’s hero decides to go to New York to take some of the gold from his friend Roy O’Bannon, which, for a moment, was given to poor Chinese peasants who worked in quarries and who did not have a penny at heart. Apparently, the screenwriters decided to cross out the noble gesture of the main characters, so that from the idea of gold falling into the hands of the crook and crook O’Bannon could squeeze a couple of jokes. Um, so the plot of the first part is not quoted? All right! Let's assume it's... it's... spin-off, in!
Arriving in New York, Chun Wang is waiting for not one, but several shocking news. First of all, O’Bannon doesn’t have any money. You should know. Second, Owen Wilson's character is so "successful" that he now works as a lackey in a hotel. Mdya used to be a cowboy with principles, and now a dishwasher. No more talking about the first picture. Third, O’Bannon offers a bold plan to get rich in the shortest possible time. You just have to sleep with the mayor's daughters. Am I the only one who thinks this is a bad idea? What am I talking about? Roy O’Bannon never had a good idea.
In any case, our heroes manage to grieve in half to get to England, where Roy’s behavior begins to irritate everyone – ordinary passers-by, the Queen’s Guards, local crooks ... in general, prim England is ready in some century to change and organize a witch hunt, the purpose of which will be the hero of Owen Wilson. What about Jackie Chan? What about him? Getting into trouble. He beats up the bad guys and sometimes not the bad guys. He tries to take revenge on his father’s killer and convinces his sister that a date with Roy O’Bannon is a bad idea.
Meanwhile, two archizlodeys (in fact, if in the first film there were two villains, then the second will not depart from this tradition) are preparing a diabolical plan that extends far beyond the banal thirst for gold. The villains in this film set out to gain "absolute power."
What about the emperor and his retinue? Um, what about them? If in the first picture, as many as three guardsmen were sent for the heiress of the empire, then in the second film no one even scratched to send a chase after the kidnappers of the imperial seal. Maybe it is not as valuable as the hero of Jackie Chan and the banal thirst for revenge is trying to present it? Or maybe a forgery was stolen, and so in the Forbidden City the emperor sits and laughs at the fact that his enemies have lost their hair? It could be. But I will still bet that the writers did not care about this storyline and, as in the case of the death of Uncle Jackie in the first picture, it was necessary only to move the plot forward.
In general, the plot moves, lame, stumbling, but does not fall. He doesn't fall for one simple reason: secondary actors. Yeah, you heard right. The writers, and with them the director, had two strong actors in the lead role, but they decided to bet not on them, but on secondary actors, and also add many references to historical, and sometimes not very events. So a police inspector with a very specific deductive method appeared in the film and dreams of writing a book. Charming boy living in a shelter and who trades in theft, but at the same time dreams of going to Hollywood and becoming a famous artist. Well, on the night streets of England walks a man with a razor sharp knife that is not indifferent to the fair sex. The names of these characters I call, perhaps, I will not, so that some kind of intrigue remains, but I will say so – it is not without interest to watch the antics of these heroes. But the main characters, despite the fact that they are constantly flashing on the screen, were pushed to the background and they are needed most often to wave their arms and legs. And if Jackie does it perfectly, Owen Wilson merges with the environment and he simply does not notice. With antagonists, the situation is not much better. Donnie Yen is terribly overplaying, while Aidan Gillen does not play to his image, even if the latter looks impressive on the screen. It compensates for the well-staged fights, which, unfortunately, are few and humor, to which we owe the hero of Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
Outcome? I would not say that the pros balance the minuses, the last in the picture is all the more, but the film turned out quite good ... if you do not think about what is happening and what the characters actually guided. A movie for the evening.
In 1998, when another comedy action movie in the style of kung fu with the guru of this genre Jackie Chan appeared on the screens, it became clear that the Chinese needed a partner from Hollywood, because films where he alone copes with scoundrels began to bite. The experiment “Rush Hour”, where Chan was given a talkative African-American stand-up comedian Chris Tucker, turned out to be famous. And while the second part of the successful film was just preparing the experiment on “crossing” different races was repeated: in 2000, Touchstone Pictures releases the tape in everything familiar genre, only transferring what is happening a century into the past, “Shanghai Noon” and this time Jackie Chan’s partner was no less talkative, but already pale-faced Owen Wilson. The film collections that justified themselves and the love of the viewer could not postpone the appearance of the sequel about the adventures of the comedy duo for a long time and after 3 years the Shanghai Knights came out.
Let me remind you that in the first part of the film took place in the Wild West, the second was transferred by the fantasy of the duet of screenwriters Alfred Gough and Miles Millar to England, or rather to its capital London. Knowing the habits of the hero Owen Wilson - a dashing cowboy, an unsuccessful robber, a lover of women and drink Roy O'Bannon - it was safe to conclude that trouble will find a couple of friends. However, if you think about it, then all the misadventures of Roy O’Bannon begin with his friend Chinese Chun Wang (who is in the tank, then they can only be Jackie Chan), masterfully mastering the skills of martial arts. So in the “Shanghai Knights” the beginning of all dangerous adventures happened when the father of Chong Wang dies at the hands of a villain who wants to take possession of the imperial seal. In search of revenge, Chun Wang dragged a friend there, but in fairness I must add that Roy O'Bannon himself is only happy about this. In London, they are joined by Chon's beautiful sister Lin (Fann Wong) and a young detective officer Artie Doyle (Tom Fisher) and occasionally helps a little boy Charlie by the name of Charlie. Chaplin! He will be played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, only then just Johnson.
The Shanghai Knights is set in the same vein as many and many Jackie Chan films. But this does not mean that Jackie fell into one pile and shows himself in the form of self-plagiarism, no, this extreme livelier tries to diversify his paintings, not forgetting to put more and more dizzying tricks. But “Shanghai Knights” does not get away from comparisons with the previous film and parallels with “Rush Hour”. Unfortunately, the Shanghai Knights are inferior to both tapes. Not much, but still noticeable. And it seems that everything is in place: stunts, fights, shooting, humor, but lacked some sharpness, something new. At the same time, it cannot be concluded that the Shanghai Knights film is uninteresting - in visual terms and in an entertaining spectacle, it will appeal to all those who want to see the bright Chinese and charismatic Hollywood comedian together and at the same time follow their adventures, which, as, indeed, always, are served in a systematic dynamics, so that you will not be bored, I dare say.
At the time of filming the Shanghai Knights Jackie Chan is almost 50 years old! Despite the honorable return, no one will say that he is not the same: all the tricks he performed himself, and performs, he was not afraid, so by 50 and in sight. This man deserves respect. He also looks like a gentle Chinese man who doesn’t want to get into conflict, but when a friend like Roy O’Bannon is around, there’s trouble. Owen Wilson, who is 14 years younger than his co-star on the set, has already gained experience in his comedy role as a crooked guy with a wide soul. So to expect someone from this tandem to unexpectedly do their job poorly would be ridiculous. Actress Fann Wong successfully and harmoniously fit into the men’s company, supporting the initiative of Lucy Liu, who played the main female role in “Shanghai Noon”, and she also surprisingly gracefully and spectacularly demonstrated the skills of kung fu. Tom Fisher and Aaron Johnson also did not spoil anything, and the fact that the writers gave them the characters of real and great people even before their recognition gives a little cheer to “Shanghai Knights” and even though the historical factuality was not sustained absolutely when watching an entertaining action movie with Jackie Chan, you do not pay much attention to this.
Fans of Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson should not miss this film, and in general the whole dilogy (according to rumors, there is an option to turn it into a trilogy), the rest of the audience, not alien to the genre of comedy action, adventure and comedy, you can have a good time watching this film.
7 out of 10
Very good comedy film that can cheer you up at any time. I’ve loved Jackie Chan movies for a long time and don’t miss any of them. But this one by some ridiculous accident missed and looked only now. Director David Dobkin - the creator of such comedies as "Uninvited Guests" and "Targets" pleased me personally with a new picture about the adventures of the beloved duo "John Wayne" and Roy O'Bannon and if in the first film they came together in opposition to the Wild West, then here they already fall into Victorian England, the time of Charles Dickens, when there were popular workhouses and boys like Oliver Twist dreaming of a family and another life.
In the story, someone very similar to Petyr Baelish breaks into the house of the father of the hero Jackie Chan and kills him. The duo-turned-trio follows a trail that leads them to a cleverly planned plot among members of the royal family. The great thing about this film is that not only jokes are good here, but also the atmosphere, costumes, and references to parodied elements that were repeatedly mentioned by other reviewers. It's nice that this film allows us not only to have a body adventure, but also to play a puzzle by guessing familiar elements from other sources of the era being shown. I have a lot of respect for this film.
I heard that the director shot his first non-comedy work called “The Judge” and was awarded some nominations for the “Oscar” award and we can congratulate the director and his team on their creative growth and want to wish success in further work.
The actors played well. Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson, as always, are matchless and with their role cope perfectly with their characters, and watching their play is a pleasure. Donnie Ian also did a good job in his role. Aidan Gillen pleased, as always beautiful in the role of the villain. Aaron Johnson also made his character well and showed him to us.
As a result, we have a great comedy that can lift the mood at any time of the day or night. I recommend you to watch, because the dose of pleasure and adventure is provided to you. The movie earned its nine points. Thank you for listening.
“Shanghai Noon” – along with the Rush Hour trilogy – is in my opinion the best thing that happened to Jackie Chan in Hollywood. And “Shanghai Knights”, being the sequel to “Midday”, worthily continued the short list of unconditional successes of the world’s most famous Chinese at the “Dream Factory” – good luck both creative and commercial. Perhaps the key to this success is not only in a successful duet with Owen Wilson, but also in the successful (which is rare) interaction of Chan with Hollywood, their exchange of experience without trying to deceive anyone.
This collaboration, for example, did not work out at all in the same year “Medalon”, where Hollywood tried to glue Chan a lot of special effects and superpowers, as in “Smoking”, turning him into a comic superhero. But Jackie was good because he’s not super, but he’s a hero, and he’s far from comic books, and he’s a walking special effect that requires the right cut, but not the Matrix-style effects. Jackie Chan, surrounded by Hollywood machinery, is perceived many times worse, Chan does not need special effects and expensive scenery, but people who can match his skill, be a worthy background for him. Also, if he flies on cables, jumps on a green screen, fights with stuntmen, editing and combined shooting, what will distinguish him from other action heroes who have a car and a small cart in Hollywood? Hollywood exports the best shots from all over the world, but always for some reason seeks to deprive them of their individuality, not realizing that their global success is precisely what distinguishes them from Hollywood.
But in the Shanghai Noon Day and, with some reservations, the Knights managed to keep a fairly large percentage of the "real" one. Jackie Chan, catering to the widest taste of consumers completely Hollywood adventures and Jackichan style of their reproduction. In a word, walking on the blade of the knife, Dobkin, Chan and the company were able to unite the West, East and old Europe in a funny and fascinating postmodern cocktail, where Hollywood and Jackie Chan do not step on each other’s heels, wanting to overtake each other in the desire to please the viewer, but act together.
On the screen, a Hollywood adventure in the spirit of "Indiana Jones", "Sparkling Saddles" and "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" at the same time, deliberately shuffling historical facts, just to have fun, making whole cultural layers and phenomena arise just like this - for a great life - from the light hand of two stupid foreign assholes, concerned solely with their goals. Similarly, the biblical Moses of Mel Brooks in “World History”, who did not convey the 12 commandments to the people, breaking 2 on the road, easily “changed” history, or Clark Griswald in “European Holiday”, who broke up the millennial Stonehenge, not even knowing what it is. In general, “Shanghai Knights”, in contrast to “Midday”, an ironic western under Chinese sauce, gravitate precisely to the parody style of early Brooks, Rainer and the buffoonade of the “National Mockingbird” society, from where “Vacations”, “Pesterine” and many more popular hits appeared.
Comedy here relies not only and not so much on the eccentric characters of Chan and Wilson. In this style, absolutely everything is possible: the appearance of Jack the Ripper, Charlie Chaplin, Conan-Doyle, the English queen, or rather, their ironic clones. Jackie Chan, more cinematic than ever, easily and virtuosoly, as the heroes of the movie “Looney Tunes” runs through a variety of films, paying tribute to the Hollywood, from which he himself grew as a creative person. Here and Gene Kelly and the scene from “Singing in the Rain”, and “Finally in Safety” with Harold Lloyd, and the game with spinning doors, like Chaplin, and westerns, and self-citation from “Project A” and “Fearless Hyena”, performed, however, with a truly Hollywood sweep.
The open-ended, as if painted England, the ubiquitous “film game”, the selflessly made mosaic of a moviegoer in love with old Hollywood and Jackie Chan, appropriate precisely because everything that is quoted in “The Knights” – educated him and created to some extent his phenomenon. Therefore, he enjoys having fun, as if in the lively scenery of this cinematic, unmodeled, but beloved world, and allows the audience to have fun just as frankly and joyfully, who share his interests and understand the rules of the game.
And Owen Wilson diligently plays along with his famous partner, cracking incessantly, like Chris Tucker, however, without the pressure and remorse of the latter - on the contrary, softly, insinuatingly, with clear self-irony and the same frivolous attitude to his cinema as Chan. Thanks to him, in fact, there is a lot of talk in the film, which is not very typical for Jackie Chan. However, it is quite typical for Jackie Chan in Hollywood, whom the producers practically do not let go in the “free float”, always giving him to varying degrees of successful partners.
As a result, it turns out a funny, toy attraction in which they love cinema so infectiously and play it so openly that it is problematic not to succumb to the charm of this tape. The authors diligently emphasize its “Hollywoodiness” in the film, creating a world in which there are no other laws, but there is magic and charm, without which there is no real cinema. And the eternal question of the relationship of talented recalcitrant foreigners with Hollywood played out not for fear, but for conscience, which in this case, remained clear to both.
8 out of 10