This unfairly neglected '80s buddy-buddy cop flick sees Jackie Chan in his second American role, after the lesser BATTLE CREEK BRAWL. THE PROTECTOR is generally regarded as one of the star's worst movies, especially by the man himself, but I'm pleased to say that now I've seen it, I can say otherwise. This is an entertaining, violent, and action-packed movie, and it's easy to see why Chan himself doesn't care for it – the copious blood and nudity and bad language is a far way from his modern-day family-friendly action star persona. Indeed it certainly seems strange to hear Chan speak such lines so that's a novel experience in itself.
The plot itself is wafer thin, but makes some good use of American and Hong Kong on-the-street locations which get the gritty atmosphere across really well. It's business as usual as the two cops go head-to-head against a drug lord who's kidnapped his rival's daughter, and along the way, exploitation director James Glickenhaus throws in loads of pointless but well-shot action sequences and nude women who have no reason to be naked. Glickenhaus famously fell out with Chan and refused to let him shoot the martial arts sequences, but even so they're surprisingly good, with Chan at the physical pinnacle of his career, on the same kind of top form we saw in POLICE STORY. Many scenes are cheesy and hilariously over the top, like the bit where a robber is shotgunned out of a window, but it's that kind of movie and impossible to dislike. There seems to be some kind of Bond influence going on here, with some large-scale stunts and lots of chases, my favourite being the fight on a platform supported by a huge crane, and the cheesy death of the uber-villain has to be seen to be believed.
Danny Aiello does his best as Chan's partner, but he's completely overshadowed by the Chinese star, plus he's given a really obnoxious, selfish and rude character to work with, so definitely not a film to see him in a good light. Roy Chiao makes for an imposing villain but is underused, whilst Bill "Superfoot" Wallace is GREAT as the chief bad guy, who kicks Jackie's backside in the finale and ends up using an angle-grinder on our hero! Amazing spectacle here and certainly the highlight of the entire movie, well worth the wait. Ignore the negative connections surrounding this movie and I'd recommend giving it a chance – you might find yourself enjoying it more than you thought.
The plot itself is wafer thin, but makes some good use of American and Hong Kong on-the-street locations which get the gritty atmosphere across really well. It's business as usual as the two cops go head-to-head against a drug lord who's kidnapped his rival's daughter, and along the way, exploitation director James Glickenhaus throws in loads of pointless but well-shot action sequences and nude women who have no reason to be naked. Glickenhaus famously fell out with Chan and refused to let him shoot the martial arts sequences, but even so they're surprisingly good, with Chan at the physical pinnacle of his career, on the same kind of top form we saw in POLICE STORY. Many scenes are cheesy and hilariously over the top, like the bit where a robber is shotgunned out of a window, but it's that kind of movie and impossible to dislike. There seems to be some kind of Bond influence going on here, with some large-scale stunts and lots of chases, my favourite being the fight on a platform supported by a huge crane, and the cheesy death of the uber-villain has to be seen to be believed.
Danny Aiello does his best as Chan's partner, but he's completely overshadowed by the Chinese star, plus he's given a really obnoxious, selfish and rude character to work with, so definitely not a film to see him in a good light. Roy Chiao makes for an imposing villain but is underused, whilst Bill "Superfoot" Wallace is GREAT as the chief bad guy, who kicks Jackie's backside in the finale and ends up using an angle-grinder on our hero! Amazing spectacle here and certainly the highlight of the entire movie, well worth the wait. Ignore the negative connections surrounding this movie and I'd recommend giving it a chance – you might find yourself enjoying it more than you thought.