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Reviews
The Protector (1985)
7/10 for Jackie Chan cut of film (HK ver.); 5/10 for American cut
Having watched the American version, I was just thinking of how boring it is. Someone commented that Jackie Chan should not have starred in it, as it gives the wrong expectation. I don't think that is it. This movie would have been just as poor with another actor. The problems are story (which is generic and un-original), under-development of villains, Jackie Chan has almost nothing to do in the film, as his talents are not utilized, no memorable characters, pointless nudity and too much casual swearing. The firefights are terrible, the tone of film is very brown and film is poorly shot by its' original crew.
Having watched the American Blu-Ray version, I never wanted to re-watch the film and even after finding out about the HK version, I put away watching it for about a year. However, based on another review recommending the HK version, I decided to watch it. Wow, it turned out a much better movie!
Jackie Chan was in charge of re-cutting the film, from what I understand. The changes are drastic: Pointless swearing is gone, nudity removed, some parts of the story were re-written and scenes changed order, some additional scenes were shot to accommodate new story, some comedy inserted to make movie less boring and the final fight sequence has been created and shot to give villains a satisfying ending. Basically, the Jackie Chan cut is similar to other 80's Jackie Chan films, still not as good as his classics like Police Store, etc, but overall, there is just no comparison to the original American cut.
So, if you've never watched this film, I only suggest watching the Jackie Chan cut. If you have no access to it, don't bother watching the American film, as even if you didn't know who Jackie Chan was, you would not have enjoyed this terribly-boring cut.
Hotel Mumbai (2018)
Emotional, thrilling and a reminder of the terrible events
I loved watching this film. It definitely made an impact on me. The events themselves are a tragedy, with an exercise in hatred and this movie portrays that extremely well. It is grounded in reality and the movie dramatically portrays the events. It is sometimes hard to watch.
But, this movie does manage more than drama - it manages to make you care for the characters and is indeed thrilling to watch. The way people try to stay alive, the many new challenges they come across and the evolving situation in hotel, all create an interest in how the events will play out and who will make it out alive.
The only negative trait I noticed is that some actions of characters come across as very stupid. But, the movie does a good job of portraying events and such stupid decisions by characters are within the realm of realism (such as being made out of panic, or irrational thought), so I can forgive this in the movie.
Also, I really felt interested in some of the characters. I ended up wanting them to stay alive, rather than simply waiting to see their fate, as sometimes happens for me with historic dramas. Indeed, this movie transcends being a drama and manages to be thrilling.
I think the movie is an excellent, realistic, dramatized depiction of the events and is definitely worth watching! It is not boring at any point, like some dramas end up being. Go ahead and watch it!
Shang jin lie ren (2016)
Great and campy action comedy!
I watched this movie in a theater, in Toronto, with English subtitles and I am glad I did! Both my companions really liked it, as well, with one saying it was perfect! The movie was a great campy action comedy! It had great acting between the Korean and Chinese stars. I especially liked Siu‑Wong Fan in his comedic role in this movie. All main actors performed great.
The movie has beautiful shots of Korea and if you are familiar with the setting, you will truly enjoy these! Also, a Bombardier new plane appears in the movie, which was curious! What I really loved, and what elevated this to 8/10 for me, are the surprises! They are not so much plot twists, but completely unexpected actions, which make a lot of sense, but you never see them coming! They were brilliantly done and made me laugh, and surprised me constantly. Humor was great and smart all the way to the end and there was no toilet humor or swearing, which is a huge plus for me! The action was really good, very polished and cool to look at, with some truly great scenes, like the car collision, which was very well done. A superb martial arts fight scene is also present, just past mid-way through the movie, which had extremely good and unique camera work! It is well worth watching! Other action was very well choreographed too and well done.
The story was good and fell into place well. The only negative I found was pacing, especially in second half of the movie, where it sometimes seems a bit out of place, however the movie maintained momentum and finished without slowing down too much.
Overall, I would rate this movie highly, liked it a lot, with my friends loving it. Humor was smart and funny, hugely surprising sometimes and the action was polished and great-looking, with unique fight camera work! Will probably buy on Blu-Ray once it's out to watch again!