PodBill
Just what I expected
Aubrey Hackett
While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.
Edwin
The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.
imdb-235-715498
This is the movie that made me remember Jackie Chan and be a longlife fan of him. At that time there were NO OTHER MOVIE in the world that could compare to this one! No real 'hollywood safety' or stuntdoubles when making this movie. Putting their real life in real danger not once, they did get hurt badly making this movie for you. Jackie Chan has never used a double in a movie.. that is just who he is. And this movie just blew me away and very few movies has done that over the decades to me ever since.
Tweekums
This is the film that introduces us to Inspector Chan Ka-Kui of the Royal Hong Kong Police Force. As the story opens he is taking part in an operation to catch a local drug lord; this leads to a shootout in a hillside shantytown, a car chase and finally a fight on a double-decker bus that leads up to the criminals arrest. That isn't the end of the story though; Chan is given the job of protecting his secretary who is to be a key witness. This leads to some awkwardness when Chan's girlfriend mistakes the beautiful witness for a rival. Later the criminal is bailed and sets about framing Chan for the murder of a police officer; this leads to more fights and a spectacular finale in a shopping centre.If you are looking for a decent story with some spectacular action and plenty of laughs this could be the film for you. The action isn't the CGI one gets these days it is proper action with stuntmen (and women) doing some fairly crazy stuff. The main cast members, including Jackie Chan, do most of their own bone crunching stunts. These fights and stunts are impressively choreographed and are often as funny as they are thrilling. The comedy is pretty good; genuinely laugh out loud funny at many times. Jackie Chan does a great job in the lead role; it is of little surprise that he went on to make more 'Police Story' films as well as going on to become a global star. The rest of the cast are pretty good too. Overall I heartily recommend this to anybody who wants great action and plenty of laughs.These comments are based on watching the film in Cantonese with English subtitles.
Robert W.
This is my first foray into the Hong Kong world of film. I have never seen a Bruce Lee film or any of the crazy Kung Fu films you hear so much about. So I don't know if Police Story is a representation of the genre. Apparently it was vastly considered one of the best Chinese films but there are certain aspects of this movie that are just bad bad bad. Granted the film is voiced over in English which is brutally awful but even still the film feels more like a comedy until the last 15 minutes or so during the final battle. There are a few good action scenes but there are far more ridiculous comedy scenes. I do greatly respect the stunts and acrobatics in the film. I have always known Jackie Chan was a brilliant martial artist, choreographer, and stuntman and certainly he does some insane stuff in this movie. That is really what makes these films is when there is action, it is amazing what they do. Police Story has a decent, typical story but it is completely marred by the ridiculous campy scenes and yet when the credits rolled, I'll be darned if I wasn't somehow drawn into the ridiculousness. After the harrowing final fight I wanted to jump into the sequel and despite how off balance the humour was, it seemed to work.Jackie Chan co-wrote, co-directed and stars in the film proving furthermore how talented he is. He certainly has a quality about him on screen and he's versatile because he pulls off the campy comedy but turns the end into a viable vengeance fuelled action scene. He is really the only character who gets any sort of development. Brigitte Lin is downright annoying (her voice over actress doesn't help) as the witness Chan has to protect. She is the personification of a helpless damsel in distress. Maggie Cheung plays Chan's girlfriend and really despite being top billed she has a very small role that only becomes significant towards the end. They have okay chemistry considering what a small role she has. Bill Tung and Kwok-Hung Lam are ludicrous as Chan's bosses on the police force. Lam looks like he is about 14 years old and yet is barking orders like a senior cop. Again, the voice overs for both of these actors is really bad which doesn't help but even their body language and expressions just make you laugh at them which maybe is the point I don't know. Yuen Chor is decent as our villain. I wouldn't say he's very villainous but he looks the role of a high powered mob guy and he makes a decent adversary and as with any good Kung Fu movie he has a legion of thugs to fight.I think I just don't understand the genre very well. I mean this film was a huge success in China, given all sorts of awards and I see it as a lesser than B-Movie. Its just so silly and campy and ridiculous but as I said when it was all over I was morbidly entertained and found myself thinking about the silliness and how enjoyable it was. Maybe I have found a new genre to look into. Its a bizarre way of film making because to me, coming out of mainstream Hollywood, the comedy is oddly placed and the film seems to change directions multiple times. When they do a stunt, it is a huge ordeal (the pole sliding stunt when Chan apparently hurt himself quite badly) is shown three times in succession because they are so proud of it. They destroy an entire village in the first fifteen minutes and yet then they go off on a comedy tangent that is too ridiculous to even make sense. I don't know if I loved this or hated it so I have to go up the middle. I think if you're a Hong Kong film lover than this is likely exactly what you're looking for. 6/10
KineticSeoul
This is a good martial arts cop movie directed by Jackie Chan. In this he plays a quick-witted and impulsive cop that pulls pranks once in a while. But overall likable character that would go to any length to take down the bad guys. The story itself is straightforward and cliché, but Jackie Chan's flare to this is what makes this film entertaining to watch. Although it's actually quite a forgettable movie now, although a entertaining popcorn flick. I can tell why this film was such a hit when it first came out. The stunts in this are just radical and not just from Jackie Chan but from a lot of the cast, including the female actresses. They really did put their bodies to the test during the process of making this film. Especially the mall fight sequences at the end, they throw every cool and dangerous stunts at the audiences. There is a reason why Jackie Chan even claims this is one of his best action movie. Jackie's effort really shine through how far he will go to make this film amazing for the viewers. Fans Jackie Chan or action movies in general should check this one out. There is even one chase scene in the beginning that probably inspired Michael Bay when he was directing "Bad Boys 2".7.5/10
