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Starring
:
Jackie
Chan
Owen
Wilson
Fann
Wong
Aiden
Gillan
Tom
Fisher
Aaron
Johnson
Donnie
Yen
Action
:
Jackie
Chan
Brad
Allan
Producer
:
Gary
Barber
Roger
Birnbaum
Jonathan
Glickman
Director
:
David
Dobkin
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SHANGHAI
KNIGHTS (2003)
Reviewed
by Andrew Saroch
After
the popular 'Shanghai
Noon', Asian superstar Jackie Chan is again paired-up with
the ever laid back Owen Wilson for another historically
dubious action/comedy. The resulting sequel suffers from the
usual inherent pit-falls of blockbuster follow-ups, but also
benefits from some definite improvements.
Following
the murder of his father and the ensuing theft of the
Emperor's Seal, Chon Wang (Jackie Chan) is forced to leave his
sheriff's duties and follow the clues to London. Along the
way, Chon meets his old friend Roy (Wilson) who has fallen on
hard times after blowing their joint fortunes on frivolous
schemes. Roy happily goes along on the trail of the murderer
and becomes even more eager when he meets Chon's beautiful
sister who is also keen for revenge. The trio gradually become
immersed in the Victorian life and discover that the murder is
connected to suave, yet ambitious Lord Rathbone (Gillan) who
has designs on the British throne. Rathbone's plan centres
around assassinating Queen Victoria and her immediate
successors thus giving him the opportunity to become king. As
he later anounces, the Emperor's Seal will help his ruthless
Chinese cohort (Yen) gain the throne of his native country and
therefore form an unbreakable alliance. Standing in his way is
Chon, Roy and Chon's sister as the unravel the dastardly plot
and try to save Queen Victoria.
London,
England (just in case you wondered where it is) as seen by
Hollywood. 'Shanghai Noon' gave audiences a fun ride that only
had a partial relation to actual history while this sequel
centres on the kind of London that only exists in Mary Poppins
and its ilk. Aggressive cockney accents, happy-go-lucky
thieves and numerous historical flaws, perhaps intentional,
leap off the screen with all of the shameless abandon of Dick
Van Dyke's infamous portrayal of a Londoner. The chemistry
between the two leads still remains strong despite the awkward
environment, though the humour appears more forced than in the
original. Thankfully for the film-makers (and the viewers)
Jackie Chan is in particularly good form here. Considering
that he's a mere year away from 50 and his recent films have
mostly avoided showcasing his legendary skills, 'Shanghai
Knights' features a catalogue of imaginative and wonderfully
entertaining set-pieces. Though still not up to his 80s
standard (though this could hardly be expected) there are
nonetheless enough moments of awe to give this an extra
half-star in the ratings. The protracted fight with the
thieves and the exceptional use of revolving doors are just
two examples of why Chan is so widely admired. The only
unfortunate thing about the action is the less than
spectacular clash with Donnie Yen; after promising so much,
this simply fails to deliver. However, no matter what Chan has
in store for the future, it's comforting to see his moments of
genius are still possible despite his dwindling physical
condition. After my thoughts that he might well be resigned to
uninspiring Hollywood fodder, I'm glad to eat humble pie and
say that 'Shanghai Knights' contains some of his best action
in recent years.
Rating:
  
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