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Starring
:
Jackie
Chan
Anita
Yuen
Michael
Wong
Thorsten
Nickel
Ken
Lo
Chor
Yun
Action
:
Hung
Ga Ban
Sing
Ga Ban
Producer
:
Leonard
Ho
Director
:
Gordon
Chan
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THUNDERBOLT
(1995)
A.K.A.
- Thunder Bolt; Dead Heat
Reviewed
by Tony Ryan
This
is quite a difficult film to get your hands on considering it
is a mid 90's JC flick, which did well at the HK box office.
This may be for a number of reasons, which I will come onto,
but none more so than Jackie's personal dislike of it.
Jackie
plays Foh, a car mechanic in his father's garage, who
is also a great driver, and inadvertently gets on the wrong
side of a crime syndicate while helping the police catch an
illegal racer. As a result, his sister is kidnapped in order
to make him participate in a 'Days of Thunder' style race.
At
face value, it is a more serious film than we have come to
expect from Jackie, as his character is quite mean and
serious. Gordon Chan also made the film quite gritty and
realistic with a higher body count and greater use of blood
than Jackie normally likes to associate himself with. A bigger
reason why JC may not want his fans to buy 'Thunderbolt' is
because of how frequently and obviously he is doubled
(especially for kicks), both by co-star Chin Kar Lok and Sing
Ga Ban member Sam Wong (who also styled the action for 'Body
Weapon'). An early fight scene in the garage and a later
one in a Pachinko parlour, clearly show an extensive use of
doubles, and while the scenes are well choreographed, they
lose their sparkle when you see Jackie doubled like this. It
is made worse by the camera angles used to cover up for it!
The
car racing sequences and stunts created by Frankie Chan Fan
Kei are generally impressive and well shot, even if the finale
is a little too long, and Gordon Chan's direction gives a
particularly Hollywood feel to it. He is an accomplished
director, and has greater cinematography skills than most Hong
Kong directors, as can also be seen by the fantastic 'Fist
Of Legend'.
One
point to note is that, in my opinion, the obvious wirework
used to enhance the fights actually looks good here and it’s
a shame that Jackie will not incorporate them a little further
into his other work. He does often employ them to help with
some kicks (especially in 'Gorgeous')
and emphasis of impact, but if used in the way they are in
'Thunderbolt', they could put an extra few years onto his
screen-fighting career.
If
like me, you have already come to terms with how often Jackie
does use doubles, compared to how much we are led to believe,
then the film is worth four stars due to the quality car and
fight action, as well as being a gritty thriller. However, if
you live in a bubble where you believe (and who can blame you
with all the hype!) that Jackie is his own stuntman and can
still do what he was doing in the 80's then you would probably
be better off leaving this movie alone, as you will only end
up having those illusions shattered. Harsh but true, and
it’s happened to the best of us at some point!
Rating:
 
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