MR NICE GUY (1997)
Also called: Yatgo ho yan
Rating: 2.5 stars (out of 4.0) ******************************** Key to rating system: 2.0 stars - Debatable 2.5 stars - Some people may like it 3.0 stars - I liked it 3.5 stars - I am biased in favor of the movie 4.0 stars - I felt the movie's impact personally or it stood out ********************************* A Movie Review by David Sunga
Directed by: Sammo Hung
Written by: Edward Tang King-sang and Fibe Ma
Starring: Jackie Chan, Miki Lee, Gabrielle Fitzpatrick, Karen McLymont, Richard Norton
Ingredients: TV chef, damsels in distress, runaway horse and buggy, swiveling steel crane, shopping mall chase, bulldozing equipment, gun swapping scene, hallway with many blue doors scene
Synopsis: MR. NICE GUY is a Jackie Chan action chase comedy. In the film Jackie plays a famous TV chef in Melbourne who entertains guests with his ginsu cooking moves. One day, a drug kingpin (Richard Norton, sporting a Steven Seagal hairstyle) and his thugs go after a lady reporter named Diana (Gabrielle Fitzpatrick) who has just filmed their dope deal with a rival gang and has it on videotape. While grocery shopping, Jackie stumbles into Diane, saves her and gets on the bad side of the thugs, who are now desperate to find the videotape that contains evidence of their drug dealing. The thugs chase Diana and Jackie. When Jackie's assistant Lakeisha (Karen McLymont) visits Jackie's apartment, the goons go after Lakeisha as well. Finally, when Jackie picks up his girlfriend Miki (Miki Lee) at the airport, the crooks decide to kidnap Miki. The lightweight plot is little more than one chase scene after another, but of course it's all just an excuse for many wonderful and impeccably timed comedic action sequences by Chan. Can chef Jackie save himself and the three women from the drug kingpin?
MR. NICE GUY contains around nine fight scenes showcasing Chan's amazing blend of kung fu and humor.
Opinion: Jackie Chan easily ranks with the geniuses of the silent movie era; he is the undisputed successor and next evolution of the style of physical comedy pioneered by such screen greats as Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. In these kinds of comedies the typical hero is the humble guy with the expressive face, who through comic timing and athleticism, manages to survive peril after hilarious peril and incidentally save the damsel(s) in distress. Chan is a master of comic facial expressions and timing, and he adds martial arts choreography to the comedic mixture. He aptly demonstrates his unique style and talents in MR. NICE GUY.
To be truthful, plot-oriented people might be disappointed with MR. NICE GUY's whimsical plot ("All this hoopla over a lost videotape?"). Similarly, politically correct people might gripe that the women in the film are mere bikini fillers. And fans of Chan's previous movies might say the ending takes it easy (using a bulldozer instead of kung fu). But these are small things; on the whole MR. NICE GUY is pretty entertaining.
What I would like to see in a future Jackie Chan movie is a layer of situational comedy that uses the drama of the situation to give more meaning to Chan's physical comedy. Another thing that would be good in a future Jackie Chan movie is to have stronger parts for the female leads.
Reviewed by David Sunga March 21, 1998
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