Rush Hour (1998) 2 1/2 stars out of 4. Starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker.
The good news, especially for fans of Jackie Chan, is that Rush Hour again spotlights this international favorite's athleticism and sly humor.
However, this is all offset by having Chan work with the equally obnoxious and grating Chris Tucker.
Tucker is supposed to be a comedian, but he's as funny as a case of hemorrhoids. His bug-eyed, fast-talking shtick is supposed to be hip, but it's nothing but juvenile blathering.
In fact, Rush Hour would have been a much better action flick if Tucker had been eliminated all together.
As it is, this story centering around the recovery of a Chinese diplomat's kidnapped daughter works well when Chan is on the screen. What Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly were to movie dancing, Chan is to the martial arts. His choreographed movements are like a ballistic ballet.
Chan always brings a sly sense of humor to his roles, as if winking at the audience to let them know he's in on the joke, that it's only a movie. He is disarming and appealing.
Tucker, on the other hand, reminds me of that old John Belushi Saturday Night Live sketch about the guest who wouldn't leave. Whenever this bug-eyed, motor-mouthed moron is on the screen, you want to grab a fly swatter or other utensil and shoo him off or else run out to the concession stand.
Tucker is trying to copy the early Eddie Murphy, but he not only lacks Murphy's charm, but Murphy's intelligence and charisma.
One of Rush Hour's biggest questions is how did a big-mouth screw-up such as Tucker's James Carter ever become a cop - even the Los Angeles police department must have some standards.
But Rush Hour, for the most part, rises above Tucker's antics. And while it is cartoonish, it also is fun, and that is due mostly to Chan. Without him, Rush Hour, even at about 90 minutes, would have been a broken-down Edsel in a long line of stalled traffic.
Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, Ind. He can be reached by e-mail at bloom@journal-courier.com or cbloom@iquest.net
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