Review by Lars Lindahl
"Shanghai Noon" (2000) *** (out of four)
Directed by Tom Dey Written by Miles Millar, Alfred Gough
Starring Jackie Chan, Owen Wilson, Lucy Liu, Roger Yuan, Walt Goggina, and Xander Berkely.
When Rush Hour became a surprise box office hit in 1998, Jackie Chan simultaneously became a household name in America. Much like his character in the film, Chan was someone different - a welcome change from now fading stars like Dolph Lundgren, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Sylvester Stallone. Completing his own stunts, Chan's dexterity is a marvel to watch, and with a quiet, gentle manner of speaking, he is also unstoppably amiable. Rush Hour, for Hollywood and audiences alike, was too good to be true - everyone and their dogs knew a follow-up was inevitable. Enter Shanghai Noon, a bright, enjoyable action comedy that isn't a sequel to Rush Hour but might as well be considered one. With Chan, an identical plot, and the same East-Meets-West-With-Hilarious-Consequences feel to it, if you didn't like Rush Hour you won't like Shanghai Noon, and vice-versa.
Gone is the comedic sidekick Chris Tucker of Rush Hour (what has happened to Tucker these past couple of years anyway?), his replacement: the equally loquacious and hilarious Owen Wilson. An actor who is finally getting the recognition he deserves, Wilson had blandly humorous supporting roles in Armageddon, Anaconda, and The Haunting but his greatest accomplishment remains his involvement in the fresh comedies Bottle Rocket and Rushmore as co-writer. Coming into the movie, I felt that the performance of Wilson would crucially make or break the film. Since Chan's fighting scenes were near-guaranteed to be entertaining (they were), would the rest of the movie, which Wilson dominates, be as exciting? Happily, Wilson came through. As a two-timing wannabe outlaw, his acting was exactly what the role demanded; a combination of confidence and low self-esteem - a guy who can talk the talk but comes nowhere close to walking the walk. Wilson impressively completed the difficult task of filling huge gaps of plot with witty subplots and one-liners. His job was to hide the fact that Chan's English vocabulary is somewhat limited, and he succeeds with high honors.
But, then again, without Jackie Chan, this movie would be nothing. He is a true expert at what he does - cool stunts without the commanding aid of special effects, and his good old fashioned fighting skills (no matter how often he does them) never get old. But the actor Jackie Chan is developing as well. He seems much more mature and comfortable here then in Rush Hour, sporting a long pony tail hanging below his fashionable cowboy hat.
Shanghai Noon, poking fun at the old time Westerns in which pardners are inseparable (until it comes to gold or women, that is), relies on the chemistry between Wilson and Chan is excellent, although it does take a little too long for them to finally team up. The story follows Chon Wang, an 18th century imperial guard who is sent from China to the Wild Wild West in order to rescue the kidnapped princess (Lucy Liu) he has a crush on. On his way, he stumbles into some trouble and eventually is helped by the suspicious Roy O'Bannon (Wilson). The real challenge for the two is whether they will survive each other before they attempt their rescue mission.
With numerous references to older classics (the movie is called Shanghai Noon, get it? Shang-High Noon…haha, also a shot similar to the famous final scene of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) and names (Wilson's birth name was Wyatt Earp, Chon Wang conveniently sounds just like John Wayne), the smaller jokes work best.
A small predictable comedy, occasionally sprinkled with gigantic laughs and "how-did-they-do-that?" action scenes, Shanghai Noon does run a bit too long, but otherwise is great, clean fun. Oh and don't forget to stay for the infamous bloopers at the end of the movie, they're very funny.
Grade: *** (out of four)
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