The Chan, The Myth, The Legend

The first Jackie Chan movie I ever saw was First Strike (aka Police Story 4.) My dad and I were searching for a good action movie to watch and we stumbled on this VHS tape at our local video rental store. (Remember those?)

Based on the cover and images on the back, we thought it looked cool and figured it would at least help pass the afternoon with good action entertainment. About 20 minutes into the movie we were both standing up from the couch and yelling in excitement. 

We probably rewound the tape at least 20 times to re-watch some of the spectacular stunts Jackie pulled throughout the film. I remember being blown away by the pacing and creativity of the fight scenes: a snowmobile chase down a mountain, a warehouse fight with a ladder as the main weapon, and about 15 minutes of a fight sequence shot entirely underwater. It was the coolest thing I’d ever seen. As soon as it was over we both wanted more!

The next movie we rented (3 days later) was Rumble in the Bronx. I remember it well because at the time I was only 12 or 13 years old and it was rated R. My dad told me he would watch it first to see if anything was too bad and if not I could watch it after that. 

He turned it on in the living room and I was in my bedroom waiting anxiously to check it out. Every few minutes I heard my dad yell “Woah!” or “How the heck did he do that?” and about halfway through he came running to my room and said “Nolan you have to see this!” 

We finished watching together as Jackie jumped a 20-foot gap in a parking garage, fought off 20 people with arcade machines and skis, and then held onto a rope while being pulled behind a hovercraft. I spent the next week re-enacting the scenes with my G.I. Joes.

I only had a few movies in my collection, but I knew I had to start grabbing ALL of Jackie’s movies. Over the course of the next few years I rapidly started collecting every film of his I could get my hands on. Amazon was just getting popular at the time so they had a few pretty cheap, but I remember having to borrow my parents credit card to order a few of them directly from China. A lot of them were not dubbed or subtitled, but that didn’t bother me one bit. I was hooked.

Jackie Chan action movies quickly changed from interesting and entertaining, into the standard by which I now judge almost every action movie. Don’t get me wrong, I still fully enjoy a fast-paced CGI-driven action movie, but nothing compares to a well-choreographed hand-to-hand fight scene that really showcases the physical talent of the fighters. Jackie’s action scenes are even a step above this because they involve creative use of props, comedy, and physical ability that are just plain awesome.

His commitment to making everything as good or entertaining as it can possibly be is amazing. Whether that be a fight in a wind tunnel, sliding down a 40 story building in Holland, or just a really cool way of getting from point A to B. His passion for filmmaking and his lighthearted energy are completely infectious.

I fell in love with his style and worked my way through his impressive film career one by one. His early films like Young Master, Drunken Master, Dragon Lord and others showcase some truly insane training sequences. He was in peak physical condition during this time and it shows. These also gave me a greater appreciation for the martial arts and kung fu genres as a whole. There are so many films from the 70’s and 80’s that feature incredible sequences, but Jackie’s always interested me more because of his inventive and stylistic choreography.

Of his 100 plus major film credits, I’d have to say my favorites would be the films he released in the late 80’s and 90s. This is where I truly latched on to his style and was completely blown away by his stunt work, fight sequences, and acting. I’ll never forget the first time I saw Police Story. It’s relentless action and incredibly unique fights make it possibly the greatest pure action movie ever made. I was ecstatic when the Criterion Collection recently released a remastered version with bonus features. I think this is the 4th or 5th version of that film I own at this point.

And after all of this, 50+ years in the industry, Jackie is still going strong. Even though his movies have changed a little, leaning more towards CGI, dramatic or children’s themes, I’m still on board for all of it. I love that he can star in light hearted, fun films like The Lego Ninjago Movie, Knight of Shadows, and Namiya, and then mix in grittier action films like Police Story Lockdown, Bleeding Steel and The Foreigner (all of which came out in a 3 year span by the way…) just to remind us that he’s still a badass. He has said for years that he wants to get into more dramatic acting roles. I think he’s done a terrific job of mixing that and his action for the past decade or so with films like Karate Kid, 1911, and the Shinjuku Incident. And even if he switched entirely from action to drama I’m still here and ready to watch.

Seeing him receive his honorary Oscar in 2016 was absolutely amazing. He has dedicated his life to making films that flat out entertain us for the last 50 years so seeing him raise that statue was wonderful. I’m sure it was powerful having his incredible career honored this way.

I still love watching other legends like Bruce Lee, Donnie Yen, and Jet Li, but Jackie will always be a level above for me. Nothing beats throwing on one of his movies with some popcorn and cheering him on from start to finish. He is a once in a lifetime talent.

The man himself said it best:

“I never wanted to be the next Bruce Lee, I wanted to be the first Jackie Chan”

-Jackie Chan