Project A

Project A ('A' Gai Wak) (1983)

Runtime: 98 minutes (that's the length of the American version, anyhow; the original cut is a few minutes longer and edits out some minor stuff)

Directed by: Jackie Chan and an uncredited Sammo Hung

Starring: Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Biao Yuen, Dick Wei

From: Golden Harvest

It was recently that I realized not only do I need to talk about more foreign movies, that I hadn't actually talk about a Jackie Chan motion picture yet. That is quite the surprise to me; besides his American films that can vary wildly in quality, there are his Hong Kong movies, some of which are pretty awesome. That includes this one; I say that as someone who has only seen the American version, which cuts out a few minutes of scenes, has dubbing instead of subtitles, and even adds in a soundtrack that is more obtrusive than fitting for the film. While I wish I could see it more in its original format, you can find this movie, its sequel, and the two Operation Condor movies on one Blu-Ray disc for pretty cheap at places like Wal-Mart.

Anyhow, this movie is set in the late 1800's in Hong Kong and has Jackie (as a dude named Dragon Ma!) as a member of the Hong Kong Marine Police. Apparently at the time those guys dressed like Donald Duck... although thankfully they had pants on. They have a rivalry going on with the regular Hong Kong Police Force. The Marine Police is a little wacky and goofy and apparently not all that successful, which is bad when they have to try and defend the area from pirates. Stuff happens and Jackie and the rest have to stick to land and join the Police Force. More stuff happens and... I won't spoil it, but it involves his friendemy-that's normally a hipster sort of term I'd never use; it happens to fit the relationship between the two characters perfectly-Fei (Hung) and they have to deal with such things as the pirates on the ground and double crosses. It's a cool plot that has depth to it but it's never a labyrinth of a mess.

Along the way you see what you expect from a typical Chan movie, which is a mix of comedy that's actually funny for the most part along with some eye-popping stunts and crazy action. This motion picture delivers on all fronts. It's great fun and it's never boring. Not only do you see some stuff that literally almost killed Jackie, but some of the stunt people took rather hard and awkward falls. It was interesting to see that in the days before CGI. I mean, I hope they didn't almost get killed themselves. No matter the case, if you're an action fan wanting to see something strong and virile instead of weak and flaccid (as you get too often these days) you should not be disappointed with this. Like I said, even the inferior American version can be found for real cheap and if you can track down the superior version then I imagine you'd have a superior time watching it compared to my still highly positive experience.

I'll be back Friday night with a new review.