The Medallion (2003)

"The Medallion" is truly an all-time great film starring the legendary Jackie Chan in a pleasant action comedy that requires one main ingredient for keeping this film from making it a must see. Just take a camera, follow Jackie around with it, and let him do what he does best, beat baddies with creative martial arts, give him leeway to perform energetic stunts and most of all, enjoy the every moment he's on.Sure I may be sugar-coating the rules to directing the typical Jackie Chan but it's a lot harder than one could imagine. You have to remember a few things that make Jackie Chan the action star that he is. For one thing, his stunt work is graceful like a musical dance scene. taken in the same veins as the likes of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. The other main idiosyncrasy that stands Jackie Chan out from other action stars is that his comical energy could rival that of the silent film era stars like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. But under the direction of Gordan Chan and his crew, they are able to see through him and have every trait of his perfectly acknowledged.Any other star, "The Medallion" would've been another fine line action film that has Julian Sands once again playing the evil dude, prancing around sporting a dark cloak complete with a hyena fur boa like did a decade ago in the film "Warlock". But what they got right was that they patented down every move and mindset that Jackie Chan possesses. First we see him at a Hong Kong restaurant feasting down an exquisite food delight, when a stray dog comes right toward him. Feeling bad for the little stray he offers his plate and orders another one for himself.Shifting between Hong Kong and Ireland, "The Medallion" tells the familiar story of a diabolical villain who wants to steal a precious medallion that holds the key to immortality along with more advanced speed, strength and agility. With his menacing blond locks and well educated demeanour, Snakehead (Sands) is a vibrant antagonist, who lives in posh Irish castle with a modern feel to it. Of course the only thing he wants more than anything is to outlive the human race and continue his mission to thrash his ancient castle more.Chan plays the role of Eddie, a Hong Kong detective assigned by Interpol to hunt down this magical medallion. He joins forces with a tough ex-girlfriend Nicole (Claire Forlani) and a bumbling, but courageous British agent named Watson (Lee Evans). The absurdity of the Watson character may not appease to the non-Western audience, but those of the Western audience will enjoy the presence of Watson's character very similar to Chris Tucker's character to the "Rush Hour" franchise. And even though the filming is American based, "The Medallion" is clearly designed for a Hong Kong audience, the direction is done by Gordon Chan and the rest of the crew make their homes primarily from Hong Kong.And because of this, Jackie Chan can say he feels like home, in front of his fellow countrymen. And it makes a difference because his people knows what he's capable of and doesn't have to be bogged down or watered down just to make an impression towards the American spectrum. Sure he always seems at ease in his surroundings, but unlike films like "Rush Hour" and "The Tuxedo", his stunts aren't part of the story, they are the story. Unlike the films where he shares the spotlight to American co-stars like Owen Wilson and Chris Tucker, he has no worries of sharing or upstaging them, because he's not the sidekick attraction, no here he is in full stardom.The action is definitely all over the place. In one scene while chasing some baddies, a person kicks over some bicycles like dominoes, and Chan just leaps over the seats similar to James Bond in "Live and Let Die" like the crocodile stream scene and it all happens in a span of five seconds compared to scene that could last five minutes.The action scenes are what its all about. What's special about it is that it never looks superficial. There's no long takes or quick cuts. It's Jackie Chan moving naturally the whole 90 minutes of this film. The comic timing adds the right spice to bring this film to life. What more can any action fan want?Forlani is a great partner for Chan. This underrated performer is not only attractive, but she's tough and intelligent to want to be on any team. She knows that he's more than just a butt-kicking hero, but a humane individual fighting against all evil and all obstacles. She knows as much as we do what's he like and how he does it.

I love Jackie Chan, so much to the point where he inspired me (partially) to start doing karate (Tang Soo Do) and after sticking with it for three-and-a-half years, I finally achieved my black belt. In a way, Jackie is one of my all-time heroes.However, this film is probably his worst yet -- possibly ever. Every single attempt at comedy falls flat, which is a real shame, as I was expecting a lot more from the star of Shanghai Noon and The Legend of the Drunken Master. Chan's performance is lackluster, Forlani is okay, John Rhys-Davis seems bored and unenthusiastic, and Evans is total lackluster in every way.The action is mediocre, and to finally see a film where Chan didn't do the vast majority of his own stunts was sad. The lame attempts at resembling an old (corny) martial arts' film and possibly The Matrix at some points, made me cringe too much. The final battle is preposterous and made me lose a lot of hope for Chan's future career in film.All in all, with very bad acting, story, and action to match, there's just nothing to appreciate from this movie. Nothing works, except to bring another guilty pleasure into my collection. This is a film I highly recommend to anyone who likes to make their own commentary, as I can't think of any discernible reason as to why someone would have to endure this. I give it three-stars for the fact that it really is a guilty pleasure for its extreme lameness. Don't watch this.

You're 7 years old. Otherwise it is very boring, and full of bad jokes, and even worse accents.The action isn't terrible, but being that its Jackie Chan, its sorta slap-stick in nature, and seems like its meant for kids... I mean look at the rating, lack of foul language, and extreme lack of blood to boot.The only reason I watched it was for Claire Forlani, but I think Mallrats or Meet Joe Black is easily a better choice.Oh, and something that really caught my attention was the extremely noticeable racism during one of the chase scenes... Jackie is chasing a black man, and he keeps evading him by JUMPING over everything, honestly, he has no "moves" like Jackie, except for jumping over anything he sees.Anyway - I give it a 3/10 because Claire Forlani is incredibly cute.

Recap: Police officer Eddie Yang traces known gangster Snakehead to Ireland after Snakehead kidnapped a holy kid in Hong Kong. According to the myth, the kid, with a certain medallion, can resurrect people and give them superpowers (like immortality). Yang, and his colleagues Watson and James, tries to free the kid as Snakehead tries to smuggle the kid into Ireland on a boat. The result however is that the kid and Eddie falls in to the water, trapped in a container. Eddie drowns, but saves the boy, and in return, the boy later resurrects Eddie. Now, Eddie, with superpowers must stop Snakehead once and for all.Comments: I thought they really had something going there. Started out nice. As I expected, a lot of martial arts and fights, all nicely choreographed and with augmented with extra aids (like wires), of course, but still with a good feeling and some nice touches. The story was nothing fancy, but they had found the balance in the fights. Just enough fancy kicks and jumps. Action director Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan were onto something here. Then came the superpowers. Then everything went just silly. The balance went right out the window (along with Jackie Chan/Eddie Yang actually). Instead of nicely choreographed fights we get ridiculous fights with a lot of special effects. Net result; Silly. And the story didn't get any better either.Jackie Chan delivers what is expected of him, he does what he usually does. But I can't do anything but wonder why the character Arthur Watson is in the movie? To add some comic element apparently, as that was needed. Watson is annoyingly clumsy, petty and incompetent and has mysteriously risen to a high position within Interpol. Evans plays the part well, I guess he does what is asked of him, but again, why is the character in the movie? Claire Forlani got the role of Nicole James, agent/love interest, of Eddie Yang. Though Nicole is much more competent than Watson she is clearly side-stepped both in the movie and with the virtual Interpol. Therefore her role is small, her potential and talent not used, her major part is as the one taking care of the kid (Doh, she's a woman - and this is a boring stereotype). She gets to show her skill in martial arts a few times though, showing she (or her stunt double - some shots make it easy to assume she has one) got them. Her only major fight though is, of course, against the female bad guy (to the sound of screeching cats... oh, come on!).So, the beginning was promising, the second "half" disappointing. On average a 5.