The Protector (1985)

Review: This is yet another mediocre movie from Chan, who tries to crack the US with this English movie. Chan plays a New York cop called Billy Wong and after his partner is gunned down during a robbery, he's teamed up with Danny Garoni, (Danny Aiello) against his wishes. Whilst at a lavish function, a rich man's daughter gets kidnapped and when they piece together the clues, they find out that the father has connections with a drug kingpin in Hong Kong, so they head there to crack the case. It doesn't take long before the kingpin hears that they are in town, so he sends out his hit men to try and take them out. After various battles with the baddies, Billy & Danny come face to face with the kingpin and with the help of an ex-soldier, they use heavy artillery and Chans Kung Fu skills to get back the girl. To be honest, it seemed like many films that I have seen before in this genre. Chan didn't really use his Kung Fu skills that much but it was good to see him actually act, without any silly comedic scenes. There are a couple stunts that were OK but they were not in the same league as Chans movies that he made in his native country. With that aside, it's a watchable film with a decent storyline and I liked the chemistry between Aiello and Chan. It won't go down as a classic but it's one to add to the Chan collection. Average!Round-Up: This movie was directed by James Glickenhaus who only directed 8 movies in his short career, which included Timemaster, McBain, the Exterminator, the Astrologer, the Soldier, Shakedown and Slaughter of the Innocents starring Scott Glenn. You can tell that Chan was restricted with the amount of death defying stunts that he was allowed to do because of the laws in American movies. That's why his career in the US didn't last that long, because he got fed up with being told what to do. You have to hand it to him for trying to make a movie in English and I honestly don't think that it was that bad but it does look really dated for this day and age, which is why I didn't give it a high score.I recommend this movie to people who are into their action/crime/drama/martial arts movies starring Jackie Chan, Danny Aiello, Sandy Alexander and Victor Arnold. 3/10

In the second attempt to introduce martial arts superstar Jackie Chan to the North American market (after "The Big Brawl" in 1980), ever likable Jackie is amusingly miscast as Billy Wong, an NYC cop who, after some hot dog heroics, is demoted to crowd control at a fashion show, where he's partnered with Danny Garoni (the engaging Danny Aiello). Unfortunately, they prove to be pretty useless and Laura Shapiro (Saun Ellis), daughter of a wealthy big shot, is kidnapped by goons working for dastardly Hong Kong mobster Mr. Ko (Roy Chiao). Billy and Danny manage to convince their commissioner to let them travel to HK to advise and assist local authorities in defeating Ko and rescuing Laura, but of course these two mavericks are pretty much just going to do whatever they want to do.There are *some* fine moments here for Chan fans, but there simply may not be enough. The tone *is* rather gritty, but although there's not a lot of outright comedy, the movie does still have a sense of humour. Chan has some fine action and fight sequences, especially one around the halfway point where he's trying to pursue a henchman escaping by boat. The stunts near the end are impressively scary. Writer / director James Glickenhaus ("The Exterminator") does a very fine job in utilizing the various HK locations. Jackie does his best in the lead, with Aiello offering fine support and Chiao being just right as our glowering bad guy. Jackie does have a decent if not spectacular climactic fight with fellow martial artist Bill Wallace. All things considered, it's not hard to see why Chan himself and some of his fan base might not care for the movie, but there is an alternate cut now available on Blu-ray with additional scenes created by Jackie himself, to better suit his vision (he really had no control on this feature at the time).In any event, it's worth noting the presence of a couple of familiar faces among the supporting cast, including Becky Ann Baker, John Spencer, Mike Starr, Big John Studd, and Trey Wilson.It would take another 11 years before North America finally, really took notice of Jackie with the release of "Rumble in the Bronx".Six out of 10.

Tough New York City cop Billy Wong (a solid and likable performance by Jackie Chan) and his scruffy partner Danny Garoni (amiable Danny Aiello) are sent to Hong Kong to take down nefarious drug lord Mr. Koo (a nicely slimy turn by Roy Chiao), who has kidnapped the daughter (foxy redhead Saun Ellis) of his former associate. Writer/director James Glickenhaus relates the enjoyable, if formulaic story at a brisk pace, makes good use of both grimy Big Apple and gleaming Hong Kong locations, maintains a hard gritty tone throughout, doesn't skimp on the excessive bloody violence, stages the rousing action with rip-roaring gusto, and even tosses in a handy helping of tasty gratuitous female nudity for good trashy measure. Moreover, Glickenhaus keeps the humor to a minimum and doesn't clutter the narrative with any needless sappy romantic subplots. While Glickenhaus's unapologetically rough-edged grindhouse style and sensibility didn't go over well with Chan's hardcore fans, it's nonetheless still a kick to see Jackie in such a down'n'dirty flick. Bill Wallace excels as mean henchman Benny Garucci; his big confrontation with Chan at the climax rates as a definite exciting highlight. Mark Irwin's glossy cinematography provides a glittering neon sheen. Ken Thorne's spirited syncopated score hits the stirring spot. A blithely low-grade blast.

There should have been more fast, furious action in the final fight scene between Jackie Chan and Bill "Superfoot" Wallace. Mr. Wallace should have been able to show why he was called Superfoot in the martial art world because he was able to fake with one foot and then deliver a striking blow with the other foot.It was kind of weird the Hong Kong cops came in like a mob instead of acting like professional police officers with their guns drawn and moving in a precise manner like American cops in the movies do. I still like the movie because Jackie Chan was still able to do fast fight scenes in the massage parlor.