By Tanya Batson-Savage, Staff Reporter
Jackie Chan in a scene from the movie 'The Medallion'. - Contributed
SINCE HITTING his 50s, Jackie Chan seems to be getting obsessed with ideas of invincibility. Where his earlier movies often played on how fallible he was, making it a part of what made him great, recently he has been turning toward being something of a superhero. First there was The Tuxedo and now there is The Medallion, where he is once again given super powers.
Another area of familiarity in this movie is the character. Once again Jackie Chan is a Hong Kong detective, though this time his name is Eddie Yang (he was Eddie Chan in the Police Story movies).
Writers Alfred Cheung and Bennett Joshua Davlin disassociated themselves from all knowledge of creativity when creating this flick. This movie has elements of The Golden Child and a myriad of other semi-fantasy flicks which depend upon some magical item (most often a medallion) wanted by a power-hungry villain who is willing to sacrifice its keeper (most often a child).
There was also no real attempt to make the already hackneyed plot logical. Somehow it still manages to have its funny moments, especially at the hands of Lee Evans (of Something About Mary), who is able to deliver lines as well as do the physical comedy bit. Evans plays Arthur Watson, the most inept man to ever have hit Interpol.
These moments were all that the movie really had to work with, since the fight choreography was at best adequate. It was not so much that the fighting was not interesting; rather, it was the way it was filmed. Instead of taking the easy (and wise) route of slowing down the 'super-powered' moments, director Gordon Chan tried to keep the speed, which simply robbed the action of its impact.
To top this off, the graphics were below par. In truth, some of the best moments of the movie came in the outtakes which always follow a Jackie Chan movie. As such, though this is a Jackie Chan flick it is best to go see this movie with lowered expectations, especially when it comes to the action.
It might not be as bad as The Accidental Spy, but it is certainly no Rush Hour either.
