REVIEW: SUPERCOP (1992)
SUPERCOP
[a.k.a. POLICE STORY 3]
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1996 James Berardinelli
RATING (0 TO 10): 7.0
Alternative Scale: *** out of ****
Hong Kong, 1993
Release date: 7/26/96 (wide)
Running Length: 1:36
MPAA Classification: R (Violence)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Cast: Jackie Chan, Michelle Khan, Yuen Wah, Bill Tung, Ken Tsang
Director: Stanley Tong
Producers: Willie Chan and Edward Tang
Screenplay: Edward Tang, Fibe Ma, and Lee Wai Yee
Cinematography: Lam Kwok Wah
Music: Joel McNeely
U.S. Distributor: Miramax/Dimension Films
Dubbed into English
Miramax owes a debt to New Line Cinema. In order to facilitate
Jackie Chan's long-overdue breakthrough in the American market, New Line
spent a lot of money hyping Chan's RUMBLE IN THE BRONX, taking great
pains to make sure nearly everyone who saw a print ad or a TV spot was
aware that Chan does all his own stuntwork. The campaign worked,
because RUMBLE turned a profit. But Miramax, who owns the rights to
several of Chan's previously-unreleased films, is now reaping the
benefits of New Line's cash layout. Judging by the healthy opening
weekend turnout, SUPERCOP is going to be profitable for its distributor.
And, after years of frustration, Jackie Chan has finally found his
American niche.
SUPERCOP was released internationally three years ago under the
title POLICE STORY 3, but, aside from playing a few specialized venues,
it had no U.S. exposure. Now, with a new soundtrack, the movie has been
thrown into wide release, and, in its current state, represents one of
the summer's best opportunities for pure, undemanding entertainment.
With its infectious mix of action and comedy, SUPERCOP is vastly
different from any big budget American picture. And the knowledge that
Chan and his co-stars are doing their own stunts only sweetens the pot.
Who can imagine Arnold Schwarzenegger dangling from a helicopter
hundreds of feet above the ground? Or Sylvester Stallone falling off a
moving train? Then there are the martial arts sequences (choreographed
by director Stanley Tong), which are, quite simply, amazing, and remind
the viewer that the fist is faster than the eye.
SUPERCOP gives audiences an opportunity to appreciate the clown
aspect of Chan's personality (something we'll be getting more exposure
to in an upcoming American production where his co-star is Chris
Farley). Although he's best known as an action star, he's also a gifted
comic. He has an expressive face -- his features go through more
contortions than his body. SUPERCOP is a better movie than RUMBLE IN
THE BRONX, in large part because it's funnier. The dubbed English is
actually an asset for this kind of film -- the cheesy mis-synching of
lips adds to the goofy fun.
Frankly, dialogue doesn't mean much in SUPERCOP, nor does the plot.
It's a framing device to get Chan into action. All we really need to
know is which characters are the good guys and which ones are the bad
guys, and, once that has been established, little else matters. For the
record, SUPERCOP pairs Chan's Hong Kong detective with a female Chinese
security officer (Michelle Khan). Together, they go undercover to break
a master criminal, Panther (Yuen Wah), out of prison, so he can lead
them back to his drug lord brother (Ken Tsang). Their goal: infiltrate
the organization and bring it down.
As is usual in a Chan film, the end credits (which show out-takes
of failed stunts) are one of SUPERCOP's highlights. There are more
laughs in this hilarious three-minute sequence than in the whole of
KINGPIN. I can't think of a better reason to stay through the entire
movie. Ultimately, the closing montage points out one of the chief
differences between Chan's stylized, fast-paced films and those of his
American counterparts: this is action with a smile, not a grimace.
- James Berardinelli
e-mail: berardin@bc.cybernex.net
ReelViews web site: http://www.cybernex.net/~berardin