Movie Review

Shanghai Knights

When I got home from this screening, I slotted in my DVD copy of the original just to see how long it would take to further support my criticisms and disappointment notes (on the sequel).

Seven minutes in, I had just about all the evidence I needed.
As Shanghai Knights was playing out, I was thinking, okay, this is semi-silly fun. But then as the story kept going further and the script kept going deeper and deeper in the realms of sequelitis, my disappointment range was going pretty high. Almost halfway through this flick, I was willing to settle for a C+ rating but little did I know that the rest of the ride wouldn?t offer much more fun than was already presented. This sequel does have its moments, but the two screenwriters involved surely didn?t have a recollection of what made their material for the original so fun and rewarding.

In my opinion, Shanghai Noon (which I gave a B+) was a buddy-buddy action/comedy done very properly, as instead of frustrating the audience with the usual retread of the formula, the ride was instead very funny and fulfilling in the ways of action sequences. It progressed Owen Wilson?s status as a gifted comedian for goofball material as well as Chan?s status quo for his martial arts abilities. Knights just doesn?t have anything new or fresh to offer to its fans, as it?s just a repeated cycle from Noon but stupider and sillier. Instead of targeting its core audience, the sequel has almost been constructed as more of a family diversion and such was not what I showed up for.

It really lets me down on a great level having to say this all, as I was such a good fan of Noon with its ability to give moviegoers an all-around really fun time without wrapping it up in a guilty pleasure package. Shanghai Knights doesn?t even qualify as a guilty pleasure. I didn?t have that much fun throughout, as I laughed out loud several times but maintained a serious expression for most of the duration. I was dazzled a bit by Chan?s exhilarating moments in the beginning portions of the story, but much of Knights? jewels appeared in the first act of the ride.

The sequel follows the fun duo, Chon (Jackie Chan) and Roy (Owen Wilson), heading to London in 1880 to track down Jack the Ripper, who has murdered Chon?s father. Already early on in the premise, the problem is that too much time and effort is placed into this dramatic angle as if the viewer is really supposed to care that Chon?s father has been killed. In real life or in an actually dramatic premise, this wouldn?t be a criticism issue at bat. But for something like Shanghai Knights, I don?t give an ounce of care who is killed off in the supporting roles (unless they?re at least reasonably developed in character); I?m there to laugh and to be wow?d by the film?s action scenes. These movies are meant to be popcorn flicks where the audience shouldn?t be pulled into these dramatic angles too much because we?re not really supposed to give at all. The film doesn?t spend a huge load of time on the topic, but there are one or two scenes that really didn?t do any good in progression of the story.

One of the dilemmas I had with Shanghai Knights was the lack of power and eye grabbing from the get-go. The sequel starts off with more of a slow, toned down silly approach, one of which I was willing to excuse and move on from as screen time progressed, but then the substance wasn?t followed by a whole lot of meat to declare graduation. We can see that Wilson and Chan still have chemistry together, but the dialogue they?re given is not significant enough for the eyes and ears to really tolerate it to a great extent. And even with Wilson?s undeniably witty and charming personality, not a whole lot in fulfillment can take place. In a way, part of what saves Knights from being anything less in quality are the two faces in front of our view-sight most of the way through. A la The Recruit, the script is in a pool with a scarcity of creativity yet our two leads have the appropriate on-screen presence and charisma to carry it along to a certain point.

In comparison, the original Shanghai, while not offering a super flashy intro/opening, got more dazzling as Roy was introduced. And the humor and character reactions (especially Wilson) allowed the time to really feel as if it wasn?t a chore; it was very enjoyable. There?s also an energetic spark the original has over the sequel in garnering attention and amusement, and this is heavily due to the vanishing of director Tom Dey this time around. Instead of using intelligence to showcase a story to the audience, Knights? director David Dobkin has applied a style that one would be prone to locate in a family-like release. Such involves heavy dark music when our evil antagonist walks the screen for the first time, hitting us in the head with "Hey, this is our bad guy. Feel scared."

Rather than feeling intimidated, we feel dumber because we (sarcastically speaking) weren?t already acquainted with this notion from the character?s dark wardrobe. Instead of the viewer being able to justify our bad guy with the simple point that he carries a menacing presence (not through clothing), we have to be bombarded with directorial tricks just to make sure we understand what we?re watching. This is just one of the many examples of why the sequel did not work well with me.

I admit to laughing solidly a few times throughout the running time, but one such instance also happened to be a repeated gag from the original but just in a different situation. A lot of the movie is just plain the original in different circumstances, but not aimed to please the same exact group of people who may have highly adored Noon. Knights has a looser feeling through the director?s view and one that doesn?t retain the same terrific charm offered in the original. There is a spark that comes from Chan and Wilson as the sequel plays, and this did raise my position on the flick a little bit being as though with any other actors in the parts, the film would probably be as sour as National Security.

But Shanghai Knights just didn?t carry over anywhere near the level of wit and smarts as we were first given. After re-viewing Noon, Wilson?s part in the film was not annoying or blabbering to at least my awareness, whereas in Knights there is the ongoing sensation that his mouth is running non-stop but the words audible are not always humorous. The problem is that too little of his dialogue is funny and he really doesn?t ever stop talking. Chan?s character is still the more-so straight-faced sidekick with the rare occasion of loosening up, and really makes Wilson feel like the irritating lead that many viewed Chris Tucker as in Rush Hour 2.

I happen to appreciate Owen?s humor side most of the time, but here he?s working with a script that doesn?t allow him to apply his true charms to the material. The original gave the actor/comedian a few really memorable sequences, whereas Knights carries over nothing that is eye-catching once you depart the theater. For me, the sequel is one of those movies you see one day and sort of forget that you were there a few days later. And for a film that had me laughing harder and producing more fun reactions during the outtakes more than the entire ride itself, it?s a sad fact to report.

Shanghai Knights is a predictable popcorn flick, but we all know in these types of movies what will eventually roll out. It then has us rely on the humor and the action (and actor chemistry) to make up for the rather formula-like paths or obvious conclusions. But here, the humor only has its moments, and for me the best action material showed its face in the first third of the adventure. Rather than giving its devoted fans an intelligent and thoroughly enjoyable sequel, the filmmakers have instead further proved that following up with a worthy installment is not something we can often find.

Lee's Grade: C

A	0.4%
B	30.0%
C	61.7%
D	8.0%
F	0.0%