Rush Hour 2: Perfectly Paced

By Teddy Durgin
Ladies, let me clue you in on a little-known fact about guys. We really do lay awake at night sometimes wishing we were our favorite action stars. Some of us fantasize as much about taking on a dozen bad guys and emerging victorious as we do taking on a dozen beautiful women and ... uh, emerging victorious.

Everyone's a wannabe. Some wanna be Arnold Schwarzenegger, with all his biceps and triceps. Not me. Some wanna be James Bond, with all his cool sophistication and clever gadgets. Not me. Some wanna be Batman, with his cool costume, cool car, and cool cave. Again, not me.
 

So, who do I "wannabe?" JACKIE CHAN! Just say the name real fast three times. Go ahead. Do it! Kind of cool, ain't it? By the third time you say it, you might even have your two hands raised and doing air karate chops. I'm typing with one hand right now. Jackie Chan! Jackie Chan! JACKIE CHAN!

How cool is this violent, little imp from Hong Kong? He's not the biggest guy in the world. He's not the best looking. He's not even the most charismatic. But, man oh man. Watching his fight scenes over the years has been like appreciating fine ballet or a great Broadway dance troupe. Jackie Chan doesn't just use his fists and feet while fighting. He uses every prop on the set. In Rush Hour 2 (opening Aug. 3rd), Chan uses everything from trash cans to office chairs to household plants to bash the bad guys. The whole time, we're aware that the guy is doing almost all of his own stunts (wait until you see the gag reel that plays during the final credits!)

The guy is amazing.

And, once again, Chris Tucker is perfectly matched opposite him. The two have a fantastic chemistry together. The pairing works because Chan still isn't quite comfortable with speaking, and Tucker does nothing else. Chan and Tucker reprise their roles as Chinese Inspector Lee and Los Angeles cop James Carter, respectively. This time, they are on the trail of a master counterfeiter who may or may not be responsible for the bombing of the American embassy in Hong Kong. The action takes the duo from China to L.A. to Las Vegas.

Simply put, Rush Hour 2 is the most fun I've had in a movie theater this year. The film is just a silly, effortless delight from start to finish. It's one of those movies where seeing the first one might help, but it's not mandatory. One of the best decisions director Brett Ratner makes is putting the guys into the action immediately. There are no wasted re-introduction scenes. Carter is on vacation in Hong Kong visiting his friend, Lee. All James wants to do is go to clubs and massage parlors. Get his freak on. Lee can't help taking him on cases. The man never takes a day off.

Soon, they are running up against gangster Ricky Tan (John Lone) and his vicious assistant Hu Li (the delectably dangerous Zhang Ziyi from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). The film is worth seeing just for Tucker's constant efforts to hit on Ziyi, typically followed by Ziyi kicking him in the face.

Boy, have I been there!

This time out, even Chan the man gets his own love interest, a Secret Service agent played by Isabella Molina who may or may not be in cahoots with the villains. Also in the film are Alan King as a shady American commercial real estate developer; Don Cheadle, very funny as the African-American owner of a Chinese restaurant; and Jeremy Piven, in the small role of a gay Versace's employee who wants to dress Tucker and Chan his way.

I have heard the Rush Hour films compared to the Lethal Weapon series, but I'm not sure that's a fair comparison. The Lethal Weapon flicks had a much harder edge. They were violent, bloody, and weren't timid in putting the characters of Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) through real pain. They were action films that had comedy in them.

By contrast, the two Rush Hours are essentially comedies that have action in them. And the violence is cartoonish in nature. With all the talent back from the first film, Rush Hour 2 is more than a hit. It's a direct hit!