*** Official "RUSH HOUR 2" Review Thread (2 Viewers)

[Dome Vongvises]

The Short
Film Score: A-
The Good
- funny
- great kung-fu action sequences
- Jackie Chan, Chris Tucker, and Zhang Ziyi
- Did I mention Zhang Ziyi?
The Bad
- heavily cliched
- predictable
Film Review
I love this movie better than the original. I'm not a fan of Chris Tucker per se, but I love his comedic performances dating all the way back to the Def Comedy Jam days with Martin Lawrence as host. I'm a big martial arts fan, and the action sequences don't disappoint. Iron man Jackie Chan shows no signs of aging at all as he continues to do his wonderful martial arts/stunt magic. On a small negative side, the plot is old, predictable, and heavily cliched. Thank goodness I'm not a film snob, or I could never enjoy movies like this. The best line of the movie has got to be "You all look alike!" To paraphrase Homer Simpson, "It's funny cause it's true!"

What's the highlight of the movie? ZHANG ZIYI!!! The worlds of cute and sexy just collide here .
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"I don't know, Marge. Trying is the first step towards failure." - Homer J. Simpson

 

[Scott Weinberg]

My review:
Rush Hour 2 -

out of 5
See, I knew I should have written this review immediately after seeing Rush Hour 2, because now it's just a tiny figment of a memory in my brain. So lightweight, unoriginal and familiar is this one, that it...what movie were we talking about again?
Oh, yeah. Sequel to something Part 2. The one with Jackie Chan and that shrill shrieking guy. A few action scenes. A few predictable laughs. And a (very) few actual surprises. Forgive me if this review runs short, but trying to elaborate upon a movie like Rush Hour 2 is like trying to base your doctoral thesis on a Bazooka Joe comic.
Interested in what happens in this movie? Well so am I. As far as I could gather, Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan are cops. They start out in China, then head over to LA before finally ending up in Vegas. Am I insane or did I just pay 8 bucks to watch Chris Tucker get free trips around the world? Seeing that this one is billed as an "action/comedy", you can of course expect there to be "action"...as well as..."comedy".
The action shows up as the two cops start investigating a mysterious explosion. There are mafia types and femme fatales and barrelfuls of henchmen waiting to get karate chopped. In between the intermittently entertaining fighting stuff, we get Tucker's patented brand of shrill, shrieking "wackiness".
Thrill to the crazy "bus/banner" sequence!
Gasp as Tucker's stupid big mouth writes checks his skinny movie-star a$$ obviously could never EVER cash if he weren't a $20 million dollar movie star!
Cringe at the awful racist humor that Tucker spouts for nearly 90 minutes straight. He actually sneers at Chinese people in this movie and goes "Hing Hong Ching Chong"!!! What year is this??
Jackie Chan is getting a bit old. This is not a criticism of his talent. He's literally getting old. So it only seems logical that his numerous action scenes seem a bit more geriatric than usual. But I'd rather see Chan squeeze his way through a bank teller's window (in the movie's coolest millisecond) than listen to one more syllable from Chris Tucker.
Asking a movie reviewer if you should see this movie is like asking your Mom if you should chew gum. Do you like gum? If you do, then chew dammit! But don't expect the gum to transform into Sirloin Steak in your mouth, although that would be pretty neat.
Is Rush Hour 2 an awful film? Nah. It's hardly even a film. Sequelitis is strong in this one, and although there are a handful of enjoyable gags and thrills, this movie is simply a joke you've heard 11 times before. It might have been great the first time, but the sheer predictability of the affair kinda sucks all the fun out of it.
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Scott
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