Since Police Story 2, every subsequent film in the Police Story franchise was filmed in a different style. This is probably because Police Story 2 was the last film in the series that Jackie Chan directed and it’s easy to tell. Super Cop is a notable film in the series for many other reasons. This was one of the first Hong Kong movies to be shot with synchronized sound and it was also Michelle Yeoh’s first film after a five year hiatus from the film industry. The first two films from the series were evidently from the 80’s, but in order for Jackie Chan to stay prevalent, his films had to be bigger than the last. Thus, the latest Police Story movie had noticeably higher production values and a majority of it was filmed outside of Hong Kong. What results is probably the most atmospheric and most exciting films of the series.
Jackie Chan returns again as Chan Ka-Kui. This time, he’s partnered up with Captain Yang (Michelle Yeoh) and they both go undercover to infiltrate an(other) evil druglord’s gang. They go on a few missions for the druglord across Asia and end up in Malaysia. While in Malaysia, Ka-Kui runs into his girlfriend, May (Maggie Cheung), who doesn’t know about him going undercover and Ka-Kui’s identity is accidentally revealed. Ka-Kui and Captain Yang must break the druglord’s wife out of jail in order to rescue May who’s become their hostage.
Jackie Chan returns again as Chan Ka-Kui. This time, he’s partnered up with Captain Yang (Michelle Yeoh) and they both go undercover to infiltrate an(other) evil druglord’s gang. They go on a few missions for the druglord across Asia and end up in Malaysia. While in Malaysia, Ka-Kui runs into his girlfriend, May (Maggie Cheung), who doesn’t know about him going undercover and Ka-Kui’s identity is accidentally revealed. Ka-Kui and Captain Yang must break the druglord’s wife out of jail in order to rescue May who’s become their hostage.
You thought the stunts in the first two films were amazing? Well, Super Cop surpasses both of them in spades. I saw this movie once at The Academy Salute to Jackie Chan and it was amazing to watch this movie in a theater with almost 1,000 other attendants because every time there was an impressive stunt, the audience would applaud. So during the film’s climax, they would applaud about every 30 seconds. This movie has one of the best finales to any action movie ever. There are amazing car chases and stunts, leading up to a fight scene on top of a moving train.
There are many other noteworthy action scenes throughout including a fight scene at the beginning with Sam Wong, the scene where Jackie breaks Yuen Wah out of prison, and a shootout in Thailand. All of these scenes are so much fun and amaze me even after a multitude of repeated viewings. Combined with the stirring music and locations, these scenes glue my eyes to screen. Most of the actors and stuntmen gets to show off their physical prowess in this movie.
There are many other noteworthy action scenes throughout including a fight scene at the beginning with Sam Wong, the scene where Jackie breaks Yuen Wah out of prison, and a shootout in Thailand. All of these scenes are so much fun and amaze me even after a multitude of repeated viewings. Combined with the stirring music and locations, these scenes glue my eyes to screen. Most of the actors and stuntmen gets to show off their physical prowess in this movie.
But still, there’s so much more to enjoy about this movie. The story still doesn’t impress (much like most of the other films in the series), but this one actually has a few clever twists and turns towards the end. The story is mainly an excuse to have a bunch of cool action scenes, but I don’t mind. The characters are also a ton of fun too. Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh work very well together. It seems that each of them try to outdo each other during the fights and the stunts, but sometimes Michelle Yeoh steals the show.
This movie can also be pretty funny at times when Jackie and Michelle interact and also the scenes where Maggie Cheung thinks Jackie’s cheating on her. The scene that I always laugh the hardest at is when the guy at the beginning says “What we need is a ‘Super Cop.’” But thankfully, there’s more than even action to make up for most of the flaws in this movie. There's enough excitement and atmosphere to make this movie refreshing to watch.
This movie can also be pretty funny at times when Jackie and Michelle interact and also the scenes where Maggie Cheung thinks Jackie’s cheating on her. The scene that I always laugh the hardest at is when the guy at the beginning says “What we need is a ‘Super Cop.’” But thankfully, there’s more than even action to make up for most of the flaws in this movie. There's enough excitement and atmosphere to make this movie refreshing to watch.
Super Cop is an extraordinarily exhilarating movie with amazing stunts, high production values, and the enjoyable pairing of Jackie and Michelle Yeoh. It has the Jackie Chan-style fight scenes and stunts, but it also feels bigger and more over the top than any of the other films from Jackie Chan’s filmography. Probably my second favorite Jackie Chan movie from the 90’s and my second favorite of the Police Story series.
Images from HKMDb, Far East Films, and HK Cinemagic
Images from HKMDb, Far East Films, and HK Cinemagic