You are currently displaying Big5
警察故事4之簡單任務 (1996)
First Strike


Reviewed by: Chungking_Cash
Date: 03/04/2007

Originally conceived as a stand-alone feature Jackie Chan succumbed to the public outcry for another installment in the immensely popular "Police Story" series and changed direction mid-stream. The result is a tonal shift most notably with protagonist Chan Ga-kui who's rechristened Jackie Chan Ga-kui and resembles his former self in name only, his personality now in lockstep with characters from a recent duo of disappointments (1995's "Rumble in the Bronx," "Thunderbolt") designed with the American market in mind. Chan's trademark prop-laden gung fu is present, but downsized to make room for a messy plot (partially inspired by two B-rate American script writers) that prefers being armed. Maggie Cheung Man-yuk, the long-suffering May from the "Police Story" series is absent as well due to a monetary dispute with Chan off camera. With all these things in mind "First Strike" still some how manages to deliver if only for the fact that it's an upgrade from Chan's preceding year of mediocre outuput. Alone, "First Strike" makes for an above average 007 matinee. As the fourth installment to the "Police Story" series, it's pretty much a tragedy.

Reviewer Score: 7

Reviewed by: j.crawford
Date: 06/08/2006
Summary: enjoyed every frame.

The tenth anniversary of the Hong Kong release of First Strike passed recently. That event after the passing of Bill Tung Biu gave me pause to reflect on the movie, that and the fact that for the last six months or so every time I log on to HKMDB I have to see the film on our "Bottom 16 Films" list on the main page.

Back in 1996, this movie was highly anticipated by Hong Kong movie fans the world over. It's hard to deliver the promises made through the hype machine, so many fans were disappointed. I wasn't. I enjoyed every frame. This movie gives us Jackie Chan at his fine tuned best. Some of the stunts here are his best ever. In 10 years, he has not come close to this level of achievement.

Reviewer Score: 9

Reviewed by: mrblue
Date: 10/26/2005

Chan continues with the popular Kevin Chan character. This time, he's enlisted (for some unspecified reason) to work for the CIA to track down an arms smuggler. Of course, in true Chan tradition, everything quickly gets fouled up and everyone thinks he's a double agent. He must work to both clear his name and save the world from terrorists.

The plot, even in the uncut Hong Kong version, is ridiculous -- most of the plot exposition was cut for the US release, so if you're watching that version, you're going to be even more lost as to exactly what the hell's going on. The acting (or dubbing in the US version) is atrocious, but there's plenty of action and stuntwork, including a phenomenal sequence where Chan uses a steel ladder to beat up a gang of bad guys. The movie is also quite funny in bits, such as where Chan has to go around in a stupid-looking penguin outfit and sing oldies. Not Chan's best by any means (especially after Police Story 3's manic pairing with Michelle Yeoh), but still should please most fans of Chan.

[review from www.hkfilm.net]


Reviewed by: pjshimmer
Date: 06/09/2002
Summary: Great fun

I first saw this movie in the heavily cut US dubbed version, which still left me impressed. The DVD put out by Funny says it's 120 minutes, although the actual running time came to be roughly 108 minutes, which is still a lot longer than the US version. The Mandarin track even seems to have Jackie Chan's real voice.

The movie was about equally amusing during both viewing, although it was a little more exciting during the first. The beginning is a little slow, but after 20 minutes, there's always something to keep you on the edge of your seat. Even if the writers didn't know what a plot is, the stunts are still respectable (come on, it's Jackie Chan and Stanley Tong), and the production values is a great asset.

The best thing about this movie was that 90 minutes into it, you still haven't a clue what's going on, who is who, why things happen. I guess that lures you further to the end.

[7/10]

Reviewer Score: 7

Reviewed by: Tatus
Date: 04/06/2002
Summary: Love ya Jackie - hate your film though

poop
1/10
why even bother jackie, you must have known this sucked ass

Reviewer Score: 1

Reviewed by: Inner Strength
Date: 03/28/2002
Summary: Crap

Woah, what happened to my review? Ok, I won't bother writing it up again, because this film is simply crap. Seems nobody else likes this either anyway.

Rating: 1.5/5

Reviewer Score: 3

Reviewed by: MinayUK
Date: 12/30/2001
Summary: Aaaarghhhhhh!

Police Story 4 eh? Oh my God whatever happened here. Why is it that since Jackie's jump to the West we have had an incredible amount of high budget nonsense shuvled our way?(e.g. Rumble in the Bronx and Mr Nice Guy). Dont we all wish for a return to the days of My Lucky Stars and Project A?The main problem is that Jackie is great when he's speaking Cantonese, his character flows across to the audience, as does his charm and avid interaction with the other actors on set. In the west, particularly in this movie, we get Australians, Russians and a host of untalented actors who not only come across as wooden but leave Jackie responding in a constrained, monosyllabic style. Im not saying that Mr Chan should stick to Cantonese, afterall he's not Jet Li!And western successes like the Rush Hour seies and Shanghai Noon prove he's capable of performing in English speaking films. Its just that when trash like First Strike comes his way, Jackie should really sit back and say: "Hmmmmm theres a quite difficult ladder stunt in this movie, and it'll look great on screen, but hold on, the script is shit, as is my role, and why the hell is my name Jackie in this script and the script for Mr Nice Guy in fact a hell of a lot of these Australian produced Kung Fu movies refer to me as Jackie,surely western audiences know who I am by now". Yeah, thats right folks, and in particular, Chan purists, stay away from this movie and have happy memories of the Police story trilogy, but not this shoddy mess. And dont get me started on the scene in which Jackie reveals his Y-fronts!


Reviewed by: Cal
Date: 07/19/2001
Summary: What the...?

Along with Thunderbolt (1995) this must surely be the messiest Chan movie of the 90's. It tries so hard to be smart - but fails miserably. That said, it DOES have the now infamous step-ladder scene (one of the greatest fight scenes committed to film) but sadly little else. You feel that somewhere along the line somebody in charge of the script just bit off far too much than they could chew. Add to that a truly TERRIBLE acting performance by the Russian bad guy (he doesn't act, he just says the words - although I have a sneaky suspicion that the New Line version dubs him with a more believable voice) and you have an insult to the sacred name of the Police Story movies.

One final point: It's worth tracking down the HK print of this movie as it makes infinitely more sense than the hacked down US version. Some prints even have ALL the voices dubbed into Mandarin, which eliminates that Russian guy's afwul drone altogether!


Reviewed by: Sydneyguy
Date: 05/05/2001
Summary: Ummm..........

This is suppose to be Police Story 4 but this is easily the worst of the series!! This movie has all the ingrediants to make a GREAT Jackie movie but it doesn't pull it off!! In fact i was bored watching this.........

6/10

Reviewer Score: 6

Reviewed by: dragyn
Date: 03/31/2001
Summary: Jackie Does James Bond

"First Strike" is certainly enjoyable; but how can any action-packed film set in Russia fail to be that? However, it is really only Chan's ebullient, energetic presence that saves the film from being entirely enjoyable, but eminently forgettable. He lifts the film from being another Hollywood-style cliche, to being a solid Hong Kong action flick, with stunts that will make all your friends gasp.

As with almost all Jackie Chan flicks, the plot is paper-thin, and if you happen to be unlucky enough to get the badly cut New Line VHS - forget it. Nothing will make sense at all. The charecterisation is similarly non-existent, with Chan playing the likeable, sympathetic befoon he plays most often on-screen - himself.

But really, that's not what matters; what matters is that Chan fights like no other, and does the kind of stunts that leave unaccustomed viewers in the usual "I've-just-seen-Jackie-Chan-perform-a-stunt" pose: they will perch on the edge of thier seat, and thier hands will hand limply by their sides; thier mouths will hand open, slcak-jawed, and thier eyes will pop out of their heads. In a whisper, they will say, "Did you see - ? Wha...I can't...I mean...did he really...?"

Then they will rewind to see the stunt again. And this movie will provide alot of that reaction; here (and nowhere else) we able to witness a man pushing forty hanging from the skids of a helicopter - and falling. Into a frozen lake. There are also fights underewater, encounters with sharks, and of course flights aplenty, all performed with Chan's trademark lighting-speed and energy.

Director Stanley Tong has been heard to say that with "First Strike", he hoped to create a Bond film starring Jackie Chan. He hits the mark, certainly; there is every Bond cliche imaginable in this movie, including Russia, plot twists, beautiful women in swim-wear, sharks, underwater scenes, and helicopters. However, it's never good to try and make a Bond film starring someone else, unless it's a spoof. "First Strike" doesn't have enough time to tell us whether it's a spoof or not - it's too busy with the action.

As with most Chan movies, leave your brain at the door and get ready for a wild ride.

(7/10)


Reviewed by: STSH
Date: 01/24/2000
Summary: What a mess !

Jackie tries to cover the entire globe with this one, and the utter lack of focus ruins almost any enjoyment of his considerable efforts to produce great stunts. Normally, the lack of any sense in an action story is no problem provided there's action, but this one is so spun-out that you NOTICE how silly it is. And that's bad.
And the Australian scenes are weird to say the least. If he was trying to catch the Down Under audience, he badly missed the mark. As an Australian, I could not believe the stupid caricature of an Aussie accent which the local actors were directed to use. Ugh !
Americans take heed : most of us do NOT speak like this !
And Jackie having not one but two koalas in his hotel room ?! Gimme a break. About the only myth we are spared is kangaroos hopping through Brisbane's main streets. In summary : Even worse than Rumble_In_The_Bronx. Watch it only to complete your Chan list or if there's nothing much else available.
Of course, still better than your average American action film, but of minor interest to a true HK filmlover.

Reviewer Score: 3

Reviewed by: hktopten
Date: 12/21/1999

Jackie is FINALLY back to his old form with this 4th installationof Police Story. This film is much more entertaining than Thunderbolt. Although the plot is just about as believable as Rumble in the Bronx, but this film isn't destroyed by the BIG YELLOW HOVERCRAFT (TM, sorry, union rules, I had to throw that it) and the lack of vileness in the villains like the last two Jackie films. The fight scene were just as much fun if not more so as Drunken Master 2, and the Oceanarium scene is classic Jackie comedy. I have no reservation recommending this film to all, especially new comers to the Jackie Chan genre. Turn off your brain and enjoy the ride.


Reviewed by: spinali
Date: 12/08/1999
Summary: NULL

The original may not have been top-flight Jackie Chan, but the U.S. repackaging gives this the feel of your typical Golan/Globus actioner. Jackie plays an HK cop working for the CIA in a plan to coordinate intelligence with the new KGB to stamp out a duplicitous group of Russian mobsters. Everyone's object is to steal a nuclear detonator held by a Chinese/Russian double agent and spy-master (Jackson Lui), whose deft disguises include a couple of blonde wigs and some sunglasses. Lui himself is attached to a triad family -- that lives in Australia! It becomes increasingly clear that the film's distinction lies with the plot, but rather a handful of great fight scenes (including Jackie's sparring match with seven foot Russian toughs who can endure any manner of pain, except being bit on the ear, and whose offensive value is offset by the fact that they forget they have guns); on the other hand, the ladder-fighting sequence represents Jackie at his near-best. Armour of God-style spectacle fills in the rest of the screentime, including Jackie snow-boarding down mountains and swimming with hungry sharks; the triad leader's daughter (Chun Wu) is the welcome visual relief/girl-in-distress. Put Jackie in a Chinese period piece where he can use fu, pole fighting, and his superior athletic ability, and the formula works; but as a fist-fighter in a world of handguns and AK-47s, the incongruities are bothersome.

(2/4)



[Reviewed by Steve Spinali]

Reviewer Score: 5

Reviewed by: hkcinema
Date: 12/08/1999

Another stunt fest from Jackie.

(7.5/10)



[Reviewed by Dale Whitehouse]


Reviewed by: hkcinema
Date: 12/08/1999

While the Chinese title suggests some continuity with former Police Story movies, only a basic premise survives - Jackie Chan as Hong Kong cop. The English title might be an inadvertent reference to the film's focused attempt to crack the international market ("Big Brawl" et al notwithstanding). Several plot elements, particularly the "nuclear smuggling threat", morphically resonate with recent Hollywood product, and everywhere there is the look and feel of generic Western action movies; even the white folk seem less stereotyped than usual. There are few of the trademark action spectacles, though a fight with a stepladder is handled well. This film could appear in American cinemas with very few changes (although Australian actors may have to be subtitled). Watch for product placement of Goma-chan, a cartoon seal (from Young Jump magazine) which appears on Jackie's head for several minutes.

[Reviewed by Iain Sinclair]


Reviewed by: hkcinema
Date: 12/08/1999

Jackie Chan is back! Both "RUMBLE IN THE BRONX" and "THUNDERBOLT" were entertaining but were not very good as plot and characterisation were concern. "FIRST STRIKE" is an improvement on those two factors. This movie is not a classic, but it is definitely Jackie Chan's best film since "DM2". I can't comment on the acting because the version that I saw was dubb in mandarin... I would have prefer to see more fights but the ones that are there are quite satisfying, specially the under water combat involving a shark! The technical credits are OK (including the mechanical shark) although the musical score could have been better.

[Reviewed by Martin Sauvageau]