Reviewed by: MrBooth Date: 11/08/2010 Summary: For fans only There's a lot to fault in Mr. Nice Guy - the plot is execrable, the acting appalling, and much of the comedy wouldn't be out of place in an episode of The Benny Hill Show (yes, that's a fault). What redeems it - slightly - is some great action scenes from Sammo & Jackie. It's all very familiar, much of it rehashed from earlier Jackie films, but still executed with his inimitable skill and style, and on a relatively high budget. It's thoroughly shallow and disposable, but provided you don't try and take it seriously - think of it as a kid's film, perhaps - it's not unpleasant to watch. Reviewer Score: 4

Reviewed by: dandan Date: 03/08/2006 Summary: well, it's okay... sammo hung's attempt at an english language jackie chan vehicle. although i watched the old mei-ah asian cut, which is ten minutes longer, but dubbed in cantonese... this film has a pretty run of the mill - jackie is a nice guy who gets caught up with someone who's in trouble with a bad crowd - story, but a few pretty good fight sequences thrown in, which is a good thing. unfortunately, there's a few sequences which have crappy editing and corn-ball visual effects that just ruin the flow of the sequence and cheapen it's effect massively. all in all, i didn't really notice what the extra ten minites was filled with, but it has been a while since i saw the regular version at the cinema. it's a pretty entertaining film, but it's a bit annoying as it could've been a lot better.

Reviewed by: Libretio Date: 10/20/2005 Summary: Slick but superficial entry MR. NICE GUY (1997) Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Anamorphic) Sound format: Dolby Digital This reviewer hasn't seen New Line's re-edited 88 minute version of Sammo Hung's MR. NICE GUY, though reports suggest it's the usual cut 'n' paste abomination. Which is surprising, really, because the original film - a feebly plotted thriller with comic asides, in which a high-kicking TV chef (Jackie Chan) is hounded by a villainous drug baron (Richard Houghton) who's searching for an incriminating videotape - couldn't be simpler. Plot and characterizations are purely incidental to the main business of hurling Chan head first into a series of explosive situations that require lavish displays of physical skill and dexterity. The film's technical construction is beyond reproach: Despite an over-reliance on irritating slow-motion inserts, Hung weaves a dynamic visual tapestry, due mainly to the breathtaking skills of cinematographer Raymond Lam and editor Peter Cheung, and he invests the threadbare narrative with an energy that will leave most viewers wide-eyed with disbelief. Stunts and fights develop organically within some of the most unlikely surroundings, the highlight being a battle royale on top of a runaway horse-and-carriage hurtling through the streets of Melbourne, taking full advantage of the wide anamorphic frame (if you can't see this one in widescreen, don't bother). It's nice, too, to see some good western actors in a HK film (Gabrielle Fitzpatrick distinguishes herself as a gutsy journalist whose damning videotape provides an excuse for all the ensuing mayhem), though this probably has more to do with Golden Harvest's contractual obligations to the American distributors than anything else. But for all its gusto, MR. NICE GUY is a bit of a disappointment. It could be argued that many fans are only interested in the death-defying set-pieces, but Chan no longer seems able to reconcile his penchant for incredible stuntwork with the narrative complexities that typified so many of his earlier productions. Nevertheless, if you can forgive the casual, unfunny brutality which mars the otherwise upbeat tone - women are knocked about and abused with alarming regularity throughout the film - there's still much to enjoy in this glossy effort, even if it fails to engage the audience on anything more than a purely superficial level. Reviewer Score: 4

Reviewed by: Masterofoneinchpunch Date: 09/12/2005 Mr. Nice Guy (aka No More Mr. Nice Guy) was the third film Jackie did in Hong Kong after the success from Rumble in the Bronx and the first film that was directed by fellow brother Sammo Hung since 1987's Dragons Forever. Jackie was happy about this reunion since they were not on good terms for several years. Jackie stars as a chef, with prestigious martial art ability, who is part of a chef troupe in Melbourne Australia with Baggio (Barny Otto) and Lakeisha (Karen McLymont). He accidentally intervenes between a fleeing reporter named Diana (Gabrielle Fitzpatrick who had a reoccurring role in NYPD Blue) who has an incriminating tape and two rival criminal organizations who are on that video. She then accidentally switches tapes with one of his cooking shows in Jackie’s car when they were fleeing the mob. Some well-documented goofs with the tape are: the tape is the ubiquitous VHS standard (which a camera person would not use) and when the tape is shown it displays the same omnipresent footage that the film had (including the multi-angle cuts and close-ups.) The two criminal organizations include a bad acting, Rumble in the Bronx rip-of, gang of thugs who do not resemble criminals named the Demons and an Australian mob led by the cigar munching, overacting, coke-dealing, neat freak, tie slapping Giancarlo (Richard Norton) who happens to be a proficient martial artist too. There is animosity between the two groups because the Demons stole cocaine from the mob. The campyness of the criminals worked for me in Rumble in the Bronx but they annoyed me in this film, probably because of the overabundance of drama. Though I do enjoy when they (though mostly Jackie Chan’s stunt team) get beat up by Jackie. For fun I try to spot Jackie’s stunt team during the fight scenes. It is harder to find them in this film (good editing) than in Armour of God’s Amazon women fighting scene. Jackie’s fiancé Miki (Miki Lee a Taiwanese singer) arrives to stay with Jackie for awhile. She is a bit jealous of his friendship with Lakeisha and she is eventually held hostage by both the Demons. They want the tape and he wants her. They broker a deal to meet at the Golden Garden construction site for the exchange after the first attempted barter went wrong because of stupid cops. However, the mob will be there too. This leads up to the awesome penultimate fight scene. There is more plot to this film but it only gets in the way of the film’s good points: the stunts and fight scenes. While, I feel Sammo Hung’s directing skills have regressed a bit such as the overuse of slow motion – for everything, Sammo still directs Jackie quite well in this reunion. The action sequences are set up marvelously especially the Golden Garden sequence. There is a maze of doors where Jackie almost falls out hanging by a door knob (another influence by the silent greats such as Lloyd and Keaton that Jackie loves) and another finely choreographed scene where he fights with everything from a wooden grate, pipe, water hose, and wheel barrow. Fight scenes such as this and the ending stunt sequence (involving a large construction vehicle) are must watches for any action fan. Much of the acting was bad, there were unnecessary dramatic devices, Norton’s fighting skills were not as used effectively as when he worked with Jackie in City Hunter, and it had many similarities with Rumble in the Bronx. However, there is enough comedy and action scenes to make this a fun film to watch (though it does seem to lose a bit of luster after multiple watches and I have not seen the longer running Hong Kong version of this film which has about 7 to 8 minutes of additional footage.) There is also a good cameo appearance with the colorful Sammo Hung as a bicyclist too and the painful “outtakes” at the end of the film. Now is that enough to enjoy a film – of course. Note: this was the first of Chan’s films to be shot almost entirely in English and during the making of it Jackie got to put his prints at Mann’s Chinese Theater on Hollywood Boulevard. Reviewer Score: 7

Reviewed by: j.crawford Date: 07/25/2005 Summary: nice movie. Jackie Chan's 1997 Lunar New Year release, Mr. Nice Guy was extremely successful with Hong Kong movie patrons. Shot mostly in English, this is Jackie's third film made with North American audiences in mind. The movie opened last year in 3 versions; the international 'English' version, the Cantonese-dubbed version, and the Mandarin-dubbed version. My review copy is the Mandarin-dubbed LD version from which I know I missed all of the spoken English dialogue of the non-asian actors, relying on the 'notorious' subtitles to follow along. As usual, Jackie gives his audience a full load of visual fireworks. Instead of doing it all himself on this film, Chan has brought in his life long friend and cohort Sammo Hung to handle the directing chores. Together they have created some sequences that are absolutely brilliant and rank among some of Jackie's best work. In a departure from the usual 'cop' role, Chan portrays the popular host of a TV cooking show, a chef with great martial arts skills. What a stretch[just kidding]! The role allows for some comedic fun with food and cooking utensils. The film as a whole, though, is another matter. Sadly, some of the performers cast alongside Chan in supporting roles are painful to watch and they hurt the film. Richard Norton is so over-the-top in his role of Giancarlo, the drug lord, as to be unbelievable. This character's treatment of women throughout the story is reprehensible and way too calculated by the filmmakers. There are 4 female supporting roles and Norton's character slaps and punches all of them. Chan and Norton face off in a scene where Jackie's hands and feet are restrained by ropes that are held by Giancarlo's cronies. Another problem with the film is the lack of plot and character developement. In a brief prologue, we meet Giancarlo as he slaps a woman, holds her head underwater and orders her killed. This woman was a spy for a rival gang of street thugs named the Wolves. Set in Melbourne, Australia, we see Jackie (Jackie's character is named Jackie) on his cooking show during the credit sequence. Somehow, the Wolves got $10 million worth of Giancarlo's drugs. During a meeting, the two sides start shooting and throwing hand grenades, one of which exposes Diana, a TV-tabloid reporter with her cameraman, spying on the crooks. Giancarlo sees them and wants them caught. After the bumbling Wolves get the worst of the battle, Giancarlo's men take off after Diana and her videotape. During this chase, she stumbles into Jackie who, of course, comes to her aid. In the escape, Jackie ends up in possession of the hot videotape. From this point the film goes back and forth between Jackie fighting Giancarlo's gang and Jackie fighting the low-life Wolves. Along the way we meet Jackie's girlfriend Miki, who arrives from Hong Kong for a visit. The Wolves kidnap her from Jackie and will trade her for the tape. From this point, about 45 minutes into the film, the best part of Mr. Nice Guy begins. Sammo's action direction of Jackie is always excellent and it is no different here. Blending dangerous set-ups, wide angle lenses, and tricky dolly shots with Jackie's many comedic and dramatic performing skills, the two old friends have created some incredible footage. The sequence in the construction site which will be forever known as "the blue door sequence" is brilliant, as well as the fight inside the Wolves van as it moves thru city streets. Watch for a cameo appearance by Sammo that is hilarious. Besides the sub-par supporting players and the flaws in the screenplay by Edward Tang and Fibe Ma, Mr. Nice Guy has another couple of things in it that I found annoying. One of these is the obvious "product placement" that jumps off the screen. Hollywood productions are genius at this supposed to be subtle practice. But in this film I felt clubbed by Pepsi and Samsung products. Another annoying aspect of the film are the in-jokes and references to 1995's Rumble in the Bronx, i.e.; Emil Chau in another ice cream vending cameo, a wedding scene[?], and the "Are you okay?" jokes. The seemingly 'tacked-on' ending sequence of the film is lifted from Rumble as well. After Jackie, with his hands restrained, beats Giancarlo, the drug lord orders him and his girlfriends killed at the "guest house" (actually a big construction site). Jackie manages to free himself and uses a giant yellow construction vehicle, like the big yellow hover craft in Rumble, to wreak havoc on Giancarlo's fancy house and help the bumbling police get their man. Suspension of disbelief indeed! Frankly, I'm looking forward to the American release of this film. I'm curious to know what edits will be made and how the audio tracks(vocals and music) will be enhanced . Copyright©1998 J. Crawford Reviewer Score: 8

Reviewed by: Chungking_Cash Date: 02/03/2003 While "Mr. Nice Guy" is no where near as bad as you might have heard, it is, nonetheless, the victim of plotting thinner than the paper the script was printed on. In other words: Jackie fights henchmen. The End. One would expect more from Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, and Richard Norton regardless of their age and rightfully so. Supposedly, Disney fiddled with said script in order to reproduce the stateside success "Rumble in the Bronx" (1995) enjoyed. The film's finale, or the lack there of, all but proves this accusation. Reviewer Score: 5

Reviewed by: Inner Strength Date: 01/12/2002 Summary: ONE OF THE WORST! This has got to be Jackie Chans worst movie next to Rumble In The Bronx. It is a complete load of crap. REALLY IT IS. NO STORY worth mentioning, I think the movie last about 75 minutes only too! Sammo Hung directed this, and although I respect him for his hard work over the last 30 years, he has lost here too, but not anywhere near as Jackie. I don't know why this should be in the HKMDB, it's not a Hong Kong movie and I can't recall seeing a single Chinese star here apart from Jackie. Rating (out of 5): 1 (This rating is based on the year & genre, so don't think it's based as a comparison on new releases etc.)

Reviewed by: SOJay Date: 01/26/2001 Summary: Oh how the mighty fall One would think that getting Sammo to direct a Jackie movie might bring back some of the old charm, obiviously that was wrong. I personally think it might be time for Jackie to retire from acting and try directing only for awhile, maybe then we might begin to see some quality product again.

Reviewed by: Sydneyguy Date: 08/15/2000 Summary: Average Ok, no plot here, i know that!! When i first watched it, i didn't like it!! Watching it again, i admired more of the action scenes. Jackie climbing up that huge truck was a great stunt!! OK it's not Jackie's best, but the action/comedies are funny. After watching this a 3rd time, i give this 5/10

Reviewed by: hktopten Date: 12/21/1999 Man was it bad. It's about as bad as Thunderbolt and left the same bad taste in my mouth Rumble did. Was it really necessary to have the reporter run around half naked? Ok, the film has its moments, but when my favorite parts were the 2 minor cameos with Emil Chau Wa Kin and Samo Hung Kam Bo, you know you are in trouble. Anyway, the film is very close to the word "SUCK" and new union rule states I have to use the words BIG YELLOW DUMPTRUCK from now on. It was almost as if Jackie is completely out of touch with both the Hong Kong and the overseas audience. Stay home and get a clue, Jackie.

Reviewed by: Darryl Date: 12/21/1999 What a relief! Jackie dumps the droll ego-stroking of the abysmal THUNDERBOLT and the so-so FIRST STRIKE for a return to his roots, kind-of. The film is fast and funny, something Jackie used to supply in his early directorial pieces like DRAGON LORD and PROJECT A, and I think Chan actually trusted bigger "brother" Samo because the long, plodding nonsense that mucked up THUNDERBOLT, which Jackie had a hand in directing, is gone, and let's face it, Chan's best films in the 90s are not directed by him or his "puppet" directors. Look back and you'll see, Samo brought the best out of Jackie, and he does so here, but let's not be selfish -Chan's entering his mid forties and anyone expecting the fresh-faced antics of PROJECT A or POLICE STORY should get a clue. Jackie shines in several of the fights, and in the asian cut he lends a bit of his "funny face" for fine comedic moments (like batteling mob thugs while a trash can he's been stuffed into stays on his butt!), and the chemistry between Jackie and the gwaillo actresses lends itself to good comedy. Hung's always been keen on strong female characters, and his influence is evidenced here, where Chan's pseudo misogynistic side is quelled. Oddly, Lee Ching Yee is the biggest fault of the movie. She's thrown in the mix to please the local audience, does nothing but act like a primadonna and put a halt in quite a bit of the action as Jackie's token Chinese girlfriend (possibly quell the white New Line suits who can't handle Jackie shacking up with a black or white woman (such scenes were shot but cut). Lee's acting is prissy, stilted and downright annoying. It's rare that I hope a character is killed off, but I found myself wishing her character would just die (Perhaps she was Chan's choice)! Enough of the complaints - while there's no grand stunt set-up that made you think Jackie'd bite it, the action is well-orchestrated and inspired (like Jackie being tied up and held back by Richard Norton's thugs as though he's a puppet, but he fights anyway). Samo's cameo is a riot too. Not bad for 90s era chan, but let's face it, DRUNKEN MASTER 2 was his swan song to the martial arts and suprememly life-threatening stuntwork many grew to love (Chan almost broke his neck on this one though, having to wear a brace for a few weeks). Let's just hope the Synch-sound English version isn't mucked up by the hacks at New Line cinema.... Reviewer Score: 8

Reviewed by: hkcinema Date: 12/21/1999 After reading the review of Mr. Nice Guy by JC, I thought we must have watched two different movies. The Mr. Nice Guy I saw was energetic, funny, filled with lots of great stunts and fights, and it certainly did not suck. I do admit that the ending was lacking and the story line could be improved. But can you name one Jackie chan movie that really had a great story line? The point to his movies are to entertain us by the visual/physical effects only Jackie Chan can deliver. People who go see his movies go to see Jackie Chan, not the "Oscar winning" plot of his movies. It would be inaccurate to say the movie sucked. As long as Jackie can keep doing things that no other mega stars in the world can do (climbing onto a moving tractor the size of Maine, running, jumping, dodging, fighting ever so beautifully....), he will always be the number star in the world. Maybe JC should go back and think about what it was about Hong Kong movies that attracked him in the first place. I don't think it was the plot. [Reviewed by Bruce H. Lee]

Reviewed by: MilesC Date: 12/09/1999 Just awful... Even worse than Thunderbolt, though I never thought that could happen. Although Jackie Chan movie that is almost all action sounds appealing, it's a huge bore... apparently they forgot about QUALITY. There's only one fight scene in the movie that's very interesting... the rest of the movie is "Get the tape!" (chase) and "where's the tape?" (slap). Even the mansion-demolition is boring. Anyone else wonder why it started BLOWING UP?!

Reviewed by: hkcinema Date: 12/08/1999 Reporter Diana films a drug deal and the murder of a local mobhead by a henchmen of Giancarlo. Giancarlo discovers Diana and orders the retrieval of the video, but the video accidentally falls into the hands of a TV program host Jackie. Jackie unknowingly puts the tape away and the video is taken by his friend Romeo's children. On the other hand, Giancarlo's henchmen uncover Jackie's whereabouts and begin the chase...... [Reviewed by Next Magazine]