Jackie Chan is revered and adored by audiences and contemporaries alike as the world’s favourite action movie star. His infectious blend of comedy and action has seen him conquer not only the Far Eastern movie markets but also Hollywood’s, bridging cultural divides, and mirroring the incredible accomplishments of Bruce Lee.
Born 7th of April 1954 in Hong Kong to a poor but loving family, Jackie was named Chan Kong-sang. His parents worked for Hong Kong’s French Embassy, and fought to provide their son with better prospects than their own. As with other great names to be borne of the institute, he was enrolled at the Peking Opera School as the age of 7. Signing for a stay of ten years, he met and grew up with Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao - Hong Kong cinema’s ‘Three Brothers’ – as well as other notable talents, such as Corey Yuen and Yuen Wah.
The punishing regime at the respected school is well documented, with regular beatings from Master Yu Jim Yuen, as well as long days of repetitive training and tutoring in various forms of martial arts, as well as acting and singing. These were essential to the craft and performance of the then-dying tradition of Chinese Opera. Chan proved most adept at Hapkido, as well as learning classic kung-fu styles such as Shaolin and even Tae-Kwon Do. Seeing that this art form was no longer held in the public’s hearts, Master Yu Jim Yuen picked his finer students and found them work in film and television as child stars. These include Big And Little Wong Tin Bar, which also featured other members of the School’s Seven Little Fortunes, a troupe of the schools best performers.
Once his stay was over, Jackie, now aged 17, and strapping as well as handsome, found work as a stunt player. Blink and you’ll miss his very early appearances in Bruce Lee classics Enter The Dragon and Fist Of Fury. It wasn’t long before he attracted the attention of producers, and with the off-screen aid of long-time friend and producer Willie Chan, he appeared in 1978 movie Snake In The Eagles Shadow. It was clear that Chan was agile and extremely fast, but what shone through in his earliest films, including breakout classic Drunken Master, was his stunning ability for physical comedy. A thread he’d constantly play up to throughout his extensive career.
The 1980s saw his star not only eclipse that of the supposed heir to the Hong Kong action film god throne, Sammo Hung, but it also saw the west get a delicious taste of the action phenomenon, too. In Hong Kong and Japan, Chan was already a legend, and was an enormous presence on VHS. Whispers of this Hong Kong superstar reached Tinseltown. He took on the lead role in US picture The Protector, but didn’t enjoy his experience. The film featured, as Chan saw it, needless nudity and profanity. Disillusioned, after it proved to be the flop he feared, he returned to Hong Kong. He wouldn’t try his luck in Hollywood again until Brett Ratner helmed Kung-Fu buddy comedy Rush Hour in 1998.
The early to mid-80s saw a slight reversal of fortunes on home turf, too. Dragon Lord, a traditional kung-fu adventure with Chan as the cheeky but agile lead did badly. However, Chan understood the bad reaction and Box Office receipts wasn’t the public’s disillusionment with him; rather it was disillusionment with the tired and frankly dull narratives that Hong Kong had been trotting out for decades. So Chan resolved to devise a break from the cinematic norm. Penning and directing Project A, an absolute riot of action, comedy skits, and Three Brothers interplay, Chan helped to bring about a tremendous change in fortune and revive the story form on the Hong Kong screen.
The success of the movie proved that as well as his solo hits; Chan was not adverse to collaborations. Rather, he thrived on acting and playing with friends and close colleagues. The Lucky Stars series is a prime example. These featured the Three Brothers (admittedly Biao in cameo mode) with such comedy stars like Eric Tsang and Richard Woo (formerly Ng). A group of criminal misfits, headed by Hung, work alongside policeman and former orphanage housemate Chan to bring down heavy players in the Far East’s underworld. My Lucky Stars, instalment two, broke Box Office records.
Chan’s star never looked like dimming, even in the capricious hearts of the Far East cinema-going public. Chan knew what it took to keep them hooked, and his trademark astonishing stunts kept those tickets selling and picture house seats warm. He famously risked death by electrocution in Police Story, and almost met his maker again in the Indiana Jones inspired Armour Of God. A fairly simple stunt, one wall to another via a branch, saw Jackie plummet to the ground and whack his head on a rock. The branch broke under his hand and one trip to Accident & Emergency later and he was in emergency surgery. Chan has a metal plate in his skull from that scrape.
While still churning out a continuous stream of classic movies, Jackie also released albums and worked tirelessly for charity. By his own admission, he was brash and cocky when his star was first in the ascendency. He thought nothing of releasing details of his forthcoming marriage in the press and sporting the odd ingot of ‘bling’. But the suicides of two Japanese fans over his announced nuptials saw Chan retreat and think heavily. From that tragic point onwards, he more than raised his responsibility to the audience he played up to, and has kept his private life and family fiercely private since. Jackie works tirelessly for charity and stops for every fan’s request of a photo and autograph. This altruistic attitude, borne from his sense of loyalty to not only his fans but humanity as a whole, flows from the man in his work and extremely youthful outlook on life.
Professionally, though, Jackie Chan still wanted the western hit that would cement his star with molten gold. Brett Ratner, a confessed martial arts fanatic, thought he’d the perfect vehicle for Jackie’s Hollywood explosion. Teaming up with wise-cracking sharp-suited and fast-talking comedian Chris Tucker, Rush Hour was born. Chan plays Inspector Lee, a dedicated Chinese policeman loyal to the Chinese Consul, Han. When Han’s young daughter is kidnapped in the USA by secretive crime boss Juntao, Lee flies to help get back the little girl. Slick, wonderfully edited and directed, as well as having a cool script, Rush Hour gave Jackie not only a film he could be proud of, but also an American and worldwide Box Office hit. Although the franchise has run out of steam, Rush Hour 3 set in France proved to be stilted and lacklustre; Jackie was finally recognised by the ficklest of gilm buffs. Shanghai Noon, featuring Owen Wilson and Lucy Lui, kept the US hot streak running, as did the sequel.
Lately, however, Jackie has returned home for such films as Shinjuku Incident and Little Big Soldier, and to produce Wushu. He has also reached the level of being able to pre-title his movies, such as Jackie Chan’s The Myth, an effects-laden supernatural adventure. His son, Jaycee Chan, is also trying to carve a career for himself in film and music.
Jackie always had the desire to be a more serious actor and make physical comedy take a backseat, but as he approaches 58, Jackie shows no signs of stopping his exceptional career. As Hong Kong and China’s best loved action star since the legendary Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan’s career is enviable, and his accomplishments as a caring human being will long see his star pulse in the galaxy of film stars. JM
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