Anthony's Film Review - Mr. Nice Guy (1997)

Jackie Chan delivers another dose of his usual brand of fights, stunts, and laughs...

When I saw the Jackie Chan movie Mr. Nice Guy in 1997, I was enthusiastic. Two years before, I became very interested in Jackie Chan's work after seeing Rumble in the Bronx. Since then, I looked forward to seeing more of his films, new or old. If there wasn't a Jackie Chan movie in a theater, I would go to the local video rental store and see what old ones I had to check out. My story isn't really any different from any other fans of Jackie Chan. It's all the same fascination with the action star's style of blending fast-paced martial arts, death-defying stunts, and slapstick humor, often with little plot since it's not really necessary.

Mr. Nice Guy is another one of those fun Jackie Chan movies. It's nothing special, but it's quite amusing. The plot, which is almost nonexistent, involves gangsters going after a reporter with a videotape capturing a crime in progress. Interestingly, this is also where you can notice how dialogue is another element that is just there as filler material. I remember how the same line is said multiple times in the beginning of the movie: "Where's the tape?" Just hearing that line repeat itself is already funny.

But let's get to the meat of the movie. Jackie Chan plays a guy (whose name I could care less about because it's also nonessential) who winds up fighting with these gangsters. There's no need for me to give away every fight scene he's involved in, but I will share my favorite part. It's the one that takes place at a building under construction. Lots of interesting things can happen when Chan fights gangsters in this kind of setting. One gag involves him opening a door and nearly falling to his death. Another is the film's main stunt: Chan getting his crotch close to a spinning circular saw. Furthermore, he narrowly rolls over it.

Even so, there's one thing I saw that I didn't expect. I will say that the final action scene is pretty cool because there is a lot of destruction to watch. However, it's not a kung fu scene. It doesn't involve the martial arts action we like to see Jackie Chan do. Instead, Chan does something different to wreak havoc. Again, this wasn't a bad scene, but I could not help but wonder if the final action scene should have been a martial arts scene like any other.

In any event, Mr. Nice Guy is goofy and mindless fun. Like many of Jackie Chan's good movies, you'll be on the edge of your seat while laughing and moving your eyes very quickly. Is it better than 1995's Rumble in the Bronx? In my opinion, the two movies are of roughly the same quality. And, fortunately, I'm talking good quality here. Even as Chan started to reach middle age at the time of this movie, he hadn't lost a single drop of his on-screen martial arts magic.

Anthony's Rating:

For more information about Mr. Nice Guy, visit the Internet Movie Database.