I Watch Films: Police Story

 

Police Story

Sergeant Chan (Jackie Chan) of the Royal Hong Kong Police takes part in a sting operation in a hillside shanty town. This goes wrong and a gunfight ensues, following which he chases the criminals, all of them driving cars through the buildings, then  they escape on a bus and he manages to stop them, after a series of spectacular stunts. He’s reprimanded by his bosses, a double act of Inspector “Uncle” Bill and Chief Inspector Raymond, then in public praised.

He's assigned to protect Salina, the crime boss’s secretary, who they believe can testify, though she’s reluctant. They stage an attack at her apartment, then when they leave are attacked by real hitmen. Arriving at his apartment there’s a surprise birthday but unfortunately Salina is in a nightie and his jacket so his girlfriend May is upset and throws the cake at him. There’s a long and excruciating bit where he talks to Salina about May, boasting in a misogynistic manner, while May can hear. Then he explains the situation to May, letting slip that the attack was staged where Salina can hear.

The next day Salina is missing and the trial has been brought up; the trial is farcical and the crime boss let out on bail. A complicated double-cross has Chan framed for murdering a corrupt police inspector; he takes Raymond hostage and escapes, seeking to clear his name. Reconciled with May, he follows the crime boss, to discover that Salina is downloading incriminating data from an office in a shopping mall, where there are series of spectacular fights and stunts, widespread destruction and an ending.

An excellent piece of Hong Kong action cinema. Chan’s stunts and fight scenes are first rate, fake glass gets broken all the time, the transitions from gunfights to kung fu fights so fluent that everyone losing their guns for the tenth time barely registers. If some of the comedy is in bad taste, it moves fast, and the jokes that land are good – Chan’s slapstick crossing cultural and language boundaries. If there’s one thing to be aware of it's that the tone shifts in an instant, from light-hearted bumbling to life-threatening hard-boiled cop drama and back.

Watch This: A superb kung fu cop film
Don’t Watch This: Stunts and fights don’t cover the ridiculous paper-thin plot