It’s open to debate as to whether or not Jackie Chan has what we can definitively call a signature franchise; one single film series with which he is uniquely associated above all others. Some western audiences might say it’s Rush Hour, as that was the one that finally saw Jackie break through in Hollywood, leading to two sequels (with talk of a fourth, although director Brett Ratner’s much-deserved fall from grace might have put that one to bed). Then again, there’s all those other multi-film titles Jackie has to his name from his original Hong Kong filmography: Drunken Master, Armour of God, Project A, Lucky Stars. Perhaps above all else, though, it’s the Police Story series that both Jackie and his fans keep coming back to. The 1985 original was a bold leap in a new direction for the Kung Fu comedy pioneer, who had hitherto mainly made period pieces rather than American-influenced cop action in a contemporary style and setting (the same year’s US co-production The Protector notwithstanding, although that film from James ‘The Exterminator’ Glickenhaus is generally considered a misfire). A direct sequel followed in 1988, and there have subsequently been a further five films officially classed as part of the Police Story series, although admittedly the link gets a bit tenuous; still, while there isn’t much to directly connect 1992’s Supercop and 1996’s First Strike to the original two films, this can easily be overlooked considering they’re two of Jackie’s all-time best. Indeed, Supercop is a firm contender for one of the top 10 action movies ever made by anyone.
But I digress. The focus right now is on the original two Police Story movies, as Eureka Entertainment release them to Blu-ray in Britain for the first time. Existing fans, still holding their old Hong Kong Legends VHS tapes together with sellotape, will already consider this box set an essential purchase; for those who need more of an introduction, read on…
1985’s original Police Story introduces Jackie as Chan Ka-Kui, or Kevin if you’re watching the dubbed version. A young Hong Kong cop, he’s passionate, impulsive, and of course has a bit of a tendency to disregard orders, and all these character attributes come into play when an operation to take down local crime boss Chu Tao (Chor Yuen) doesn’t quite go according to plan, resulting in a huge shoot-out, and a car chase which goes directly through a hillside shanty town and out onto the open road. This spectacular sequence is among the most memorable of Jackie Chan’s whole filmography, and it ensures you’re on your toes right away. Just as well, as things slow down just a touch thereafter, with Ka-Kui assigned to protect Selina Fong (Brigitte Lin), secretary of Chu Tao who intends to testify against her crooked boss. However, not only does this mean that Ka-Kui has all manner of thugs out to get him and his charge; it also puts him in the bad books with his long suffering girlfriend May (Maggie Cheung), who naturally assumes he’s messing around with another woman.
So it is we go back-and-forth between broad farcical comedy (replete with multiple instances of Jackie getting a cake in the face), and some surprisingly hard-edged action scenes (note the cop in the early shoot-out left traumatised and pissing himself). To the uninitiated, this will almost certainly feel very jarring indeed, but classic Hong Kong genre fare has always been about going to extremes, and it’s all key to the appeal. Anyway, it all builds up towards another equally memorable climactic set piece, in which a rogue Ka-Kui does battle with Chu Tao’s goons in a busy shopping mall. Jackie and his stunt team are at the top of their game here, bounding up and down escalators, crashing motorcycles through display cases, sliding down a pole several stories high, and breaking a shit-ton of glass in the process. It’s eye-popping stuff, and hits so much harder than most Hollywood action when you know just how much time and training and how few safety regulations went into it all.
1988’s Police Story 2 may follow on directly from the original, but it’s a very different film in many regards. Following his arrest at the end of the original (oh come on, that’s hardly a spoiler is it?), Chu Tao has weaseled his way out of prison and back onto the streets of Hong Kong, where his goons proceed to not so subtly intimidate Ka-Kui and May in hopes of revenge. After publicly beating up a bunch of said goons, a disgraced Ka-Kui hands in his badge and gun, but soon finds himself lured back to play a key role in a large scale undercover operation. The result feels rather like a Jackie Chan take on Heat (albeit seven years before Michael Mann’s film), as the focus is as much on police procedures and technology as it is on the usual high-kicking hi-jinks and insane stunts. The plot may get a little overstuffed and things drag a bit at times, particularly as this edition presents the full two hour cut; but the wait is more than worth it once again as we make it to the final reels, with one of Jackie’s most spectacular stunts – crossing the street by leaping from a building to the roof of a moving truck, then to a bus – and a grand finale that trades in broken glass for pyrotechnics, with a showdown in a fireworks factory.
Just in case you’re an old fan of these films who’d prefer the lo-res VHS-era cut you’re familiar with, fret not: both the Police Story and Police Story 2 discs offer multiple versions of both films, with the option to watch the new 4K restorations, plus the Japanese and US cuts of Police Story, and the original HK and UK cuts of Police Story 2. In addition we have the expected deleted scenes, archival interviews with Jackie Chan and Benny Lai; and in a particularly nice extra, we have a 1989 episode of Jonathan Ross’s Son of the Incredibly Strange Film Show, which follows Jackie behind the scenes on production of The Miracle, and provides a good summary of his career up to that point, in what most would agree stands up as the action legend’s golden era.
Nor are these the only Jackie Chan classics Eureka are bringing to Blu-ray in the near future: keep an eye out for Project A & Project A Part 2 plus City Hunter getting similar treatment soon.
Police Story & Police Story 2 are released to Blu-ray in a limited edition (3000 copies) hard cased box set on 20th August, from Eureka Entertainment. Pre-order here.