Rush Hour 3 (2007)

I know that nobody but me really cares to draw a comparison with the Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker movies and the Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson movies, but hey it's my blog and if you don't like, write a comment. Sheesh. What was I saying? Oh yeah so this came out after the Shanghai Noon/Knights movies, actually several years after them. I'm not sure if it's because the movies with Chan and Wilson were Westerns of if it's just that Chan and Tucker play off each other better, at least as far as the box office dollar is concerned, but people seemed to want a third Rush Hour film more than they wanted a third Shanghai film. I've got to say that if I were going to pick which series to continue to build on after the second movie, I would have chosen the Rush Hour franchise as well. Oh sure, I would watch more of either, but I'm glad it's this one.
Remember that formula for the Rush Hour movies that I revealed? Well, they only used part of it this time. As soon as you see the elderly, rich, white man, you know he's the bad dude. They completely dropped the other half, of having a third partner who was female and Latina (or any other non-caucasian ethnicity). The third leg, who is comic relief this time around and only saves the two stars almost accidentally at the very end. That didn't work very well for me, and did I mention that he's a white guy? The part of the story he is in takes place in Paris, but Paris is a culturally diverse city.
The movie fell short in other areas as well, but not in the action even though there was noticeably less of it than last time around. Chan and Tucker are on their game as always, but the rest of the story is seriously wanting. And I must admit that I am glad that I only have 3 of these to watch - I couldn't handle doing a Rush Hour 4 based on the trajectory that this installment sends the franchise along.

Rush Hour 3 on IMDb

Rush Hour (1998)

I guess I was off in my Jackie Chan timeline thinking that these movies, the Rush Hour franchise, came after Shanghai Noon and maybe after Shanghai Knights. Based on the release date of this one, at least the first two came before Shanghai Noon, and maybe all 3. Sigh. I guess Owen Wilson must have seemed more bankable. In some ways, Christ Tucker is a lot like Owen Wilson - they each play very similar characters in most of their movies. But at least Chris Tucker hasn't been foolish enough yet to start doing Woody Allen movies. I guess those are probably a better fit for Owen Wilson.
For an action-comedy-buddy-cop-kung-fu movie, Rush Hour is alright. It is virtually interchangeable with any other Jackie Chan movie where he is co-starring with an American actor, with the possible exception of The Tuxedo which he did with Jennifer Love-Hewitt. Let me straight up with y'all and tell you, I love these movies, not just Jackie Chan, but the whole Hong Kong and American genre of both serious and comedic kung-fu films. They very greatly in quality, but they are all entertaining and have a base production value that is better than the base for other genres, and the top of the genre is on par with the top of other genres.
What is really significant about this movie is it's use non-caucasian actors in all of the key roles. We have Chinese and African-American actors in the lead roles and the only back-up role that actually helps them out (there are more than a few that do not hinder) is a Latina actor. Not only does Elizabeth Pena play a female police detective, she is training to work in the bomb squad - not a traditional female role. All of the bumbling cops and FBI agents are middle-aged and older caucasian actors. I've decided to use 'caucasian' because that is the term the movie uses in the credits, with for example "first caucasian guest", etc. I don't have exact numbers, but this movie did very well at the box office and on VHS and DVD and I'm guessing more than a few of those fans where caucasian. See Hollywood, you can entertain us and get our dollars and still show us a story that looks more like our lives.
Oh, and sorry about all the hyphens, sometimes you just can't help it.

Rush Hour at IMDb

Silver Lining's Playbook (2012)

I had seen a trailer or two for this film, but didn't think much of it other than Robert DeNiro is now doing rom-coms. And that's not a bad thing, just something I thought. When it came into the library, I thought I would view it, but already had a bunch of stuff to watch checked out, so let it go out into circulation. And then I was told by several different people that it dealt with mental illness and wasn't your typical rom-com. Then, I put it on hold.
I really enjoyed this film. I have yet to see something starring Ms. Lawrence that I haven't enjoyed, so no surprise. I have also seen very few films starring Mr. DeNiro that I have not enjoyed, so again, no surprise. They were both delightful, and everyone else played up to their level. Bradley Cooper did a great job and really carried the weight of the movie for a good portion of it, as his character of Pat is the primary focus. I also liked Chris Tucker as Pat's friend Danny. None of their performances seemed forced which considering the nature of their characters is really a testament to their abilities.
In many ways, this is a typical rom-com, and as such is predictable in the same way that these style of movies are. But, you know what? (Okay stop reading if you don't want the ending ruined...) If Pat hadn't gone after Tiffany at the end given her that letter it would have just ripped my heart out. As it was, I had apparently totally bought in to the premise and was anxious enough and talking to the screen, shall we say 'encouraging' Pat to stop what he was doing and go after her.
One of the things you notice about the film, is that it doesn't treat the three characters with mental illnesses with kid gloves, but it's also not incredibly harsh to them. It very clearly shows how each and every other character in the film, the supposed "normal" people are less disruptive perhaps, but at least as fucked up, to use their terminology (and my own).

Silver Lining's Playbook on IMDb