Arts & Life

‘The Foreigner’ is the Jackie Chan performance we’ve been waiting for

Bombs, bullets and non-stop action sums up the recent Jackie Chan film “The Foreigner,” which premiered last weekend.

This film grossed over $100 million worldwide on its opening weekend, landing third in the box office, according to boxofficemojo.

The movie is based on a 1992 novel, “The Chinaman” and tells the story of Quan Ngoc Minh, played by Chan, and his quest to avenge his daughter after she dies in a bombing incident.

The film begins in London, with Minh spending quality time with his daughter, taking her dress shopping for an upcoming school dance.

After he drops his daughter off in a dress shop, a man hits his car and steps out to address the collision just as the shop his daughter entered is destroyed in an explosion.

Soon after, media outlets receive a mysterious call from a group calling themselves “The Authentic Irish Republican Army” and claim credit for the bombing.

After becoming frustrated that the police haven’t made any progress investigating the bombing and finding the suspects, Minh decides it’s time to bring justice into his own hands.

The remainder of the film follows Chan’s character through his vendetta as he makes MacGyver-like bombs and weapons and follows his targets through various settings to avenge his daughter.

Chan has stated in interviews before that he is used to playing more serious roles in Chinese films, but the character given to him in American films are often those with comedic value.

“The Foreigner” was the serious acting role he needed to cement his legacy in U.S. movies and prove that he will only improve with age.

The main villain, portrayed by Pierce Brosnan, insists on convincing Chan that after serving time in prison he is no longer affiliated with the IRA and now works for the good guys as a government official. He does a fairly good job of convincing audiences that he is a changed man, who is only trying to help, but Chan’s character is convinced that Brosnan’s character still has his hands dirty, or at least knows who killed his daughter.

The film does a great job of keeping you guessing who is responsible for the bombing, making you wonder if Brosnan’s character is responsible for the death or if there is someone else pulling the strings.

There is also multiple plot twists and unexpected character reveals, including an unnecessary sexual relationship between two family members in the film and an oversexualization of one of Brosnan’s henchwomen. Luckily, these aspects are not focused on too much, as Chan’s character takes up the bulk of screen time.

The movie is also filled with fun “Home Alone” like tactics from Minh as he gets crafty with basic materials and somehow makes bombs out of them while coming up with creative ways to take out his enemies.

In one scene, we see Minh make an explosive out of a few bottles of alcohol, some string and a box of matches.

This, along with his unforgiving use of violence from Chan gives audiences a performance never before seen in U.S. films.

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