The Accidental Spy (2002)

Sick Product of a Sick System

Great Film overall

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

The acting in this movie is really good.

A welcome and amiable screen presence, Jackie Chan can be depended upon for clever stunts, fast action, and solid entertainment. But even the best performers have off days, and "The Accidental Spy" is not Jackie's finest hour, despite some dexterous maneuvers and funny moments. Jackie is a gym-equipment salesman, who may be the son of a dying Korean man; when he passes, the Korean leaves Jackie a legacy that sends him to Istanbul, where he becomes involved with drug dealers in pursuit of a highly-addictive super drug.The meandering script by Rod Dean and Ivy Ho is short on logic and long on mindless action. Rod Dean is credited with the English version, and his dialog lags the lip movements of the Chinese cast by several seconds, which is initially amusing, but eventually annoying. However, the script is of secondary importance, because director Teddy Chan's focus is on action action action. Evidently film editor Chi-Leung Kwong had a good work out assembling the fast-moving footage into a frenetic semblance of continuity. Fortunately, Kwong had some good footage to work with, because Wing Hang Wong's cinematography is particularly good and showcases the beauty of Istanbul.However, the film belongs to Jackie Chan, and avid fans of the star likely enjoy whatever he does. Jackie is always fun to watch, even in the most preposterous situations, and an extended chase sequence through the Istanbul Bazaar that features the bad guys pursuing a naked Jackie is arguably the film's highlight. Chan's deft play with plates, tambourines, and baskets to cover himself is priceless. Once outside the Bazaar, his slickly nimble maneuver with a hanging bed sheet is worth repeated looks; he somehow pulls on the sheet, tears a hole for his head, wraps himself head to foot, and quickly transforms himself into a veiled woman. If the entire film were as inspired as these moments, which rank with the finest silent-film slapstick, "The Accidental Spy" would be a classic.Unfortunately, most of the film is non-stop action, with extended chases, impossible stunts, and fiery explosions, but little reason or logic behind any of them. Watchable for its amiable star and his riotous antics in the Istanbul Bazaar, the rest of "The Accidental Spy" is not worthy of its talented lead.

Apparently there are two versions of "The Accidental Spy" in circulation, the most commonly found cut one (which runs about 90 minutes) and the harder to find long one (which runs about 110 minutes). This certainly offers a reasonable explanation as to why the plot of this movie in its cut form seems so disjointed. But it does not fully explain why it is so dull. The tone swings wildly from light spy comedy to serious spy drama - the movie never seems sure of itself. The fighting is unremarkable if you've seen any of Jackie's previous outings, and some of the action scenes have a "been there, done that" feel to them. The climactic "Speed"-like sequence of a tanker that must not slow down or it will explode is spectacular, but has nothing to do with the main plot. On the bright side, there is at least one amazing stunt (Jackie jumping from the roof of a building to the road below using three umbrellas as parachutes!), there is a nice international flavor (the locations include Hong Kong, Seoul and Istanbul), there are two pretty Chinese women, and of course there is always Jackie. (**)

I had heard good things about this movie and was very psyched to check it out as I love Chan's easy going humour and mad fighting styles. But as I saw it I got more and more frustrated - where were the people on the cover and where were the jets and parachute people? Silly as it is with things on the cover that aren't in the film, the dubbing is utterly painful - totally out of synch - and when the story is as fragmented as is the case in the version I saw, one has to wonder if the dubbing missed out things, or if the Danish version has been cut, because the storyline is pretty much impossible to understand.Jackie has some good moves and there are a couple of very pretty gels to look at for a few moments, but that is about the qualities that are to be found in this movie. The storyline in the Danish release is impossible to understand for anyone with a normal IQ, as is the character progression, and the quality of the effects are below par for what can be expected.All in all this version is a sorely disappointing flick and not one that can be recommended, unless you are a hardcore Jackie Chan fan.4/10

Buck (Jackie Chan) is a salesman with dreams of an adventurous life who hits the jackpot when discovers that he may be the long-lost son of a wealthy businessman. But this new father could be an infamous espionage agent who, on his deathbed, made Buck the key figure in locating an elusive drug. With shady characters on their trail, Buck and lovely journalist Carmen (Kim Min-Jeong) must find the drug before it falls into the wrong hands.This movie has a good plot and action. Jackie does again his amazing stunts and gets butt-naked! Ha! Ha! Truly funny while fighting his enemies. Interestingly, beautiful and gorgeous women accompanies him in this drama and action flick. It will surely entertain your day for a Jackie starred film.I recommend you to watch this movie. You will not regret it!