An average movie

I already saw this movie but, since it was a while back, I thought I might as well check it out again. The first time I watched it I actually didn’t care for it at all and I thought it was most of the time more cringe-inducing than actually entertaining. However, to be honest, while rewatching it, I have to admit that I actually didn’t remember much about it. Anyway, I’m glad I gave it a 2nd chance because, now, I actually understood the damned thing. Basically, it could be the cheesiest B flick ever made and you really have to get this vibe to appreciate it. I guess the first time around, I wasn’t in the right mood and I was rather bored by this feature as it felt like watching a cheap rip-off of ‘Indiana Jones’. In fact, there is a rather wild energy about the damned thing and the pacing is actually quite relentless with something happening every 30 seconds. Kurt Russell, who was working already for the 4th time with John Carpenter, was actually pretty good here playing some kind of tough guy who constantly didn’t understand what the hell was actually going on. Still, I think they didn’t really figure out what to do exactly with his character. Apparently, Carpenter and Russell were adamant that Jack Burton was supposed to be a joke and actually a sidekick in this tale (Wang was apparently supposed to be the lead), however, the focus was clearly set on Burton not only on the promotional material but also in the movie itself and he was clearly the main character. Eventually, even though it was a box-office flop when it was released, it quickly became a cult classic and, if I would have watched it when I was around 12 years old, I might have actually really enjoyed the damned thing. As far as I’m concerned, from all the classics directed by John Carpenter, it is still probably the least interesting one of the bunch though. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, I have to admit that it is actually a decent B feature and it is worth a look, especially if you really love the genre.