Review of Big Trouble in Little China (1986) by Justin S — 19 Feb 2012

Iâ(TM)ve never seen this movie before but while watching it I couldnâ(TM)t help but feel nostalgic for a time when truly epic adventure movies were being created. During the course of this review Iâ(TM)m going to say a lot of overly positive and exclamatory statements. Itâ(TM)s because this movie spoke to the core of who I am and I found it to be nothing short of inspirational. To give a brief summary, if you enjoy just an all around wild movie watching experience, youâ(TM)ll enjoy this movie. Itâ(TM)s probably one of a very short list of films to truly perfect making a movie that is cheesy but not in a bad way.

In case you havenâ(TM)t heard of the movie (I honestly didnâ(TM)t know about it until pretty recently, but thatâ(TM)s also because I am very behind on watching older movies) Big Trouble in Little China is about Jack Burton, a tough guy truck driver who goes into China Town (in San Francisco) and gets into some trouble with his friend who owes him some money. Thatâ(TM)s a horrible description but honestly I knew nothing about the movie and it was better (in my opinion) to get to experience all the craziness not knowing what to expect.

Go into this fresh and just enjoy it. This is one of the most fun movies Iâ(TM)ve ever seen. To put it into perspective, I recently reviewed Dead or Alive and The Warriorâ(TM)s Way, both of which were cheesy in the worst possible way and all around awful movies. But this movie pulls off what some might consider cheesy by just being honest with the viewer and keeping the feel of the movie consistent throughout.

There are so many great moments in writing fit into this movie that there is no way I could quote them all. Iâ(TM)m sure there have been many references to this in pop culture that I just never understood before, but it definitely deserves mentioning that somehow a team of people scripted the perfect movie. The lines are said with such conviction and movements are acted out so dramatically that the movie comes off as satirical but also really, really cool. I wanted to be Jack Burton at the end of this and it is very rare that a character becomes so iconic after just spending close to two hours together.

Also, there is so much awesome random action. When the first real fight occurs and then spirals out of control, it is just beautiful. I was just thinking the whole time how you would never see this in modern cinema. Not to discredit the movies that come out in modern times, but just to say that this movie captures a moment in time. Itâ(TM)s really just awesome to watch. The movie benefits from being well choreographed but not overly choreographed if that makes sense. The action feels as it would if you were reading a novel and had no images other than what you developed in your imagination. Yeah, I think thatâ(TM)s the way to describe it. The movie has this feel of being in a fairy tale set in China Town.

Favorite quote: âIf weâ(TM)re not back by dawnâ¦call the president.â?

Favorite scene: Towards the end Wang is fighting the big muscular dude and they are just running back and forth in this room and you just keep seeing them pass by and every time the big dude (who is a kung fu master) is just throwing these windmill punches and it is just absolutely absurd that he would be trying to fight that way. And then to top it off when he comes out and sees the body and just gets immensely sad and starts looking like he is about to cry. Pure genius, all of it.

Worst part of the movie: That I even mentioned Dead or Alive and The Warriorâ(TM)s Way in the same review as this movie. For shame.

One final note: The theme song during the credits is awesome. I love when a movie getâ(TM)s itâ(TM)s own song.

The movie is fantastic, go watch it if you havenâ(TM)t seen it. If you have, talk to me about it, cause Iâ(TM)d love to reminisce.