Occupying the space between theShaw Brothersboom of the 1970s and the New Wave of Hong Kong action cinema in the 1990s,Jackie Chan’s incomparably taut and gloriously energeticPolice Storyserved as a bridge for redefining Hong Kong action cinema. By balancing stunt sequences with meaningful storytelling,Police Storyspins a web of sociopolitical and character-driven intrigue, commenting on the corruption of the police force through the narrative of Chan’sBuster Keaton-esque protagonist. By fusing the martial arts expertise of the Shaw Brothers era and the “bullet ballet” of the forthcoming films ofJohn WooandTsui Harkwith a signature silent era physical silliness,Police Storyperfects the stunt-driven set-piece through a balance of cinematic spectacle and compelling storytelling. It results in an aesthetic excellence that undeniably influenced Hong Kong cinema and the action canon as a whole.
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Although Jackie Chan remains one of the foremost figures in martial arts action filmmaking both on-screen and behind the camera, it is essential to acknowledge the trajectory of Chan’s career that led him toPolice Story. After a series of cameo parts inBruce Leehits and several smaller films from Orange Sky Golden Harvest Studios, Chan delivered a star-making performance in the legendary franchise openerDrunken Master, which would establish his balletic fighting style and his comedic approach to action. In an attempt to capitalize on his newly garnered star power, Chan would make a series of ensemble action movies with his frequent collaborator and close friendSammo Hung, including the counterfeit money-centric comedic crime thrillerWinners and Sinnersand the culture clash espionage featureMeals on Wheels.
After observing the on and off-screen intricacies of filmmaking, Jackie Chan finally added directing into his repertoire of talents, slowly advancing his directorial skills through the fairly traditional martial arts filmDragon Lordand the brazen post-colonial pirate adventureProject A. Through patient training as both an actor and a director as well as a detailed honing of his athletic craft as a martial artist and a stuntman,Police Storysees Chan at his sweet spot between being a fresh-faced talent and a seasoned commander of the silver screen, melding a zealous self-assuredness and an artistic command to create one of the most dynamically entertaining and tightly structure action films in cinema history.
Before the initial undercover sting sequence inPolice Story, Jackie Chan establishes the film’s taut narrative through an efficient visual montage of all of the major players within the pre-sting briefing by the police, allowing the film to immediately catapult into the action. By prioritizing a barebones approach to character introductions in order to immediately engage with the stunt set-pieces that audiences expect in action cinema, Chan demonstrates an adept understanding of the genre’s strengths, tapping into cinema history to bypass any boredom that might slow the film to a halt.
As immediately as the shantytown-set opening sequence begins, the film’s antagonists realize that they are being pursued by Chan’s detective protagonist, Ka-Kui, and a throng of undercover officers, which instigates a simultaneous eruption of hand-to-hand combat and a cataclysmic car chase sequence through the center of the town. While a contemporary rendition ofPolice Storywould more than likely mobilize computer-generated effects to visualize the destruction of the small village, the use of real sets throughout the film advances both the physical stakes of the action as well as the mesmerizing tactility of the on-screen destruction, creating an Eisensteinian pure spectacle punctuated through concise editing and clear camerawork.
While the destruction of the shantytown advances the audience’s understanding of the villains’ annihilative power, the conclusion of the car chase that sees Chan dangle from a double-decker bus illustrates the comedic power of Chan’s stunt work style, placing him closer to Buster Keaton on the spectrum of action heroes rather than contemporaneous hardbody favorites likeArnold SchwarzeneggerorSylvester Stallone. By rendering his detective Ka-Kui as an expressive everyman who seems just as surprised to be hanging from the bus as the audience, Chan uses slapstick humor to convey a level of relatability that remains particularly rare in the action genre. Rather than rendering the dialogue as the primary tool for inflecting humor into the action set-piece, Chan’s umbrella-bound dangling from the back of the bus mirrors Keaton’s hanging from the front of a moving train inThe Generalfrom nearly sixty years before, demonstrating the timeless harrowing humor at the core of Chan’s action antics.
In a magnificent act of narrative bookending, the final sequence ofPolice Storysimilarly invokes the physicality of humor-tinged action that punctuates the film’s bravura opening within the symbolic spatiality of a shopping mall, extending the slapstick stunts at the center ofPolice Storyinto the realm of 1980s consumerist satire. As Ka-Kui unravels the complicated conspiracy of early digital espionage being inflicted by the crime boss Chu Tao and his accomplices, Chan’s protagonist meets the men inside of a busy mall to retrieve the necessary data files from the criminals directly. With the help of Chu Tao’s girlfriend, Salina, portrayed with panache and particular nuance for the mid-80s by the legendaryBrigitte Lin, Ka-Kui defeats the antagonists in a match of technological wits and physical savvy.
From extended sequences of death-defying falls through multiple panes of glass to hand-to-hand combat in department stores and on escalators, the final sequence matches the iconic opening in terms of balletic violence and slapstick spectacle. Yet, even as the opening allows for political commentary to seep into the narrative through dynamics of police corruption and unchecked criminality, the spatiality of the shopping mall in the film’s finale advances the sociocultural critique of the film, juxtaposing the criminals’ indulgence in over-the-top violence with the 1980s capitalistic excess that the shopping mall embodies. By interweaving the subtle satirical parallel between unchecked consumerism and brazen criminal behavior, Chan solidifiesPolice Storyas equal parts brain and brawn without sacrificing the sociocultural import or the spectacular entertainment that makes the film an indelible entry into the action canon.
