Jackie Chan Movie: Armour of God
Had the chance to watch this movie again recently after twenty over years. 'Armour of God' is one of the movies that I would rewind and play repeatedly on VCR as a child. I thought I have outgrown watching Jackie Chan's movies. But after watching Armour of God again, I realized that there is something special about this particular one. I was surprised that I actually stayed with it until the end even this time around. I have totally forgotten the story line, or maybe I have never understood it before. I wondered if I have watched it without any Subtitles back then. The audio was in Mandarin/Cantonese.
Still can't point a finger to what makes this one special to me. Is it the involvement of European talents in the movie? That was kind of a big deal for Asian movies back then. It might be because of the locations the movie were shot, mostly in Yugoslavia and other neighboring countries with beautiful scenery and structures. Maybe it's Chan's custom Mitsubishi with weapon modifications and an escape pod that looks like a box 20 years later. I think it's just because of the younger, more audacious Jackie Chan doing his stunts. No CGIs.
One long lasting memory of this movie for me is the 'Pang-Yau' song which is played when Jackie Chan was travelling with Alan Tam across Europe in the movie. I didn't even know the meaning of the lyrics back then, but the melody of the song stayed with me for many years. I only know the title of song means 'Friend' years later. After this watch, I finally understand the significance of the song to the movie. The two guys were close friends who have not meet each other for awhile because of a 'girl' incident. However, because of circumstances, their paths cross again. This 'girl' was in trouble and they had to travel hundreds of miles together and had the chance to rekindle their friendship. Chan, in this movie, is a treasure hunter. The villain wants the Armour of God (a treasure) and kidnapped the 'girl', played by Rosamund Kwan, as ransom. There's also a European actress in the movie, Jackie’s romantic interest.
Other than that, the back-and-forth banters between Chan and Tam were some of the funniest parts of the movie. They were also well executed, illustrating a close friendship between the two even after years apart. I even asked myself, is this movie special because of Alan Tam? Anyway, all in all, Armour of God is a good balance of action and comedy like most Jackie Chan movies. It's also plain awesome to see Jackie Chan in his prime in action.
Still can't point a finger to what makes this one special to me. Is it the involvement of European talents in the movie? That was kind of a big deal for Asian movies back then. It might be because of the locations the movie were shot, mostly in Yugoslavia and other neighboring countries with beautiful scenery and structures. Maybe it's Chan's custom Mitsubishi with weapon modifications and an escape pod that looks like a box 20 years later. I think it's just because of the younger, more audacious Jackie Chan doing his stunts. No CGIs.
One long lasting memory of this movie for me is the 'Pang-Yau' song which is played when Jackie Chan was travelling with Alan Tam across Europe in the movie. I didn't even know the meaning of the lyrics back then, but the melody of the song stayed with me for many years. I only know the title of song means 'Friend' years later. After this watch, I finally understand the significance of the song to the movie. The two guys were close friends who have not meet each other for awhile because of a 'girl' incident. However, because of circumstances, their paths cross again. This 'girl' was in trouble and they had to travel hundreds of miles together and had the chance to rekindle their friendship. Chan, in this movie, is a treasure hunter. The villain wants the Armour of God (a treasure) and kidnapped the 'girl', played by Rosamund Kwan, as ransom. There's also a European actress in the movie, Jackie’s romantic interest.
Other than that, the back-and-forth banters between Chan and Tam were some of the funniest parts of the movie. They were also well executed, illustrating a close friendship between the two even after years apart. I even asked myself, is this movie special because of Alan Tam? Anyway, all in all, Armour of God is a good balance of action and comedy like most Jackie Chan movies. It's also plain awesome to see Jackie Chan in his prime in action.
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