We remain in NYC for tonight’s feature: Rumble in the Bronx (1995)!

This is the movie that introduced Jackie Chan to America, and launched him to super-stardom. I watched the New-Line Cinema English dub, which cuts some scenes and adds others. If I can find it I’d like to see the Hong Kong/International cut as well.

My first Chan film was Rush Hour, released a few years later, and this feels very much like the spiritual predecessor to that film (Although the Police Story films were probably the more direct influence on that series, I haven’t seen those yet). Jackie plays Keung, who has just arrived in town from Hong Kong, for Uncle Bill’s (Bill Tung) wedding, and to help run Bill’s shop while he is away on honeymoon. Complications begin more or less immediately when Keung learns that Bill is selling the store that very day to a new owner, Elaine (Anita Mui). We are quickly introduced to Bill’s young, wheelchair-bound neighbor, Danny (Morgan Lam), as well as a very silly looking biker gang who ride dirt bikes and a dune buggy instead of regular motorcycles for some reason (the reason is dirt bikes are cheaper and easier to jump off of cars), who are led by Tony (Mark Akerstram, who is credited on Deep Rising, but whom I don’t remember from that film) and the unhinged Angelo (Garvin Cross, who has had a long career as a stuntman in big name pictures).

We get our first taste of Jackie’s skills as he finds himself drawn to a practice tree in Bill’s apartment, delivering a series of practiced strikes so smoothly it looks almost unimpressive, until you remember that there’s no way in hell you or I could replicate it, much less with that degree of nonchalance. He also gives Danny a Sega Game Gear, which he proceeds to play without a game cartridge, for reasons that are entirely unclear given that he only learned of the kid’s existence a few minutes prior. This early portion is very silly, and the English dubbing is downright terrible, but it is definitely entertaining.

Before too long the plot starts happening and Jackie witnesses the dirt-bikers doing a very silly kind of race on the street behind the apartment, endangering Uncle Bill’s humorously fancy borrowed vehicle. He intervenes and costs one of the riders the race, and the cash prize. The next day, after the wedding, some of the bikers show up to the store and start stealing things. This is where we get to see Jackie really show off for the first time. Grocery stores are up there in terms of best settings for a Hong Kong action sequence, and Jackie makes use of the varied terrain and endless props to absolutely jaw dropping effect. At one point in filming Jackie would break one of his ankles and spend the rest of the shoot in a cast and boot, but this fight scene is so rapid and kinetic, it has to have been shot beforehand. Even the stunts he did after the break are phenomenal, and the way they disguised his cast is fairly ingenious.

The central conflict revolves around a diamond heist and the fallout from a deal gone wrong, but before we get to that, the violence between Keung and the bikers continues to be on-sight, with the gang cornering him the next day in an alleyway and batting empty beer bottles at him until he’s covered in glass wounds. Nancy (Francoise Yip), who was the biker that Keung interfered with, as well as Tony’s girlfriend, takes pity on Keung when he staggers, blood-soaked, onto her doorstep. The day after that there’s a fight that involves a giant mobile ball-pit. The beef is becoming deeply silly. After this goes on for a while, Keung, Danny, and a few of Tony’s bikers witness the aftermath of the diamond deal, including lots of Uzis and a sweet car explosion. Angelo ends up with the diamonds, and the massive goons who are looking to recover them follow him into the building where Bill, Nancy, and Danny live.

The action sequences are so good, with every movement being intentional, and the plot macguffin moving rapidly through the space, but never in such a way that you lose track of it. Jackie was in his absolute physical prime here and it’s a blast to just watch him go. Nancy works as a dancer in a club with a live tiger (giving me Roar flashbacks) and Keung goes there to meet her. Another chase sequence later and our romantic leads are established.

Since he’s been running around playing grab-ass with the dirt-bikers, Keung hasn’t been showing up to work, and those same bikers wreck the market while looking for him. Determined to squash the beef, Keung heads over to the punk warehouse/club where Tony’s gang hangs out and proceeds to whoop so much ass that the apparent villain in this martial arts action movie straight up learns a lesson and decides to turn his life around. This movie is so unserious and I love it.

Once the bikers are on-side the focus shifts towards the bigger, badder guys, who are still looking for Angelo and the diamonds. From here on out the action just ratchets up and up and up, culminating in an extended hovercraft rampage that is shot like a Kaiju film with the hovercraft filling the role of the giant monster. The physical comedy is great, even if none of the actual jokes are very funny. There are about a billion and one lazy racial stereotypes in this, which is about par for the course with 90’s action flicks, although I’m curious how much of it is a product of the changes made for the dub.

I’m going to give this one 3/5 stars, mostly on the strength of Jackie Chan’s incredible physical skills and the fact that I was genuinely surprised when Tony just gave up and told Keung “You win.” I may revisit that rating if the international release is less overtly stupid.