Big Trouble in Little China

1986 "Jack Burton's in for some serious trouble and you're in for some serious fun."
7.2| 1h40m| PG-13| en| More Info
Released: 30 May 1986 Released
Producted By: 20th Century Fox
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website: http://www.theofficialjohncarpenter.com/big-trouble-in-little-china/
Synopsis

Truck driver Jack Burton gets embroiled in a supernatural battle when his best friend Wang Chi's green-eyed fiancée is kidnapped by henchmen of the sorcerer Lo Pan, who must marry a girl with green eyes in order to return to the human realm.

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Reviews

ada the leading man is my tpye
Thehibikiew Not even bad in a good way
Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%
Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
The Movie Diorama Given the title, and having already witness a scene with an asian man exploding, I knew I was expecting 80s absurdity. It's all well and good, but it does come at a price amounting to more than the cost of a number 67 from my local Chinese takeaway (egg fried rice between you and me). Truck driver Jack gets caught in an ancient battle where two girls are captured because they have green eyes. Yes, that's the best I can do. There's sorcery, cheesy one liners and Raiden from 'Mortal Kombat'. A "Chinese Showdown" consisting on atleast fifty extras flipping on wires in every direction, as director Carpenter bathes in the mayhem for a decent five minutes. Considering he is best known for crafting some of the best horror films ever, his authentic prosthetic trademark is put to good use here. A floating flesh ball comprising of eyeballs, a hairy yeti resembling a drugged up Chewbacca and, as mentioned before, a man enlarging himself to the point of explosion. It's madness, sheer lunacy. Yet, it knows what it is. You can't class it as "so bad it's good" because it isn't serious, and that only adds to the charm. Acting was serviceable, Russell revelling in his action glory days whilst Cattrall adds some sass with her character. The screenplay, unfortunately, is lacklustre. Having slept on this film (not literally...or maybe), I can't remember any of the one liners except Jack frequently shouting "Wang!" "Wang!?" "Waaaaaaang!!!!" whilst the script negates all racial context. The story seems like it has plenty of lore, yet hardly any of the fantasy elements are explored. Simply just used for environmental set pieces. It substituted an engaging story for B-movie action. Also, some of those effects have not aged well at all...but that's a given, I don't think you need me to reiterate that for you. Did I enjoy this? Yes, unquestionably. Do I think it's good? Now that's where I question myself. Perhaps it's just not to my taste, B-Movies have never enticed me.
bradleygranz Big trouble in little china is awesome movie i love martial arts in this movie it is so graet
Jeffrey Young I'm not going to repeat what other fans have been saying over the past 32 years. I'll admit that the film has a distinct charm of its own and in that respect with hindsight should have done better at the box office back in 1986. But hey, BLADE RUNNER was a mediocre box office presentation in late 1982 but look at the giant cult classic it became? Here's my two cents. At the time I pooh-poohed the idea of a, 'green-eyed Chinese girl' and thought that was Hollywood hokum. Yet as I later learned in the 21st century, green-eyed Asian women do in fact exist! You just have to visit CENTRAL ASIA to find them. Between 136 B.C. and 900 A.D., Central Asia was the crossroads of the historic, international, "Silk Road". Westerners and Easterners met and mixed in Central Asia for the purpose of invasion, war, religion, and profitable, commercial trade. The long-term biological result included Asiatic-looking people with green eyes. While watching documentary videos of the Silk Road on YouTube, I saw, yes, green-eyed, black-haired Asian women dressed in colorful Central Asian garb, dancing to cultural music. They were stunningly beautiful.
oOoBarracuda Mr. & Mrs. Smith is to Alfred Hitchcock what Big Trouble in Little China is to John Carpenter. I was flabbergasted to learn that the director I thought of strictly as a horror director actually had an action/adventure comedy under his belt. John Carpenter directed Kurt Russell and Kim Cattrall Big Trouble in Little China in 1986. Big Trouble in Little China tells the story of an American truck driver who gets roped into a mythical Chinese battle. John Carpenter directing an action film was enough to bring a film to my attention, even if I was not especially fond of the genre.Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) accompanies a friend to the airport when he arrives in SanFransisco. Jack's friend is smitten by this woman and the only thing he knows about her is that she is Chinese and has green eyes. Upon her arrival to the airport, the two men see that she is kidnapped by a Chinese street gang. When they chase after the girl, they realize that a Chinese sorcerer is responsible for her kidnapping. This sorcerer has existed for more than 2000 years and does not require a body to occupy space. In order to retrieve his physical being, the sorcerer must marry a Chinese woman with green eyes. Jack teams up with a lawyer he meets, Gracie Law (Kim Cattrall) who agrees to assist him during his quest through the underground portion of Chinatown. Encountering new mythic hurdles at every turn, Jack has his work cut out for him in Little China.As noted, a curiosity of John Carpenter making a non-horror film is the only thing that brought me to Big Trouble in Little China. I haven't seen much of Kurt Russell's work, and there's nothing in this film to endear him to me any further. Granted there is enough comedy in this film to make sense, but Kurt Russell's over-the-top comedic performance was hammy, to say the least. One bright spot was the sound in this film. It could be only because it was an 80's film, but Big Trouble in Little China sounded very much like a John Carpenter film. There's not too much to take away from Big Trouble in Little China, unless you're a massive John Carpenter fan and commit to see everything he's ever made. I wish I could remember who told me I wouldn't like this, I'd like to let them know they were right.