Big Trouble In Little China (1986)

Forty years ago this summer, genre master John Carpenter (The Thing, Halloween, They Live) directed this big budget (for the time) extravaganza blending various genres including martial arts, fantasy, and crime drama.  Starring Kurt Russell in one of his more iconic roles as truckdriver Jack Burton, it was fast, funny, and phrenetically entertaining!  And yet no one really saw it in theaters. :( Fortunately this film did eventually find its audience on cable and video, becoming a cult classic and is now often looked upon as one of Carpenter's most believed movies.  It also features a STELLAR cast beyond Russell including Dennis Dun, Kim Cattrall, James Hong, and Victor Wong.  So let's hop on the Pork Chop Express and head to Chinatown!

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

Transcript

BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA          1986

Directed by John Carpenter

Starring Kurt Russell, Dennis Dun, Kim Cattrall, James Hong, Kate Burton, Donald Li, Carter Huang Chia-Ta, Peter Kwong, James Pax, Suzee Pai, Chao Li Chi, Jeff Imada, Rummel Mor, Craig Ng, Noel Toy, Jerry Hardin, and Victor Wong

Genre: Fantasy Action Adventure

Being that this was a cable staple back in the day, I can recall seeing it countless times....and even upon just rewatching it, I STILL could not explain the overall plot. 🤔 At the very least, it pretty much all takes place in and around Chinatown in San Francisco....our main protagonist, aimless truck driver and podcasting pioneer Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) and his best friend, restaurant owner/dashing martial arts warrior Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) find themselves enmeshed in the middle of a supernatural, territorial battle between warring Ancient Chinese factions. 

And this battle has EVERYTHING: martial arts, lightning hands, floating eyeball monsters, swordplay, open-air whorehouses, flying Generals, machine guns, oversized werewolves who only like to carry their victims (as opposed to biting them), and James Hong’s big baddie named Lo Pan….apparently caked in the same makeup which Spock had before his death in 'Wrath of Khan. Within the first 45 minutes of the movie, we already have a sizeable (bloodless) bodycount....and yet everything I just described is occurring within about two or three city blocks. 😆

You also have the melding of two unique genre minds at THE perfect point in the mid '80's for them to collaborate: John Carpenter doing his first kung-fu epic and original screen-writer W.D. Richter coming off of his kitchen sink sci-fi genre hybrid 'Buckaroo Bonzai!  If you haven’t SEEN The Adventures of Buckaroo Bonzai….pretty wild movie, I’ll have to review it at some point. (Audio clip) 

Because even if I can't completely follow the plot, I'm having a good time for the entire fast-paced 100 minutes. The cast is great lead by Russell valiantly doing his John Wayne impersonation, Victor Wong devouring the scenery as the wise old master on the GOOD side Egg Shen, Kim Catrall dishing it in 'rapid-fire '40's style as intrepid reporter Gracie Law, and of course Dun delivering both unabashed charm and martial arts prowess with equal measure. 

Too many others to mention plus you've got fun, inventive visual effects, bombastic costumes and set design, and a deceptively laid back structure which STILL gives our main protagonists some opportunities to just kick back at the local Chinese restaurant to shoot the s#&t at points or simply gamble. 😆

Best Needledrop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film):

Yeah this was PEAK John Carpenter so you know there has to be some good music playing….from John Carpnter of course!  And with his usual collaborator from this era, Alan Howarth….now this isn’t quite as synth-based as his music from other films like Halloween or Christine but it still ROCKS nonetheless.  A nice mid-tempo groove with strong percussion and plenty of wailing electric guitars. (Audio clip) 

And when does this music kick in?  During a charming opening credits sequence of course as we follow our hero Jack Burton on the road in his truck nicknamed the “Pork Chop Express”…..he doing his podcasting things on the CB radio, it’s a dark and stormy night, and he pulls into a San Francisco market to not only deliver his goods but maybe play some cards with his buddy Wang.  It’s both a laid-back AND lively way to kick off a fantasy action extravaganza like this one.  This track is fittingly called, “Pork Chop Express.” (Audio clip) 

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film): 

LIKE the aforementioned Buckaroo 'Bonzai, Coppola’s The Cotton Club, Elaine Mays Ishtar, Joe Dante’s underrated Innerspace, and Walter Hill's then passion project AND previous episode Streets of Fire, this particular type of gonzo genre mash-up could have only come out during the mid '80's....and like those other films, of COURSE it flopped. 🫣  Remember that this came out the SAME summer as Top Gun, Aliens, The Karate Kid Part II….these films dominated the box office and why?  Because they were clearcut straightforward genre movies with simple, straightforward plots.  

Many myself included like to fondly remember the '80's as a heyday for pure genre films....and it WAS in many ways considering just how many of them would get backed by major studios with prominent releases. HOWEVER....if the plot of a movie couldn't be easily summed up in one sentence, didn't have a guaranteed box office draw, and couldn't fit neatly into one particular genre, '80's audiences often just were not having it. I can completely understand how demoralized Carpenter was when this film (like The Thing) was soundly dismissed by both critics and audiences upon release....but from my standpoint (and many others given the film's now cult status), the victory was simply that it got MADE.  As far as I’m concerned, this film was always destined to eventually find its audience on video and cable….and boy did it. (Audio clip) 

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

In genre movies like these, I have often cited a KEY point in the story when things ramp up, when a key threat emerges, when our hero or heroes suddenly find themselves at an unexpected level of DANGER….I like to refer to this point in the film as the “Shit Just Got Real” moment.  And within the context of this particular detour off of the Pork Chop Express with Jack Burton, this occurs roughly around thirty minutes into the film….and it’s a DOOZY!  I had already mentioned Jame Hong’s appearance as Lo Pan, he of the blindingly bright eyes….well he’s just final payoff of this particular escalation.  You want danger?  How about a violent brawl busting out RIGHT in front of Jack’s truck between two rival gangs armed with knives, sticks, and swords?  Chief among them Wing Kong who’s played by action LEGEND – actor AND stuntman Al Leong who we would also soon see in prominent roles in both Lethal Weapon AND Die Hard the years after this.  We’re getting there…. (Audio clip)   

The bodies are starting to pile up, Jack and Wang are pretty much just sitting there FROZEN in the cabin of his truck not knowing what to do….they’re thinking it can’t get ANY worse.  Well….little did they know because SUDDENLY seemingly floating on to the street from above, they then witness the appearance of three mysterious marauders each brandishing a variety of supernatural weapons.  They are Thunder played by Carter Wong, Rain played by Peter Kwong, and Lightning played by James Pax – we watch EACH of them demonstrate their powers then followed by the camera closes in each of their intimidating faces.  (Audio clip) 

Wouldn’t you know….the remaining living members of those two rival gangs then cower next to Jack’s truck while a few of them start to unleash gunfire on these three otherworldly threats….to no avail.  Yup in case you were wondering, the creators of the Mortal Kombat game HAVE cited these characters for inspiration…..it’s at this point that Jack realizes his only real course of action is HIT THE GAS and get out of there!  What else could he do, what would YOU do….when encountering…..THE THREE STORMS? (Audio clip) 

MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):

Having now reviewed several John Carpenter joints on this podcast – The Thing, Christine, Assault on Precinct 13, Escape From New York, In the Mouth of Madness, AND They Live – the default choice for this category has seemingly been John Carpenter each time.  As he does with each of those films, he undoubtedly puts his stamp on this film too.  However…..I think I’m going to zag a bit here as even though I very much enjoy this film, I think it also remains one of Carpenter’s messier films.  And that’s ok.

But that leave what I believe is a more obvious choice and that would be the star…..now don’t get me wrong, he was PITCH-PERFECT as both McReady in The Thing and Snake Pliskken in Escape from New York but I actually that his performance in THIS film is even more instrumental to its charm than either of those.  Yes the John Wayne affectations are obvious but never distractingly so – Russell is VERY self-aware that his Jack Burton is putting on a semi-regular show of old school Western machismo amidst what appears to be an alarming level of supernatural chaos which Burton has very little understanding of.  And what results is a genuinely fun protagonist who’s in on the joke even when he doesn’t quite GET the overall joke.  For delivering what I believe is his BEST overall performance in any of his several memorable collaborations with Carpenter, Kurt Russell is the MVP. (Audio clip) 

Final Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

Now do I consider this to be among Carpenter's best like so many other fans? Not really - I like it but it wouldn't even make my Carpenter Top Five....and that ok because this IS Carpenter we're talking about, the bar is set pretty high.  Regardless, Happy 40th Anniversary to a slam-bang good time on the Pork Chop Express!

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And that ends another IT’S ALL IN THE REFLEXES review!