In this entertaining sequel to SHANGHAI NOON, Chon Wang (Jackie Chan) and Roy O'Bannon (Owen Wilson) are reunited on an adventure that leads them to Great Britain. Upon hearing of his father's murder in China at the hands of Englishman Lord Rathbone (Aidan Gillen), Wang leaves his law-enforcing life in Nevada and heads east. In New York City, he tracks down Roy, who now works as a waiter/gigolo. After a close encounter with New York's finest, Wang and Roy travel to London, where they team up with Wang's sister, Lin (Fann Wong), also out to avenge their father's death. Their search uncovers a plot to assassinate the royal family and brings them into contact with many touchstones of turn-of-the-20th-century British culture.
A fitting follow-up to Chan and Wilson's first pairing, SHANGHAI KNIGHTS takes the fish-out-of-water element of the original and doubles it, as both Wang and Roy navigate the highs and lows of Victorian London. Chan, as always, astounds with a series of acrobatic fight sequences that involves unusual accessories such as revolving doors, fruit stands, and Chinese vases. And Wilson once again aptly fills the role of the wisecracking opportunist with a conscience who has a wry quip for every occasion. Meanwhile, Fann Wong is luminous as Wang's high-kicking sister; Aidan Gillen sneers superbly as the scheming Rathbone, and Hong Kong legend Donnie Yen makes the most of his small role as Rathbone's co-conspirator. In addition to incorporating Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Charlie Chaplin, and Jack the Ripper into the story, David Dobkin's amusing film also features knowing nods to SINGING IN THE RAIN and the Harold Lloyd classic SAFETY LAST.
(67 votes)
2.
Better than your average sequel, Shanghai Knights almost defies the law of diminishing returns. Lacking the freshness of Shanghai Noon, it compensates with a looser, disposable plot that plays to the strengths of costars Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson. It's 1887, and odd-couple heroes Chon Wang (Chan) and Roy O'Bannon (Wilson) are in London to retrieve the Imperial Seal of China, stolen by an English lord (Aidan Gillen) who killed Wang's father in his quest for the British throne. Wang's lithe and lovely sister (Fann Wong) joins the battle with high-kicking force, appealing to Roy's roguish charm and surfer-dude anachronisms.
While Chan continues his transition to safer stunts and good-natured homage to Buster Keaton, Gene Kelly and other Hollywood legends, Wilson indulges the party vibe to good effect, maintaining the anything-goes approach that allows silly encounters with Jack the Ripper, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and a Dickensian urchin named Charlie Chaplin (Chaplin wasn't born until 1889, but if the filmmakers didn't care, why should you?). --Jeff Shannon
(62 votes)
3.
Since the end of his adventures with Roy O’Bannon, Chon Wang has settled into an honorable life as the sheriff of Carson City. When he receives word from his sister of their father’s death in Shanghai, he swears to bring the killers to justice. In need of the money Roy has been “investing” for him in New York, Wang tracks down his former sidekick at the Ritz Hotel, only to discover his partner’s high living has squandered the entire amount. Since parting with Wang some months ago, Roy has been creating legends about himself through a series of books extolling the exaggerated adventures of “Roy O’Bannon and the Shanghai Kid.” But while the money may be gone, their friendship remains intact, as Roy joins Wang on a daring quest for honor and revenge in London.
(58 votes)
4.
The dynamic duo are back - this time wreaking havoc in London while trying to uncover a conspiracy to overthrow both Chinese and British empires!
(53 votes)
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