Big Trouble In Little China

1986 • 99 minutes

About this movie

Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) is a simple man who doesn't believe in ghosts or magic until he's swept into a mind-boggling adventure deep within Chinatown's mysterious underworld. Burton's pal, Wang Chi (Dennis Dun), is trying to rescue his kidnapped fiancée. Egg Shen (Victor Wong), an enigmatic tour-bus driver seems to know a lot about ancient Chinese magic for a simple tour-bus driver. They do battle with an outlandish array of human and inhuman adversaries under the command of Lo Pan (James Hong), a 2000-year-old evil magician who has the power to transform himself from a wheelchair-bound old man into a seven-foot-tall mystical menace.

Ratings and reviews

Imagine director John Carpenter in his gonzo 1980s prime taking on a movie that's part-martial arts parody and part-budget Indiana Jones, and you have Big Trouble In Little China. Yes, this really is the ultimate 1980s cult movie, and one entirely deserving of the crown. Funny, exciting and far smarter than it originally appears, it'll have you wanting to watch it again and again.

Opinions of this movie generally fall into two broad categories: those who hate it, often because they tried to take it seriously; and those who love it, because they understood that it was *intentionally* campy. Let me restate that: if you don't like/appreciate/comprehend camp, this is probably not the movie for you. On the other hand, if you enjoy movies that -- while not being overt comedies -- don't take themselves seriously, you'll probably enjoy this one. It spoofs kung fu movies, adventure movies (e.g. Indiana Jones), and Kurt Russell's action image, often simultaneously. Be prepared for lighthearted entertainment and lots of clean fun.

...I loved this when I was a kid/teenager. It was prolly in my top 20 back then. Definitely worth the rematch after all these years. Plot is a little thin, and action is ok, when compared to modern action films, but dialogue is very amusing.