(ESP-ENG) Hidden Strike - Much respect for Jackie Chan!
Hello friends, good vibes to all.
Who would have thought that we would see a legend like Jackie Chan again in 2023 doing what has always characterized him as if the years were passing in vain for his body. Jackie is 69 years old but in this film he looks like a 30 year old jumping from one side to the other, doing his usual choreographies in his fights and with his sense of humor and charisma intact. I'm not going to deny that both he and Cena were the reasons why I ventured to see this movie that you already know how it will be but you still sit down to see what they bring to us in this joint that we did not expect at all but it was really needed.
Hidden Strike is a film to watch totally disconnected, turning your critical eye away from every detail and mistake that can be appreciated and just let yourself be carried away by an average story, big explosions, bullets, chases and above all fights, lots of fights in the unique style of Jackie Chan. Many talk and praise Tom Cruise for doing all his scenes without the need of a stunt double but they forget about this man who has made over 100 movies where he has rarely, if ever, had a stunt double do his stunts. Add to this John Cena, an actor who is one of my favorites because of the magnetism he has, he is an incredibly charismatic guy and the chemistry he has with Jackie is one of the best in this film. So without further ado, let's talk about this latest production of the iconic Jackie Chan.
This plot mainly involves two people, Luo Feng (Jackie Chan) and Chris Van Horne (John Cena). The two basically once belonged to the special forces of their respective countries and are now doing work for private individuals, as a sort of security and rescue team. All this takes place in Baghdad in a Chinese oil refinery which is under siege by a group of mercenaries seeking to take total control of the oil. The objective is to rescue the refinery workers and move them through the "highway of death" (so called because it was one that was incessantly bombed by the United States during the war) to the "green zone" which is a safe and secure place.
The thing is that during this journey certain things happen that make the plans change a little and is that these mercenaries manage to take hostage some of these people. From here on the film becomes a rescue operation or a kind of extraction in which Feng and Chris have no choice but to ally themselves. As I said what reigns here is the action and the scenes full of special effects, the latter I confess was not one of my favorite sections, understanding the nature of these scenes I feel that everything looked too artificial for my taste. But I repeat, the real added value of this film is the relationship/performance of Cena and Chan, that's where it's worth it.
Let's start with the CGI. The director of this film is Scott Waugh, the same of movies like The Indestructibles, Need for speed and even Vin Diesel's Triple X, if you remember all the effects of those films are very similar, to a greater or lesser extent but there is something in common. The main characteristic is that they tend to be very flashy, exaggerated, very bombastic to the point that sometimes they look fake and unimpressive which makes the film lose seriousness. I don't say showiness because that's what you're looking for, something that attracts attention, but in my case it wasn't like that. There are scenes where certain vehicles look very digital, too many for my taste or explosions/demolitions which do not look as natural as they should.
The story is simple, nothing deep as it is very to the point from the beginning, once you start watching the film you know exactly what is going to happen and how it will happen, there is no mystery because there are a hundred films like this one, so we are a little familiar with it. This does not mean that it is boring to watch, nothing like that, at least in my case I stayed just to see what Jackie was capable of doing at almost 70 years old and I must say that I do not regret it. The film lasts a little over an hour and a half where you see the typical comedy and very particular way of acting of Chan always, it is a very "silly" humor, if you have seen any of his films you will surely know what I'm talking about, that some laughter you take away and that at the end of the day you enjoy because he is an icon and you know perfectly well what to expect from him.
And the last thing to highlight are the choreographic scenes, almost at the level of a dance, which are still Jackie's most important signature. Here we see them, maybe not with the same intensity and dynamism of 30 years ago, but they are still present and delivered by him in a solvent way and full of quality. I repeat, it's almost 70 years and the way of moving, jumping, throwing himself to the ground and doing hand-to-hand combat remains almost intact and that is something very worthy of recognizing and enjoying. If we add to this a guy who made his life in the WWE and therefore all these stunts also handles them with ease, the result ends up being quite good and entertaining. As I said, the chemistry is both physical and interpretative, they combine both very well.
The characters are the best. With Jackie Chan, years can go by and he will continue to give us pure and hard entertainment, I think he is an actor that never loses his relevance, whether you grew up with him or not. He is also a guy that is loved by everyone, a legend. John Cena has slowly carved out a niche as one of the most versatile actors today, for me Peacemaker was the turning point in his career, what he did with that character is simply epic. Here he is the typical tough guy on the outside but with a soft and laughing personality on the inside, like almost all of his characters. Is this combination worth seeing? - I think so.
It's not the best movie you're going to see but it's one that fulfills the most basic needs of what we look for in a film. You can only watch it if, as I said in the beginning, you disconnect for a while. I give it a 6.5/10, I didn't waste my time and if you're a Jackie Chan fan and have ever seen anything by John Cena, watch this film without fear. It's available on Netflix. I leave you the trailer below.
¡Un abrazo a todos, nos leemos en la próxima!
Well my people that's all for today, I hope you liked it.
¡Hugs to all, see you next time!
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I still don't know that Jackie Chan can still feature in more and more movie while playing the role of a 30yrs old guy, it amazes me.
I thought the last one he did which detail the life of stunt actor was his last.
Kudos to him.
Wait, where is Jet Li
We are all amazed at how he still makes movies with a remarkable pace of action scenes. Obviously he doesn't move like he did back then, but it's impressive nonetheless.
And as for Jet Li, I think he suffers from hyperthyroidism which caused him to reduce his appearances in movies in addition to one or another heart problem, that was the last thing I read.