The Protector (1985)

User Rating:

5.0/10   

Director:

James Glickenhaus

Writers:

James Glickenhaus (writer)
King Sang Tang (Hong Kong version)

Release Date:

23 August 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Action | Crime

Tagline:

Now, New York has a new weapon - A cop with his own way of fighting crime

Plot:

Billy Wong is a New York City cop whose partner is gunned down during a robbery. Billy and his new partner...

Plot Keywords:

Hong Kong | Police | New York | New York City | Thrown Through Window

Cast

Jackie Chan	...	Billy Wong
Danny Aiello	...	Danny Garoni
Sandy Alexander	...	Gang Leader
Victor Arnold	...	Police Captain
Kim Bass	...	Stan Jones
Irene Britto	...	Masseuse #1
Jesse Cameron-Glickenhaus	...	Jesse Alexander
Al Cerullo	...	Helicopter Pilot
Roy Chiao	...	Mr. Ko
Richard Clarke	...	Superintendant Whitehead
Patrick James Clarke	...	Michael Alexander
Ron Dandrea	...	Martin Shapiro
Valerie De Pena	...	Punk Woman
Saun Ellis	...	Laura Shapiro
Richard Epper	...	Man in Bar

Also Known As:

Wai lung maang taam (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
Wei lung meng tan (Hong Kong: Mandarin title)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

Hong Kong | USA

Language:

English | Cantonese

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (US version) | Mono (Hong Kong version)

Certification:

Finland:(Banned) (original rating) | Finland:K-16 (cut) | Singapore:NC-16 | Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Australia:R | Australia:MA (TV rating) | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (original rating) | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 (nf) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Company:

Golden Harvest Company

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: In the boat chase scene, the camera helicopter's shadow is seen on the water.

Quotes:

Billy Wong: [to Danny] Beware of Hong Kong mosquito with high heels.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Jackie Chan: My Stunts (1999) (V)

Soundtrack:

ONE UP FOR THE GOOD GUYS

Blame it on the bad directing

Basically, the story of "The Protector" isn't that bad at all. Although the final american cut of the movie proves just the difference. All interesting aspects of the story in with Jackie Chan is hunting a hong kong drug boss were removed. The plot is just too obvious and sometimes even boring and annoying. You sometimes exactly can tell what is going to happen next. There also are a lot of logical errors during the whole movie. The story is a very rough construction - nobody took some time to care about all the important details. It seems like it was written in three days just to produce another low budget action flick. The action sequences are rather dull and sluggish. All the action appears to be very slow and makes the whole fighting scenes look pretty pathetic sometimes. The bad guys are just waiting to get punched or kicked. The movie loses a lot of its intensity because of that. The fighting scene between Jackie and Benny is decent tho - and the shooting sequence in the bar isn't bad at all. But Glickenhaus totally fails to catch the action and speed of martial arts fighting scenes. There are a few nice shots and locations that fit the gloomy story. Still, Glickenhaus' poor writing and directing skills make this movie just another boring killing spree. Too bad, because there is something I like about this movie, I just don't really know what that is. I don't really think "The Protector" is that terrible, because i'm a fan of both, Jackie Chan and 80s action movies. Anyway, I have to admit that I still enjoyed "The Protector" a lot more than movies like "The Tuxedo". If it's possible for you, get your hand on the asian version of this movie for which Jackie Chan re-shot most of the action scenes. They turn out to be much faster and realistic. Verdict: 4/10