Police Story: Lockdown

Putting the competition on lockdown.

Released in China as Police Story 2013 and distributed in America last year by Well Go USA, Police Story: Lockdown is a reboot of Jackie Chan's Police Story film series. In Police Story: Lockdown, Jackie Chan plays Detective Zhong Wen - an aging law enforcement official who has seen more tragedies than he's able to forget. One evening he receives a call from his estranged daughter Miao Miao (Jing Tian) who wants Zhong to meet her at Wu's Bar. Zhong walks off the streets of Hong Kong and into a San Francisco hellscape as Wu's Bar is a hipster's paradise. While there, Zhong meets the bar's owner - a sly fox named Wu Jiang (Liu Ye) who is also his daughter's new boyfriend and Zhong isn't pleased to say the least. A fierce father-daughter quarrel erupts and Miao's words cut her father to the bone. Before cooler heads can prevail, an argument breaks out between the bar's patrons and a gang of thugs uses this as an opportunity to put their plan into motion. The leader of these criminals is actually Wu Jiang himself who lured Zhong to settle some unfinished business. Unarmed and outnumbered, Zhong must use all of his wits and training to save his daughter and the other patrons, but this hostage crisis may be his last.

Jackie, try to remember some of the basics of CQC.

If you're familiar with the Police Story series you know these films are some of Jackie Chan's best. The traditional series had an excellent blend of action and comedy which is what Chan is known for. Of course age and the numerous injuries from a life-time of doing his own stunts has crept up on Chan over the years and he's had to change the way he makes films. While this is probably raising some eyebrows for action movie buffs, make no mistake. Jackie Chan is still on top of his game and this film is an excellent example of that. He still does his own stunts, but they're considerably less crazy and while his fight scenes have gotten shorter they're still expertly choreographed and Jackie Chan retains his signature style.

 

A dark past?

Much like Jackie Chan himself, Detective Zhong Wen is no spring chicken and there's a limit to what he's able to do. There is a lot of tension in the action scenes because Zhong is up against thugs who are younger and often bigger than he is, as well as armed. So he uses his speed, agility, and his environments, often surprising his opponents who take him for some feeble old man. The fight scenes are very well-done as one would expect from Jackie Chan, but there is also a heavier emphasis on drama too. There is a physically brutal and emotionally powerful cage fight where Zhong struggles against one of the villains who happens to know Muay Thai. Zhong changes up his style between Kenpo, Karate, and even MMA as he struggles to take down this younger, more powerful foe - all the while being torn down by Wu Jiang who reminds him that he's too old to win this fight.

 

Can't fake good kids.

There's a subplot revolving around Zhong and his daughter Miao. At first Miao comes off as your typical adult-age brat with daddy issues, but when you learn more about her relationship with her father this family turmoil comes into focus with painful crystal clarity. While Jing Tian didn't do an awesome job playing Miao Miao per se, I felt she was believable as Zhong's daughter.  This movie places a heavy emphasis on drama and Jackie Chan's performance is powerful.

He's still got it!

Zhong's personal struggles are worn on Chan's face and reflected in his eyes. He's getting too old for this sh!t and there's nothing he'd love more than to take his daughter home and let someone else handle the hostage situation. But he never stopped being a cop and he's not going home until he ensures everyone else does as well. His conviction drives him to protect everyone no matter how reckless that might be. A lot of the characters are carrying some kind of emotional trauma and while some are able to grow from it, others become completely undone. The third act of this movie nails the characters (and the viewer) with revelation after revelation that left some characters utterly destroyed. While Police Story: Lockdown isn't as action-packed as Jackie Chan's earlier films, it's a great movie that puts its two hour run-time to good use. There's combat, drama, betrayals, and a tension that grips you from the inciting incident until the final scene. Jackie Chan may have gotten older, but he's not going quietly into the night.