Jackie Chan is best known for his humor and martial arts. In City of Violence, however, he strikes a completely different, much tougher tone.
If you love Jackie Chan films, you usually like slapstick humor and funny fights. You won’t get either of these in City of Violence. Instead, the name says it all. The half-forgotten gangster film starring Jackie Chan in one of his most serious roles was first shown on TV, but can also be streamed
This is what City of Violence with Jackie Chan is about
Tietou (Jackie Chan) actually wants to start a new life and find his missing girlfriend Xiu Xiu. That’s why he travels to Japan illegally with his brother Jie (Daniel Wu). There, the two quickly find themselves in an awkward situation on the margins of society. They are harassed from all sides and have to take on the worst jobs.
However, Tietou soon finds out that his girlfriend is now dating a yakuza boss. The Chinese man then decides to join forces with other illegal immigrants in order to counter the mafia. Over time, he even becomes the leader of his own street gang and is targeted by an inspector named Kitano.
(Jackie Chan in City of Violence)
City of Violence shows Jackie Chan from an extremely unusual side
With City of Violence we don’t get fluffy action fun, but a tough mafia drama. Although there are occasional fights here, they are more like short explosions of violence than the otherwise often bizarre and funny fights from other Jackie Chan films. At the same time, the film doesn’t shy away from topics such as migration and racism
The focus is clearly on character development. The Chinese tractor driver from the countryside is thrown into the cauldron of the Japanese city. This doesn’t leave him unscathed and even if it’s bitter at times, it’s fun to witness this change. Jackie Chan shows here that he can do more than just crack jokes and fight.
