Little Big Soldier (2010)
Sheng Ding's "Little Big Soldier" tells the story of an old soldier, who kidnaps a young general of an enemy state and takes him on a long journey to collect the reward. For better or worse, it's based on a story by Jackie Chan, who also stars in it, and does the action choreography. The story, which is basically one long trip through the mountains, is smoothly-paced and well-presented, yet way too conventional and formulaic. The two lead characters are enough likable and they carry the movie with great chemistry and humor that works for most of the time. The supporting characters are unfortunately unmemorable, dull and at times rather annoying. Surprisingly, Jackie's character actually doesn't have any martial arts skills which is kinda disappointing for those expecting to see him fighting. The lack of Chan’s usually impressive stunts in this film, is compensated by clever physical slapstick, such as the use of props from the nature, such as stones, rocks and bamboo sticks, which is very hilarious to watch. The fighting sequences are few and far between, and while handled with competence and quite entertaining, there's just nothing spectacular about them. Visually, "Little Big Soldier" is a winner. Every shot is beautifully-photographed and the cinematography is nothing short of stunning, thanks to one of the best cinematographers working today, Zhao Xiao Ding - the man 'responsible' for the splendid visuals of Zhang Yimou's “House of Flying Daggers” and “Curse of the Golden Flower”. Sheng Ding's direction is quite good, with many nice shots of gorgeous mountain scenery, and some creative camera angles. The biggest disappointment comes from the ending, which is unnecessarily overdramatic and very inappropriate. Overall, Jackie Chan's latest non-U.S. film is watchable, pretty to look at and occasionally entartianing, but it's neither loaded with enough action-packed excitement, nor funny enough, to be called a great martial arts comedy.
- My Rating: 5.75/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
- IMDb: 7.1/10
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