Very disappointed :(

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

This unfairly neglected '80s buddy-buddy cop flick sees Jackie Chan in his second American role, after the lesser BATTLE CREEK BRAWL. THE PROTECTOR is generally regarded as one of the star's worst movies, especially by the man himself, but I'm pleased to say that now I've seen it, I can say otherwise. This is an entertaining, violent, and action-packed movie, and it's easy to see why Chan himself doesn't care for it – the copious blood and nudity and bad language is a far way from his modern-day family-friendly action star persona. Indeed it certainly seems strange to hear Chan speak such lines so that's a novel experience in itself.The plot itself is wafer thin, but makes some good use of American and Hong Kong on-the-street locations which get the gritty atmosphere across really well. It's business as usual as the two cops go head-to-head against a drug lord who's kidnapped his rival's daughter, and along the way, exploitation director James Glickenhaus throws in loads of pointless but well-shot action sequences and nude women who have no reason to be naked. Glickenhaus famously fell out with Chan and refused to let him shoot the martial arts sequences, but even so they're surprisingly good, with Chan at the physical pinnacle of his career, on the same kind of top form we saw in POLICE STORY. Many scenes are cheesy and hilariously over the top, like the bit where a robber is shotgunned out of a window, but it's that kind of movie and impossible to dislike. There seems to be some kind of Bond influence going on here, with some large-scale stunts and lots of chases, my favourite being the fight on a platform supported by a huge crane, and the cheesy death of the uber-villain has to be seen to be believed.Danny Aiello does his best as Chan's partner, but he's completely overshadowed by the Chinese star, plus he's given a really obnoxious, selfish and rude character to work with, so definitely not a film to see him in a good light. Roy Chiao makes for an imposing villain but is underused, whilst Bill "Superfoot" Wallace is GREAT as the chief bad guy, who kicks Jackie's backside in the finale and ends up using an angle-grinder on our hero! Amazing spectacle here and certainly the highlight of the entire movie, well worth the wait. Ignore the negative connections surrounding this movie and I'd recommend giving it a chance – you might find yourself enjoying it more than you thought.

Review: This is yet another mediocre movie from Chan, who tries to crack the US with this English movie. Chan plays a New York cop called Billy Wong and after his partner is gunned down during a robbery, he's teamed up with Danny Garoni, (Danny Aiello) against his wishes. Whilst at a lavish function, a rich man's daughter gets kidnapped and when they piece together the clues, they find out that the father has connections with a drug kingpin in Hong Kong, so they head there to crack the case. It doesn't take long before the kingpin hears that they are in town, so he sends out his hit men to try and take them out. After various battles with the baddies, Billy & Danny come face to face with the kingpin and with the help of an ex-soldier, they use heavy artillery and Chans Kung Fu skills to get back the girl. To be honest, it seemed like many films that I have seen before in this genre. Chan didn't really use his Kung Fu skills that much but it was good to see him actually act, without any silly comedic scenes. There are a couple stunts that were OK but they were not in the same league as Chans movies that he made in his native country. With that aside, it's a watchable film with a decent storyline and I liked the chemistry between Aiello and Chan. It won't go down as a classic but it's one to add to the Chan collection. Average!Round-Up: This movie was directed by James Glickenhaus who only directed 8 movies in his short career, which included Timemaster, McBain, the Exterminator, the Astrologer, the Soldier, Shakedown and Slaughter of the Innocents starring Scott Glenn. You can tell that Chan was restricted with the amount of death defying stunts that he was allowed to do because of the laws in American movies. That's why his career in the US didn't last that long, because he got fed up with being told what to do. You have to hand it to him for trying to make a movie in English and I honestly don't think that it was that bad but it does look really dated for this day and age, which is why I didn't give it a high score.I recommend this movie to people who are into their action/crime/drama/martial arts movies starring Jackie Chan, Danny Aiello, Sandy Alexander and Victor Arnold. 3/10

i am a huge chan fan, seen all his movies, and while this one is cerainly not his best. it is still a good action movie, with some great fight scenes and stunt work. this movie is very voilent and is definitely not for younger chan fans, as there is also a considarable amount of nudity in here. the movie has no comedy at all, and as it was his second English language movie, he is very hard to understand. but when it comes to the action, chan delivers, offering some truly brilliant stunts, and some brutal fight scenes. most fans bash this movie, and i suppose i understand that if your wanting a typical chan comedy, but I've always loved him as an actor peiod and some of his best movies have been his dark serious one (crime story, new police story, and shinjuku incident). and while this doesn't hold a candle to them movies. its a solid 80's action movie, and i recommend if in the right mood

Okay.. Jackie Chan is the greatest action star EVER! Thats why i bought Protector. Here is some history: Jackie made Protector in USA. well, it sucked. Big time. Glickenhaus was a poor amatour and Jackie didnt choreograph the fights. Well Jackie told Glickenhaus to let Jackie edit the movie. But answer was no. So Jackie went back to Hong Kong and re-made it. And believe fans opinion: the HK version is lot better! but still, its one of the worst Chan films ever. It is a low-budget, SO WHAT? But Glickenhaus tried to make it look like a very expensive one. Jackie does hes role by routine. Other actors suck. Well not every one but most of. Jackie re-made fights, extended fight scenes and other stuff. So if you see the US version in the store: dont buy it. And if you arent a true Chan fan (like me), dont rent the HK version either. Its not that good. But i bought it. And i now almost have every single Jackie movie! If you want a real Jackie film, watch Drunken Master or Dragons forever. But there is one very very positive thing about the Protector. After that, Jackie made Police Story to show how to make a REAL action movie!Though Jackie has made a few bad movies (protector, all Lo Wei movies), he is still the number one and will allways be!!