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Rush Hour (1998 film)

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"Rush Hour" redirects here. For other uses, see Rush hour (disambiguation).
Rush Hour
File:Rush hour ver2.jpg
Directed byBrett Ratner
Written byScreenplay
Jim Kouf
Original Story
Ross LaManna
Produced byRoger Birnbaum
Jonathan Glickman
Athur M. Sarkissian
StarringJackie Chan
Chris Tucker
Tom Wilkinson
Philip Baker Hall
Mark Rolston
Tzi Ma
Rex Linn
Ken Leung
Chris Penn
Elizabeth Pena
Clifton Powell
Julia Hsu
CinematographyAdam Greenberg
Edited byMark Helfrich
Music byLalo Schifrin
Ira Hearshen
Distributed byNew Line Cinema
Release date
September 18, 1998
Running time
97 min.
CountriesUnited States
Canada
LanguagesEnglish
Mandarin
BudgetUS$ 35 million
Box officeUS$ 244,386,864

Rush Hour is a 1998 martial arts/buddy cop/comedy film and first installment in Rush Hour film series, directed by Brett Ratner and starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. Rush Hour was a major success and became the 7th top grossing film of 1998, with a gross of over $140 million dollars at the U.S. box office.

Plot

On the last day of British rule in Hong Kong, Detective Inspector Lee (Jackie Chan) of the Hong Kong police leads a raid at the docks, hoping to arrest the mysterious crime lord Juntao. He finds only Sang (Ken Leung), Juntao's right hand man, who manages to escape. However, Lee successfully recovers numerous Chinese cultural treasures stolen by Juntao, which he presents as a farewell victory to his departing superiors: Chinese consul Han (Tzi Ma) and British Commander Thomas Griffin (Tom Wilkinson).

Shortly after arriving in the United States to take up his new diplomatic post in Los Angeles, Han's daughter, Soo-Yung, is kidnapped en route to her first day at school. The leader of the kidnappers is none other than Sang, who tells Soo Young's bodyguards "No problem, just Rush Hour."- before shooting the bodyguard and driver and first tries to grab Soo-Yung but she fights him off. Then she tries to run away but a man driving a motorbike snatches hold of Soo Yung and drives her to a white van, where Soo-Yung is forced inside and the van drives off. Unwilling to trust the FBI, Consul Han calls in Lee to assist in the case.

The FBI, knowing Lee's incompetence, or success, will generate international embarrassment for them, pawn him off on LAPD Detective James Carter (Chris Tucker), a fast-talking and arrogant police officer with aspirations of joining the FBI. Carter has recently caused severe collateral damage arresting bomb-maker Clyde Cod (Chris Penn) and his superiors give him a choice: keep Lee away from the investigation or face two months suspension without pay. Carter agrees, secretly intending to solve the case himself.

Carter meets Lee at Los Angeles International Airport and then proceeds to take him on a sightseeing tour of Los Angeles, simultaneously keeping Lee away from the embassy and contacting several of his underworld informants about the kidnapping. Lee finally escapes Carter and makes his way to the Chinese Consulate, where an anxious Han and a group of FBI agents are awaiting news about his daughter. Later, while being severely reprimanded by the FBI, Carter manages to accidentally involve himself in a phone conversation with the kidnappers, where he arranges a ransom drop.

After their arrival at the agreed drop point, Lee tries to warn the FBI that something is amiss, but is ignored until a bomb is detonated, killing several agents. Spotting Sang nearby, Lee and Carter give chase, but Sang escapes after dropping a rare type of detonator. After showing it to Carter's colleague, LAPD bomb expert Tania Johnson (Elizabeth Peña), then to Clyde Cod, the bomb-maker he arrested, they learn that Juntao was behind the kidnapping. Following a lead to a restaurant in Chinatown, Carter is captured after going in alone. He sees a surveillance video of Griffin evacuating Soo-Yung over his shoulder from the premises, but does not know who he is. Lee arrives and rescues Carter, and they are met outside by the FBI, led by Special Agent-in-charge Warren Russ (Mark Rolston), who blame them for ruining the ransom exchange. Sang phones the consul, angrily telling him that the ransom has been increased (the original ransom was $50 million) to $70 million, and begins threatening Soo-Yung's life. Disgraced and guilt-ridden, Lee and Carter are ordered off the investigation and Lee is informed that he will be sent back to Hong Kong. Finally realizing Soo-Yung's safety is more important than his career, Carter refuses to drop the case and confronts Lee on his plane to enlist his help. Carter tells Lee about the death of Carter's father, also a police officer, killed at a routine traffic stop because his partner didn't help him which is possibly what left him so bitter and self-centered (he doesn't want the risk of having an unreliable partner). Lee is surprised, as before then, Carter has seemed to care about no one but himself. They decide to save Soo-Yung together.

The final confrontation comes at the opening of a Chinese art exhibition at the Los Angeles Convention Center, which Han and Griffin are overseeing, while the ransom is being delivered. Among the attendees are Carter and Lee, who have also convinced Agent Johnson to come along. After Carter recognizes Griffin from Chinatown, he creates a scene by alerting the spectators about the threat of a bomb and tells them to evacuate. In the confusion, Lee sees Griffin talking to a waiter he recognizes as Sang, and figures out Griffin's true identity as Juntao and confronts him. Griffin then threatens to explode a bomb attached to Soo-Yung if the delivery is interrupted. During the stand off, Carter and Johnson rescue Soo-Yung and bring the bomb within range to kill Griffin and his men, causing a gunfight to erupt. In a battle between Griffin's thugs on one side, and the FBI, Lee and Carter on the other, Carter shoots Sang dead in a stand off, Johnson defuses the bomb and rescues Soo-Yung. As Griffin tries to kill Lee, Griffin falls off a balcony and grabs onto the vest fitted with the bomb, both Lee and Griffin hanging for dear life. The vest begins to rip and Griffin falls 100 feet from the center's roof into a water fountain. Lee is rescued shortly after by Carter.

Han and Soo-Yung are reunited. Han sends Carter and Lee on vacation together to Hong Kong. Before leaving, the FBI investigators show up and offer Carter a position on the FBI. Carter refuses, telling them to take the badge and shove it up their asses, and that he will always be loyal to the LAPD. On the plane, Carter realizes the flight will take 15 hours... and demands another seat as soon as Lee starts singing "War"

Cast And Characters

Trivia

  • Chan and Tucker were considered for the role of Wa Sing Ku and Detective Lee Butters, respectively, for the 1998 film Lethal Weapon 4, but both turned down the roles.
  • Though released in 1998, the movie is set in 1997. Britain handed over Hong Kong to China on July 1, 1997.
  • Martin Lawrence was the original choice for Carter.
  • Dave Chappelle was considered for Carter.
  • Carter's Vette's license plate has the same three-letter combination as the license plate of the van that the consul's daughter is held in.
  • At Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Carter shows Inspector Lee the foot prints of John Wayne. In Shanghai Noon (2000) Jackie Chan plays a character called Chon Wang - which is a play on John Wayne.
  • According to director Brett Ratner, during the scene at Grauman's where Detective Carter bribes Stucky for information, there was so much improvisation between Chris Tucker and John Hawkes that they almost did not think they could edit it together as a coherent conversation. There are still continuity errors in the dialogue for this reason.
  • Chris Tucker improvised much of his dialogue as he normally does in his films.
  • The afro and mustache in the photo on Detective Carter's badge were added as an afterthought in post-production.
  • Brett Ratner was a big fan of Jackie Chan's Hong Kong movies. He felt that American audiences would not be familiar with the jokes in Jackie's other movies, and deliberately re-used some of his gags. For example, the scene where Inspector Lee accidentally grabs Johnson's breasts is a reference to Jackie Chan's film Mr. Nice Guy (1997).
  • Elizabeth Peña played a prank on Director Brett Ratner in which she appeared on the set wearing nothing but her character's bomb squad vest. According to Peña, she thought Ratner would laugh and howl; instead he was extremely nervous and embarrassed.
  • In one scene of the film, a couple of Asian tourists ask Inspector Lee for directions to Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles. This may be a reference to the movie, Jackie Brown, in which Chris Tucker's character is lured to his death by Samuel L. Jackson through being promised a free dinner at Roscoe's.

Reception

Rush Hour opened at #1 at the North American box-office with a weekend gross of $33 million in September 1998. Rush Hour grossed over $244 million worldwide.[1]

The film gained relatively positive reviews from critics. Many critics praised Chris Tucker for his comical acts in the film and how he and Chan formed an effective comic duo.[2]

Sequels

A sequel Rush Hour 2, was made in 2001. A third movie, Rush Hour 3, was released on August 10, 2007.[3] Tucker earned $25 million for his role in the third film and Chan received the distribution rights to the movie in Asia.[4]

A fourth film in the series is in negotiations, and reportedly may be set in Moscow.[5]

Soundtrack

Main article: Rush Hour (soundtrack)

The soundtrack features hit single "Can I Get A..." by Jay-Z, Ja Rule and Amil, as well as tracks by Flesh-n-Bone, Wu-Tang Clan, Dru Hill, Charli Baltimore and Montell Jordan

Awards and nominations

  • 1999 BMI Film and TV Awards
  • 1999 Golden Screen (Germany)
    • Winner: Golden Screen

See also

References

  1. ^ "Rush Hour". boxofficemojo.com. September 18, 1998. Retrieved 2006-06-25.
  2. ^ Ebert, Roger (September 18, 1998). "Rush Hour". rogerebert.com. Retrieved 2006-06-25.
  3. ^ "Chan Says Tucker Holding Up Rush Hour 3". The Associated Press. July 10, 2005. Retrieved 2006-06-25.
  4. ^ Jackie Chan Admits He Is Not a Fan of 'Rush Hour' Films
  5. ^ 'Rush Hour 4' is Set in Moscow

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