I can't think of a moment where this film stops being entertaining or becomes boring. This is one of those rare instances where the plot and the action move along at such a perfect pace from beginning to end that even the exposition captivates you. All the performances were great and everyone knew exactly what film they were making and played it to the right tune and the music is great. A true cult classic in every sense of the word.
Just watched it again this morning. I love when everything just stops and there is an exposition dump. It doesnt come across as eye rolling cheesy. It just works in this movie.
Interesting factoid: Carpenters first test screening opened at the truck scene, with Burton driving and talking on the CB. Audiences loved it, but the execs hated it so they made him tack on the prologue with the lawyer interviewing Chen. Audiences still loved it. 20th Century Fox proceeded to fail to advertise the film properly, so while movie goers loved it, everyone else didn't even know it was in theaters. No wonder Carpenter swore off studios for years, he handed them a gem and they treated it like garbage.
It looks like the studio didn’t really trust the movie and it’s audience enough for it to get the money back. I loved this movie as a kid and when it’s on, I have to stop what I’m doing a watch it.
Even back then, lots of big budget films would get a budget for advertising as large as the budget of the film itself.The foolish executives simply didn't understand or like the film. I do believe that it easily could have sold if they had advertised it correctly. Supposedly they pulled it from theaters only after 3 days. In any case, it easily made its money back in the long term with rentals and VHS alone.
I guess similar stuff must had happened to a lot of great movies of that decade that also flopped, off the top of my head besides this one The Thing, To Live and to Die in LA, Manhunter, At Close Range, Year of the Dragon and Angel Heart were all box office failures that went to become cult classics; I guess a lot of the business suits in charge back then were a bunch of idiots.
@@g.sergiusfidenas6650 Many such films have flopped throughout history just because of the decision making of stupid company executives. Sometimes the executives simply do not understand the film and therefore do not want to allocate a large enough marketing budget for the movie to succeed. Producing a movie is one thing, then comes the marketing aspect. Without proper marketing or distribution, it's pretty much hopeless. The same sad trend continues to this day. Look up Clive Barkers "Midnight Meat Train" (2008) Same story. The movie had terrible CGI because the film studio did not want to allocate more money to it. However despite that it turned out to be a good movie simply because of an engaging plot, a brilliant director, and good actors, etc. In the end though it flopped because the most powerful company executive did not want to promote it at all. Actually in that specific case, the most influential executive chose to promote his own film, which he had produced himself, "The Strangers" (2008) over Clive Barkers movie. That's the thing about the movie industry. Politics.
All Lo Pan wants is two young, hot, green-eyed girls of varying ethnic backgrounds, a clan of martial artist thugs to follow his every whim, three storm demi-gods, mastery over the mystic arts, eternal life, and a little respect...
Absolutely. Funny, I'm just now as an adult finding out how many of my favorite childhood movies were apparently total flops at the time of their release.
***** Damn, that's a long list! Are those in order of favorite to least? I love most of those, and my list would be similar I think, but I haven't taken the time to write them all down before....
thats a huge list dude, Many of my fav movies of all time were total flops or got horrible reviews from Sickle and Eggbert lol But what the fuck did those two know anyways? They shat on tank girl Hated Evil dead and evil dead two Hated willow of all things...Willow??? Thats one movie that deserves more recognition than it gets, one of my all time fav lucas films. Its funny, alot of the thumbs down movies they reviewed became major classics.
Totally agree, and not just because I love John Carpenter. It should have been a hit but it failed probably because it came out before the Ninja Turtles craze.
I watched this movie so many times as a kid my mom had to hide it from me. needless to say I tore the house up and found it a few days later and watched the movie until the spool in the tape broke. thank God for DVD years later lol
1988 They Live 1987 Prince of Darkness 1986 Big Trouble in Little China 1984 Starman 1983 Christine 1982 The Thing 1981 Escape from New York 1980 The Fog quite a run!
When they get into the underground temple for the big fight, Jack shoots his gun and the roof falls in on his head , knocking him out for most of the fight . Brilliant, great movie ahead of its time, think I must have seen it at least 50 times over the years, and it never gets boring, if that's not the mark of great film-making, I don't know what is.
And when Jack finally wakes up, that big guard with the sword comes up trying to kill him. Jack manages to stick a knife in him but is stuck under his corpse for the rest of the fight. All this while Wang is taking part in one of the most insane sword fights ever, running up walls over 10 years before The Matrix.
Hands down one of the best Kurt Russell/John Carpenter team ups on screen. I laughed throughout the entire movie at just about everything Kurt Russell said. It's definitely a film that was ahead of it's time, and I personally believe that if it came out today it would be the hit that it should have been at the time of the release. If ANY Kurt Russell film deserves a sequel, it's this one. I can't be the only one who wants to see the continuing misadventures of Jack Burton.
"if it came out today it be the hit that it should have been" LMAO. If it came out today, it would be a terrible movie and probably bomb even worse. People like you are why Hollywood keeps trying to make shitty remakes or sequels.
It makes sense that kurt russel isn't the main hero. I just saw the movie for the first time yesterday and I thought it was funny that Jack Burton had no clue what the fuck was going on. All the "side" asain characters seemed to know what was happening from the start and seemed more focused on the task at hand.
Russell is meant to be John Wayne, if John Wayne was incompetent but also lacking the self awareness needed to know he was incompetent. So Burton thinks he’s the shit, never realizes he isn’t the shit, but his aloof nature with him makes him prevail in spite of that...hence the comedy. It’s inverted the traditional western film norms and cliches...as seen when he hops out with the knife and it goes flying. That’s what makes the character the hero in my opinion, I never viewed it and after watching this video, I was never aware wang was “the hero.”
What a fantastic film! I remember being 8 years old running round the living room with a large Chinese lampshade on my head and a fire poker in my hand, my brother there with two of granddads back scratchers screaming pretending to be 3 storm characters. My dad laughing his head off, you cant recreate that they don't make em like this nowadays. Great retrospective great film possibly my favourite film of all time. Keep up the good work Oliver.
Also guilty of the same actions! Only my sister + I had to use our grand-dad's shoe horns as weapons as no back scratchers were available at the time! 😆 Ironically we were set for lampshades as our grandma would make them at home, fun time's!
I was 7. I remember running around my primary school playground pretending to be The Lightening Storm the day after watching it. Also remember my eyes pop out of my head when i first saw Raiden in mortal kombat. First time i played it i went straight to raiden. Im in my forties now but those memories are fresh because of this movie, how happy it made me back then, and still does
I think what the studio missed was that Jack was an 'Audience Surrogate', He was us. Jack was the one who had no idea what was going on. We learned as he did. Everybody else knew what was going on except the poor ol' Pork Chop Express. Iove this movie. It was awesome to see Kurt Russel play the bumbling good guy & not the Big Action Hero that he pulls off in other movies. It's a shame it was a victim of the Media. It was & is still a good fun movie.
That's some good insight. And your right; we all like to think that we're the heros, but most of the time we are just being swept along, and just try to wing it. It's exactly what ol' Jack Burton does, while trying to look cool or non-nonchalant doing it, while actually being freaked out inside. Still, he has a friend who asked for help, and he does what most of us would do (or would think we'd do); he steps up to the plate and says, "I'm your Huckleberry; I got your back." That's one thing most people miss about this movie; it's about 1 friend asking another friend for help. It's a great movie all around, and I never get tired of seeing it. Long live Jack Burton and the Pork Chop Express.
One of the very few Hollywood movies with asians that does not offend asians. There's no whitewashing here. Kungfu action, chinese mysticism, and large asian cast, Carpenter did an admirable job.
My older brother and I watched this movie every school holidays, we must've watched it over 100 times and constantly quote it to each other. Love this movie! Very fond memories and appreciate it that much more as an adult 💗
One of those movies you can just sit down at any time and enjoy. I saw this movie one lazy Saturday when I was maybe 11 or 12 and it was so weird and crazy I couldn't stop watching it. I've recommended it to tons of people over the years and they've all told me they loved it. This film also has one of my all time favorite quotes courtesy of Lo Pan: "You are not brought forth upon this world to get it!"
I watched this movie countless times growing up. It's one of my favorites. But until now i knew nothing about the production of this movie. I just did watch it one more time and immediatelly looked up reviews on youtube. Thanks for the info.
"Hollow? Fuck it!" Jack Burton is one of the great comic creations of the 80's. I'm glad this film is ensconced in the must-see category of cult films.
I SO adore this film. Funny, brilliant lines and FX, it deserved SO much better...we should have gotten a follow up to THIS film, and NOT 'Escape from New York'...
I saw this movie as a kid during its brief release and have owned it on VHS, DVD and have a digital release as well. I LOVE this movie for its campy fun, and the excellent story telling quality. I have described it as a modern fairytale for grown men :) ...
At least Russell & Carpenter gave us what I consider to be one of the best action, sci-fi, horror movies - The Thing. What a piece of work! Thanks again for another great video!
One of my all time favourite movies. My 5 year old nephew loves singing along with the title theme if I play it while driving. He often asks me to play the "Big Trouble" song when we're going somewhere. One of the most underrated movies of all time. I also like the similar themed Golden Child mentioned in this video.
That piece of the score at around 11:14 is beautiful, was used brilliantly at the end when Jack says goodbye to Gracie. Gentile & mysterious in feeling. Love this soundtrack & movie!
The bit where he shoots the ceiling and the rubble knocks him out has got to be one of the funniest things I've ever seen. He literally trips, falls and fails his way through the film never losing his arrogance, fucking brilliant.
This was the 1st ever carpenter film I saw, pre-recorded off channel 5; I was 9/10 years old. What a way to get introduced to one of my favourite filmmakers!
I love this movie, one of my all time favourites. It combines great action, effects, fantasy, story, enjoyable characters and comedy, and doesn't drag on like some films.
A few years back I worked at this eatery and the owner was / is a huge fan of this film, so much so that every Friday, EVERY Friday we would play Big Trouble on a loop from open to close. P.S. yes there were a few Big Trouble action figures scattered throughout the store.
I used to rent this movie once a week, soon as I got my pocket money, I'd run straight to the video shop. Couldn't tell you how many times I watched it!!
Just back from a late night cult film screening of Big Trouble In Little China at the Glasgow Film Theatre. Great to see it on the big screen after all these years. It was clearly enjoyed by a very enthusiastic audience, and this remains a superb movie which is owned by Kurt Russell. Almost every line he utters is quoteable.......... great stuff !
This is one of my all time favourite films, personal favourite Carpenter film and absolute favourite Kurt Russell performance. IT DOESN' T DESERVE A REMAKE!!!! It's that good.
This is my top favorite movie. First time I saw this I was 5 years old on VHS and amazed by the action, comedic sarcasm from Jack Burton and how it could mix horror, action and comedy so well.
I remember taping this on VHS when it was on television in the late 80s, and must have watched it at least 20 times. I'm blown away to learn it bombed at the box office. It had all the elements that make a great, exciting, and marketable flick: action, adventure, interesting characters, humour, special effects, an exotic cultural backdrop... not to mention Kim Cattrall's pretty easy on the eyes in this, too. I guess it didn't even get enough marketing budget to get an initial audience to spread positive word of mouth.
On so many levels this movie is great and your review is fantastic. The one liners and memorable lines in this movie are still being used by me and my cohorts o n a daily basis. Kurt is, as always, fantastic. Dennis is a wonderful hero. James does a super job as Lo Pan (I wonder if James has done more movies and tv than even John Wayne). This movie is my guilty pleasure and can watch it over and over again.
I also have watched this movie countless times and you are right, it never gets boring. There was a time in my life my TV ran nothing but Big Trouble in Little China. I could watch this movie every day for the rest of my life and never get bored. In fact, that sounds like a great idea!
1986. i was 13. went to the moviehouse to see this movie. my bud and i, the ONLY two patrons in the auditorium, walked out after about 40mins or so, and spent the rest of our time, til my mom returned to pick us up, in the arcade. revisited it about 4yrs ago and loved it.
For those wondering, the God that Lo Pan must appease is "Cangdi". He is known as the "God of the East" and the "Jade Emperor" in Chinese mysticism. I keep seeing online that the deity was being labeled as "unknown" and "probably made up for the film". He has many names and is one of the "Wufang Shangdi" or 5 great cosmic Gods in Chinese mysticism. Additionally, the character of Lo Pan is based on the ancient Chinese inventor and merchant Lu Ban, the major difference being that the actual character in Chinese history is considered a wise cultural hero. The only things they have in common are that they were both merchants and practiced mysticism.
The last 30 minutes is some of the most entertaining in all of cinema with both laughs and crazy action. I just be watched it tonight for the first time ever. It is a cool movie with interesting effects. Great job
IMO, the best 'quote of quotes' from this classic: "You people sit tight, hold the fort, and keep the home fires burning. And if we're not back by dawn...call the president." 😂
I love everything about this movie to the point I want to cosplay as one of the ladies when they are in their wedding/ceremony dresses towards the end. It’s such a wonderfully entertaining movie. The story still engages me to this day.
Oh yeah the commentary track is great. Pretty much all the commentaries Carpenter has provided have been very insightful. I would love for John and Russell to do one more film. It has to be Escape from Earth!.
The juxtaposition between Dun's roles in BTiLC and PoD really demonstrates his versatility. He's one of the many character actors who deserve a lot more credit for their talent than they generally receive.
I was a teen when it came out and loved it and still love it. BTILC is the pinnacle of enjoyable movie-going and should and could get the Rocky Horror treatment if theaters would show it.
I finally decided to buy Big Trouble after watching this review and haven't regretted it for a second. It's one of the most creative comedies I've seen, being able to incorporate so many themes and movie genres all into one, and putting it all together pretty seamlessly. As funny as Kurt Russell is, as well as the the rest of the cast, I really think James Hong steals the show as Lo Pan. He's got some absolutely stellar lines, and his acting is so wonderfully over the top.
Dr. Forrester Wow, you're just now seeing this film? I'm a bit jealous. I grew up with this movie, and I wish I could recapture the feeling I had when I saw it for the first time, not knowing what it was or what it was about. Highly creative, unique, and most importantly FUN! Just like the first Ghostbusters. Definitely a toss up between Hong and Russell, but I've gotta give it up to Kim Cattrall as well!!
I join the many of us here in saying that is been my favorite film for the last 25+ years. Me and my friends do the Chang Sing gang sign at bars, annually we'll do "may the wings of liberty never lose a feather" speech over a round of shots. David Lo Pan is such a fun villain, that I think that really highlights the film and should of gotten a mention in the review. Regardless, the reviewer got it right, especially with it being one of a kind. INDEED!!
That floor grate always reminds me of a giant waffle ? this film is so entertaining to watch , so much better than a lot of films these days . great review .
Great review and thanks for the post. I saw this movie when it was released on a rainy day in '86. I absolutely loved it and when VHS came out, it was literally one of the first movies I rented; I think I even rented the VHS unit too! This is one of the best films around and is one of my all time favorites. Any time there's a rainy day, I go to the basement, turn down the lights, and watch this film with some popcorn - "Have you paid your dues Jack? Yes sir, the check is in the mail" Cheers!
Easily one of the best, most entertaining action films of my lifetime. The commentary with Russell and Carpenter is better than most movies. I just played this for my daughter last week (she's 12) and she was on the edge of her seat he whole time. She was too pumped to go to sleep.
I can't think of a moment where this film stops being entertaining or becomes boring. This is one of those rare instances where the plot and the action move along at such a perfect pace from beginning to end that even the exposition captivates you. All the performances were great and everyone knew exactly what film they were making and played it to the right tune and the music is great. A true cult classic in every sense of the word.
It never slows down
I agree 100 percent
Just watched it again this morning. I love when everything just stops and there is an exposition dump. It doesnt come across as eye rolling cheesy. It just works in this movie.
Yeah, this is one of my favorite Movies ... you can watch it once a year, and always find entertainment with it. One of those rare ones.
Agreed this and the first terminator movie are two I can think of where it never slows down and never stops entertaining you
Interesting factoid: Carpenters first test screening opened at the truck scene, with Burton driving and talking on the CB. Audiences loved it, but the execs hated it so they made him tack on the prologue with the lawyer interviewing Chen. Audiences still loved it. 20th Century Fox proceeded to fail to advertise the film properly, so while movie goers loved it, everyone else didn't even know it was in theaters. No wonder Carpenter swore off studios for years, he handed them a gem and they treated it like garbage.
It looks like the studio didn’t really trust the movie and it’s audience enough for it to get the money back. I loved this movie as a kid and when it’s on, I have to stop what I’m doing a watch it.
Even back then, lots of big budget films would get a budget for advertising as large as the budget of the film itself.The foolish executives simply didn't understand or like the film. I do believe that it easily could have sold if they had advertised it correctly. Supposedly they pulled it from theaters only after 3 days. In any case, it easily made its money back in the long term with rentals and VHS alone.
Those studio executives deserve to be whipped in the streets, fucking shameful!
I guess similar stuff must had happened to a lot of great movies of that decade that also flopped, off the top of my head besides this one The Thing, To Live and to Die in LA, Manhunter, At Close Range, Year of the Dragon and Angel Heart were all box office failures that went to become cult classics; I guess a lot of the business suits in charge back then were a bunch of idiots.
@@g.sergiusfidenas6650 Many such films have flopped throughout history just because of the decision making of stupid company executives. Sometimes the executives simply do not understand the film and therefore do not want to allocate a large enough marketing budget for the movie to succeed. Producing a movie is one thing, then comes the marketing aspect. Without proper marketing or distribution, it's pretty much hopeless. The same sad trend continues to this day. Look up Clive Barkers "Midnight Meat Train" (2008) Same story. The movie had terrible CGI because the film studio did not want to allocate more money to it. However despite that it turned out to be a good movie simply because of an engaging plot, a brilliant director, and good actors, etc. In the end though it flopped because the most powerful company executive did not want to promote it at all. Actually in that specific case, the most influential executive chose to promote his own film, which he had produced himself, "The Strangers" (2008) over Clive Barkers movie. That's the thing about the movie industry. Politics.
All the Dude wants is his truck back.
+harveybirdman74 Not a bad summary of the film :)
His Rug..
All Lo Pan wants is two young, hot, green-eyed girls of varying ethnic backgrounds, a clan of martial artist thugs to follow his every whim, three storm demi-gods, mastery over the mystic arts, eternal life, and a little respect...
Saint Hugh Mungus That rug man, it really tied the room together.
Good ol' Porkchop Express ⛟
Hard to believe this was a flop. sigh, such a great flick and it still holds up today.
Absolutely.
Funny, I'm just now as an adult finding out how many of my favorite childhood movies were apparently total flops at the time of their release.
***** Damn, that's a long list! Are those in order of favorite to least?
I love most of those, and my list would be similar I think, but I haven't taken the time to write them all down before....
A lot of Carpenter films were not successful initially. A lot of them gained their deserved status later on home video.
thats a huge list dude,
Many of my fav movies of all time were total flops or got horrible reviews from Sickle and Eggbert lol But what the fuck did those two know anyways?
They shat on tank girl
Hated Evil dead and evil dead two
Hated willow of all things...Willow???
Thats one movie that deserves more recognition than it gets,
one of my all time fav lucas films.
Its funny, alot of the thumbs down movies they reviewed became major classics.
Totally agree, and not just because I love John Carpenter. It should have been a hit but it failed probably because it came out before the Ninja Turtles craze.
one of my favorite films as a kid. i watched it so many times.
Such a fantastic movie, right?
I watched this movie so many times as a kid my mom had to hide it from me. needless to say I tore the house up and found it a few days later and watched the movie until the spool in the tape broke. thank God for DVD years later lol
Funny & exciting!
The "Hollow? Hollow. Fuck it!" scene still cracks me up years later. It's perfectly timed.
Lol the part where he opens the door and then immediately closes it, bc theres goons on the other side made laugh out loud.
I recently saw this movie on blue ray and it still kicks ass.It doesn't need a remake cuz it is fine the way it is.
So far yes.
+John Avenger fuck, I hope they don't screw it... but they probably will....
+DocStrange0123 Yes, they probably will, but I am excited to see what they do. Could be awesome, you never know.
Yes indeed.They need to stop this.No reboots can be better than the originals.
The atmosphere would be really difficult to recreate.
1988 They Live
1987 Prince of Darkness
1986 Big Trouble in Little China
1984 Starman
1983 Christine
1982 The Thing
1981 Escape from New York
1980 The Fog
quite a run!
1979 Elvis
1978 Halloween
1978 Someone's Watching Me!
1976 Assault on Precinct 13
1974 Dark Star
What about Dark Star, Assault on Precinct 13 & Halloween?
@@christopherritenour2330 And Someone's Watching You and Memoirs of an Invisible Man
Even carpenter would tell u to not talk about the fog
@@harleymarcus5780 unfortunate, as the fog is a great movie. i doubt anyone else would be able to pull it off.
this movie is a perfect 10 in my mind
I agree
The check is in the mail
When they get into the underground temple for the big fight, Jack shoots his gun and the roof falls in on his head , knocking him out for most of the fight . Brilliant, great movie ahead of its time, think I must have seen it at least 50 times over the years, and it never gets boring, if that's not the mark of great film-making, I don't know what is.
And when Jack finally wakes up, that big guard with the sword comes up trying to kill him. Jack manages to stick a knife in him but is stuck under his corpse for the rest of the fight. All this while Wang is taking part in one of the most insane sword fights ever, running up walls over 10 years before The Matrix.
Hands down one of the best Kurt Russell/John Carpenter team ups on screen. I laughed throughout the entire movie at just about everything Kurt Russell said. It's definitely a film that was ahead of it's time, and I personally believe that if it came out today it would be the hit that it should have been at the time of the release. If ANY Kurt Russell film deserves a sequel, it's this one. I can't be the only one who wants to see the continuing misadventures of Jack Burton.
They should re-release it to theaters
If they ever re-release this in theatres I'll call off work and drive to wherever it's playing
This movie is HANDS DOWN my all-time favorite John Carpenter movie
@Mac Tex flex capacitor Gremlins definitely deserves a third film.
"if it came out today it be the hit that it should have been"
LMAO. If it came out today, it would be a terrible movie and probably bomb even worse. People like you are why Hollywood keeps trying to make shitty remakes or sequels.
"Are you ready?"
"I was born ready"
"Everybody sit tight and keep the homefires burning. If I'm not back in an hour, call the president."
hollow? hollow! fuck it!
Ol' Jack always says, 'What the hell?'
Reflexes boys. Reflexes
A treasure trove of great quotes in this one....
Big Trouble In Little China. Is the kind of film you either "get" or you "don't get"... It was way ahead of its time.
Yeah, I can easily see this made in the 90s instead.
It makes sense that kurt russel isn't the main hero. I just saw the movie for the first time yesterday and I thought it was funny that Jack Burton had no clue what the fuck was going on. All the "side" asain characters seemed to know what was happening from the start and seemed more focused on the task at hand.
That's what's great about it. Jack is the sidekick but film is focused from his perspective.
Russell is meant to be John Wayne, if John Wayne was incompetent but also lacking the self awareness needed to know he was incompetent. So Burton thinks he’s the shit, never realizes he isn’t the shit, but his aloof nature with him makes him prevail in spite of that...hence the comedy. It’s inverted the traditional western film norms and cliches...as seen when he hops out with the knife and it goes flying. That’s what makes the character the hero in my opinion, I never viewed it and after watching this video, I was never aware wang was “the hero.”
What a fantastic film! I remember being 8 years old running round the living room with a large Chinese lampshade on my head and a fire poker in my hand, my brother there with two of granddads back scratchers screaming pretending to be 3 storm characters. My dad laughing his head off, you cant recreate that they don't make em like this nowadays. Great retrospective great film possibly my favourite film of all time. Keep up the good work Oliver.
Also guilty of the same actions! Only my sister + I had to use our grand-dad's shoe horns as weapons as no back scratchers were available at the time! 😆 Ironically we were set for lampshades as our grandma would make them at home, fun time's!
All in the reflexes
I was 7. I remember running around my primary school playground pretending to be The Lightening Storm the day after watching it. Also remember my eyes pop out of my head when i first saw Raiden in mortal kombat. First time i played it i went straight to raiden. Im in my forties now but those memories are fresh because of this movie, how happy it made me back then, and still does
I think what the studio missed was that Jack was an 'Audience Surrogate', He was us. Jack was the one who had no idea what was going on. We learned as he did. Everybody else knew what was going on except the poor ol' Pork Chop Express. Iove this movie. It was awesome to see Kurt Russel play the bumbling good guy & not the Big Action Hero that he pulls off in other movies. It's a shame it was a victim of the Media. It was & is still a good fun movie.
That's some good insight. And your right; we all like to think that we're the heros, but most of the time we are just being swept along, and just try to wing it.
It's exactly what ol' Jack Burton does, while trying to look cool or non-nonchalant doing it, while actually being freaked out inside.
Still, he has a friend who asked for help, and he does what most of us would do (or would think we'd do); he steps up to the plate and says, "I'm your Huckleberry; I got your back." That's one thing most people miss about this movie; it's about 1 friend asking another friend for help.
It's a great movie all around, and I never get tired of seeing it.
Long live Jack Burton and the Pork Chop Express.
Some movies are ridiculously awesome.
+yegenek Like Flash Gordon.
All of John Carpenter's movies from 1974 to 1988
"It's all in the reflexes"
hollow?..hollow!.....Fuck it! (knifes the wall) xD classic
I say this every time I bang on the wall looking for the wall-stud.
Happy 30 years Big Trouble in Little China :)
that statement makes me feel really old
Scott Mantooth
Well 2 make it worst 4 u I was born 2 years after this movie came out ;)
JayDee284 has it really been thirty years? time to celebrate with some green flames...
I must've watched this film a thousand times and then a thousand more. I love it.
One of the very few Hollywood movies with asians that does not offend asians. There's no whitewashing here. Kungfu action, chinese mysticism, and large asian cast, Carpenter did an admirable job.
Sitou Dien You should watch Carpenter's Prince of Darkness. He uses much of the same cast.
@@dadeleemurphy85 Or Whitewashing, racist dickhead.
LargeChief The fuck is Blackwashing?
@@rickyclover9393 didn't ask
@@SteymarStark Fuck you talking about? So 5 month old conversation. Fuck off, dude.
I would put this movie on Captain America's list of things to see. Lol. Good job Mr.Harper
dada bubz no doubt!
My older brother and I watched this movie every school holidays, we must've watched it over 100 times and constantly quote it to each other.
Love this movie! Very fond memories and appreciate it that much more as an adult 💗
While growing up, this was one of those movies that when it was on TV, I would stop and watch it every time.
One of my favourite films of All Time! The Three Storms Entrance is just amazing .. I love this movie!!
so many great and quotable lines in this amazingly fun and awesome film...one of my all time personal favorites
One of those movies you can just sit down at any time and enjoy. I saw this movie one lazy Saturday when I was maybe 11 or 12 and it was so weird and crazy I couldn't stop watching it. I've recommended it to tons of people over the years and they've all told me they loved it.
This film also has one of my all time favorite quotes courtesy of Lo Pan:
"You are not brought forth upon this world to get it!"
altraferne Chinese girls don’t have green eyes
I watched this movie countless times growing up. It's one of my favorites.
But until now i knew nothing about the production of this movie. I just did watch it one more time and immediatelly looked up reviews on youtube. Thanks for the info.
"Hollow? Fuck it!" Jack Burton is one of the great comic creations of the 80's. I'm glad this film is ensconced in the must-see category of cult films.
Dont care...this movie is epic!
I SO adore this film.
Funny, brilliant lines and FX, it deserved SO much better...we should have gotten a follow up to THIS film, and NOT 'Escape from New York'...
Agree, even though I actually like ESCAPE FROM L.A.
Escape from little china kkkk
saw this at a drive in with some mates in 86 - we all loved it - great fun
I AM WACHING ALL THE RETROSPECTIVE REVIEWS IN A ROW RIGHT NOW I JUST FOUND THIS CHANNEL CANT STOP!!!!!!!!
Ok i watched them all a long time ago re-watching then again now XD
@@PhantomTales Haha thats what i did ages ago when i found Olivers channel and im going to rewatch everything again.
I first saw [Big Trouble in Little China] back in the 80s, still love it to this day!!!
I was able to watch this in 1987 when I was in the 6th Grade. I loved it!
One of my all time favourite movies. Watched it so many times.
6:42. My favorite Jack Burton moment of the film. He seriously had no clue what he was doing. And it was excellent.
alucard624
Dude watch it in slow motion, its even better :-)
I saw this movie as a kid during its brief release and have owned it on VHS, DVD and have a digital release as well. I LOVE this movie for its campy fun, and the excellent story telling quality. I have described it as a modern fairytale for grown men :) ...
"What's that?"
"Black blood of the Earth."
"You mean oil?"
"I mean black blood of the Earth."
That, and "It will come out no more!
"
"What? What will come out no more?"
“We have a lot of hells.”
At least Russell & Carpenter gave us what I consider to be one of the best action, sci-fi, horror movies - The Thing. What a piece of work! Thanks again for another great video!
I still watch this several times a year.
one of my favourite movies...i saw 3 times in the cinemas...and have seen it alot since. never gets boring :) thanks for excellent review.
Best $5 bargain dvd ive ever purchased
One of my all time favourite movies.
My 5 year old nephew loves singing along with the title theme if I play it while driving.
He often asks me to play the "Big Trouble" song when we're going somewhere.
One of the most underrated movies of all time. I also like the similar themed Golden Child mentioned in this video.
one of my top 10! any kid born in the 80's should remember this outstanding movie! I hope there will be a sequel one day!!!
One of my ALL TIME favourite movies! I remember seeing Trailers in the UK for this on VHS but nothing else
one of my top 5 films, great job on the retrospective
had this movie on my vhs tapes along with Enemy Mine and The Last Dragon.
That piece of the score at around 11:14 is beautiful, was used brilliantly at the end when Jack says goodbye to Gracie. Gentile & mysterious in feeling. Love this soundtrack & movie!
The bit where he shoots the ceiling and the rubble knocks him out has got to be one of the funniest things I've ever seen. He literally trips, falls and fails his way through the film never losing his arrogance, fucking brilliant.
I've been waiting my whole life for someone to pull a knife on me just so I can say, "where'd you get that?"
I always come back to this review from time to time. always a good watch, hope everyone is doing well!
I'm 18 years old and have loved this movie, being even a favorite all time movie even from childhood LOVE IT!
I've said it before and I'll say it again, "favorite movie ever!"
coming back 5 yrs later to say this movie is still One of kind!
I'm 18 and I love old school film making and 80s movies, screw modern action movies
Thank you! Another person I can relate to!
Im 14 and i love that things too :D
@@edithvaz4452 same mydude
Have this in my collection.
This was the 1st ever carpenter film I saw, pre-recorded off channel 5; I was 9/10 years old. What a way to get introduced to one of my favourite filmmakers!
I love this movie, one of my all time favourites. It combines great action, effects, fantasy, story, enjoyable characters and comedy, and doesn't drag on like some films.
Great retrospective. This is why I love the 80's and John Carpenters movies still rock. Classic.
10 out of 10. One of the classics.
this was an awesome movie. its one of those movies where if you come upon it while flipping the channel, you'll watch! well deserved classic.
I got this movie on blu ray and I still love it.
A few years back I worked at this eatery and the owner was / is a huge fan of this film, so much so that every Friday, EVERY Friday we would play Big Trouble on a loop from open to close.
P.S. yes there were a few Big Trouble action figures scattered throughout the store.
I used to rent this movie once a week, soon as I got my pocket money, I'd run straight to the video shop. Couldn't tell you how many times I watched it!!
You are not alone. I am in good company.
Holy shit this is a fantastic review. Here, have another sub.
One of my all time favorites
Just back from a late night cult film screening of Big Trouble In Little China at the Glasgow Film Theatre. Great to see it on the big screen after all these years. It was clearly enjoyed by a very enthusiastic audience, and this remains a superb movie which is owned by Kurt Russell. Almost every line he utters is quoteable.......... great stuff !
This is one of my all time favourite films, personal favourite Carpenter film and absolute favourite Kurt Russell performance. IT DOESN' T DESERVE A REMAKE!!!! It's that good.
Easily one of my favorite movies of all time. Like Harper correctly points out, there's something for everyone in this film.
Actually this is one of my favorite films!
This is my top favorite movie. First time I saw this I was 5 years old on VHS and amazed by the action, comedic sarcasm from Jack Burton and how it could mix horror, action and comedy so well.
I remember taping this on VHS when it was on television in the late 80s, and must have watched it at least 20 times. I'm blown away to learn it bombed at the box office. It had all the elements that make a great, exciting, and marketable flick: action, adventure, interesting characters, humour, special effects, an exotic cultural backdrop... not to mention Kim Cattrall's pretty easy on the eyes in this, too. I guess it didn't even get enough marketing budget to get an initial audience to spread positive word of mouth.
Summer of ALIENS release . Some other good movies suffered from ALIENS .
On so many levels this movie is great and your review is fantastic. The one liners and memorable lines in this movie are still being used by me and my cohorts o n a daily basis. Kurt is, as always, fantastic. Dennis is a wonderful hero. James does a super job as Lo Pan (I wonder if James has done more movies and tv than even John Wayne). This movie is my guilty pleasure and can watch it over and over again.
Anyone else seen Kurt Russell in Breakdown? One of my favourite films for him. Such a shame no bluray release for it yet.
Yep, wish more people knew about it
I also have watched this movie countless times and you are right, it never gets boring. There was a time in my life my TV ran nothing but Big Trouble in Little China. I could watch this movie every day for the rest of my life and never get bored. In fact, that sounds like a great idea!
1986. i was 13. went to the moviehouse to see this movie. my bud and i, the ONLY two patrons in the auditorium, walked out after about 40mins or so, and spent the rest of our time, til my mom returned to pick us up, in the arcade.
revisited it about 4yrs ago and loved it.
For those wondering, the God that Lo Pan must appease is "Cangdi". He is known as the "God of the East" and the "Jade Emperor" in Chinese mysticism. I keep seeing online that the deity was being labeled as "unknown" and "probably made up for the film". He has many names and is one of the "Wufang Shangdi" or 5 great cosmic Gods in Chinese mysticism. Additionally, the character of Lo Pan is based on the ancient Chinese inventor and merchant Lu Ban, the major difference being that the actual character in Chinese history is considered a wise cultural hero. The only things they have in common are that they were both merchants and practiced mysticism.
Dang Kim Castrall is so hot in this film
As she always is!!!
I prefer the dark hair.....but still yeah
Your user icon is hotter tho
You're not wrong, genuinely think she was my first crush in this film when I was a kid 😅
She’s a scouser through & through mate.
Those memories of watching this movie over and over again. Recorded on vhs :). Released 1 year before my birth
The last 30 minutes is some of the most entertaining in all of cinema with both laughs and crazy action. I just be watched it tonight for the first time ever. It is a cool movie with interesting effects. Great job
Oh I haven't seen this since he 80's but I remember it fondly.
IMO, the best 'quote of quotes' from this classic: "You people sit tight, hold the fort, and keep the home fires burning. And if we're not back by dawn...call the president." 😂
I love everything about this movie to the point I want to cosplay as one of the ladies when they are in their wedding/ceremony dresses towards the end. It’s such a wonderfully entertaining movie. The story still engages me to this day.
Oh yeah the commentary track is great. Pretty much all the commentaries Carpenter has provided have been very insightful. I would love for John and Russell to do one more film. It has to be Escape from Earth!.
The juxtaposition between Dun's roles in BTiLC and PoD really demonstrates his versatility. He's one of the many character actors who deserve a lot more credit for their talent than they generally receive.
Easily one of my favorite movies ever!
I was a teen when it came out and loved it and still love it. BTILC is the pinnacle of enjoyable movie-going and should and could get the Rocky Horror treatment if theaters would show it.
This video deserves a remaster.
I finally decided to buy Big Trouble after watching this review and haven't regretted it for a second. It's one of the most creative comedies I've seen, being able to incorporate so many themes and movie genres all into one, and putting it all together pretty seamlessly. As funny as Kurt Russell is, as well as the the rest of the cast, I really think James Hong steals the show as Lo Pan. He's got some absolutely stellar lines, and his acting is so wonderfully over the top.
Dr. Forrester Wow, you're just now seeing this film? I'm a bit jealous. I grew up with this movie, and I wish I could recapture the feeling I had when I saw it for the first time, not knowing what it was or what it was about.
Highly creative, unique, and most importantly FUN! Just like the first Ghostbusters.
Definitely a toss up between Hong and Russell, but I've gotta give it up to Kim Cattrall as well!!
one of the greatest films ever
I join the many of us here in saying that is been my favorite film for the last 25+ years. Me and my friends do the Chang Sing gang sign at bars, annually we'll do "may the wings of liberty never lose a feather" speech over a round of shots. David Lo Pan is such a fun villain, that I think that really highlights the film and should of gotten a mention in the review. Regardless, the reviewer got it right, especially with it being one of a kind. INDEED!!
Loved this movie growing up. Some of the characters always made me think of Mortal Kombat. There's Raiden, Shang Tsung, Johnny Cage, and Liu Kang.
The success is that everyone in the movie is perfectly cast,
right from the beginning in the respectable lawyer's office.
SO happy I have the bluray of this
That floor grate always reminds me of a giant waffle ? this film is so entertaining to watch , so much better than a lot of films these days . great review .
One of the greatest movies ever created!
Great review and thanks for the post. I saw this movie when it was released on a rainy day in '86. I absolutely loved it and when VHS came out, it was literally one of the first movies I rented; I think I even rented the VHS unit too! This is one of the best films around and is one of my all time favorites. Any time there's a rainy day, I go to the basement, turn down the lights, and watch this film with some popcorn - "Have you paid your dues Jack? Yes sir, the check is in the mail" Cheers!
Easily one of the best, most entertaining action films of my lifetime. The commentary with Russell and Carpenter is better than most movies. I just played this for my daughter last week (she's 12) and she was on the edge of her seat he whole time.
She was too pumped to go to sleep.