When you hear the name Jackie Chan you think kung fu movies, crazy stunts and cheesy Chinese comedy. Well, Jackie’s latest movie, Shinjuku Incident (新宿事件) contains almost nothing of that nature and the movie shows that Chan has much more to offer then ‘just’ Kung Fu movies. Right from the start you’ll know that this is not your typical Jackie Chan movie.

Chan delivers a standout performance, an illegal worker who tries to protect his kinsman by gaining respect by and protecting themselves from the Yakuza. Chan plays a character named Steelhead who is going to Japan n hopes of making some good money to provide for his family. He settles down as an illegal immigrant in Tokyo. Taking up shitty jobs just to have something to eat. At the same time, he has to watch out for the cops who are cracking down on illegal immigrants. Oh, and don’t forget about the Yakuza who run the underground of Tokyo so it seems.

The acting is above average with Chan doing a great job, same can be said about the Japanese cast. Only Daniel Wu did a lousy job here. I’ve heard people say that he’s a great actor. Well, he didn’t show any of that in this movie.

This movie is somewhat cliché though. The plot is obviously based on the Chinese people who migrated to Japan and their struggles and battles to establish themselves, mix in Japanese yakuza, turf war and old missing friends, and then to top it off depiction of human tendencies to be corrupted by power.

I also get the impression that this movie is a bit “Pro China” with the Chinese pictured as the “good guys”. The Japanese and Taiwanese are the bad guys. The Chinese go to Japan where they fall into chaos without the communist government to help them.

All in all, this is a nice movie. It’s great to see Jackie Chan in a different kind of role. The Shinjuku Incident is a movie that can be appreciated by most film goers. I feel as though many of the people who don’t like this film really just wanted to see Jackie Chan do back flips.

Not this time…