Twin Dragons

Following Jackie Chan's boffo box-office success with Rush Hour, Dimension Films appears to be looking for quick, easy spoils by dumping this 1992 Hong Kong caper on the American public, adding only a hacked-up dub job and a minimal distribution campaign -- the same stunt that was pulled with Supercop and Operation Condor. Much like Jean Claude Van Damme in Double Impact, Chan plays both sides of twins separated at birth. One, John Ma, is a world-renowned pianist and conductor. The other, Boomer, is a rough-and-tumble auto mechanic with Speed Racer driving skills and top-flight martial-arts expertise. Mistaken identities and near-meetings factor in large as the two Chans weave through the congested streets of Hong Kong, the maestro on his way to a concert performance, the brawler trying to save his neophyte sidekick from the mob.

John can't fight, of course, and it's a devilish, if overplayed, sight to see him caught in altercations with the mob. Naturally when Boomer gets into the mix, the film delivers the Chan goods: daunting, high-flying fight sequences replete with the star's legendary stunt work and tongue-in-cheek physical comedy. The action gets a big boost from the always engaging Maggie Cheung and a ditzy, curvaceous Nina Chi Li as the love interests of the brothers. There's nothing cerebral about Twin Dragons but it is entertaining fluff that will make your jaw drop. At the Harbour Mall and Showcase cinemas.
-- Tom Meek