Shinjuku Incident

In Shinjuku Incident, Jackie Chan plays an illegal immigrant to Japan. He (literally) washes ashore with no papers, no money, no chances. He steals shoes. He hides from the police. Eventually, he links up with other illegals and begins to form a life. But it’s hard, doing nasty and dirty work for wages far below minimum. Perhaps there’s an easier way – those gangsters seem pretty well fed. Chan takes a few tentative steps into crime, just to get by. Turns out, the man has courage and leadership skills. And we can see the arc from there.

We’ve seen movies like this before. Shinjuku Incident’s unique contribution is its Tokyo setting, its subculture (formerly rural Chinese illegal immigrants), and its star. This isn’t a stunt movie – Chan is more likely to pick up a pipe and start flailing than kick anyone in the face. Rather, it’s a bullet for Chan’s resume as a serious actor. Elastic and amazing as the man may be, that middle is getting thicker and those joints are getting creakier – there’s just no way around it. Fortunately, the man doesn’t embarrass himself. He uses his likeable persona to keep us on his side as his dealing grow increasingly shady, and he gives us character’s moral evolution in natural, lifelike steps.

Yes, he’s about ten years too old for the part as it’s written (or, perhaps, for the women cast as his love interests), but what’s a little vanity in a major film star? He works in the role, and the film works because of him, and Shinjuku Incident shines a light on a whole new subculture. Not bad.