Big Trouble in Little China
credits:
Director: John CarpenterProducer: Larry J. Franco
Writers: David Z. Weinstein, W.D. Richter
Cast: Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun, James Hong
USA 1986 | 100 mins | 35mm | English, Cantonese w/E.S.
The time has come to celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of the greatest unsung achievements in cocaine-era Hollywood: John Carpenter’s BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA. Not only did this obscure classic bring dozens of Asian American actors and actresses to the white-washed screens of Hollywood, it also triggered a new appreciation for the Hong Kong martial arts cinema of the ‘70s & ‘80s.
Late one night, a macho American truck driver named Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) takes a wrong turn and finds himself smack dab in the middle of a hyper-stereotyped San Francisco Chinatown, filled with everything from underground caverns to mystical demons. Our Chinese American hero, Wang Chi (played triumphantly by Dennis Dun), joins forces with this ignorant trucker to help rescue a green-eyed beauty (Penthouse pet Suzee Pai) who’s been kidnapped by a 2000-year-old magician (all hail James Hong!) and his three invincible sidekicks, the martial arts masters Thunder, Rain & Lightning (Carter Huang, Peter Kwong and James Pax!) Throw in Egg Shen (the legendary sleepy-eyed Victor Wong), SEX AND THE CITY’s Kim Cattrall, hundreds of badasssss Hatchet Men and creepy sewer monsters and you’ve got one of the most exhilarating films of the ‘80s.
The film exploits every Chinese stereotype in the book, but director John Carpenter (HALLOWEEN; ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK) and cast take these racial myths to such heightened, self-aware levels that now, twenty years later, we can enjoy this Asian American celebration for what it truly is: A rockin-good time! This rare 35mm print was brought from the U.K., so do not miss this special event!
—Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
Print courtesy of David Rigby
