Themes: Heroic Mission, Race Against Time, Mischievous Children
Main Cast: Jackie Chan, Lee Evans, Claire Forlani, Julian Sands, John Rhys-Davies
Release Year: 2003
Country: HK/US
Run Time: 88 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
Though it's an English-language film, the fantasy action comedy The Medallion is one of the highest-budgeted movies to come out of Hong Kong. Cop Eddie Yang (Jackie Chan) and his partner, Interpol agent Arthur Watson (Lee Evans), are in pursuit of international human-smuggling crimelord Snakehead (Julian Sands). The partners get seriously wounded and a mysterious ancient medallion transforms them into superpowered warriors called Highbinders. The two halves of the medallion are supposed to grant eternal life when joined together by a powerful young boy who was born during a specific time in the Year of the Snake. The villainous Snakehead wants to gets his hands on both the child and the medallion, and the heros try to stop him. Aided by special effects and action choreography by Sammo Hung, Chan fights his way toward a violent conclusion with Snakehead that takes place in mid-air.. Claire Forlani plays Jackie Chan's love interest, the Interpol agent Nicole. Also starring John Rhys-Davies as Commander Hammerstock-Smythe. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Anthony Wong - Lester Wong; Christy Chung - Chatlotte Watson; Johann Myers - Giscard; Alexander Bao - Jai
Credit
Oliver Wong - Art Director, Chaiyan (Lek) Chunsuttiwat - Art Director, Anna Rackard - Art Director, Jim Furlong - Art Director, Leo Davis - Casting, Candy Leung - Co-producer, Tim Kwok - Co-producer, Grania Preston - Costume Designer, Nick Laws - First Assistant Director, Gordon Chan - Director, Douglas Aarniokoski - Second Unit Director, Chan Ki-hop - Editor, Bill Borden - Executive Producer, Jackie Chan - Executive Producer, Willie Chan - Executive Producer, Albert Yeung - Executive Producer, Adriane Lee - Composer (Music Score), Joseph C. Nemec III - Production Designer, Arthur Wong Ngok Tai - Cinematographer, Alfred Cheung - Producer, Joanne Woollard - Set Designer, Elli Griff - Set Designer, Paula Fairfield - Sound/Sound Designer, Paula Fairfield - Sound Editor, William Jacobs - Sound Editor, Alfred Cheung - Screen Story, Alfred Cheung - Screenwriter, Paul Wheeler - Screenwriter, Gordon Chan - Screenwriter, Bey Logan - Screenwriter, Bennett Joshua Davlin - Screenwriter, Sammo Hung - Action Director, Paddy Eason - Visual Effects Supervisor
Eddie Yang is a Hong Kong police officer cooperating with Interpol in the capture of a crimelord named AJ "Snakehead" Staul. The operation is headed by the officiously paranoid Agent Arthur Watson and also involves a former girlfriend of Eddie's, a British agent named Nicole. The investigation leads the team to the kidnapping of a young boy named Jai, who holds the secret to a powerful medallion that gives its possessor superhuman powers and immortality. After a near-death rescue of Jai from drowning, Eddie is given supernatural martial arts powers, which assists him in tracking down Snakehead and putting an end to the arch-criminal's scheme.
In its US release, The Medallion was No. 5 at the box office on its opening weekend and fell steadily lower during its 10-week release. Overall, it has earned $22.2 million, ranking 42nd among all martial arts films released in the US and eighth among the Jackie Chan films distributed in the US.[2] The film fared poorly with critics and has a 18% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[3] Some critics and fans of Jackie Chan were disappointed by the use of CGI special effects and extensive wire-based choreography in place of the daring stunts usually present in Chan's previous films and were turned off by the desire to achieve Hollywood-level results with a lower budget.
All Cantonese lines were dubbed into English. The editors felt that the movie would be easier to follow if it was all in one language.[citation needed]
Several other lines spoken in English were also dubbed over, due to the extensive cuts in the film.
The original director of the film was Reginald Hudlin, but he bowed out due to creative reasons.[5]
As noted in the trivia section, the working title of the film was "Highbinders." In the original plot of the film, those who were given power by the medallion became a Highbinder. Snakehead's original goal in the film was to create an army of Highbinders to join in his crime organization.
According to the commentary by the editors of this film, "The Medallion" was not an American-made film, although Columbia Tristar bought the distribution and editing rights worldwide except in Japan, France, and Hong Kong (but these three countries retain the American cut of the film, the only cut ever made). The original cut was meant to be around 108 minutes, and the plot of the film explained Snakehead's crime organization of human smuggling, and the deaths that occurred from it, as well as his desire to create an army of Highbinders to aide his crime organization. All of this, however, was cut to center on the medallion.
Over 20 minutes of these deleted scenes can be viewed on the US Columbia Tristar DVD.
