Police Story 2 (1988)
★★★ — Police Story 2 (1988)
Police Story 2 arrived two years after the original 1985 film, which had been a landmark moment for Hong Kong action cinema and a commercial hit that cemented Jackie Chan's status as the colony's biggest screen star. Chan again directs and stars, working with the same production partnership of Golden Way and Paragon Films (the latter closely tied to the then-dominant Golden Harvest stable). By this point Chan was operating at the peak of his domestic popularity, producing, directing, and performing his own increasingly dangerous stunts across a modest budget that belied the scale of the set-pieces. Maggie Cheung returns as the long-suffering girlfriend May, a role she'd continue revisiting while simultaneously building a parallel career in more prestige-oriented Hong Kong cinema.
Jackie Chan is still a force of nature when he’s in action, his timing, physicality, and stunt work are as jaw-dropping as ever. The fight scenes he does have are pure brilliance, especially that incredible playground sequence. But compared to the first Police Story, this one feels noticeably lighter on action and drags a bit in between. It’s not all bad, there’s plenty of classic Jackie humor, inventive gags, and moments of slapstick genius. The elevator fart scene alone is gold. But the plot meanders more, and you can feel the energy dip during the quieter stretches. It’s like the adrenaline ran out halfway through production. Still a solid entry in the Chan-iverse and worth watching for fans, but it doesn’t quite reach the dizzying heights of its predecessor. A good movie, just not a great action movie by Chan standards.
Rating: ★★★ | Year: 1988 | Watched: 2025-07-13
Where to watch (UK)
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