Although
not as fresh as the original outing, RUSH HOUR 2 ($27) is both
a fun and funny sequel to the mismatched cop buddy movie. Jackie Chan
and Chris Tucker return as the sedate Hong Kong Chief Inspector and fast-talking
LAPD detective, who find themselves again tackling a case that no one
wants them involved with. Taking the premise of the original film and
standing it on its head RUSH HOUR 2 starts out in Hong Kong with
Chan’s Inspector Lee trying to show his vacationing American friend Carter
(Tucker) a good time. Unfortunately, Lee is dedicated to his job and ends
up dragging Carter from one investigation to another, instead of taking
him to the tourist spots. However, when a bomb goes off in the American
embassy, Lee and Carter find themselves drawn into a convoluted counterfeiting
plot that involves the Chinese Triad, a new Las Vegas casino and two beautiful,
but potentially lethal women.
Jackie
Chan and Chris Tucker are the key to the success of RUSH HOUR 2.
These two performers have their own chemistry that works exceedingly well
in their mismatched partnership. Both men generate big laughs, although
their styles are completely different. Chan is a silent clown in the tradition
of Buster Keaton, who lets his actions speak louder than words, while
Tucker’s mouth is his fame and fortune, and he proves that no one can
speak louder than him. Director Brett Ratner keeps the action and the
comedy flying at a breakneck pace. Additionally, all of the martial arts
sequences found in RUSH HOUR 2 greatly benefit from the Jackie
Chan touch. Not to be overlooked are Ziyi Zhang (of CROUCHING TIGER,
HIDDEN DRAGON fame) and Roselyn Sanchez, who portray the film’s two
potentially lethal femme fatales. The cast of RUSH HOUR 2 also
includes John Lone, Alan King and Harris Yulin.
New
Line Home Entertainment has made RUSH HOUR 2 as part of their Infinifilm
series of DVDs. RUSH HOUR 2 is presented on DVD in its proper 2.35:1
theatrical aspect ratio and the presentation features the anamorphic enhancement
for 16:9 displays. As I’ve come to expect from New Line, this is another
great looking DVD. The image on the disc is sharp and very well defined-
coming up only slightly short of true demonstration quality. Colors are
wonderfully vibrant on the DVD, especially the numerous deeply saturated
reds. All of the hues are rock solid and are reproduced without a hint
of noise or smearing. Additionally, the film’s flesh tones are right on
the money. Blacks are pretty solid and inky and the picture produces an
above average level of shadow detail. The film element used fro the transfer
is virtually perfect, displaying no blemishes or apparent grain. Owing
to the fact that this dual layer DVD is packed to the gills, digital compression
artifacts are only slightly more noticeable than they appear on any other
newly minted blockbuster DVD.
RUSH
HOUR 2 features a high-powered action movie mix that takes fully advantage
of the Dolby Digital 5.1 EX format. Channel separation is excellent, with
effective panning of sound effects in the forward soundstage, as well
as in the split surrounds. Dialogue is always completely understandable,
which is something of an accomplishment, considering Jack Chan’s less
than precise English. The bass channel is full bodied and provides a highly
effective whomp. Lalo Schifrin’s music is beautifully recorded and is
well integrated into the sound mix, yet it maintains its own sense of
presence. Upping the ante is the DVD’s DTS 6.1 ES Discreet mix, which
uses the additional resolution to produce greater transparency, tighter
bass and more musical clarity.
Full
motion video, animation and sound enhance the DVD's amusingly designed
interactive menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene
selection and set up features, as well as the disc’s supplemental section.
Supplements are broken into two sections: Beyond The Movie
and All Access Pass. Beyond The Movie includes
six short featurettes entitled Jackie Chan's Hong Kong Introduction,
Culture Clash: West Meets East, Language Barrier,
Attaining International Stardom, Kung Fu Choreography,
and Lady Luck. Beyond The Movie also includes
a Fact Track of subtitled factoids that display on screen
as the movie plays out. Moving over to the All Access Pass,
we find a running audio commentary with director Brett Ratner and screenwriter
Jeff Nathanson. This is a highly informative talk and director Ratner
is rather hyped up as he talks about RUSH HOUR 2. Two more short
featurettes entitled Making Magic Out Of A Mire and The
Fashions Of Rush Hour 2 are also included under the All
Access Pass. Evolution Of A Scene looks at how three
separate scenes in the movie came together. Effects supervisor Kevin Lilngenfelser
introduces the Visual Effects Deconstruction, which looks
at a major effect from the film’s opening sequence. Nine deleted scenes
are also included on the DVD, but these amusing bits only amount to extensions
of scenes already in the movie. The Outtakes reel is actually a whole
lot more entertaining and provides a lot of solid laughs. Two theatrical
teasers and one theatrical trailer, plus cast/crew filmographies close
out the DVDs video supplements. RUSH HOUR 2 is also DVD-ROM enhanced
and includes the screenplay, as well as the film’s web site and links
to more content.
RUSH
HOUR 2 is a fun action-comedy/cop-buddy movie that will appeal to
fans of the original film. New Line has worked their usual magic, producing
a great looking and sounding DVD that includes a lot of extra content.
Devotees of the genre, as well as Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker fans will
definitely want to add this slickly produced disc to their DVD collections.
Although
not as fresh as the original outing, RUSH HOUR 2 ($27) is both
a fun and funny sequel to the mismatched cop buddy movie. Jackie Chan
and Chris Tucker return as the sedate Hong Kong Chief Inspector and fast-talking
LAPD detective, who find themselves again tackling a case that no one
wants them involved with. Taking the premise of the original film and
standing it on its head RUSH HOUR 2 starts out in Hong Kong with
Chan’s Inspector Lee trying to show his vacationing American friend Carter
(Tucker) a good time. Unfortunately, Lee is dedicated to his job and ends
up dragging Carter from one investigation to another, instead of taking
him to the tourist spots. However, when a bomb goes off in the American
embassy, Lee and Carter find themselves drawn into a convoluted counterfeiting
plot that involves the Chinese Triad, a new Las Vegas casino and two beautiful,
but potentially lethal women.
Jackie
Chan and Chris Tucker are the key to the success of RUSH HOUR 2.
These two performers have their own chemistry that works exceedingly well
in their mismatched partnership. Both men generate big laughs, although
their styles are completely different. Chan is a silent clown in the tradition
of Buster Keaton, who lets his actions speak louder than words, while
Tucker’s mouth is his fame and fortune, and he proves that no one can
speak louder than him. Director Brett Ratner keeps the action and the
comedy flying at a breakneck pace. Additionally, all of the martial arts
sequences found in RUSH HOUR 2 greatly benefit from the Jackie
Chan touch. Not to be overlooked are Ziyi Zhang (of CROUCHING TIGER,
HIDDEN DRAGON fame) and Roselyn Sanchez, who portray the film’s two
potentially lethal femme fatales. The cast of RUSH HOUR 2 also
includes John Lone, Alan King and Harris Yulin.
New
Line Home Entertainment has made RUSH HOUR 2 as part of their Infinifilm
series of DVDs. RUSH HOUR 2 is presented on DVD in its proper 2.35:1
theatrical aspect ratio and the presentation features the anamorphic enhancement
for 16:9 displays. As I’ve come to expect from New Line, this is another
great looking DVD. The image on the disc is sharp and very well defined-
coming up only slightly short of true demonstration quality. Colors are
wonderfully vibrant on the DVD, especially the numerous deeply saturated
reds. All of the hues are rock solid and are reproduced without a hint
of noise or smearing. Additionally, the film’s flesh tones are right on
the money. Blacks are pretty solid and inky and the picture produces an
above average level of shadow detail. The film element used fro the transfer
is virtually perfect, displaying no blemishes or apparent grain. Owing
to the fact that this dual layer DVD is packed to the gills, digital compression
artifacts are only slightly more noticeable than they appear on any other
newly minted blockbuster DVD.
RUSH
HOUR 2 features a high-powered action movie mix that takes fully advantage
of the Dolby Digital 5.1 EX format. Channel separation is excellent, with
effective panning of sound effects in the forward soundstage, as well
as in the split surrounds. Dialogue is always completely understandable,
which is something of an accomplishment, considering Jack Chan’s less
than precise English. The bass channel is full bodied and provides a highly
effective whomp. Lalo Schifrin’s music is beautifully recorded and is
well integrated into the sound mix, yet it maintains its own sense of
presence. Upping the ante is the DVD’s DTS 6.1 ES Discreet mix, which
uses the additional resolution to produce greater transparency, tighter
bass and more musical clarity.
Full
motion video, animation and sound enhance the DVD's amusingly designed
interactive menus. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene
selection and set up features, as well as the disc’s supplemental section.
Supplements are broken into two sections: Beyond The Movie
and All Access Pass. Beyond The Movie includes
six short featurettes entitled Jackie Chan's Hong Kong Introduction,
Culture Clash: West Meets East, Language Barrier,
Attaining International Stardom, Kung Fu Choreography,
and Lady Luck. Beyond The Movie also includes
a Fact Track of subtitled factoids that display on screen
as the movie plays out. Moving over to the All Access Pass,
we find a running audio commentary with director Brett Ratner and screenwriter
Jeff Nathanson. This is a highly informative talk and director Ratner
is rather hyped up as he talks about RUSH HOUR 2. Two more short
featurettes entitled Making Magic Out Of A Mire and The
Fashions Of Rush Hour 2 are also included under the All
Access Pass. Evolution Of A Scene looks at how three
separate scenes in the movie came together. Effects supervisor Kevin Lilngenfelser
introduces the Visual Effects Deconstruction, which looks
at a major effect from the film’s opening sequence. Nine deleted scenes
are also included on the DVD, but these amusing bits only amount to extensions
of scenes already in the movie. The Outtakes reel is actually a whole
lot more entertaining and provides a lot of solid laughs. Two theatrical
teasers and one theatrical trailer, plus cast/crew filmographies close
out the DVDs video supplements. RUSH HOUR 2 is also DVD-ROM enhanced
and includes the screenplay, as well as the film’s web site and links
to more content.
RUSH
HOUR 2 is a fun action-comedy/cop-buddy movie that will appeal to
fans of the original film. New Line has worked their usual magic, producing
a great looking and sounding DVD that includes a lot of extra content.
Devotees of the genre, as well as Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker fans will
definitely want to add this slickly produced disc to their DVD collections.
