Big Trouble in Little China (1986)

Director:

John Carpenter

Writers:

Gary Goldman (written by) &
David Z. Weinstein (written by) ...

Release Date:

2 July 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

Adventure doesn't come any bigger!

Plot:

An All-American trucker gets dragged into a centuries-old mystical battle in Chinatown.

Plot Keywords:

Airport | Green Eyes | Rescue | Fiancee | Truck

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Kurt Russell	...	Jack Burton
Kim Cattrall	...	Gracie Law
Dennis Dun	...	Wang Chi
James Hong	...	David Lo Pan
Victor Wong	...	Egg Shen
Kate Burton	...	Margo
Donald Li	...	Eddie Lee
Carter Wong	...	Thunder
Peter Kwong	...	Rain
James Pax	...	Lightning
Suzee Pai	...	Miao Yin
Chao Li Chi	...	Uncle Chu
Jeff Imada	...	Needles
Rummel Mor	...	Joe Lucky
Craig Ng	...	One Ear

Also Known As:

John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Ireland:15 | South Korea:15 | UK:PG (1986) (cut) | Denmark:15 | Brazil:14 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:11 (2009) | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1986) | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:12 (w) | Germany:16 (special edition) | Singapore:PG | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Spain:13

Filming Locations:

Conzelman Road, Marin Headlands, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

The ending song is written and sung by The Coupe De Ville. A band formed with: John Carpenter, Nick Castle and Tommy Lee Wallace (second unit director on this picture).

Goofs:

Continuity: Jack and Wang Chi change places as they chase the punks at the airport parking lot. When we see them from the back Wang is on the right (close up on back of his jacket. Then we cut to a frontal view and he is still on the right of the screen, while he should be on the left.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Pinstripe lawyer: What I'd like to do today is get your version of what happened.
Egg Shen: Oh, you mean the truth.
Pinstripe lawyer: Of course. First, just state your name and your occupation for the record.
Egg Shen: Oh, Egg Shen. Bus driver.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Chuck: Chuck Versus the Sizzling Shrimp (#1.5)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Big Trouble in Little China

Carpenter catches the spirit of the B grade serial flic 100 times better than Spielberg

What can one say. The movie plays like one of those great old comic books you read as a kid. The dialogue is so cartoonish that you expect to see balloons appear above the characters heads. The acting is excellent, with everyone taking a tongue in cheek approach and obviously having a good time making the film. Some of the best fight scenes in recent memory, with everyone "kung-fu fighting" at the drop of a hat. Kurt Russel is a hoot as the more than slightly dumb macho hero. Cartoon violence minus the gore, humourous special effects, evil magicians, green eyed damsels in distress, even a monster or two.

A great film for a night of light movies! See it if you get a chance!