Jackie Chan

Biography

Jackie Chan, a tremendously popular action superstar, has appeared in approximately 100 film productions. His movies are highlighted by incredible stunt work, most of which choreographed by Chan himself. Chan has worked with renowned directors John Woo (HAND OF DEATH), Lo Wei (TO KILL WITH INTRIGUE) and Samo Hung (on several action comedies in the 1980s). Chan made his directorial debut with THE FEARLESS HYENA in 1979.
To decide on Jackie Chan's best films is quite difficult, since nearly all of his movies contain breathtaking martial arts acrobatics. In some of his films this technical finesse is complemented by a good plot. Plotting is indispensable in 99% of all moviemaking, so objectively speaking Jackie's best films are: DRUNKEN MASTER, TO KILL WITH INTRIGUE, the PROJECT A films, and POLICE STORY (since I'm mostly interested in his early work, none of his later films are taken into consideration at this point).

In the 1990s Jackie starred in several U.S. productions. Many celebrities, including Quentin Tarantino, have expressed their admiration for the Hong Kong superstar. According to Chan's autobiography, he did not appear in THE BIG BOSS (as the IMDb states, for example), but only snuck into the cinema to watch it (at the age of 17). Shortly before that he had begun to work as a 'junior stuntman' for the Shaw Brothers. Jackie states NEW FIST OF FURY (1976) as his first real starring role. This filmography relies primarily on Chan's autobiography.