Product: Operation Condor [VHS] (1997)
Rating: 3.0
Energetic and expensive Chan vehicle
Jackie Chan is a physical genius and this,together with a sense of comedy and an air of winning self-deprecation,help set his movies apart from those of other action stars such as the wooden Van Damme and the pompous dirigible Seagal.The physical skills are well in evidence here as are the comedy traits -although personally I find them less well showcased this time aroundOperation Condor is clearly an expensive movie and makes widespread use of well photographed North African and European locations ,in its tale of Chan and some female colleagues hunting abandoned Nazi gold in the face of opposition from Arab terrorists and one of the gold's former owners.There are draggy bits in the middle when the story gets bogged down in broad comedic interludes ,and the dubbing throughout is execrable.All is forgiven when it comes to the climax -an elongated fight scene in a wind tunnel that has flair ,pace and panache.The end credits show the injury sustained by Chan in making the movie when a stunt went wrong-proof that here is an action star who does not stint on placing himself on the line .Four stars for Chan -and marked down only for the dubbing and the misfiring comedy scenes which simply dont travel well to Occidental audiences