Big Trouble in Little China

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Big Trouble in Little China

PG-13

Released May 30, 1986

1h 38m

Action

Fantasy

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Popcornmeter

73%

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66 Reviews

82%

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100,000+ Ratings

Kurt Russell plays hard-boiled truck driver Jack Burton, who gets caught in a bizarre conflict within, and underneath, San Francisco's Chinatown. An ancient Chinese prince and Chinatown crime lord has kidnapped a beautiful green-eyed woman, who is the fiancee to Jack's best friend. Jack must help his friend rescue the girl before the evil Lo Pan uses her to break the ancient curse that keeps him a fleshless and immortal spirit.

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Critics Consensus

Brimming with energy and packed with humor, Big Trouble in Little China distills kung fu B-movies as affectionately as it subverts them.

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Paul Byrnes

Sydney Morning Herald

A rollicking, colourful comic strip of a movie with bells on.

Rated: 2/4

Jun 29, 2021

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Eleanor Ringel Cater

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Carpenter and his lively cast seem to be having such a good time that the easiest thing to do is relax and enjoy the ride. In a way, this is the movie "Escape from New York" was trying to be but never quite managed to pull off.

Jun 29, 2021

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Kathleen Carroll

New York Daily News

Watching Kurt Russell display not only a set of bulging biceps, but also... easy-going self-confidence is admittedly fun at times, even if the movie is as impenetrable as chop suey.

Rated: 2/4

Jun 29, 2021

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John Ferguson

Radio Times

Horror maestro John Carpenter is clearly in awe of Hong Kong movies, but this brave attempt to fuse martial arts action with a westernised adventure story sadly doesn't quite gel.

Rated: 2/5

Sep 13, 2024

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Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

On many occasions I have the feeling that its recycling of genres with a B-series formula is hackneyed and terribly boring when Kurt Russell fights in a simple way in the bizarre alleys of Chinatown. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 4/10

Dec 21, 2022

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Dennis Harvey

48 Hills

...it is certainly great fun—as deliberately absurd a contraption...

Aug 19, 2022

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Todd B

Not really a 5 star movie, but I loved it. Memorable, silly, great action even if nonsensical. Sure lets fight with brass staves against machine guns and win. I'll watch this at least once a year.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/20/24

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Audience Member

A must watch movie for all the nostalgic but for the youngest could be seen as trash. Still, Kurt Russell rocks as main character!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/03/24

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Commin C

I think it's great but I'm also a fan of Kurt Russell and 80's action movies. I watch it a few times a year...at least

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

12/04/24

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Tay L

One of the most underrated 80s action comedies & one of John Carpenter's best work.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/22/24

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Jared E

This movie didn't age well. Lo pan and Kim Catrell save this movie because Kurt Russell puts in one of his worst performances. It's supposed to be "comedic" but it just comes off as dry and as if Kurt Russell is attempting his best John Wayne impression. It's worth a watch if you haven't seen it in years or it's your first time because it is loveably 80's, other than that 👎

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

11/05/24

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Blu B

It's very clear right from the start your not supposed to take this serious with it's cheesy acting and comedic self aware tone. So if you go into this expecting a serious plot like The Thing or Escape from New York you won't enjoy this gonzo like funhouse feel. This merges action, comedy, horror, and fantasy in such a fun, lighthearted, cool, and funny way. It's not really scary at all and yet it's horror but it's so cool and just fun. It's sort of mindless but it's so creatively done and the direction of carpenter is so good here. The set design, practical effects, costumes, direction, the killer 80's soundtrack all come together in a unique way. It's done in such a way this could only have been made with Carpenter and during this time. It's got such smooth editing as well and one of the craziest pacings I've ever seen. It might be even nuttier than something like Evil Dead 2 in terms of the nonsense it throws. Everyone should give this a try once. Just go into it ti have a good fun time.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/29/24

Full Review

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John Carpenter

Director

Kurt Russell

Jack Burton

Kim Cattrall

Gracie Law

Dennis Dun

Wang Chi

James Hong

David Lo Pan

Victor Wong

Egg Shen

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Synopsis

Kurt Russell plays hard-boiled truck driver Jack Burton, who gets caught in a bizarre conflict within, and underneath, San Francisco's Chinatown. An ancient Chinese prince and Chinatown crime lord has kidnapped a beautiful green-eyed woman, who is the fiancee to Jack's best friend. Jack must help his friend rescue the girl before the evil Lo Pan uses her to break the ancient curse that keeps him a fleshless and immortal spirit.

Director: John Carpenter
Producer: Larry J. Franco
Screenwriter: Gary Goldman, David Weinstein, W.D. Richter
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Production Co: TAFT Entertainment, SLM Production Group, Twentieth Century Fox
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 30, 1986, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 25, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $11.0M
Runtime: 1h 38m
Sound Mix: Magnetic Stereo 6 Track, Mono, Surround, Dolby A, Dolby Stereo
Aspect Ratio: 70mm, Scope (2.35:1)

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