Powerman 3 (1985)

Powerman 3: Directed by Sammo Kam-Bo Hung, Fruit Chan. With Jackie Chan, Sammo Kam-Bo Hung, Emily Chu, Hoi Mang. Tat, ex SWAT turned CID cop in HK, has a 29 y.o. Disabled brother, behaving like the small boys, he plays with, always getting into trouble. Tat struggles to care for him – at the expense of his cute girlfriend and dreams.

“In this atypical movie starring Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung, Jackie stars as Tad, a former SWAT member turned CID officer. He has a steady job and a girlfriend, but he is forced to reconsider the golden opportunity of becoming a sailor on a cruise ship, for his older brother Dodo (Hung) is mentally retarded and acts like someone about a third of his age (even his friends are little boys). Dodo tries desperately to become more adult, even trying to get a job, but is either rejected or humiliated. Further problems arise when Dodo gets entangled in a jewellery heist…u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAction fans beware. This is NOT really an action movie at all (although it does have a couple of scraps), itu0026#39;s a heart-wrenching drama in which Jackie jettisons his usual happy-go-lucky action persona. There are some truly tear-jerking moments as the relationship between Tad and Dodo becomes more strained the more trouble the latter gets into, and Sammo Hung truly deserves acclaim for his performance as the child trapped in a 29-year-old body, especially as he gets no chances to fight whatsoever. The scene where, after a heated argument between Tad and one of his friends (where Tad blurts out some cutting questions in the presence of Dodo such as u0026#39;What would you do if you had a brother like him?u0026#39; before admitting to being cold-blooded and retreating into his bedroom), Dodo goes into Tadu0026#39;s room, finds him on the bed shedding tears, begs him not to be angry, and both brothers hug each other tearfully, is one of the most memorable parts of the movie.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eEven though thereu0026#39;s little action, whatu0026#39;s there is good, particularly at the end where Tad is on a rescue mission. The action, choreographed by Yuen Biao, is among the best Jackie has done, with him doing all manner of punches, kicks, and even a backwards flip off a pillar (a bit like Keanu Reeves does in the training session with Laurence Fishburne in The Matrix, but being an early 1980u0026#39;s Hong Kong movie there was no need for wires, thus making it even more impressive). Jackie also gets to fight against then-Hong Kong regular nemesis Dick Wei (best known as Sanpao, the pirate leader in Project A) in a blistering exchange of kicks and punches. Donu0026#39;t expect a light-hearted battle, because this is more rough-and-tumble than Chan fans may be used to.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn fact, the whole movie should be praised for carrying off such a subject in the commendable way shown here. Jackie turns in a fine acting performance (which is not surprising since he learned acting at Peking Opera School as well as the trademark flips and martial artistry his other movies have displayed), and his character even gets to kiss his girlfriend intimately, which, as Chan fans know, is something not often seen at this time due to the reactions it allegedly provoked among female fans.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI have seen both the dubbed version and the subtitled version. Iu0026#39;d definitely recommend the latter; while the dubbing in the former is not the worst Iu0026#39;ve heard, it lacks the intensity of the original Cantonese track.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eLook out for appearances from Wu Ma, Dennis Chan (he played a character who trained Jean-Claude Van Dammeu0026#39;s character in u0026#39;Kickboxeru0026#39;) and the sadly-now-departed wonder that is Lam Ching-Ying.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDefinitely worth a look if youu0026#39;re into Chan and want something a little different (OK, a LOT different).”