Jackie Chan's newest thriller action movie "The Foreigner," in which he portrayed the role of a vengeful father, received mixed reviews from fans and critics.
The movie premiered on Sept. 24 in China and Oct. 13 in the United States. Chan starred along with former James Bond Pierce Brosnan and Harry Potter star Katie Leung.
The movie is based on the 1992 novel by Stephen Leather titled "The Chinaman."
The plot of the story revolves around Ngoc Minh Quan (Chan Chan) who lost his only daughter, Fan (Katie Leung), to a store bombing carried out by a rogue group. In his path toward revenge, he meets Liam Hennessy (Pierce Brosnan) who he claims has information about the bombing. Quan is a former special forces operator who served during the Vietnam War.
The movie received a 59% rating from Rotten Tomatoes and 1 out of 4 score from Roger Ebert. Some critics commended Chan's performance and, of course, his martial arts prowess despite his age. However, some critics believe that Chan did not portray the character well and that Brosnan was really the one who exploded in the movie.
In other comments, director Martin Campbell was praised for his effort to provide a drama platform for Chan, who is a well-known action-comedy star, do demonstrate his acting chops in a dramatic role. Fans and critics are looking forward to seeing Chan take on more deeply emotional roles in the future.
Many people pointed out that the "The Foreigner" has similar elements to Liam Neeson's "Taken." For most viewers, the factor they loved about the latter is the main character's "special set of skills" that he used to take down enemies and save his daughter. In the case of "The Foreigner," such is used to avenge his daughter's death.
"The Foreigner" earned over $13 million during its opening weekend.
