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Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
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Critic Consensus: No consensus yet.
All Critics (14) | Top Critics (1) | Fresh (11) | Rotten (3) | DVD (2)
Genre-benders who like their Leone-esque historical slapstick buddy-action epics with a side order of political tragedy will find much to enjoy here.
Chan puts his heart and soul into the part of Big Soldier, and it's a reminder that there is more to the actor than Hollywood cinemagoers may have witnessed.
Amusing but, never amazing. There's no ladder twirling, conveyor belt sticking or cashier slot jumping through.
There is epic action and adventure in this film, to be sure, and some humour too - but it is all directed towards a conclusion whose devastating impact is not even undone by the touches of mawkishness that get us there.
It does not, perhaps, try to do very much, but all the things it does try, it achieves with glowing perfection.
A better screenplay, tougher editing and less commercial direction might have made the tale more substantial and even funnier -- as it is, Chan keeps it all going.
Jackie Chan came up with this story of a peasant capturing a highranking general some 20 years ago, but it's taken all this time for the project to be realised. Boy was it worth the wait.
It lacks the visual oomph of Hero, but sure knocks Chan's recent Spy Next Door on its sorry arse.
Jackie Chan has made plenty of cracking films in his native tongue, but Little Big Soldier, a rambunctiously tragicomic martial epic set during China's Warring States period, is regrettably not one of them.
Now 56, having broken pretty much every bone in his body, [Chan] sits out some of the rough stuff, and there is a noticeable twilight mood in the air.
[A] breezy romp that offers Jackie Chan one of his more memorable recent roles.
It's the action sequences, including a splendid scene when Chan mounts an ox to rescue his reluctant partner, that will keep audiences thrilled.
A cowardly conscript kidnaps the general of an opposing army and attempts the long journey back to his homeland to claim a reward and leave the life soldiering behind. Little Big Soldier is one of those "two characters from each end of the social spectrum learn life lessons from one another" type films and is essentially a martial arts road movie containing Jackie Chan's usual blend of high kicking Kung Fu and slapstick comedy. It's a little more serious than most and spends a little too long in places staring at its own navel although some quality fight sequences embellished by attractive photography and production design stave off boredom for the most part. Unfortunately its meandering script is both contrived and uneven and the dialogue (at least the English translation anyway) is stilted and clumsy. Chan is always watchable but the anti-war message the film seems so desperate to convey is unfocussed and the comic relief just doesn't work. As a whole Little Big Soldier is very nice to look at but ultimately feels sloppy and lacking in the kind of narrative momentum required to maintain the interest.
Super Reviewer
Comedic, fun, entertaining, and sad all at the same time. Very well done!!
Jackie Chan has become what Steven Sequll and Val Kilmer are one role actors and this film is no different. Jackie role in all his films are the same a fast acting stunt man with a few comic lines. 3 stars
i loved this movie. chan is funny and charming, his character is likable and believable, and the storyline is original and satisfying. a total surprise, i will watch this film many times i know. a heartbreaking film that still leaves you feeling good in the end.
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