Quartile rating: 8/10 · 2 ratings
When Hong Kong Inspector Lee is summoned to Los Angeles to investigate a kidnapping, the FBI doesn't want any outside help and assigns cocky LAPD Detective James Carter to distract Lee from the case. Not content to watch the action from the sidelines, Lee and Carter form an unlikely partnership and investigate the case themselves.
Rush Hour is a hugely entertaining buddy-cop comedy that thrives on the chemistry between Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. The plot is functional but formulaic — a kidnapping MacGuffin serving mostly as scaffolding for comedic set pieces. Chan and Tucker's performances are genuinely charming and carry the film well above its material, though neither is doing career-defining dramatic work. Cinematography is workmanlike action-era mid-budget studio fare, nothing distinctive. The pairing of a Hong Kong martial artist with a loud American comedian felt fresh and electric in 1998, giving it decent novelty even within the buddy-cop genre. The ending resolves competently but without surprise or particular flair, wrapping up predictably.