Trapped in the Screening Room The Foreigner

Met Radio

Today on Trapped in the Screening Room, we look at the new Jackie Chan action thriller, THE FOREIGNER. It tells the story of a humble businessman who loses his daughter in a car bomb terrorist attack. The men claiming credit for the attack, are calling themselves, Authentic IRA. With nowhere to turn too, Chan starts to question a former IRA agent played by Pierce Brosnan. Hungry for justice, Chan decides to stop the terrorists himself. Coming from Director Martin Campbell (CASINO ROYALE, MASK OF ZORRO), THE FOREIGNER delivers thrilling action and John Le Carre thrills. Also discussed on the episode, we dive in deeper into Jackie Chan’s career, from his comedy roots to his 1990’s breakthrough into the US market. We look at the old man action genre, including 2013’s THE LAST STAND, and compare this to the works of Charles Bronson. We Also look at Martin Campbell’s career, and how this film relates to his classic mini-series EDGE OF DARKNESS and it’s 2010 Mel Gibson starring remake. As for our Retro movie of the week, we spotlight the 1993 Jackie Chan actioner, CRIME STORY. It’s based on the 1990 Teddy Wang kidnapping case and it helped we shape Chan’s career. While we’re at it, we also discuss Hong Kong cinema in the early 90’s before the Handover. Were the tensions of the time bleeding into the movies? Of course I go off the cuff and go on about some classics and new films like HARD BOILED, THE KILLER, DRUNKEN MASTER, SNAKE IN THE EAGLE’S SHADOW, and the poorly mistreated Jean Claude Van Damme movie HARD TARGET.