Jackie Chan is a living legend. With his unique combination of comedy, acrobatics, martial arts and unforgettable stunts, he has built a huge fanbase worldwide. From the '70s well into the 21st century he kept reinventing himself, from classic kung fu films to Hollywood blockbusters. In this top 10 we list his very best work: films you have to see if you love action or cinema at all.
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Police Story (1985)
A milestone in Jackie Chan's career. He plays a cop who has to take on a drug lord almost single-handedly, resulting in some of the most iconic action scenes ever, including an insane slide down a light-covered pole through a shopping mall. Realistic? No. Brilliant? Absolutely.
Drunken Master II (1994)
Also known as The Legend of Drunken Master. Jackie returns as the legendary Wong Fei-hung, fighting with his inimitable drunken boxing style while foiling a plot to smuggle Chinese artifacts. The finale, a brutal fight in a steel mill, may be the best fight scene he ever filmed, with Chan at the peak of his physical abilities.
Also known as The Legend of Drunken Master.
Project A (1983)
An adventurous mix of pirates, kung fu and hard-hitting stunts. In one famous scene, Jackie falls from a clock tower without any safety net, a clear homage to Harold Lloyd.
A cinematic milestone without question.
Wheels on Meals (1984)
One of his most light-hearted films, shot in Barcelona. Jackie plays a food truck cook who gets caught up in a kidnapping case with his friends. It features a legendary fight with kickboxer Benny 'The Jet' Urquidez.
The cast had incredible chemistry. (2)
Drunken Master (1978)
The film that made Jackie Chan a star. As young troublemaker Wong Fei-hung, he learns the absurd but effective style of drunken boxing. Hilarious, energetic and incredibly innovative for its time.
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Rumble in the Bronx (1995)
The film that launched Jackie in America. In a rather cartoonish version of the Bronx (actually filmed in Vancouver), he takes on street gangs, with spectacle on hovercrafts, shopping carts and more. Simple, but oh so much fun.
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Armour of God (1986)
Jackie plays a kind of Asian Indiana Jones in this adventure spectacle full of temples, booby traps and mysterious relics. One of his most dangerous stunts ever, a leap to a tree branch, went wrong and nearly killed him.
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Dragons Forever (1988)
Together with his longtime partners Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, Jackie forms an unbeatable trio. They play a lawyer and his shady friends who get caught up in a criminal case. The fight scenes are funny and technically stunning.
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Kung Fu Yoga (2017)
A late-career outing that mixes Chinese action with Bollywood dance. Not his best film ever, but entertaining and grandly staged. Think treasure hunts, lions, dance numbers and Chan still leaping around like a twenty-year-old.
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Rush Hour (1998)
Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker form an unlikely but brilliant duo: a Hong Kong detective and a fast-talking LAPD detective who have to rescue a Chinese consul's kidnapped daughter. Proof that Chan could succeed in Hollywood without sacrificing his inimitable style: fight choreography, slapstick and funny one-liners make for pure entertainment.
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A true masterpiece from start to finish. (10)
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