The Movie Diorama Given the title, and having already witness a scene with an asian man exploding, I knew I was expecting 80s absurdity. It's all well and good, but it does come at a price amounting to more than the cost of a number 67 from my local Chinese takeaway (egg fried rice between you and me). Truck driver Jack gets caught in an ancient battle where two girls are captured because they have green eyes. Yes, that's the best I can do. There's sorcery, cheesy one liners and Raiden from 'Mortal Kombat'. A "Chinese Showdown" consisting on atleast fifty extras flipping on wires in every direction, as director Carpenter bathes in the mayhem for a decent five minutes. Considering he is best known for crafting some of the best horror films ever, his authentic prosthetic trademark is put to good use here. A floating flesh ball comprising of eyeballs, a hairy yeti resembling a drugged up Chewbacca and, as mentioned before, a man enlarging himself to the point of explosion. It's madness, sheer lunacy. Yet, it knows what it is. You can't class it as "so bad it's good" because it isn't serious, and that only adds to the charm. Acting was serviceable, Russell revelling in his action glory days whilst Cattrall adds some sass with her character. The screenplay, unfortunately, is lacklustre. Having slept on this film (not literally...or maybe), I can't remember any of the one liners except Jack frequently shouting "Wang!" "Wang!?" "Waaaaaaang!!!!" whilst the script negates all racial context. The story seems like it has plenty of lore, yet hardly any of the fantasy elements are explored. Simply just used for environmental set pieces. It substituted an engaging story for B-movie action. Also, some of those effects have not aged well at all...but that's a given, I don't think you need me to reiterate that for you. Did I enjoy this? Yes, unquestionably. Do I think it's good? Now that's where I question myself. Perhaps it's just not to my taste, B-Movies have never enticed me.

Alexandra Costa I hadn't seen this movie before, I just watched it today and I had a blast! It was fun, still holds up to this day imo!

Anssi Vartiainen One of John Carpenter's most famous movies and definitely a cult classic in its own right. It tells about a trucker named Jack Burton (Kurt Russell), who rather unwillingly gets pulled into an ancient conflict that has resurfaced in San Francisco's Chinatown. A sorcerer named Lo Pan (James Hong) leads a gang there and has his eyes set on marrying a green-eyed woman in order to break an ancient curse cast upon him by the first emperor of China. And it just so happens that Jack's friend Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) has a fiancée with green eyes.It's epically silly, but in the best way possible. Carpenter's films tend to be rather grim in tone, but this easily on the lighter end of his scale. It can still be described as dark fantasy, but it's far from horror. That being said, some of the special effects are rather gruesome, but also so well done that you cannot help but admire them, even in this modern day and era.I also really like Jack Burton's character. He is what would happen if you put a comic relief in the lead role and failed to mention to him that he's in fact the comic relief. Jack is easily the least capable person in the entire posse and many of his fight scenes end with him failing around in clueless fashion. Yet he is the main character, having a lot of charisma and some singular moments of true badassery. Russell beautifully straddles these two distinct traits, moving from one style of character to another.Is it Carpenter's best work? Nah, that still belongs to The Thing. But it is an excellent 80s urban fantasy film and very much worth a watch for all fans of the genre.

oOoBarracuda Mr. & Mrs. Smith is to Alfred Hitchcock what Big Trouble in Little China is to John Carpenter. I was flabbergasted to learn that the director I thought of strictly as a horror director actually had an action/adventure comedy under his belt. John Carpenter directed Kurt Russell and Kim Cattrall Big Trouble in Little China in 1986. Big Trouble in Little China tells the story of an American truck driver who gets roped into a mythical Chinese battle. John Carpenter directing an action film was enough to bring a film to my attention, even if I was not especially fond of the genre.Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) accompanies a friend to the airport when he arrives in SanFransisco. Jack's friend is smitten by this woman and the only thing he knows about her is that she is Chinese and has green eyes. Upon her arrival to the airport, the two men see that she is kidnapped by a Chinese street gang. When they chase after the girl, they realize that a Chinese sorcerer is responsible for her kidnapping. This sorcerer has existed for more than 2000 years and does not require a body to occupy space. In order to retrieve his physical being, the sorcerer must marry a Chinese woman with green eyes. Jack teams up with a lawyer he meets, Gracie Law (Kim Cattrall) who agrees to assist him during his quest through the underground portion of Chinatown. Encountering new mythic hurdles at every turn, Jack has his work cut out for him in Little China.As noted, a curiosity of John Carpenter making a non-horror film is the only thing that brought me to Big Trouble in Little China. I haven't seen much of Kurt Russell's work, and there's nothing in this film to endear him to me any further. Granted there is enough comedy in this film to make sense, but Kurt Russell's over-the-top comedic performance was hammy, to say the least. One bright spot was the sound in this film. It could be only because it was an 80's film, but Big Trouble in Little China sounded very much like a John Carpenter film. There's not too much to take away from Big Trouble in Little China, unless you're a massive John Carpenter fan and commit to see everything he's ever made. I wish I could remember who told me I wouldn't like this, I'd like to let them know they were right.