Berlin “Little Big Soldier,” is reported to be Jackie Chan’s 99th film. It is a cliche case of syndrome that is set in 227 B.C. during China’s Warring States Period. A moderate bearable stunt, Chan is in the lead and plays a cowardly foot soldier who is friends with Wang Leehom’s pompous general. He is rewarded by Chan for kidnapping him. Ding Sheng sticks to his formula and is determined to chalk the film into the family drama category alongside the rest of Chan’s wonky repertoire with the exception of the dark anti-war twist at the end. The movie has a range of superbly crafted martial arts alongside stunts with cahms wearisome action pieces. Chan does not have one take-down set piece.
Chan has a decently sized fanbase and most of them are fond of his films. They will be quick to support the film’s international distrubition but it most likely wont be enough to break his box office record.
Similar to other blockbusters from China, this one is set during the Warring States Period. This was a time when China was divided into seven rival states, and civilians were carelessly thrown into combat. Chan plays a soldier from the Liang state and is portrayed as the luckiest, thousand soldiers to survive a skirmish with the Wei state. He captures a Wei General played by Leehom and plans to take him back to Liang for a reward. His ultimate goal is to buy land and get back to farming. Along with all this, they have to deal with several groups and their massive agendas. From mercilessly comical to seditious, the motives they struggle with are numerous and bizarre.
One of the most abused songs is the one sung by Lin Peng. In my opinion, she was not given enough credit. When the two protagonists are served with dances and wine, we are presented with a very exciting scene only for her to come back two more times, failing to make an impact on the plot. Perhaps she can add the charm and conflict that the mainly male characters cannot.
Even odder are the forays and departures of an ethnic bandit clan under the command of a spirited woman chief, which hints at an additional interesting storyline that gets dropped before it gains traction. Grunting in a language without any subtitles makes it impossible to figure out what their actions and motives are, even if they do undertake an essential role at the peak. For this reason, the most developed strand in the plot is Wei’s prince pursued by Steve Yoo and his strategists. Even here, Wen’s character is at best ambivalent, with the script oscillating between demonizing him as an uncaring tyrant and praising him as an overindulged child.
Chan outshines Wang and Yoo, utilizing his signature comic charm. Attempts to recreate the ‘odd couple’ balance of American classics like ‘Midnight Run’, ‘48 Hours’, or even Chan’s ‘Rush Hour’ franchise contextualized in China completely miss the mark due to the lack of cultural gap and witty banter. Chan has been an advocate for anti-war ideologies, and that alone aided him develop an idea that he has nurtured for years. It is worth noting, however, that the method of comparing the soldier’s dreams of peace with the general’s ambition of conquest was already explored at a deeper level in He Ping’s ‘Wheat’.
Chan’s astounding stunts are replaced by subtle slapstick which involves clever use of twigs, stones, and bamboo sticks. The Middle Kingdom’s stunning scenery, such as the lofty peaks, the underground limestone cave, the canola flower meadow, and the curvaceous Yangtze River are wonderfully framed, while the more rural locations look dusty and dingy.
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