The Protector (1985 film)
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| The Protector | |
|---|---|
 The DVD cover of the US version |
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| Directed by | James Glickenhaus |
| Produced by | David Chan Shek-Hong Chan Raymond Chow Leonard Ho |
| Written by | James Glickenhaus King Sang Tang |
| Starring | Jackie Chan Danny Aiello |
| Cinematography | Chang Yao Chu Mark Irwin |
| Editing by | Yao Chung Chang Evan A. Lottman Barbara Minor |
| Distributed by | Golden Harvest Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) |  July 11, 1985 August 23, 1985 |
| Running time | 91 min. |
| Country | Hong Kong/US |
| Language | Cantonese, English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Protector is a 1985 Hong Kong action film directed by James Glickenhaus and starring Jackie Chan. It was Chan's second attempt at breaking into the American film market, after 1980's The Big Brawl, a film which had flopped at the box office.
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[edit] Plot
Chan plays Billy Wong, a New York cop whose partner is gunned down in the line of duty. Set up with new partner Danny Garoni (Danny Aiello), the pair find themselves on the trail of kidnappers who have taken a wealthy businessman's daughter, eventually leading them to Hong Kong where they battle both a drug kingpin and the authorities to try get her back.
[edit] Behind the scenes
Glickenhaus had previously directed B movie action star Robert Ginty in a film entitled The Exterminator, which was also his only real profitable film. The Exterminator was a violent, gritty, and crude vigilante action film, which may be seen as derivative of Charles Bronson's Death Wish films. The Protector would be Glickenhaus' fourth time in the directing chair.
Glickenhaus had wanted Chan's character to be a "Dirty Harry" type, speaking softly, carrying a big gun and swearing. In addition to the use of expletives, there was also nudity in the film, specifically a scene in which Chan's character walks into a drug lab run by nude women. Chan was shocked at how bad Glickenhaus's directing was, especially since The Protector was to be ostensibly a martial arts film. Chan had gained much experience directing in his Hong Kong films and was disgusted with the way Glickenhaus would move onto each subsequent scene, even when prior ones needed to be reshot.
In his autobiography, Chan relates how he called his manager saying, "He keeps going after four takes of each scene. FOUR Takes! I've never done a scene that took less than 20 takes!"
Chan knew that his Asian audience would be offended by the frequent foul language, exploitive nudity and Glickenhaus's poor direction. Chan asked to direct the fight scenes himself, but Glickenhaus refused, wanting to keep actor and director entirely separate.
In a heated argument between Glickenhaus and Chan halfway through the shoot, Chan quit and walked off the set. Back at his hotel room Chan phoned his manager in Hong Kong and told him what he had done, saying, "Glickenhaus is destroying my career." His agent responded that he had to return to the set and finish the film because Glickenhaus had an iron-clad contract.
When the film was finally completed and Glickenhaus left Hong Kong, Chan initially decided not to release the film in Asia, but ultimately changed his mind, though not until he had re-shot some scenes, removing the nudity and vulgar language, and re-coordinating the final fight between his character and the villain played by Bill 'Superfoot' Wallace.
In the end, the American version was stiff and the editing was sloppy, whereas the Hong Kong version was more elaborate, dynamic and faster. Subsequently the American version flopped at the box office, whilst the Hong Kong version received moderate success in Asia.
It is claimed that Chan's next Hong Kong film, the hugely popular and critically acclaimed Police Story, was made in order to atone for The Protector.
[edit] Box Office
In North America, The Protector was a box office disaster, making only US $981,817. Chan's re-edited version grossed HK $13,917,612 in Hong Kong, a respectable sum, but significantly less than any of Chan's domestic films at the time.
