Jackie Chan is Chon Wong, a member of the Imperial Guard in China and a man smitten with the lovely Princess Pei-Pei (Lucy Liu).
The princess (Lucy Liu) is unhappy with the prospect of an arranged marriage to a man she considers a “toad” and allows herself to be talked into fleeing to the Western U.S.
What she doesn’t know is that her English tutor, Calvin Anderson, is in cahoots with disgraced Chinaman Lo Fong, who operates a mine with forced Chinese labor in Carson City, Nevada.
They plan to take her to Carson City as their captive and demand a large ransom for her release.
Back in China, the emperor chooses the best three members of his Imperial Guard to rescue her. Chon Wong winds up going allow, to help carry their baggage.
Then small-time outlaw Roy O’Bannon (Owen Wilson) and his gang attack the train they’re all riding in.
Chon Wang winds up separated from the other members of the Imperial Guard, but is still determined to help free the princess.
And when Roy learns of the amount of gold involved, he insists on personally guiding his new “partner” to Carson City.
Along the way, Chon Wang unwittingly marries the daughter of an Indian chief.
And Roy O’Bannon crosses paths with an old enemy, the deadly Marshal Nathan Van Cleef.
Owen Wilson as Roy O’Bannon, preparing for a gunfight with the deadly Marshal Van Cleef in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Jackie Chan as Chon Wong, realizing he’s in the West and no longer bound by homeland customs in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Review:
Comedy Westerns are hit and miss. This one hits nearly all the right notes, thanks in large part to two likeable leads and a wonderfully choreographed final showdown that involves nearly everyone in the principle cast.
The script even has a fresh approach to a scene in which Roy O’Bannon teaches Chon Wang — pronounced an awful lot like John Wayne — how to shoot.
Among the other memorable scenes are one in which Roy O’Bannon realizes his new partner, fresh to the West, has the higher price on his head.
The film was successful enough to spawn a sequel, Shanghai Knights (2003), which finds the news buddies in London trying to track down a murderer.
In this film, Brandon Merrill plays Chon Wong’s very capable Indian wife in what to date is her only screen appearance. Raised on a ranch, she was also a rodeo champ, according to IMDb.
Lucy Liu as Princess Pei-Pei, pleased to hear she might now have to return to the homeland in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Brandon Merrill as Falling Leave, Chon Wang’s Indian wife, wishing Roy O’Bannon would stop talking in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Directed by:
Tom Dey
Cast:
Jackie Chan … Chon Wang
Owen Wilson … Roy O’Bannon
Lucy Liu … Princess Pei-Pei
Brandon Merrill … Indian wife / Falling Leave
Xander Berekeley … Marshal Nathan Van Cleef
Roger Yuan …. Lo Fong
Kate Luyben … Fifi
Jason Connery … Calvin Andrews
Simon R. Baker … Little Feather
Walton Goggins … Wallace
Adrien Dorval … Blue
Henry O … Royal interpretor
Russell Badger … Sioux cheif
Simon Baker … Little Feather
Rick Ash …. Jedadiah
Valerie Planche … Jedadiah’s wife
Runtime: 110 min.
Roger Yuan as Lo Fong, holding the princess captive in return for an emperor’s ransom in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Xander Berekeley as Marshal Nathan Van Cleef, calling out Roy O’Bannon for a showdown in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Memorable lines:
Roy O’Bannon: “The safe’s about to blow. Get ready to reap the fruits of our labor.”
Wallace, realizing the safe was blown clear out of the train car: “Roy, you just blew the shit out of our fruit.”
Roy O’Bannon, when Chon Wang explains his mission: “Forbidden City? I like that. Forbidden City. Princess. It’s so mysterious.”
Roy O’Bannon, after the partners have broken out of jail: “Whoa, who’s the pretty lady.”
Chon Wang: “That’s my wife.”
Roy: “How long you been in this country?”
Chon Wang: “Four days.”
Roy: “Nice work.”
Walton Goggins as Wallace, a new gang member with designs on taking over for Roy O’Bannon in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Simon Baker as Little Feather, the Indian boy Chon Wang helps defend from a Crow war party in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Chon Wang: “My name’s Chon Wang.”
Roy O’Bannon: “John Wayne?”
Chon Wang: “Chon Wang (sounding like John Wayne).”
Roy. laughing: “That’s a terrible cowboy name. That’s not going to work. That’s terrible. So bad.”
Roy O’Bannon, watching as Chon Wang dismounts by sliding off the back of his horse: “We have to work on that.”
Roy O’Bannon, catching a glimpse of his partner’s wanted poster: “Ah, come on; that’s not right.”
Chon Wang: “I know. I’m not from Shanghai.”
Roy: “No! A thousand dollars for a sidekick. You’ve got to be kidding me. The justice system’s all screwed up.”
Marshal Van Cleef: “You got 20 seconds, O’Bannon.”
Roy O’Bannon: “Give us a minute.”
Jason Connery as Calvin Andrews, the tutor who spirits Princess Pei-Pei out of China in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Kate Luyben as Fifi, a whore summoning Roy O’Bannon to her room in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Roy O’Bannon: “I don’t know karate. But I know crazy. And I will use it.”
Roy O’Bannon to Lon Fong: “Reach for the sky, baldy!”
Chon Wang to his fellow members of the Imperial Guard: “This is the West, not the East. And the sun may rise where we come from. But this is where it sets.”
Roy O’Bannon: “Want me to translate? The Princess stays.”
Marshal Van Cleff: “How about that? It’s a Mexican standout. ‘Cept we ain’t got no Mexicans.”
Owen Wilson as Roy O’Bannon, explaining how having his face on a poster will make him more popular with the girls in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Jackie Chan as Chon Wang, emerging from a teepee after unwittingly spending the night with a chief’s daughter in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Lucy Liu as Princess Pei-Pei, arriving in Carson City, Nevada, and growing suspicious in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Roger Yuan as Lo Fong, determined to claim his ransom for a kidnapped princess in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Jackie Chan as Chon Wang, pleased to discover that his image is on a post too in Shanghai Noon (2000)
Owen WIlson as Roy O’Bannon, explaining why he’d best guide Chon Wang to Carson City in Shanghai Noon (2000)
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