Film Name: 一个好人 / Mr. Nice Guy / 一個好人
In 1997, Hong Kong’s return to China became the year’s biggest news story.
However, Hong Kong cinema began its decline at this time, with the overall film market shrinking significantly.
That year’s box office champion was Jackie Chan’s “Mr. Nice Guy,” directed by Sammo Hung and filmed entirely in Australia. The second and third highest-grossing films were Stephen Chow’s “All’s Well, Ends Well 1997” and Jet Li’s “Once Upon a Time in China and America.”
At the time, Jackie Chan commanded immense box office appeal in mainland China, with nearly every film he starred in achieving high earnings. In 1995, “Rumble in the Bronx” grossed 95 million yuan, ranking second in mainland box office that year, while the critically acclaimed “In the Heat of the Sun” earned 50 million yuan. In 1996, “First Strike” topped the mainland box office with 80 million yuan. Then in 1997, “Mr. Nice Guy” earned 65 million yuan, ranking third at the mainland box office. That same year, Feng Xiaogang’s groundbreaking New Year blockbuster “The Dream” brought in 36 million yuan.
At a time when cinema development was still in its infancy, DVDs were the primary way most people watched movies. Jackie Chan’s films were immensely popular on DVD, and “Mr. Nice Guy” undoubtedly holds cherished childhood memories for many.
The story unfolds in Melbourne, where Jack (Jackie Chan) partners with his father’s friend, Baggio, on a TV cooking show.
He excels at preparing various cuisines, showcasing his pasta-making skills right at the film’s opening.
While on the road, he unexpectedly encounters Diana, a journalist being hunted by gangsters.
Diana is targeted for filming evidence of drug lord Jin Carlo committing murder. Jack, stepping in to defend her, also becomes a marked man.
Jackie Chan makes a cameo as an ice cream vendor. When Jack hides in his cart, the vendor mistakes it for a game of hide-and-seek and inadvertently reveals Jack’s presence to the drug lord’s henchmen.
Jack then flees to a mass wedding venue, disrupting the ceremonies of numerous couples.
He escapes with Diana in his car.
In the car, Diana compliments Jack on being a good man, echoing the film’s title.
Diana mistakenly takes the wrong videotape, setting up a plot point for later events.
Romeo, a police officer and Jack’s close friend, visited Jack’s home with his children. While searching through Jack’s box of tapes for cartoons, the kids accidentally packed the murder tape into their backpack.
Diana only realized she’d taken the wrong tape upon returning home, just as the drug lord’s henchmen arrived at her residence.
Diana pretended to lead the drug lord’s men to Jack’s place, but stripped off her clothes on the street to create chaos. She then sprinted away in her underwear, shaking off her pursuers.
Jack’s female assistant, Lakisha, had always harbored feelings for him. Meanwhile, Jack’s girlfriend, Miki (Li Tingyi), had also arrived in Melbourne.
During a food event at the mall, the drug lord’s henchmen demanded the videotape from Jack.
With no other choice, Jack fled with Miki, engaging in a high-speed chase through the streets in a horse-drawn carriage.
Miki nearly falls to her death, but Jack saves her by running for his life.
Jack brings Miki home, where he encounters Diana and Lakisha fighting over the tape.
The drug lord’s men return, forcing the four to escape via the rooftop to another building.
Meanwhile, drug lord Jin Carlo faced retaliation from a local gang after killing their boss.
After tailing Jin Carlo’s henchmen, they learned the tape’s significance and began plotting to seize it.
Where there are two women, jealousy inevitably follows.
The scene of Jack tickling Lakisha was hilariously awkward, but Miki was a good girl and didn’t give Jack a hard time over it.
Later, gang members came to the house, kidnapped Miki, and demanded Jack bring the tape as ransom.
Jack had no idea where the real tape was, so he brought a fake one to the exchange.
The gangsters canceled the deal when they spotted police and seized the chaos to kidnap Jack.
On the street, Sammo Hung made a cameo as a meddlesome cyclist. Jack later took down the gangsters in his car.
After encountering Diana and Lakisha, the trio headed to the location where Miki was held.
Drug lord Jin Carlo then arrived with his men, capturing Jack and the others and taking them back to his villa.
Unable to produce the tape, Jin Carlo challenged Jack to a fight, but Jack’s limbs were held taut by ropes operated by Jin Carlo’s men.
Despite this, Jin Carlo ended up bleeding from the fight.
Jin Carlo ordered his men to take them to a deserted area and bury them alive with a bulldozer.
Romeo saw the children’s videotape, which contained evidence of drug lord Jin Carlo’s crimes. He desperately wanted to rescue Jack, but without a search warrant, he lacked the authority to conduct a home search.
Jack killed Jin Carlo’s henchmen in self-defense, then drove the bulldozer back to confront him.
He plowed through Jin Carlo’s compound, crushing his sports car and demolishing the villa. Jin Carlo and his men were injured and left lying on the ground after being chased by the bulldozer.
Inside the wrecked villa, police discovered cocaine, providing evidence to arrest Jin Carlo.
This film continues Jackie Chan’s signature style—thrilling yet comedic. Behind-the-scenes footage reveals the physical demands of his stunts: climbing under bulldozer wheels, flipping over a gear saw, grabbing a door mid-air—all inherently dangerous maneuvers.
Jackie’s enduring fame is undeniably the result of immense personal effort and sacrifice.
Watching this film today evokes a sense of nostalgia.
While many older movies may seem dated by modern standards, we still cherish them because they hold our memories within their frames.
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