Rush Hour (1998) Deconstruction
Film Synopsis:
When a Chinese diplomat's daughter is kidnapped in Los Angeles, he calls in Hong Kong Detective Inspector Lee (Jackie Chan) to assist the FBI with the case. But the FBI doesn't want anything to do with Lee, and they dump him off on the LAPD, who assign wisecracking Detective James Carter (Chris Tucker) to watch over him. Although Lee and Carter can't stand each other, they choose to work together to solve the case on their own when they figure out they've been ditched by both the FBI and police.
Rush Hour (1998):Deconstruction
Rush Hour, directed by Brett Ratner - one of Hollywood's most successful directors - stars Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. It achieved commercial success and became the 7th top grossing film of 1998. The plot of the film centers on the kidnapping of the daughter of the Chinese Consol.
The scene begins with one of the main characters, Carter, shouting from an old car, driving speedily on a busy highway. Then, he pulls up to a diner car park where another character is seen looking out to the distance. Carter is dressed in all black leather, with black sunglasses to match which suggests to the audience that he may be a questionable character, in comparison to the other character, Al; He is dressed in a dark green coat and a light green polo shirt, which suggests that he may be a normal civilian.
This is emphasised by the two shot camera frame, which allows the audience to connect with Al and Carter.
The close up of the car bomb in the boot of Al's car juxtaposes the audience's view of Al, therefore counting that this man is deceptive and equally dangerous. A quick cut and close up to Carter's face whist he says "Well that's beautiful" suggests that Carter may be being sarcastic, as well as trying to "play along" (make Al suspect nothing).
Later on, two police officers appear and question Carter, meanwhile Al brings out a gun from an over-the-shoulder shot. The mise-en-scene here emphasises further that Al, rather, is the questionable character, as the gun blends into his jacket due to the use of low key lighting.
A close up of Al holding the gun to Carter's neck, then a quick pan to where Al falls (after being hit) suggests that the sudden impact of the hit was immense, and the audience gets to experience Al's disorientation. The audience expect any action in the scene to include a chase, which is common to the Action/Crime genres.
At the two minute mark, faster editing plus the non-diegetic music creates a sense of adventure and action, whilst the audience witness Al's (failed) escape. Shaky camera movements and tracking shots point out that Al's escape plus the disorientation from the previous scene will eventually fail- in a long shot, Al's car is seen exploding and bursting into flames.
Towards the end, Carter's victory dance movements are parallel and syncronous to the non-diegetic music in the background, emphasising the comedy element within the crossover of genres.
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