captaind's Full Review: Around the World in 80 Days
Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie''s plot.
Oh well. Despite the fact that most people whove already reviewed this hated it, I have to admit that I rather enjoyed it! Not a modern classic but good fun all the same
//---//
While little about this film resembles the book apart from the title, the basic premise, and some of the characters, Around The World in 80 Days turns out to be one of the most entertaining films made in 2004.
Starring Steve Coogan, Jackie Chan, Cecile de France, and Jim Broadbent, this madcap caper runs at breakneck speed throughout. Along with the wager of Phileas Fogg (Coogan) that he can circumnavigate the world in just 80 days, we have the added factor of his being an inventor at odds with the Minister of Science (Broadbent). Added to which his French valet Passportu (Chan) is actually Chinese and on a secret and possibly sacred mission, the theft from the Bank of England is of an object not £55,000, and they pick up a frustrated, free-spirited artist from france (France Cecile de, that is), and you have a plot full of twists and turns and that owes nearly nothing to the book. But unless youre a purist of the classic Jules Verne original, this wont worry you. The action comes thick and fast, there are plenty of laughs, and the special effects are impressively quirky, lending a slightly surreal feel to the movie.
Chan does his normal choreographed fight sequences and hammy acting, and this works most if not all of the time. The fight sequences seem a little run-of-the-mill though, and certainly werent on a par with those seen in Shanghai Noon / Knights. Chan does prove again that hes made the transition from action movie to comedy rather well, and this film is certainly a lot better than The Tuxedo, which really did seem like it was just going through the motions with no inspiration at all. Coogan is a real revelation here, and the depth he gives his character is a bit of a shock given how different it is to his infamously acerbic and cynical Alan Partridge persona, and the relative weakness of The Parole Officer. He has surprisingly little comic acting to do but he handles the emotional scenes extremely well, I certainly hadnt realised just what a good actor he is. Cecile de France has been in a number of French films and looked familiar, but Im sure I havent seen any of her films. She did okay but there were some scenes where she seemed to be too amused considering what was happening around her Jim Broadbent is, as always, excellent (surely hes one of the most consistently brilliant actors of his generation?!?), and revels in his role as the evil Minister of Science. The equally excellent Kathy Burke makes a brief but memorable appearance as Queen Victoria.
The story is, as Ive mentioned before, rather different to the original, but it doesnt suffer for that. The storyline is a bit weak but its generally fast enough to overcome this, and theres plenty of energy throughout. The quality of honour, which is highlighted in the original, is still the chief motivation of the main characters here. Its not perfect, there are a few faults with the film that slightly annoyed, but they were really very minor in the big scheme of things. Its not quite a 5-star movie, but it comes fairly close. It has given me a bit of a headache as to whether it deserves a place in my top ten films of 2004 or not jurys still out!
Around the World in 80 Days is fast, fun, funny, and on the whole something that the whole family can watch and enjoy. If you like Chans recent movies anyway youre sure to enjoy this, if not you may enjoy it anyway.
If you liked Around the World in 80 Days, you may also like these other daft but fun films:
A comic take on the classic novel finds a Chinese thief and an eccentric London inventor as travel companions on a trip around the world.More at eCOST.com
Get ready for phenomenal fun, spectacular adventures, and nonstop action as hilarious megastar Jackie Chan (SHANGHAI NOON, SHANGHAI KNIGHTS) dares to ...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.