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Review | Ride On movie review: Jackie Chan as ageing stuntman confirms he’s too old for this gig in this love letter to the profession
- Chan plays a kung fu stuntman struggling with mounting debts as the industry increasingly relies upon computer-generated effects over practical stunts
- The movie pays homage to Chan’s most memorable films such as Police Story and Dragon Lord – it is ironic, then, that it is a horse that steals the show
Reading Time:2 minutes
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2/5 stars
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Opening in Chinese cinemas on April 7 to coincide with star Jackie Chan’s 69th birthday, Ride On, from writer-director Larry Yang Zi, serves as a misty-eyed love letter to the actor and the stuntman profession.
Dedicated to “all the kung fu stuntmen who contributed to 100 years of Chinese film history”, the film sees Chan’s ageing stuntman Luo reconcile with the end of his career, reunite with his estranged daughter, and become embroiled in a bitter custody battle for his long-time stunt horse.
It is somewhat ironic, therefore, that it is Chan’s equine co-star who steals the show, while Chan does little more than confirm our growing suspicions that he is far too old for this gig.
Once the greatest stuntman in the business, Luo is now at the end of his rope. The industry’s increasing reliance upon computer-generated effects over practical stunts, together with mounting debts, means he has been relegated to living in lodgings on the film studio lot, scraping together a meagre living charging for photographs with his beloved horse, Red Hare.
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When a corporate dispute, as well as Andy On Chi-kit’s aggressive debt collector, both target Red Hare as the only way Luo can repay what he owes, he is forced to seek legal action.
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