The Big Brawl, (Chinese: 殺手壕) also known as Battle Creek Brawl, is a 1980 martial arts action-comedy film, which marked Jackie Chan’s first attempt to break into the American movie Hollywood market. A joint American and Hong Kong action film production, it was directed by Robert Clouse and featured much of the crew from Enter the Dragon (1973).
The film is set primarily in Chicago, Illinois in the 1930s (although it was shot in Texas) and follows Chan’s character, a Chinese American martial artist, as he single-handedly takes on the Mafia. The film featured an appearance from Lenny Montana, who had famously played Luca Brasi in The Godfather.
While a moderate success in North America and Hong Kong,
The Big Brawl was a box office disappointment as it performed below expectations in these markets, though it went on to have more success in other Asian and European markets. The film’s disappointing performance in North America, however, led to Chan being advised to try supporting roles such as the Japanese racing car driver in The Cannonball Run. Chan later made another attempt to break into the American market with 1985’s The Protector, which performed worse than this film. It was not until 1995 with Rumble in the Bronx that a Chan film showcasing his signature humor and stunt-work was a major hit in American theaters.
Plot.
Set in Chicago in the 1930s, Jerry Kwan (Jackie Chan) leads a very easy-going life with his girlfriend, Nancy (Kristine DeBell), and his family. His father owns a restaurant, and one day, he is threatened by the mob to pay a part of his profits. As the mob exits, Jerry enters the scene and rushes out the door to catch up with them. He answers back by taking them on and eventually catches the eye of the mob for his unique and talented fighting abilities. In effect, he is forced to join the Battle Creek Brawl fight in Texas. The mob promises to return his brother’s fiancèe and give him the prize money as long as Jerry wins the tournament. He gets help from his uncle, a kung-fu teacher, to train him for the Battle Creek Brawl. They focus on Jerry’s speed and agility as he must fight very tough opponents, one of them including Billy Kiss (H.B. Haggerty), the big, bulky, unbeatable winner from previous battles who kisses his opponents after they are defeated.RELATED:
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Production.
In an interview with Chan on the region 2 DVD, Chan discusses the differences between Chinese and American styles of action. In his early US films, The Big Brawl and The Protector (1985), Chan had to perform the typical American fight sequences involving punches, kicks and doing few takes, all the way to the end of the action scene. It was not until Rumble in the Bronx (1995) that Chan was allowed to use more of his preferred action style, in which he works together with his stunt team and co-stars. It was also then that he was able to do as many takes as he needed in order to capture the sequences adequately. In his autobiography I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action, Chan relates one scene in the production in which Robert Clouse was not interested in Chan’s idea, which was to flip out of a car. Clouse wanted Chan to simply walk from the car to his father’s restaurant. Chan responded, “No one will pay money to see Jackie Chan walk!”, and felt that the lack of freedom to choreograph sequences the way he wanted underlined the reason for the film’s failure. The climactic fight scene was filmed in Floresville, Texas and featured 1,200 extras.