Movie Review: Big Trouble in Little China (1986)

★★★★★

Big Trouble in Little China is just wild fun from start to finish. It’s got action, laughs, and some of the weirdest, coolest scenes I’ve ever seen.

Michael K.

Hawaii

There are action movies where the hero saves the day, and then there’s Big Trouble in Little China, where the “hero” mostly blunders his way through a mystical martial arts showdown while everyone else does the real work.

As a reviewer for BoxReview.com, I’ve always loved how this film flips expectations. Directed by John Carpenter and starring Kurt Russell at his most swaggeringly clueless, it’s part action-adventure, part supernatural fantasy, part kung fu movie, and somehow it all works.

The Premise: Trouble with a Capital “T”

Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) is a truck driver who thinks he’s the main character of every story. After dropping off a load in San Francisco’s Chinatown, he helps his friend Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) pick up his fiancée from the airport. That’s when she’s kidnapped by a Chinese street gang and whisked into a world of ancient curses, magical warriors, and an evil sorcerer named Lo Pan (James Hong) who’s been searching for a green-eyed bride for centuries.

Jack jumps in to “save the day,” but quickly finds himself in over his head, way over.

Kurt Russell’s Jack Burton: The Sidekick Who Thinks He’s John Wayne

Russell plays Jack as a mix of John Wayne swagger and complete obliviousness. He talks big, struts around, and assumes he’s in control, but more often than not, he’s the one being rescued.

This is one of the most brilliant subversions in 80s action movies. Carpenter makes Jack the point-of-view character but not the actual hero. Wang Chi is the one with the skills, the bravery, and the agency; Jack just happens to be along for the ride, getting lucky in key moments.

Dennis Dun as Wang Chi: The Real Hero

Dennis Dun delivers a fantastic performance as Wang, balancing charm, determination, and incredible martial arts skills. While Jack stumbles, Wang executes flawless fight choreography, navigates the supernatural underworld, and actually defeats Lo Pan’s warriors.

It’s rare, especially in the mid-80s, to see an Asian character take the lead in an American action film, and Dun absolutely nails it. He’s the backbone of the story, even if Jack gets most of the one-liners.

James Hong’s Lo Pan: Villainy with Personality

James Hong brings Lo Pan to life with theatrical flair, alternating between ancient, ghostly sorcerer and shriveled old man. What’s often overlooked is how funny he is. Hong knows exactly how campy the role is and leans into it without losing the character’s menace.

Lo Pan’s backstory, cursed until he can marry and sacrifice a woman with green eyes, sounds absurd on paper, but Hong sells it so well that you buy into the stakes.

The Three Storms: 80s Martial Arts Supervillains Done Right

Rain, Thunder, and Lightning, Lo Pan’s trio of supernatural enforcers, are straight out of a martial arts fantasy comic book. With their elaborate costumes, mystical powers, and dramatic entrances, they give the film a constant sense of spectacle.

Lightning, in particular, feels like he could have walked right into Mortal Kombat a decade later without changing a thing.

John Carpenter’s Genre Mash-Up

Carpenter blends martial arts fantasy, supernatural horror, comedy, and pulp adventure with complete confidence. The fight scenes are choreographed like classic Hong Kong cinema, the sets are dripping with neon and mysticism, and the humor comes from character interactions rather than parody.

What’s less discussed is how much this movie was Carpenter’s love letter to martial arts films of the '70s and '80s. He worked with choreographers and stunt teams from Hong Kong to make sure the action felt authentic.

The Practical Effects and Set Design

In an era before CGI, Big Trouble in Little China relies on practical effects, and they still hold up. The glowing eyes, smoke-filled lairs, giant monsters, and bizarre underground lairs give the film a tactile, lived-in feel.

The sets are especially impressive. Lo Pan’s lair is a mix of an ancient temple, a neon nightclub, and a subterranean labyrinth, a perfect visual match for the film’s tone.

Kim Cattrall as Gracie Law: More Than the “Damsel”

Kim Cattrall brings a screwball-comedy energy to Gracie Law, a lawyer and activist who’s just as stubborn and sarcastic as Jack. She doesn’t spend the whole movie screaming for help; in fact, she often pushes the plot forward. Her banter with Jack is pure 80s romantic-comedy gold.

The Humor: Self-Aware but Never Mean-Spirited

The comedy in Big Trouble in Little China comes from personality clashes, absurd situations, and Jack’s obliviousness. Carpenter lets the characters be funny without making fun of the martial arts and Chinese folklore elements, which is why the film holds up better than some other '80s “East meets West” comedies.

Underappreciated Element: The Ending

Most 80s action-comedies wrap up with the hero getting the girl and riding off into the sunset. Here, Jack turns down Gracie’s romantic interest, delivers one last wisecrack, and heads back to the open road completely unaware there’s a monster stowing away on his truck.

It’s an ending that perfectly fits Jack’s “lucky fool” persona and leaves the door open for more adventures we’ll never see.

Why Big Trouble in Little China Still Works

It bombed at the box office in 1986, but over the years, it’s become a cult classic because it’s so unapologetically itself. Carpenter made a movie that blended American action and Chinese fantasy without sanding down the weirdness, and that weirdness is exactly why it’s timeless.

Kurt Russell’s comedic action performance, Dennis Dun’s true-hero arc, James Hong’s larger-than-life villainy, and the film’s gonzo mix of genres still feel fresh today.

Final Thoughts

Big Trouble in Little China is proof that sometimes the most memorable movies aren’t the ones that follow the rules; they’re the ones that gleefully break them. It’s an action-comedy where the hero isn’t really the hero, the villain is as charming as he is evil, and the tone shifts from mystical fantasy to slapstick without missing a beat.

If you’ve never seen it, you’re in for a ride unlike anything else from the 80s. And if you’ve seen it before, you know it’s all in the reflexes.