Police Story | Through the Shattered Lens

I knew who Jackie Chan was well before I discovered Hong Kong cinema in the early 90’s through the works of John Woo and Chow Yun-Fat. I had seen him in the CANNONBALL RUN movies, including part 2 in the movie theater, and I recognized the VHS for THE PROTECTOR (1985) at my local video store, but I had no idea just how amazing he was as a filmmaker and performer until I became obsessed with Hong Kong’s local film industry in the mid-90’s. As I read about the incredible work that Chan had done or was doing in books like “Hong Kong Babylon,” I made notes on all of his movies that I wanted to see. Of course, the original POLICE STORY was at the top of the list.

In POLICE STORY, Chan plays Hong Kong cop Chan Ka-Kui. In the film’s opening scene, he takes part in a sting operation to bring down Chu (Yuen Chor), one of Hong’s major drug kingpins. After the plan goes awry, we get an incredible action sequence where cars crash through a shantytown, bullets fly, cops piss themselves, Chan hangs off of a bus with the handle of an umbrella, runs down a mountain, arrests the drug lord, and we’re just getting started!

From that amazing opening, Chan is assigned to protect the key witness, Salina (the gorgeous Brigitte Lin), whose testimony is key to bringing Chu down. This doesn’t go well. Between corruption in the police force, false accusations, and Chan’s tenuous relationship with his girlfriend May (Maggie Cheung), the ensuing chaos seems to indicate that Chu is going to get off on the drug charges and Chan just may end up dead.

But let’s be honest, the plot is just a reason to get to the action. And once you’ve seen a few of Jackie Chan’s Hong Kong movies, you just settle in for a loose story, lots of goofy humor (that doesn’t always work), and some of the most insane stunt work you’ll ever see. POLICE STORY is a perfect example of that formula, and quite honestly, it’s one of the great action films. The stunts feel and look dangerous. The final sequence, set in a shopping mall, is some of the best action I’ve ever seen in a movie. I sat there with my mouth open and shaking my head as great stunt after grunt stunt takes place. I can’t help but wonder how many people got injured doing those scenes as glass shatters, bodies fly, and Chan puts himself through hell for the sake of the scene. It can’t be described… it needs to be experienced.

And yet, for all the amazing action, I can relate to Jackie Chan. He messes up. He gets hurt. He argues with his girlfriend. I’ve done all of these things, and I love it when he gets his stuff together and uses his unique set of skills to save the day!

As awesome as POLICE STORY is, viewers need to be aware of the serious tonal shifts that take place in the Hong Kong cinema of the 80’s. It can be a little jarring if you’re not used to it, as the movie goes from slapstick comedy to brutal action to melodrama, sometimes within the same scene. In some ways, that’s part of the charm, but these films can feel very strange for the uninitiated.

At the end of the day POLICE STORY isn’t perfect, but it is Jackie Chan at his best… fearless, inventive, and committed to giving the audience their money’s worth. If you’re interested in the unique and dangerous films that Chan made at this physical peak, this is as good as it gets.

POLICE STORY is currently streaming on HBOMAX.

Long before The Wire, Homicide, Chicago PD, NYPD Blue, or even Hill Street Blues, there was Police Story.

Co-created by cop-turned-writer Joseph Wambaugh, Police Story aired on NBC from 1973 to 1978. It was an anthology series, with each episode following a different member of the LAPD as they deal with crime and social issues in Los Angeles. For its time, it was ground-breaking in its realistic approach to the life and work of the police. Interestingly, the show wasn’t always blindly pro-cop. Often the cops featured were deeply flawed and the war on crime was frequently portrayed to be unwinnable. Over the course of its run, Police Story was a regular Emmy nominee and won the award for Best Drama Series in 1976.

Police Story started, in 1973, with a two-hour TV movie. At the time it aired, the pilot was called Stakeout but it has since aired in syndication under the title Slow Boy. Vic Morrow stars as Sgt. Joe LaFrieda, a plainclothes detective who can’t keep his marriage together but who can take criminals off the street. LaFrieda is the second-in-command of a special squad of detectives who specialize in watching and taking down high-profile criminals. Their methods frequently come close to entrapment but they usually work. Their current target is Slow Boy (Chuck Conners), the son of a mafia chieftain, who enjoys robbing stores. When LaFrieda’s first attempt to put Slow Boy in jail is thwarted by a liberal judge and departmental bureaucracy, he and the squad come up with a second, less-than-legal plan to take Slow Boy down.

Considering the involvement of Joseph Wambaugh, it’s no surprise that plot is secondary to exploring the day-to-day lives of the blue-collar cops trying to take Slow Boy down. The heart of the movie is in the scenes of the cops shooting the breeze and trying to keep each other amused during length shakeouts. Their humor is often grim and the fascinating dialogue is cynical, dark, and, even by today’s standards, surprisingly raw. One of the detectives (played by Harry Guardino, who specialized in loud-mouth city cops) is an unapologetic racist. Though he gets a comeuppance of sorts, the way the film and the rest of his squad handle his racism will undoubtedly make modern audiences uncomfortable, even if it is authentic to the era in which Slow Boy was made.

The underrated Vic Morrow gives one of his best performances as the tough but sympathetic LaFrieda, who is bad at everything but his job. He is ably supported by a host of familiar character actors. Ed Asner plays LaFrieda’s reactionary lieutenant while Sandy Baron is great in the role of an informant. Diane Baker was also perfectly cast as LaFrieda’s potential girlfriend. (She first meets the detective while Slow Boy is holding a gun to her head.) Finally, Chuck Conner is as intimidating as always as the sadistic Slow Boy.

Slow Boy is a tough and uncompromising police procedural and it provided a great start for Police Story. Reruns of Police Story currently air on H&I on Sunday morning.