Umbrella Entertainment Australian Blu-ray Synopsis: A group of covert CIA operatives trialling a potential new energy source are double-crossed by corrupt agent Morgan (Ron Smerczak, American Ninja 4: The Annihilation), who causes a helicopter crash in remote South Africa. The sole survivor (Jackie Chan, Drunken Master), suffering sever amnesia, is nursed to recovery by a kindly native tribe who call him “Whoami” after the question he keeps asking. With the help of a mysterious reporter (Michelle Ferre), and rally driver, Yuki (Mirai Yakamoto, Ultraman Ginga), Whoami pieces together his past and tracks the turncoat agent and his criminal cohorts. (108 Mins)

 

Ascot German DVD Synopsis: Jackie Chan's groundbreaking mixture of action, acrobatics and breathtaking stunts - combined with a good dose of humor - have made the director, actor, screenwriter and producer an absolute box office magnet for the past 20 years. In 'Nobody' he may have forgotten who he is - but not how to stage a great action banger! After a failed special mission in South Africa, Jackie (Jackie Chan) is picked up by a native tribe. When he comes to, he can't remember anything, not even his name. Jackie wants to find out what happened and sets out to explore his identity. His own investigations took him between Johannesburg and Rotterdam on the trail of corrupt CIA bosses who are using a dangerous silver bullet to endanger world peace. During the crazy hunt across the continents, the 'headless' Jackie slides over more than 20 floors of a sloping roof facade, jumps out of flying helicopters, paralyzes his pursuers with Dutch clogs or beats them up with cement bags, which he artfully whirls through the air beforehand ... (115 Mins)

 

Columbia Tristar USA VHS Synopsis: Action superstar Jackie Chan (Rush Hour, Supercop) stars in his most thrilling and stunt-packed adventure yet. Left for dead after a brutal CIA double-cross, a lone commando (Chan) must struggle to regain his memory and expose an international espionage ring before they can unleash a powerful and lethal new energy source. With the aid of two beautiful sidekicks, Jackie fights his way across continents and faces armed assassins and sinister plots at every turn. For blistering action and adrenaline-pumping excitement, nobody does it better than Jackie. (108 Mins)

 

Views: I have fond memories of Who Am I? coming out back in the late 1990s, and after reading many articles about it in my monthly issues of Impact Movie Magazine, I finally managed to pick myself up a copy of the full uncut version on VHS from a video store in Boston's Chinatown. Long before Jason Bourne was around, Jackie Chan was the covert CIA agent with memory loss. After being left for dead by his boss in a pilotless chopper, an injured Jackie awakens in an unknown villager somewhere in Africa. Having been nursed back to health by the villagers, Jackie spends months regaining his strength – learning the ways of the African tribe during his time, picking up many handy survival tips from his new family and friends. After noticing a rally race taking place in the distance, a tribal-dressed Jackie makes his way to the road and soon comes across a Japanese duo who have stopped in need of help. Jackie notices one of them has been bitten by a snake and, after helping to remove the poison, creates an IV drip from a coconut so that they can get on their way. His hurry to get back to civilisation results in him winning the race and with the media attention surrounding his win, soon finds himself chased down by the very man who tired to kill him in the first place. From there, it all becomes a deadly game of cat and mouse that takes Jackie from the plains of Africa to the streets of Rotterdam in a bid to find out who he really is and stop the small army of corrupt agents who are sent to kill him – as well as stopping the deal of a deadly weapon!

 

While it's fair to say that Who Am I? isn't the greatest Jackie Chan film ever, it still proves to be hugely entertaining on many levels. From its fast-paced fight scenes to its breathtaking stunts, and its gorgeously captured African landscapes to its unintentional comedy (thanks to some dodgy Western actors), I've always had a great time watching it but just wish it had have been a little more perfect. This was Jackie's second film to be scripted and shot in English, with Mr. Nice Guy being the first from the previous year, and did fairly well at the box-office all over the world. Shot between Nambia and the Netherlands, the film follows the traditions of Jackie's globe-trotting adventures – although it seems to lack the polish of his earlier works. Jackie Chan is joined in the directors chair by the late Benny Chan (no relation); a talented film-maker who already had a string of hits behind him including A Moment Of Romance 1 & 2, The Magic Crane, Man Wanted, Big Bullet and others. With the success of Who Am I? behind them, the two Chan's would join forces quite a number of times over the years with Jackie presenting (and making a cameo in) Gen-X Cops, and Benny going on to direct the star in the awesome New Police Story, Rob-B-Hood, and Shaolin (all of which are very much worth watching). It was a great loss to film fans and the Hong Kong film industry when the director died in late 2020, just as his final film, Raging Fire, was coming to the end of production...

 

Of course, Jackie leads the way as special-ops commando 'Jackie Chan' who would soon become known as Whoami by the African people, due to the question he keeps asking. As any fan knows, this wasn't the first time the superstar had used his own name for a character in his movies – and while it would seem totally ridiculous if any other actor in the world tried it, Jackie just seems to pull it off. Apart from the stunt-doubling and brief moments of his stunt team appearing (such as Andy Cheng, Rocky Lai, Nicky Li, and Brad Allan for example), Jackie is joined by a host offices that are fairly new to Chan-fans. These include Japanese actress Mirai Yamamoto, a fun actress with a lot of energy who went onto appear in films such as Mr. Rookie and Exte, as well as television shows Sky High and Ultraman Ginga, among others. Being one part of the rally-team duo who aid Jackie in getting out of the desert, Yuki gets to join in on one big car chase before she is gradually faded out of the story. Then there is Michelle Ferre, a French-Japanese actress (take that lightly) and journalist who caught the attention of Jackie while interviewing him during production of the film. Intrigued by her bubbly personality, Chan invited her to audition for the movie and somehow she landed the role of a CIA operative who is working undercover as, well, a journalist. To be fair, this was her first ever role and there is footage in the rushes that show her training for action, but that was quickly reduced to a couple of kicks in the final scenes of the film – and even that saw her doubled. English-South African actor Ron Smerczak does a great job as the main villain of the piece, CIA boss Morgan. Since the mid-70s, Ron appeared in a host of notable films including the fun Kill & Kill Again, American Ninja 4: The Annihilation, Cyborg Cop, Dangerous Ground, and more. Unfortunately, Smerczak would pass in 2019. Morgan's boss is played by the prolific and wonderful Ed Nelson, a Hollywood actor who began his career in a host of Roger Corman's B-movies, as well as starring in a number of classic television shows. I really enjoyed him in this role and, while small, Nelson still manages to make an impression. Their gang of heavies features a mix of fighters from around the world including Ron Smoorenburg, a Dutch martial artist who achieved more fame as the guy that pissed Jackie Chan off – a moment that is made quite evident with the footage presented in the NG shots of the film, as well as in many other Jackie Chan documentaries, that saw him doubled by a couple of Jackie's stunt team (such as Andy Cheng and Brad Allan). Once again, this would have been his debut role and the pressure would have been immense, but his kicking skills have kept him in the business with Smoorenburg going on to star in films such as Codename: Puma, Gen-Y Cops, The Avenging Fist, Born Wild, and Martial Angels – as well as a brief stunt role in Tony Jaa's Tom Yum Goong/Warrior King/The Protector. Other familiar faces that show up are Brit-kicker Mike Lambert, Ken Lo, Kane Kosugi, Steve Brettingham, and Kwan Yung; a Hong Kong actor who made his debut in Dragon's Forever before going on to appear in films such as On The Run, Mr. Vampire Saga 4, Gambling Ghost, Operation Scorpio, My Father Is A Hero, Black Mask, and so much more.

 

Action-wise, Jackie Chan and his team provide enough exciting fights and crazed stunts to keep fans happy. This begins with a brief hint of their lives as commandos – something I would like to have seen a lot more of, to be honest. Some stunt-work in a helicopter keeps things ticking over, but it's not really until Jackie gets back to civilisation that the real fun begins. From there, we are treated to a non-stop ride of car chases and fight scenes, as Jackie tries to escape those attempting to kill him. A fun office fight leads to Chan spinning from a great height like a yo-yo while wrapped in a rope after escaping an his captors, as well as having him leap across and slide down buildings as if it was just second nature (the usual impressive Jackie Chan parkour antics that he's was doing long before it became a sport), and a lengthy, and often ridiculous, car chase that entertains if nothing else before he heads to Rotterdam for even more. Once there, we are entertained numerously with a host of fight scenes – one of which sees Jackie don a pair of wooden clogs to literally kick ass and make his escape. The lengthy and exciting fight on the rooftop is fantastic, with Jackie taking on the aforementioned Ron Smoorenburg and Kwan Yung in a very memorable showdown. This fight sees them trade some neatly choreographed moves as they dance around the edge of the 20+ storey Willmswerf Building, before Jackie beats them down using cement bags and bricks in the run-up to his big stunt. Perched on the top of the very same structure, Jackie leaps off the edge to send himself sliding down the angled glass-roof. It's a breathtaking moment that has fans and viewers on the edge of the seats – and a stunt that could have went so wrong. But also, for me, this is where I feel the film fails to a degree as Jackie opts to bring things to a close Stanley Tong-style; trying to impress with the big Hollywood-esque finish that sees hundreds of Marine, army and police officers arrive in boats, cars, and helicopters as Morgan tries to make his escape. While impressive with its scale, I still felt the finale could have been so much more, although the films sees us out with some great NG shots and another catchy number from Jackie himself.

 

It's worth noting that all of the western edits come with around 10 minutes of footage missing when compared to the original Hong Kong cut. A lot of this lost footage is taken from Jackie's time spent with the African tribe including a funny run-in with lions, Jackie attempting to flag down a passing plane, and a couple of large scale tribal dances among other moments. In fact, on my German DVD comes a fascinating 30 minute 'Making of Documentary' which shows lots of scenes that never made the final cut, including one that sees Jackie's face badly clawed – perhaps from a wild animal during his time in Africa. Other unseen moments include segments of the car chase on a pedestrian bridge (which was pretty impressive), and shots of Michelle Ferre training in fight-action for extra scenes with her CIA character. A number of moments also highlight the amount of times Jackie would spend on certain shots (which he has quite the reputation for) – and I don't just mean that fight scene with Ron Smoorenburg. Regardless, and flaws aside, Who Am I? is as entertaining today as it was upon release. This was certainly an interesting period for Jackie Chan with his big Hollywood breakthrough happening the same year, courtesy of Rush Hour; and that's when fans would start to see some major changes in his works! Interestingly enough, the film would see a reboot of sorts produced by Jackie for mainland director Song Yin Xi called Who Am I 2015, starring Wang Hai Xiang in the leading role – an actor who appeared with Jackie in Little Big Soldier and Police Story 2013 – and saw Hong Kong stars Yu Rong Kwong and Ken Lo appear. The film was retitled Amnesia for North America, although hasn't really gained much attention since its release!

 

Overall: Exciting and fun with plenty of exciting fights and stunt-action, Who Am I? makes for a great watch and entertains!

 

Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray Extras: Trailer

 

Ascot DVD Extras: Making Of Documentary, Jackie Chan: My Story Promo, Jackie Chan: My Stunts Promo, Out-takes, Cast & Crew Bios, Jackie Chan Interview, Rumble In The Bronx Promos, Trailers

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Watch my unboxing video of this Umbrella Entertainment release HERE