Buddy cops Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker reunite in Hong Kong for the logical follow-up to their 1998 Los Angeles rendezvous. It's derivative and easy, safe and harmless, but much of that criticism was also true of the original. Besides, this is really all about getting the two stars into a bind, then watching their personalities (and their fists) bounce around the room together. The Tucker/Chan partnership still maintains its innate charm, despite the mainstream-geared weaknesses of the plot, and both stars carve out an appropriate role for themselves. Jackie gets to work his unique fighting style, albeit with an abundance of uncharacteristic jump cuts, while Chris gets to make pained faces, shout tame expletives and poke fun at his own limited fighting prowess.

The story is paper-thin, some nonsense about counterfeit Benjamins and a crooked ex-cop with a generational grudge, but that's just a vehicle to get us from one fight scene or set piece to the next. And both the fight scenes and set pieces have improved from the previous episode. Chan's rumble with a group of casino security guards in a teller's office is inspired and exciting, especially his narrow escape through the money slot, and the penultimate zipline stunt, with both stars leaping out the window of an exploding high-rise, holds up very well. In other words, the spectacle of _Rush Hour 2_ is just fine, if you don't mind everything else being dumbed down in the name of broader market appeal. Don Cheadle's quick cameo is way more fun than it has any right to be.

OK, for those of you who, like me, liked Rush Hour, do yourselves a favor and stay away from this.

What we have here is basically Lethal Weapon 4 set in Hong Kong rather than LA. And... it just doesn't work.

Everything (save the stars) that made the first one funny is kind of out of place and forgotten. It's horrible. The fish out of water scenario fits well in Rush Hour, but set in Hong Kong, Tucker comes across as obnoxious instead of funny.

It's horrible.

20 Jahre ist Rush Hour 2 nun alt und tatsächlich habe ich den Film nun zum ersten Mal geschaut. Den ersten Teil habe ich auch erst 10 Jahre nach seiner Erstveröffentlichung geschaut und nun darf man natürlich gespannt sein, ob die Sichtung von Teil 3 erst 30 Jahre nach seiner Veröffentlichung passiert. Doch zurück zum Thema, meiner Meinung zu Rush Hour 2. Harmonieren Chris Tucker und Jackie Chan im ersten Teil noch perfekt zusammen ist diese Harmonie in der Fortsetzung ein wenig verloren gegangen. Alles wirkt irgendwie aufgewärmt und die Action etwas unspektkulärer als im Vorgänger. Was mir allerdings am meisten aufgefallen ist, wie abwertet der Film mit seinen Frauenfiguren umgeht. Da folgt ein Machospruch auf den nächsten, was nicht nur nach Me Too nicht mehr haltbar ist, sondern eigentlich schon 2001 etwas zu deftig war. Schiebt man diesen Kritikpunkt bei Seite, bleibt eine solide Actionkomödie, die alle typischen Klischees des Buddymovies erfüllt, dabei allerdings nicht so in Erinnerung bleibt wie andere Vertreter des Genres. [Sneakfilm.de]

Didn't know I had a favourite _Rush Hour_ movie until today. I guess I do, and it's this one. Still pretty crap though.

_Final rating:★★ - Definitely not for me, but I sort of get the appeal._