I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "Master Yu was waiting for us when we arrived..." (more)
Key Phrases: stuntman association, biggest brother, stunt coordinator, Hong Kong, Jackie Chan, Yuen Lung (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Since his first role in 1962 at the age of 8, Jackie Chan has appeared in more than 70 movies. For more than 20 years, he has been the biggest star in Asia, but in the West he remained a secret, his movies passed around on tape and his fame growing by word of mouth alone. In the '90s, with the success of crossover movies like Rush Hour and the support of a new generation of filmmakers who grew up watching Jackie Chan videotapes, his star finally rose in the West. But where did he come from, and how did he achieve so much?

His autobiography, I Am Jackie Chan, answers those questions in an engaging, almost novelistic style. When his father moves to Australia to take up a new job, the young Jackie is placed in Hong Kong's China Drama Academy under the tutelage of Master Yu Jim-yuen. For the next 10 years he is trained in martial arts, dance, acrobatics, singing, and comedy, while suffering extraordinary hardships, including regular beatings and near-starvation. Yet he can look back on this period of his life with considerable affection, not least because it taught him the skills, and provided him with the network of friends, that would sustain his film career for decades. Chan has always earned the respect of his fans by committing himself wholeheartedly to creating the most death-defying stunts possible. His achievements seem even more remarkable when set against the struggles described in this book. In the Drama School, as a young stuntman, in his first troubled attempts to make movies in America--Chan's personality shines through, and I Am Jackie Chan can only enhance his reputation as one of the most likable and admirable movie stars in the world. The book also includes Jackie's comments on all of his movies, lists of his favorite stunts and fights, and an astonishing catalog of all his major injuries. Can you imagine what it must feel like to dislocate your cheekbone? --Simon Leake --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

One of Asia's most popular film stars, Chan has helped reinvent the Hong Kong action genre by blending hyperkinetic stunts with a self-deprecating humor and a freewheeling flamboyance reminiscent of Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. His autobiography, unfortunately, contains few of these elements. In minute detail, he chronicles his punishing childhood in the Chinese Opera Research Institute and his rise to superstardom. From age seven to 17, under the severe discipline?some might even call it child abuse?of his Opera Master, Chan was trained for theater and film work. After the death of Bruce Lee (Chan was a stuntman in Lee's Fists of Fury and Enter the Dragon), his studio, Golden Harvest, attempted to turn him into a Lee clone. But Chan's film persona finally gelled when he began to emulate his silent-movie heroes and to punctuate his films with what he calls "the superstunt"?high-risk feats of derring-do that he performs himself. Chan takes himself to task for neglecting his family (indeed, his wife and 14-year-old son are only briefly mentioned), and offers a candid look at the gangs, called Triads, that retain a powerful grip on the Hong Kong film industry. But despite such glimpses behind the actor's Teflon veneer, and his punchy anecdotes, this surprisingly tame, sometimes plodding memoir fails to deliver the heady thrills one has come to expect of a Jackie Chan production. FYI: I Am Jackie Chan is published to coincide with the release of his first American film in 13 years, Rush Hour.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (June 28, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345429133
• ISBN-13: 978-0345429131
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (92 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #638,973 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars very good & worth reading book., January 16, 2000

By	Sung, Ju Hwan (Seoul, Korea) - See all my reviews

I am a Jackie Chan-crazy Korean fan from my childhood. I have grown up with his movies, & he has always been my hero. Every New Year's Day was the day to meet my best friend in a theater. I even started sutdying martial arts seeing his movies.

Frankly, I didn't like the fact that he wants making movies in US. JC is JC because he makes Jackie Chan movies in 'ASIA', American moviemakers don't know what he costs, what he needs for his movie. We fell for him when he hurts for his movie, & we loved him &his movies. Ironically, JC is loved because he always put himself into 'real' danger.(maybe I'm a little bit sadistic) Of course, he also gives us big laughs, After all, most of US action movies aren't funnier than JC's. Even 'Rush Hour'(US-touched-movie) isn't Jackie Chan Movie, I think. (not as exiting as his HK movie) JC must be JC. He has to make his own movie.

But after reading this book I understand him now. He's 45 years old now, & can't last forever. But he would be able to last much more as an action hero in US with US hi-techs. I want to see him in theater as JACKIE CHAN(the carzy, body-falling, bone-breaking, 'just' him) much longer. Now I read this book, I can see much more about him, share the things with him. You see, 'Everything changes'.

This book is really a fun, warm, worth-reading book. How JC became the biggest star in Asia(even now in Staes), how he went through his childhood, rough days, loves, & his BROTHERS. He didn't describe him as a perfect guy, he also tells us his miserable things, & it makes him much more beatifull. Real life success story, from nobody to Asia's most loved guy to a superstar even in US! I recommend this book.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than you think, October 18, 1999

By	Sin Hang Lai ([e-mail]) "sinhanglai" (Cos Cob, CT) - See all my reviews

I am afraid my review is going to be overshadowed by all the others, but I have to try nevertheless. This book is simply sensational. We may be used to laughing and being wowed by Jackie Chan on the movie screen, but I guarantee you will get so much out of this book. His life is certainly interesting, but is the subtle things he points out that will make you think - the difference in culture, the changing of time, friendship, etc. Like his movie, this book is action packed, fluid, and he did his way.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Engaging and entertaining, August 10, 2005

By	D. Thomas "Dave T" (London, England) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A fascinating insight into the mind and career of the world's biggest movie star. With exhaustive (and exhausting!) descriptions of Jackie's brutal Peking opera training and early days as a stuntman and actor, almost everything you want to know about Jackie is here.

Not that there aren't omissions - his illegitimate son Jaycee, now trying to make a name for himself as an actor, is never mentioned. Jackie is also quick to take credit (he claims 'Half a Loaf of Kung Fu' and 'Snake in the Eagle's Shadow' were the first kung fu comedies, which they weren't) and slow to give it out (he describes his opera brothers' film 'The Prodigal Son,' arguably the best kung fu movie ever made, as "solid"). But Jackie's charisma and determination shine through on every page, and you can't help but admire the guy. A must read for Jackie fans and aficionados of Hong Kong cinema.