Product Details

• Actors: Jackie Chan, Steve Coogan, Jim Broadbent, Kathy Bates, Robert Fyfe
• Directors: Frank Coraci
• Writers: David Andrew Goldstein, David Benullo, David N. Titcher, Jules Verne
• Producers: Aimee Keen, Alex Leung, Alex Schwartz
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English, French, German, Hindi, Turkish
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Walt Disney Video
• VHS Release Date: November 2, 2004
• Run Time: 120 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (98 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0002S64U0
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #26,205 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The 2004 version of Around the World in 80 Days is an entertaining hodge-podge of adventure, comedy, and scenery from across the globe. Phileas Fogg (Steve Coogan, 24 Hour Party People), an obsessively precise inventor, bets that he can circumnavigate the planet in 80 days--considered impossible in the Victorian era. In this version, Jackie Chan plays a Chinese peasant who retrieves a stolen idol from the Bank of England, then convinces Fogg to hire him as a French valet so that Chan can get back to his village. Chan supplies numerous spectacular fights against the forces trying to stop Fogg or get the idol, while Coogan is both funny and a surprisingly appealing romantic lead (he flirts with a fetching French painter who joins them). The various episodes--featuring cameos by Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Cleese, Owen Wilson, and Sammo Hung--are uneven, but a goofy good cheer prevails. --Bret Fetzer

Manohla Dargis, LOS ANGELES TIMES

"It’s an unexpected buoyant spectacular."

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Safe, goofy fun, August 14, 2005

By	wiredweird "wiredweird" (Earth, or somewhere nearby) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Around the World in 80 Days (Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

This isn't quite the story you remember. It's been updated to add Monique (lovely Cécile De France) added as romantic interest and occasional damsel in distress, to include Jackie Chan as Fogg's valet, and to give plenty of opportunity for Chan's incredible clowning.

The plot winds its way around the world, one step ahead of the bad guys. It's a basically light movie, and the light tone is reinforced by the amusing animated interludes that skip over the tedium of travel. Fogg is shown as an over-intellectual bumbler, saved (whether he knows it or not) by Passepartout (Chan). Mostly, though, the movie is a vehicle for Chan's brilliant physical humor. If you've never seen him - well, you have no idea just how funny martial arts can be made.

It's a safe kind of movie, with bloodless fights, chaste romance, and people keeping their clothes on. There's no great purpose here, just good fun. Hey, it works for me.

//wiredweird

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jules Verne turned every which way but loose!, February 28, 2005

By	Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (VINE VOICE)

This review is from: Around the World in 80 Days (Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

Lau Xing (played by Jackie Chan) is on the run from the London police, and he finds a hiding place in the home of Phileas Fogg (Steve Coogan), an eccentric inventor whom he quickly convinces that he's French! When Fogg accepts a challenge to prove that he can indeed go around the world in 80 days, he packs up Lau Xing and sets out. But, there's schemes afoot, and schemes within schemes. Can Fogg and Lau Xing make it back to England within the 80 days? Overcoming many villains and obstacles, there's nothing that can stop them!

OK, I must admit that I can easily see why this is such a controversial movie. The makers of this movie took the original Jules Verne story, and turned it every which way but loose! With wacky inventions, karate fight scenes, humorous chases, and goofy humor, this is not a movie to be taken seriously. Indeed, if you start out watching this movie by suspending your disbelief far away, you will come to enjoy its crazy, off-beat humor.

My children, who are not fans of serious drama, loved this movie, as did I. It's a good, family-friendly movie that you can watch when you want to unwind and shift your brain into neutral. My family and I highly recommend this movie to you and your family!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just great., July 4, 2004

By	C. Langton "clwrites" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Eight of us (my family) went to the movies. We split up, half saw Spiderman and the other half 80 days. On returning home, guess who did all the talking and raving. The Jackie Chan group. We all loved this movie. The Spiderman group sat silently. It was exactly more of the same for them.

This Chan movie is different from his last two which were bad. This movie is smart, intelligent and very funny. It is much better than most of his recent efforts, except the two "Shangai" movies. No profanities, inanties, trivilaties, just plain grand humorous fun.

The pace of the movie is never too fast nor is it slow. It moves at a superb entertaining pace. In fact as the trip progresses, I kept groaning knowing that each destination meant the movie would be ending soon.

The french girl "de france" is suberb. She is made out neither stupid nor cheap, which is how most movies of this nature deal with female charaters. She is painted with a light hand and I give 5 five stars just for rendering a female charater that is so attractive, interesting and arresting. She grabs you and you keep waiting for the closeups so you can see the little gap between her teeth.

The villaness is done equally well too. Not overacted, no funny accent, she is great to watch. You also watch for her to appear just to see her hairdo and the eye makeup. The cameos by big names, Arnold, John Clease, Owen are icing on the cake. The scene with Arnold was a hoot and Owen brothers don't disappoint. I laughed like crazy in both of these pieces.

Steve Coogan sad to say steals the scene from Jackie. But I think that is what makes this such a super movie. As Jackie is growing older, intelligently he is making movies that character rich rather than keep making fight movies. All four main character are done with aplomb.

The fight teams are as good as ever, although some fight scenes are not as fresh. Scenes in China were visually stunning and the Chinese villagers believable and appealing. The landscape scenes are lovely, rich and special effects by Micha Klein are impressive.

I will defintely add this movie to my DVD collection when it comes out. If you are looking for a really entertaining, a very laugh out loud funny, visually rich, appealing movie in the tradition of the grand old movies, go see this one. Don't miss it.