Cheeky chappy Chan quits the kidding and plays it for real

A superstar in Hong Kong, he was packed off to America to star in Battle Creek Brawl, an Americanised version of the high-speed comic thrillers he had made his own back in the Far East.

He followed up with guest appearances alongside Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore and Farrah Fawcett in The Cannonball Run and its sequel, taking a supporting role to the established screen personas of Reynolds and Co.

But US audiences didn't take to Chan's wit and cheeky charm, preferring quasi-Western kung fu heroes like Bruce Lee, or plain old home-grown tough guys, like Clint Eastwood.

For Jackie Chan, a man with two dozen movies already under his belt, it was back to the cheap and cheerful treadmill of Hong Kong's "chop socky" movies.

It took 20 more years, and countless home-grown hits, for Chan to return. He did so in Rush Hour and Shanghai Noon. Suddenly, in his 40s, Chan was embraced by the Los Angeles cognoscenti.

It must have been galling. For years, Chan had banged noisily on the door of Hollywood but no-one seemed to be listening. Then it happened. In the meantime, he'd gone back to Hong Kong and consolidated his reputation as the clown prince of kung-fu.

Yet Chan has had the last laugh. When it came to the remake of 1984's The Karate Kid, there was one name at the top of the list to play the wise handyman-turned-mentor. That name belonged to Jackie Chan.

Back in 1984, the part of martial arts master Mr Miyagi went to Noriyuki 'Pat' Morita, a California-born Asian-American who landed an Oscar nomination for his portrait of the haunted but wise old man. Morita was only 52 when he took the role; make-up aged him by a decade or more.

Flash forward 25 years. Mr Miyagi has become Mr Han and the film has been transplanted to modern China. The kid of the title is an 11-year-old African-American boy (played by Jaden, son of Will, Smith) whose mother has landed a new job in Beijing. When he's bullied at his new school, he turns for help to the meek maintenance man who stops him being beaten up. The quiet, greying man is played by 56-year-old Jackie Chan.

It's perhaps a natural move for Chan to step across to character roles. For 30 years, he's traded on his unique style of balletic kung-fu,

jokes and Buster Keaton-inspired comic interplay.

In The Karate Kid, he plays it straight. And he's very, very good.

Chan has always been very careful about the image he's projected. He once turned down a lucrative offer from Michael Douglas to play a Japanese villain in Black Rain, saying "I can't be a killer".

He added: "In my movies, there's a lot of violence but no killing. Even when I make an American film, I say 'Promise me, no-one will say the F-word'."

In The Karate Kid, the focus is on hard work, discipline, honour and respect. The old persona of "Wacky Jackie" has been discarded for a new model.

It's also a far cry from the strait-jacket that American critics tried to force Chan into wearing: that of Bruce Lee mark II. As Chan said: "Bruce kicked high. I kick low. Bruce was serious, I'm comedy."

There is a serious edge, albeit with a dusting of Disney, to the Karate Kid re-boot. What's more, the pairing of Chan and first-billed Smith is a winner.

"I was really impressed by Jaden's work ethic. He comes from a privileged family so I was truly surprised that he turned out to be such a wonderful young boy," said Chan.

"He trained for only a few months before we started filming, but he was doing better than many of the boys from China who have been training for many years. He was fearless, stayed focused and studied hard."

Fans of Chan's blend of laughs and action may be disappointed with the lack of fast-moving fight choreography in the new film. Chan engages in a tight six-on-one scrap and is seriously exhausted by the time he (inevitably) vanquishes his foes.

It's perfectly done – a nod to Chan's immense skills and an acceptance that even kung-fu heroes have to slow down sometime.

"I got a few bumps and bruises but no major injuries. Sometimes, old injuries will start causing a pain here and there during a fight. Unfortunately, there is nothing I can do about it. I have broken too many bones and pulled too many muscles not to feel a bit of pain once in a while.

"The worst injury I have ever suffered was in Yugoslavia during the filming of Armour of God. I cracked my skull and had to be lifted by helicopter to the hospital. What scared me the most wasn't my pain; it was the expressions on the faces of the people around me.

"Based on their reaction, I knew that my injury was life-threatening. To this day, there is a piece of metal in my head and a little hole in my skull."

It's nearly 50 years since Chan, aged eight, began his movie career. He's since notched up more than 100 appearances in everything from Police Story and its sequels, to Operation Condor, Supercop, First Strike and his dalliance with US formula flicks.

Soon he'll start work on The Chinese Zodiac, stepping behind the camera again as director for the first time in 12 years. His epic stunts, however, may now be a thing of the past.

"It's going to be challenging since its so much work to be both in front and behind the camera. I do enjoy doing stunts, but I don't like getting hurt. I will continue to do as much as I can. I hope I can focus more on my acting and less on my stunts."

The Karate Kid (PG) is on nationwide release.