Film

Jackie Chan: My Stunts

Name: Jackie Chan: My Stunts
Genre: Documentary
Released: 1999
Cast: Jackie Chan, Michael Brown, Tsui Man, Mars, Rocky Lai Keung-ken

Martial arts action

A masterclass in the craft of stunt work, not a blooper reel. Jackie Chan and his legendary team pull back the curtain on timing, camera angles, and the physics of making violence look effortless—and survivable. Essential viewing for anyone who's ever wondered how he does it, or why it matters that he actually does.

TMDb rating

3.6

If you liked this

Police Story1985

The film that defined Jackie's approach: comedy, martial arts, and real danger in perfect balance. Watch this first to understand what My Stunts is explaining.

But The plot is thin and the pacing drops between action sequences. Some fights feel like sketches that go on too long.

Rumble in the Bronx1995

His Hollywood breakthrough, and you can see every technique from My Stunts in action—the camera work, the timing, the willingness to break bones for the bit.

But The dubbed dialogue is distracting, and the story about a neighborhood dispute is forgettable scaffolding.

Drunken Master III1994

Peak Jackie: the final fight is a symphony of stunt work and choreography. Every hit lands exactly where it needs to. My Stunts shows you how he built this.

But The middle hour meanders, and some of the early comedy hasn't aged well. The film takes a while to earn its payoff.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Jackie Chan: My Stunts

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Sherlock Jr.1924

Both are love letters to the craft of stunt work—the idea that the camera is a collaborator and real danger is part of the language. Same philosophy, different era.

Buster Keaton doing everything Jackie would do fifty years later: real stunts, camera trickery, slapstick as physics. The DNA of My Stunts runs straight back here.

But Silent film moves at a different rhythm. If you're impatient with old cinema, the pacing will feel glacial and the gags might not land without context.

Who Am I?1998

Made the same year as My Stunts and shows the culmination of his philosophy: absurd set pieces (climbing a building, jumping between towers) performed for real.

But The amnesia plot is nonsense, and the film's attempt at drama undercuts its own energy. The story barely holds together.

Police Story 4: First Strike1996

Lighter and faster than his earlier work, with stunts that feel almost playful. Good proof that Jackie's techniques work at different speeds and registers.

But The spy-movie plot is genuinely confusing, and some viewers find the tone too jokey when it should be thrilling.

Police Story 3: Super Cop1992

Michelle Yeoh is magnetic, the action is inventive, and it shows how Jackie's stunt philosophy works when you have a peer matching him beat for beat.

But Some sequences feel padded, and the second half loses focus. The film works best in its action scenes and drags elsewhere.

Operation Condor1991

A treasure-hunt adventure with some of Jackie's most creative stunt sequences. Worth watching for the sheer problem-solving on display in the action.

But It's bloated and silly in ways that don't quite land. The plot meanders and the tone can't decide what it wants to be.

The Protector1985

Early Jackie with James Tien, made when he was still figuring out his voice. Raw and rough in ways that show the evolution My Stunts documents.

But The film is dated and uneven. Some scenes are awkward, and it hasn't aged as well as his later work. The story is forgettable.

Dragons Forever1988

A solid action-comedy with Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao that shows Jackie as part of a team. Good for context on how his approach influenced his peers.

But It's overstuffed and scattered. Three action stars fighting for space means the focus keeps shifting, and the film feels like it can't decide what matters.

Chungking Express1994

Both are about the invisible labor that makes something look effortless. One is about fight choreography, the other about editing and mood. Same obsession with the seams.

Wong Kar-wai at his most playful: color, rhythm, and performance as stunt work. A meditation on timing and how small moments create impact—the opposite of My Stunts' scale, but the same precision.

But It's oblique and melancholic where Jackie is direct and energetic. If you want plot and clarity, you'll find it frustratingly impressionistic.

Brawl in Cell Block 992017

Both treat violence as a discipline that can be perfected. Jackie does it to entertain; Zahler does it to devastate. Same technical mastery, opposite purposes.

S. Craig Zahler makes violence balletic and methodical in ways that echo Jackie's philosophy: weight, consequence, geometry. Slower and darker, but built on the same ideas about how bodies move through space.

But It's brutal and ugly in a way that makes Jackie's injuries look almost heroic by comparison. The film is grim, and there's no lightness to cushion the impact.