''Rush Hour 2'' is a 2001 American

buddy Buddy may refer to: People *Buddy (nickname) *Buddy (rapper), real name Simmie Sims III (1993–Present) *Buddy Rogers (wrestler), ring name of American professional wrestler Herman Gustav Rohde, Jr. (1921–1992) *Buddy Boeheim (born 1999), Amer ...

action comedy film Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of acti ...

directed by

Brett Ratner Brett Ratner (born March 28, 1969) is an American film director and producer. He directed the ''Rush Hour'' film series, '' The Family Man'', '' Red Dragon'', '' X-Men: The Last Stand'', and ''Tower Heist''. He is also a producer of several film ...

and written by

Jeff Nathanson Jeffrey D. Nathanson (born October 12, 1965) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Early life and education Nathanson was born on October 12, 1965, in Los Angeles County, California. He attended the University of California, San ...

, based on the characters created by Ross LaManna. A sequel to '' Rush Hour'', it is the second installment in the ''Rush Hour'' franchise and stars

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...

and

Chris Tucker Christopher Tucker (born August 31, 1971) is an American actor and comedian. Tucker made his debut in 1992 as a stand-up performer on the HBO comedy series '' Def Comedy Jam'', where he frequently appeared on the show during the 1990s. He ap ...

reprising their roles from the first film. The story follows Chief Inspector Lee (Chan) and LAPD Detective James Carter (Tucker), who go to

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

on vacation only to be thwarted by a murder case involving two U.S. customs agents after a bombing at the American embassy. Lee suspects that the crime is linked to the Triad crime lord Ricky Tan (Lone). ''Rush Hour 2'' opened on August 3, 2001, to generally mixed reviews. The film was a commercial success, grossing $347.3 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film in the franchise. It became the year's 11th-highest-grossing film worldwide as well as the second-highest-grossing PG-13 film. A sequel, ''

Rush Hour 3 ''Rush Hour 3'' is a 2007 American buddy action comedy film directed by Brett Ratner, written by Jeff Nathanson, and starring Jackie Chan, Chris Tucker, Max von Sydow, Hiroyuki Sanada, Noémie Lenoir, Yvan Attal and Youki Kudoh. It is the thi ...

'', was released on August 10, 2007.

Plot

LAPD Detective James Carter is in Hong Kong on vacation with his partner,

Hong Kong Police Force The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest disciplined service under the Security Bureau of Hong Kong. The Royal Hong Kong Police Force (RHKPF) reverted to its former name after the t ...

Chief Inspector Lee. His vacation is put on hold when a bomb at the US Consulate General kills two undercover

US Customs The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted c ...

agents. Lee is assigned to the case and discovers that his late father's police partner, Ricky Tan, is somehow involved. Lee and Carter attempt to question Ricky, now a leader of the Triads, resulting in a brawl with his bodyguards. The U.S. Secret Service, led by Agent Sterling, and the Hong Kong Police Force fight over jurisdiction of the case. Lee's office is bombed and Lee, unaware Carter has left the building, believes him dead. They cross paths at a party on Ricky's yacht, where Ricky scolds his underling, Hu Li. Lee and Carter confront Ricky, who claims he is being framed by his enemies and asks for protection, but Hu Li shoots him and escapes. Sterling holds Lee responsible for Ricky's death and orders him off the case. Carter is ordered back to Los Angeles, but convinces Lee to return to Los Angeles with him. Carter assures Lee that every large criminal operation has a rich white man behind it; in this case, he believes that man is Steven Reign, a billionaire Los Angeles hotelier he saw acting suspiciously at Ricky Tan's party. Staking out Reign Towers, they spot Isabella Molina, whom Carter met on Ricky's yacht, receiving a delivery from Hu Li. Mistaking the package for another bomb, Lee and Carter try to intervene, but Molina reveals she is an undercover U.S. Secret Service agent, looking into Reign's laundering of $100 million in superdollars. Lee and Carter visit Kenny, an ex-con, now Carter’s informant who runs a gambling den in the back of his Chinese restaurant. He tells them about a customer with a suspicious amount of hundred-dollar bills, which Carter confirms are Reign's counterfeits. They trace the money to a bank, where they are captured by Hu Li. Taken to Las Vegas in a Triad truck, Lee and Carter escape, realizing that Reign is laundering the $100 million through his new Red Dragon Casino. At the Red Dragon, Molina points Lee to the engraving plates used to print the counterfeit money, while Carter creates a distraction to help Lee sneak past security. Hu Li captures Lee, taping an explosive in his mouth before bringing him to Ricky, who is still alive. When Ricky departs, Molina tries to arrest Hu Li but is shot, and Lee removes the explosive before it detonates, evacuating the casino. Carter fights Hu Li, accidentally taking her out with a spear, while Lee pursues Ricky. In the penthouse, Reign prepares to escape with the plates but Ricky fatally stabs him. Lee and Carter confront Ricky, who admits to killing Lee's father. In the ensuing scuffle, Ricky falls to his death when Lee kicks him out of the window. Hu Li enters with a time bomb, forcing Lee and Carter to escape on a makeshift

zip line A zip-line, zip line, zip-wire, flying fox, or death slide is a pulley suspended on a cable, usually made of stainless steel, mounted on a slope. It is designed to enable cargo or a person propelled by gravity to travel from the top to the bot ...

as Hu Li dies in the explosion. Later at the airport, Molina thanks Lee for his work on the case, and kisses him. Planning to go their separate ways, Lee and Carter change their minds when Carter reveals the large amount of money he won at the casino, and the pair head to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

to indulge themselves.

Cast

as Chief Inspector Lee of the

HKPF The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest disciplined service under the Security Bureau of Hong Kong. The Royal Hong Kong Police Force (RHKPF) reverted to its former name after the t ...

. He invites Carter to Hong Kong for a vacation but accepts a case involving Ricky Tan, the man who killed his father. *

as LAPD Detective James Carter, who is in Hong Kong for vacation but quickly becomes entangled in an international investigation. *

John Lone John Lone (; jyutping: zyun1 lung4; born October 13, 1952) is an American actor. He starred as Pu Yi in the Academy Award-winning film '' The Last Emperor'' (1987), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. A veteran ...

as Ricky Tan, a Triad gangster working with Steven Reign. *

Zhang Ziyi Zhang Ziyi (; ; born 9 February 1979) is a Chinese actress and model. She is regarded as one of the Four Dan Actresses of China. Her first major role was in '' The Road Home'' (1999). She later gained international recognition for her role in ...

as Hu Li, a Triad assassin and enforcer. *

Roselyn Sánchez Roselyn Milagros Sánchez Rodríguez (born April 2, 1973) is a Puerto Rican singer-songwriter, dancer, model, actress, producer, and writer. On television, she is best known for her roles as Elena Delgado on the CBS police procedural ''Without ...

as Agent Isabella Molina of the

Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For ...

. She is working undercover, posing as a corrupt agent while also enlisting Lee and Carter to help her stop the Triads. * Alan King as Steven Reign, a corrupt Los Angeles businessman in league with the Triads to use his new casino to launder counterfeit money. *

Harris Yulin Harris Yulin (born November 5, 1937) is an American actor who has appeared in over a hundred film and television series roles, such as '' Scarface'' (1983), ''Ghostbusters II'' (1989), '' Clear and Present Danger'' (1994), '' Looking for Richard' ...

as Special Agent-In-Charge Sterling *

Kenneth Tsang Kenneth Tsang Kong (; 5 October 1934 – 27 April 2022) was a Hong Kong actor. Tsang's career spanned 50 years and included a variety of acting roles. Tsang won the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 34th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2015. Early ...

as Captain Chin *

Don Cheadle Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including two Grammy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also earned nom ...

as Kenny, the owner of a Chinese restaurant in L.A. that also houses an illegal gambling den. *

Joel McKinnon Miller Joel McKinnon Miller (born February 21, 1960) is an American actor who is best known for portraying Don Embry on ''Big Love'' and Detective Norm Scully on ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine''. Life and career Joel McKinnon Miller was born in Rockford, Minne ...

as Tex

Jeremy Piven Jeremy Samuel Piven (born July 26, 1965) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Ari Gold in the comedy series '' Entourage'', for which he won a Golden Globe Award and three consecutive Emmy Awards. He also starred in the Britis ...

Saul Rubinek Saul Hersh Rubinek (born July 2, 1948) is a German-born Canadian actor, director, producer, and playwright. He is widely known for his television roles, notably Artie Nielsen on ''Warehouse 13,'' Donny Douglas on ''Frasier'', Lon Cohen on ''A N ...

, and

Gianni Russo Gianni Vito Russo is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his role as Carlo Rizzi in the 1972 film '' The Godfather''. Life and career Russo was born in Manhattan in 1943 and raised in Little Italy and Staten Island. After repri ...

have

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

s as a

Versace Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978 known for flashy prints and bright colors. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as ...

salesman, a casino box man, and a

pit boss ''Pit Boss'' is an American television series docudrama that follows Shorty Rossi, owner of Shorty's Rescue, an organization set up for Pit Bull rescue. The series aired on Animal Planet from January 16, 2010 to March 30, 2013. Series overview S ...

respectively.

Production

Filming

Filming took place between December 11, 2000 and April 30, 2001.

Fake-money controversy

The prop masters for the film created approximately $1trillion in fake money to be used as props in the film. The money was realistic enough that some of the film's extras pocketed it and attempted to spend it illegally outside of the production, which led to said fake money being confiscated and destroyed by the

United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security charged with conducting criminal investigations and protecting U.S. political leaders, their families, and ...

Music

Lalo Schifrin returned to compose the score for the film. According to him, "The music for ''Rush Hour 2'' is completely different from ''Rush Hour''. The first 20–30 seconds of the main title is a reprise of the music from ''Rush Hour'' – but that's it." He said that Ratner had requested a "symphonic score", which he incidentally found suitable for ''Rush Hour 2'':

For the sequel, he asked me to do a symphonic score. It was bigger than life – like an epic score. I ignored the comedy – the actors took care of that. I played to the chases and the danger. It's a serious score in the sense of an "epic" score, like '' Raiders of the Lost Ark'' or an
Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...
film. Also, you must realize that the symphony orchestra allows many more possibilities. Mozart didn't need a rhythm section to "drive". I was able to create a lot of energy without the use of drums and electric guitars and all that.

Schifrin performed the ''Rush Hour 2'' score with the Hollywood Studio Symphony.

Varèse Sarabande Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as well as newer r ...

released its album on

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Oc ...

in August 2001. In a 2001 interview with Dan Goldwasser for Soundtrack.Net, Schifrin was asked whether he would score ''

'', and he stated: "Oh, I'm not a prophet!" By 2007, Schifrin began composing the score for ''Rush Hour 3'', which, , is his last motion picture score.

Release

Before its August 3 release, ''Rush Hour 2'' premiered on July 26, 2001, on-board the

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

Flight 1 from

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

to Hong Kong renamed, "The Rush Hour Express". The Hong Kong Board of Tourism teamed up with United Airlines and New Line Cinema in a campaign that offered both trailers for the movie for passengers on all domestic United flights during July and August reaching an expected three million people, as well as Hong Kong travel videos to inspire tourists to visit the country where the film was set.

Box office

''Rush Hour 2'' earned $226.2 million in North America and an estimated $121.2 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $347.3 million (surpassing ''Rush Hour'' and ''Rush Hour 3''s worldwide box-office receipts). The film went at number one during its opening weekend, grossing $67.4 million at 3,118 locations. The film stayed in the Top 10 until October 11 (10 weeks total). It became one of the four 2001 films to generate $60 million in their first three days of release, with the others being '' Monsters, Inc.'', ''

The Mummy Returns ''The Mummy Returns'' is a 2001 American adventure horror film written and directed by Stephen Sommers, starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Arnold Vosloo, Oded Fehr, Patricia Velásquez, Freddie Boath, Alun Armstrong, a ...

'' and ''

Planet of the Apes ''Planet of the Apes'' is an American science fiction media franchise consisting of films, books, television series, comics, and other media about a world in which humans and intelligent apes clash for control. The franchise is based on Frenc ...

''. The film also had the fourth-highest opening weekend of all time, behind the latter two films and '' The Lost World: Jurassic Park''. Additionally, ''Rush Hour 2'' achieved two other records during its opening weekend, beating ''

The Sixth Sense ''The Sixth Sense'' is a 1999 American psychological thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. It stars Bruce Willis as a child psychologist whose patient ( Haley Joel Osment) claims he can see and talk to the dead. Released ...

'' for having the biggest August opening weekend and '' Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' for scoring the largest opening weekend for a

New Line Cinema New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after ...

film. The August opening weekend record would be held for six years before getting surpassed by '' The Bourne Ultimatum'' in 2007. Despite being overtaken by ''

American Pie 2 ''American Pie 2'' is a 2001 American sex comedy film directed by James B. Rogers and written by Adam Herz and David H. Steinberg from a story by Herz. A sequel to the 1999 comedy film '' American Pie'', it is the second film in the ''American ...

'', the film made $31.5 million during its second weekend. It was 2001's second-highest-grossing

PG-13 The Motion Picture Association film rating system is used in the United States and its territories to rate a motion picture's suitability for certain audiences based on its content. The system and the ratings applied to individual motion pictures ...

film and the 11th highest-grossing film worldwide. ''Rush Hour 2'' surpassed the 1984 film ''

The Karate Kid ''The Karate Kid'' is a 1984 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the first installment in the ''Karate Kid'' franchise, and stars Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue an ...

'' as the highest-grossing martial arts action film, and was ranked as the second-highest-grossing

buddy comedy A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the olde ...

film behind the 1997 film ''

Men in Black In popular culture and UFO conspiracy theories, men in black (MIB) are purported men dressed in black suits who claim to be quasi- government agents, who harass, threaten, or sometimes even assassinate unidentified flying object (UFO) witnesse ...

''. The film was also ranked as the third-highest-grossing second installments in live action comedy film franchises (behind the 2004 film '' Meet the Fockers'' and the 2011 film ''

The Hangover Part II ''The Hangover Part II'' is a 2011 American comedy film produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the sequel to the 2009 film ''The Hangover'' and the second installment in ''The Hangover'' trilogy. Directed ...

'').

Reception

Reviews for ''Rush Hour 2'' were mixed. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film has an approval rating of 52% based on 128 reviews, with an average rating of 5.4/10. The website's critical consensus states that the film "doesn't feel as fresh or funny as the first, and the stunts lack some of the intricacy normally seen in Chan's films." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the film has a score of 48 out of 100 based on 28 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore during ''Rush Hour 2'' opening weekend gave the film an average grade of A on an A+ to F scale. Roger Ebert gave it one and half stars out of a possible four and called Chris Tucker "an anchor around the ankles of the humor". Conversely, Robert Koehler of

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

called it a "superior sequel" and "the very model of the limber, transnational Hollywood action comedy".

Awards

''Rush Hour 2'' earned a total of 27 award nominations and 10 wins, including an MTV Movie Award for Best Fight, a Teen Choice Award for Film-Choice Actor, Comedy, and 3 Kids' Choice Awards; Favorite Movie Actor for Tucker, Favorite Male Butt Kicker for Chan, and Favorite Movie.

Sequel

Because of various issues during development hell and production, ''Rush Hour 3'' wasn't released until August 10, 2007; six years after ''Rush Hour 2''. ''Rush Hour 3'' failed to receive the critical and commercial acclaim of predecessors.

References

External links

* * {{Brett Ratner 2001 films 2001 action comedy films 2001 martial arts films 2000s American films 2000s buddy comedy films 2000s buddy cop films 2000s English-language films 2000s martial arts comedy films American action comedy films American buddy comedy films American buddy cop films American martial arts comedy films American police detective films American sequel films Counterfeit money in film Films about the Los Angeles Police Department Films about the United States Secret Service Films directed by Brett Ratner Films produced by Roger Birnbaum Films scored by Lalo Schifrin Films set in 1997 Films set in Los Angeles Films set in Hong Kong Films set in the Las Vegas Valley Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in Hong Kong Films shot in the Las Vegas Valley Films with screenplays by Jeff Nathanson Impact of the September 11 attacks on cinema Kung fu films New Line Cinema films Rush Hour (franchise) Triad films 2000s Hong Kong films