History Film / BigTroubleInLittleChina

* WireFu: This trope is not only played straight (as would be expected), but discussed. After an early encounter with evil {{Mooks}}, Jack Burton Complains about people flying in on "wires." In universe, we are asked to accept that real magic permits the astounding gymnastics that Jack observed, but Jack is still AgentScully. Wires are a more reasonable explanation than magic. He becomes less skeptical as the story progresses.

* IndecisiveParody: Of martial arts/fantasy/action movies. If one doesn't know a lot about the tropes of martial arts movies (and back when it came out, most potential audiences didn't really), it can easily be mistaken for one instead of a parody of the genre.

* SocietyMarchesOn: Imagine the thug pulling out the revolver in an airport nowadays. There'd be a whole army of police on him in an instant.

* NoPoliceOption: Twice someone says that they should call the police (Jack and Margo later on). The answer [[MeaningfulEcho both times]] is "the police has better things to do than get killed", the first time being because the Triads are too violent and powerful and the second time because dealing with [[spoiler:Chinese ghosts and storm gods trying to take over the world]] is most definitely beyond their capacity. Sure enough, when the police finally interfere with the plot, it's [[TheCavalryArrivesLate after all of the insanity has ended]] and they are trying to (mostly off-screen) make sense of TheUnmaskedWorld.

* FiringInTheAirALot: Jack tries it and subsequently causes a chunk of the ceiling falling on his head and knocking him out.

** When Jack Burton confronts the Lords of Death members at the airport, one of them pulls out an extendable staff. When he starts swinging them in front of himself in a frightening display of his weapon-handling abilities, Jack wisely backs away from him.

** When Jack Burton confronts the Lords of Death members at the airport, one of them pulls out a knife and an extendable staff. When he starts swinging them in front of himself in a frightening display of his weapon-handling abilities, Jack wisely backs away from him.

Can be viewed for free (with ads) on Website/YouTube [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx5lkGS4w30 here]].

-->'''Margo:''' I feel like I'm in over my head.\\

* FiringInTheAirALot: Jack tries it and RealityEnsues, with a chunk of the ceiling falling on his head and knocking him out.

* JugglingLoadedGuns: Just before the climactic battle, Jack attempts to lead the charge of TheCavalry by shooting upwards dramatically. [[RealityEnsues A chunk of the ceiling lands on his head]] for his effort, and [[TapOnTheHead puts him out of commission]] until the fight is well underway.

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: Egg Shen invokes this trope when he and Jack are beneath Chinatown.
-->'''Jack:''' That is ''not'' water.\\
'''Egg:''' Black blood of the earth.\\
'''Jack:''' What, you mean oil?\\
'''Egg:''' I mean black blood of the earth!

* WizardDuel: Egg Shen and Lo Pan have a BeamOWar battle in the middle of the grand melee at Lo Pan's wedding. The duel is inconclusive, though Lo Pan seems to claim victory. At the very least, he claims that Egg Shen could never beat him.

** Egg Chen tries to offer a large caliber piece to Jack, thinking it will make the latter feel "like [[Film/DirtyHarry Dirty Harry]]." Jack is unimpressed and chooses to stick with his TEC-9.

* {{Fainting}}: A Monster Faint example. Gracie Law is kidnapped by one of Lo Pan's monsters. When she faces it head on, she screams in terror at its horrible visage and faints. The monster puts her over its shoulder and carries her away.

Creator/KurtRussell is Jack Burton, a long-haul trucker with a penchant for making soliloquies over the CB. He's in UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco's [[FriendlyLocalChinatown Chinatown]] to meet his buddy Wang Chi (Creator/DennisDun) and pick up Wang's fiancee Miao Yin (Creator/SuzeePai) from the airport, but EvilSorcerer David Lo Pan (Creator/JamesHong) kidnaps her with the help of his Wing Kong street gang and the Three Storms.

* IntangibleMan: While in his ghost form, David Lo Pan can pass through walls and other solid objects. He can selectively interact with solid objects when he needs to, such as when he holds the Needle of Love and Miao Yin during the wedding ceremony.

* FiringInTheAirALot: Jack tries it and RealityEnsues, with bits of the ceiling falling on his head and knocking him out.

* FunnyBackgroundEvent: During Jack and Lo Pan's confrontation, Thunder is chasing Wang in the background - the latter is doing ''flips'' and ''backflips''.

* GunsAkimbo: An unnamed Wing Kung member played by Gerald Okamura, possibly a MookLieutenant, sports two golden revolvers to good effect.

** Gracie Law and her friend have been exposing the Chinatown underworld, resulting in her knowing quite a bit about the local gangs to the point where they now want to kill her.

* HeyCatch: Jack has a trick. It's his only trick, but it's a good one -- he can catch anything. As he says, "It's all in the reflexes".

* IntimidationDemonstration

-->'''Margo:''' "I feel like I'm in over my head."\\
'''Eddie:''' [kindly] "You are."

* LipstickMark: After kissing Gracie for the first time, Jack hilariously spends a scene or two with stained red lips. He even delivers some badass dialogue - and kills the BigBad - completely unaware of how silly he looks. (Gracie does try to tell him before he confronts Thunder, but Jack ignores her).

* MookLieutenant: One unnamed Wing Kung member (credited as "Hatchet Man", played by Al Leong) acts as the gang's leader, and is also shown [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking fighting]].
* {{Mooks}}: Street gang Wing Kung act as Lo Pan's mooks.

-->'''Eddie''': The Lords of Death were only on a joyride, not acting on orders from the Wing Kong. They just wanted a girl to sell and Miao Yin got in the way. Plus, the skirmish you guys stumbled into. Lo Pan, the word is, ordered the boss of the Chang Sings, Mr Lem Lee, assassinated. That was his funeral.

* ThePunishment: Lo Pan was cursed ages ago to be of "no-flesh", unable to exercise his sorcerous powers in his physical form. He can assume the shape of his once-powerful self, but he is incorporeal and unable to touch anything.

* RealityHasNoSubtitles. Several times in the movie, characters speak in Chinese without any translation for the audience.
** While Lo Pan is interrogating Wang Chi and Jack, he speaks in Chinese to Wang Chi.
** When Wang Chi is pretending to hold Eddie Lee hostage, he speaks to the female jailers in Chinese.

* SadlyMythtaken: Much of the movie is only tangentially related to actual Chinese mythology, but the "evil boddhisatva" stands out most.

-->'''Jack:''' (''pointing to Chinese writing on elevator'') What does that say?
-->'''Wang:''' (''speaks Chinese'') "Hell of Boiling Oil".
-->'''Jack:''' You're kidding.
-->'''Wang:''' Yeah, I am. It says "Keep Out".

* WhyWontYouDie: Lo Pan gets visibly frustrated by Jack's refusal to give up despite how obviously overmatched he is..

''Big Trouble In Little China'' is one of Creator/JohnCarpenter's greatest films, written by W.D. Richter and released in 1986.

* ARealManIsAKiller: In one scene Jack is embarrassed by having killed someone only for the first time and lies about it so as not to appear dorky to his male friends. The fact Eddie and Wang are clearly much more comfortable with killing, despite being ''restaurateurs'' makes it all the more funny.

* DidNotGetTheGirl: {{Subverted}} and becomes "Did not want the girl". Jack declines to stay with Gracie at the end of the movie, saying sooner or later he rubs everyone the wrong way. Riding off into the sunset is one of the vestiges of the film's original Western setting.

* EskimosArentReal: At one point when the heroes say they are looking for a Chinese girl with green eyes a character inexplicably says that Chinese people can't have green eyes. Not only can they, it's not even that uncommon among the Uighurs. As she's a brothel owner, she may just be lying to get them to leave.

Creator/KurtRussell is Jack Burton, a long-haul trucker with a penchant for making soliloquies over the CB. He's in UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco's [[FriendlyLocalChinatown Chinatown]] to meet his buddy Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) and pick up Wang's fiancee Miao Yin (Suzee Pai) from the airport, but EvilSorcerer David Lo Pan (Creator/JamesHong) kidnaps her with the help of his Wing Kong street gang and the Three Storms.

Creator/KurtRussell is Jack Burton, a long-haul trucker with a penchant for making soliloquies over the CB. He's in UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco's [[FriendlyLocalChinatown Chinatown]] to meet his buddy Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) and pick up Wang's fiancee Miao Yin (Suzee Pai) from the airport, but EvilSorcerer David Lo Pan (Creator/JamesHong) kidnaps her with the help of his Wing Kong street gang and the Three Storms.

[[quoteright:292:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/big-trouble-in-little-china.jpg]]