In THE TUXEDO, Jackie Chan stars as Jimmy Tong, a taxi driver who's aggressive behind the wheel, but painfully shy outside of his cab. Jimmy's driving talents garner the attention of a secret organization, and soon he's hired as the chauffeur for the suave, enigmatic agent Clark Devlin (Jason Isaacs). However, when Devlin is severely injured in an assassination attempt, Jimmy must don Devlin's suit--which just happens to be a state-of-the-art, two-billion-dollar weapon loaded with special capabilities and gadgets. Paired up with ambitious but inexperienced agent Del Blaine (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Jimmy must continue Devlin's mission, which involves foiling Dietrich Banning (Ritchie Coster), a power-mad bottled-water mogul. Kevin Donovan's action-packed comedy gives the talented Chan an unusual opportunity to play a character not adept at martial arts. Of course, once he puts on the tuxedo, he's capable of amazing physical feats, but Chan revels in hamming it up as someone who's literally not in control of his actions. Meanwhile, Hewitt provides catty support, and Isaacs (the villain in THE PATRIOT) makes the most of his good-guy role. A goofy Bond-ish romp, THE TUXEDO also features Debi Mazar as a tough secret agent and Peter Stormare as a nerdy mad scientist.
Energetic action star Jackie Chan usually gives good value, but in this James Bond-style adventure the mechanical gadgets are given precedence over his physical prowess, leaving the martial arts maestro with little to do. Chan plays Jimmy Tong, a chauffeur to millionaire super-spy Clark Devlin (Jason Isaacs) whose hospitalisation leads Chan to try on Devlin's hi-tech dinner jacket. Our hero soon finds it imbues him with incredible acrobatic powers that confusingly lead to his involvement in an international espionage plot. Jennifer Love Hewitt, as an inept CIA agent, provides the best comedy moments in the film, otherwise it's just a bunch of special effects, liberally poured on by director Kevin Donovan, that obscure Chan's true gifts — after all, the man practically is a special effect. It may have been made to measure, but this Tuxedo just isn't big enough for him.
Halliwell's Film Guide
Ludicrous comedy thriller that wastes Jackie Chan's talents and an audience's time.
Radio Times
