Now, I know some of you may be wondering how I could possibly adore a character who tucked his jeans into suede boots. I mean, I wonder the same thing. Because, well, you know...it's terrible! :) But wonderful, nay, delightful, when worn without concern. There is no concern here for how he looks. Well, perhaps not. He might think he looks good. It's hard to tell with ole Jack Burton.
I've said before I adore secondary, sidekick characters. Which is what makes Jack the best hero. Because, truthfully, he should be the sidekick. In fact, he IS the sidekick. Except, no one told him. He stumbles through and discovers things without any intention of doing so. What he sets out to do, he rarely succeeds at in a traditionally heroic way. And, most importantly, and despite what one thinks he might desire, he is not an alpha. He's better.
Not that I would call him a beta. He's undefinable in that manner. Instead, he's his own astounding, heroic animal. I totally understood him telling Gracie sooner or later he rubbed everyone the wrong way. Because, oh, my, of course he would. Riding off into the sunset WITH Jack Burton would be no end of trouble. But, doing a thing or two before he left would, no doubt, make someone happy.
I was about 13 when I saw Big Trouble in Little China for the first time. Not in the theaters because we never had money for the movie theater. Instead, my father brought it home on VHS. (How I date myself!) And, I was instantly drawn to Jack Burton. Hey, Kurt Russell was a good looking man and the character was catnip to my soul. (Ok, in the spirit of honesty, Kim Cattrall as Gracie Law ALSO added to my love of the movie. She was totally crushworthy.) FINALLY, here was a hero I wanted to hang out with.
Yes, I would totally hop in if the Pork Chop Express pulled up outside my house. And, yes, I would totally be ready to come home when it pulled up again to let me out. Because, some heroes are too awesome to linger in our lives for long.
In the real world. In tv, movies, books, and plays, they can linger forever. Which is good, because we all need inspiration and Jack Burton is mine.
Now I'm going to go finish watching Big Trouble in Little China.
