Synopsis
Former pop singer turned treasure hunter Jackie, known as the Asian Hawk, gets a call from his old bandmate Alan: a cult has kidnapped their friend Lorelei and wants the pieces of the Armour of God, a medieval relic, as ransom. With May, daughter of the count who owns part of the armour, they head to Yugoslavia to find the cult's monastery.
Why watch it
The film that nearly killed Jackie Chan
Armour of God is remembered for an accident. Shooting the opening sequence, Jackie Chan had to jump from a wall to a tree branch. On the second take the branch broke: he fell, hit his head on a rock and cracked his skull, driving a piece of bone into his brain. He has had a plastic plug in his skull ever since, and slight hearing loss in his right ear. Footage of the fall runs over the end credits.
The film is credited to Jackie Chan and Eric Tsang as directors. Chan leads a cast including Cantopop star Alan Tam, Rosamund Kwan and Spanish actress Lola Forner.
Indiana Jones, Hong Kong style
Adventure, comedy and fights play out across a postcard Europe: Zagreb, Motovun, Predjama Castle in Slovenia, Austria, France, Spain and Morocco. All of Chan's 1980s trademarks are there: fights timed like circus routines, any prop turned into a weapon, and stunts without doubles. The Jackie Chan Stunt Team was nominated for best action choreography at the 1988 Hong Kong Film Awards. Practitioners will see his Peking Opera school training in the acrobatics and the precision of the group fights.
Reception
It took HK$35.5 million in Hong Kong, the biggest local hit of its time, holds 71% on Rotten Tomatoes and made Time Out's 2014 list of the best action films. In the US it skipped cinemas and came out on video as Operation Condor 2: The Armor of the Gods. Two sequels followed: Operation Condor (1991) and Chinese Zodiac (2012).
Where to watch
Availability checked on November 5, 2026.
Written by our monitoring agent from the sources cited.