It's your classic chalk'n'cheddar contrast: the basic ingredient of any successful buddy movie. Like, say, the one in culture-clash comedy Western Shanghai Noon, which became 2000's most pleasant cinematic surprise when Texan writer/actor Wilson's slack charms and improv'd dialogue clicked with Chan's adrenalised Buster Keaton/Bruce Lee antics.

Now they've reteamed for Shanghai Knights, in which Jackie's fish-out-of-water Chinese cowboy and Wilson's outlaw Lothario move the action to Victorian London to foil a regicidal lord. The comedy's broad and Brit-lampooning, the fight scenes imaginative and exhilarating. And the Wilson/Chan chemistry's still there. In fact, it's so convincing, Total Film decides to see how well they really know each other when we joined the pair at a swanky London hotel. Our idea? Owen has to answer for Jackie, Jackie has to answer for Owen, and then we see how close their proxy-answers are to the real ones. Let the test begin...

Q1: Owen, what was Jackie's biggest challenge in the making of Shanghai Knights?
O: I guess it's probably what it is for him on everything he wants to do, because we have a schedule we have to keep to. On this movie, that meant Jackie had to work on weekends and practice with his stunt guys, so they all stayed at the same hotel…They don't stay at the nice hotels. I stayed over at the Four Seasons, while Jackie stayed over with all his guys.

At the same time, I think that's what Jackie enjoys. Like when I came in, you know, he wants me to use the water that's already opened - "Don't waste!" I just like the way he is, living his life the right way, not like a big movie start who's like: "Get this, get that!" He's a hard worker.

Q: Is that right Jackie?
J: Well, the biggest challenge is how you make a movie that's different from Rush Hour and Shanghai Noon. How do you better those films? But the hotels, the schedule…As long as I'm making a film, I don't care. I can risk my life on a movie. But besides that, I'm just a very, very normal person.
O: It's funny, because on a weekend we'll say to Jackie :"We found a go-kart track. You wanna go go-karting?" and he'll say: "No way. Too dangerous." But then on Monday I see Jackie hanging 150 feet in the air, walking on a little plank and it's like :"For the movie that's ok. But in real life…"
J: I just don't understand a lot of people. They go on holiday, go skiing, go snowboarding, water-skiing, diving…Not me. When I'm away on holiday I'm busy watching films, thinking up new ideas. I never do dangerous things.

Q: And what did Owen find toughest about shooting this movie?
J: I think Owen is always thinking about new dialogue. He does a lot of research, because he's a writer. Like the British jokes; he wants to work out how he can make people understand some of the jokes about the British.

Q: Is Jackie right, Owen?
O: I don't know. It was fun for me to think up dialogue. It's not like hard work, I don't sit there at night, like: "Ah, what am I gonna do tomorrow, how can I improve this?" It comes, you know? And the jokes about the bad weather and British teeth - those jokes were not mine. I understand those jokes, those broad, cliched jokes that maybe appeal to some people, but that's not the stuff I get excited about. I try to be more original.

Q2: What did Jackie enjoy most about making this movie?
O: The chance to spend time with me. He missed me from the first one [laughs]. So he didn't like doing the action scenes because I wasn't there for a lot of them. He prefers to do dialogue scenes, cos then we could work together. He was lonely doing the action [laughs].

Oo-kay. How accurate is that, Jackie?
J: Well, I enjoyed having more freedom. Not like Rush Hour 1 and 2, because on those, whatever they promised, they didn't come through with. On this one, though, they let me do a lot, though if I asked for four days on a sequence, they gave me three. Not like on Rush Hour - then I'd ask for five days and get one.

Q: And what do you think Owen enjoyed most about shooting Shanghai Knights?
J: I think he liked it when I was doing action scenes, because he has more time to relax. He'll plan on going back to Los Angeles, he'll plan on going to Rotterdam on vacation…
O: I'd say that answer's pretty accurate. I like letting Jackie do the action. If I see on the schedule :"Action Scene, one week," I go :"Hoo, okay. Now where do I wanna go in Europe?" I go to Vienna, uh, maybe to Sweden… So, Jackie, that was right. You got me on that one!

Q: Owen, what is it you think you do that makes Jackie laugh the most?
O: I think, uh…Oh, on this movie, let's say I got some food or some water, I'd bring some to Jackie and I'd say: "Here, take this," and he'd say: "No, no, I'm okay." So I'm like [aggressively]: "Take it!" And for some reason that was really funny. I think it was cos Jackie used to do that to me.
J: Yeah [laughs]. That makes me smile.

Q: And what is it you think it is you do, Jackie, that makes Owen laugh the most?
J: Me? I always speak the wrong dialogue. I don't understand things [laughs]. Owen looks at me and says: "You should smile." I say: "Why?" "Because the meaning is like this: da-da-da-da…" "Oh, okay! Now I understand!"
O: You see that in the out-takes, like when he said "babysitter" instead of "baby sister…"

Q: Owen, how does Jackie best like to spend his downtime?
O: Maybe going out to eat with his friends. In Prague it was mostly Asian restaurants, and he'd go with 20 people and bring everybody. He likes to see other people having a good time.

Q: Is that right?
J: Yes. I like to buy dinner for my friends. I like to make people sit together, because in Asia, we always come up with ideas over dinner.
O: Yeah, you're right! We did come up with ideas. Like the scene with the Chinese drinking games in Shanghai Noon.
J: Maybe 10 times, nothing happens. Then, boom! It works. Especially when you eat in Asia, we always have dinner with the writer, director, producer, a whole bunch of people, just to see if any ideas come up. Maybe, it'll be nothing to do with me. I'm happy to just sit there watching people, listening to what's going on.

Q: What does Owen most like to do, then?
J: Read a book. A book about Churchill, a book about Hitler…He likes to read a lot.
O: Well, sometimes, yeah. I wouldn't say that's what I enjoy most, though. In Prague…
J: He enjoys life!
O: Yeah. In Prague I liked exploring the city. Sometimes I'd go to parks, I had my dog there, I bought a bike…I'd ride around with my dog and, you know, go look at girls.
J: Me? Hotel. Set. Training. Hotel. Set. In Prague, for four months. Never go out.
O: You never even walked around?
J: Well, on the last day of the shoot, early in the morning, I hired two cars for all my crew members. Driving, like this [gets up and starts running around the room]: Go out! Take picture! Go! Chase! Go! In one day we finished the whole of Prague! Then we went back to the hotel, packed and flew back home.

Q: Owen, do you know what Jackie's worse-ever on-set injury was?
O: Yeah. Falling off a building and knocking a hole in his head. That your worse injury, Jackie?
J: Yeah. In Yugoslavia, shooting The Armour Of God.
O: You could have died! That's scary…
J: It was very bad. From, like, 12am they moved me to another hospital. Then another hospital until, like, 8am. So it was eight hours…
O:…With no doctor.
J: Yeah. Nobody trusted the Yugoslavian doctor. They called the best doctor in Hong Kong, and he put them in touch with a specialist in Switzerland, but he was travelling around. I couldn't take the airplane because the pressure change would kill me. Then somehow the doctor came. I'm very lucky.

Q: So what's Owen's worst on-set injury, then?
J: It happened in Shanghai Knights, where he hits the bad guy and catches his hat. I did a few takes, then boom! The guy accidentally kicked him in the chest. I think he's okay. But two weeks later…"Jackie, oh! I still hurt!" "From where?" "From the kick!" "What! It's been two weeks and you still hurt!?" That's his worst!

Q: Owen, what would you say is Jackie's worst habit?
O: Well, I don't know if it's a bad habit, but he works so hard he doesn't get to enjoy himself. Like, when he described the sightseeing, it sounded more like work! It sounds like another thing to check off the list: "I did this, I did that…" Maybe he needs to take time to smell the roses.
J: I didn't want to go sightseeing but my stunt team, they whipped me!
O: Do you think you work too hard?
J: I don't know. Maybe…But if I'm not working, what am I doing?
O: You go on vacation! Sit on a beach!
J: [shouts] Where!? Like you? You know how to enjoy yourself. I don't.
O: No, you don't enjoy vacations…
J: It's like, last week I was in Berlin. So I started looking at it as a location: "Okay, you can put someone there, jump from here, then go…"