Monday night’s advanced screening of “Rush Hour 3” was a popular event. In fact, it was so popular that the theater needed to call in the police to calm down angry filmgoers who were barred from entering the oversold auditorium. A film critic sitting beside me questioned the film’s apparent appeal, “Can you believe how much people love this stuff?” Another critic responded with a mixture of frustration and resignation, “I honestly don’t understand it.”

Appalled by the smug elitism around me, I was determined to enjoy “Rush Hour 3.” I figured it wouldn’t be too difficult. The first two “Rush Hour” were enjoyable, if uninspired, action-comedies and marketing for the third installment implied very little had changed.

And indeed very little has changed. The plot is threadbare, Tucker’s high-picthed blabbering dominates the proceedings and kung fu battles transpire at regular intervals. Nevertheless, much to my chagrin, I find myself siding with the haughty critics this time around. Despite Jackie Chan’s effortless appeal, lazy screen-writing and a stale feeling pervade “Rush Hour 3” from beginning to end. It’s not the summer’s most disappointing sequel (that honor goes to “Spider-man 3”), but it might be the most pedestrian.

This third installment sees Inspector Lee (Chan) and Detective Carter (Chris Tucker) travel to Paris to battle a wing of the Chinese triad. As with other “Rush Hour” movies, there is very little sophistication to the movie’s situations and interactions. In fact, the film’s structure can be summarized as follows: Lee and Carter visit a location, engage in a verbal and/or physical sparring match and then move on to the next location. After 80 minutes, the movie’s “surprise” villain is revealed. Ten minutes later, the villain is dispatched.

I can forgive the rather streamlined plots. But one thing I’ve never understood about the “Rush Hour” movies is how little they exploit Chan’s physical abilities. There are numerous fight scenes in “Rush Hour 3,” but they are short-lived and not nearly as innovative as similar fight scenes in Chan’s Hong Kong movies. There’s certainly nothing on display here to rival the stunt work in “Drunken Master II” or the “Project A” movies. “Shanghai Knights,” arguably Chan’s best American movie, is the only film in recent years to capitalize on the aging star’s potential.

“Rush Hour 3” therefore fairs better as a comedy. Tucker reportedly received $20 million for his participation in the movie, his first role since “Rush Hour 2,” and the stand-up comic’s motor-mouthed dialogue is central to nearly every scene. This is a mixed blessing. Though Tucker has undeniable charisma, only a handful of his lines are truly funny. Yvan Attal is more successful playing a French taxi driver obsessed with becoming a gun-toting American. On the other hand, Roman Polanski’s small role as a French Detective who gives Lee and Carter rectal probes is nothing short of embarrassing. The influential director hasn’t appeared in an American movie since 1992. What motivated Polanski to appear in the movie is beyond me — unless he’s attempting to send America a not-so-subtle message.

The film is somewhat redeemed by its climax atop the Eiffel Tower. The scene is alternately brutal, funny, tense and ludicrous. “Rush Hour” series director Brett Ratner is often dismissed by film-goers as inept, but this scene is skillfully constructed indicating that the film’s weaknesses lie more in its screenplay that its direction. This is also true of Ratner’s “X-Men: The Last Stand” which is well-directed but hampered by a frustratingly limp screenplay.

“Rush Hour 3” comes at the end of one of the most franchise-intensive summers in Hollywood history. Though it is opening in the wake of vastly superior action sequels like “The Bourne Ultimatum” and “Live Free or Die Hard,” the action-comedy will likely fair well at the box office. Nevertheless, I suspect enthusiasm for a fourth movie will be limited. Of course, I could be wrong about this. In which case look for me in the inevitable screening for “Rush Hour 4,” shaking my head in disbelief and wondering what people see in these silly movies.