Movie Review: The Forbidden Kingdom
Synopsis:
An American teenager who is obsessed with Hong Kong cinema and kung-fu classics makes an extraordinary discovery in a Chinatown pawnshop: the legendary stick weapon of the Chinese sage and warrior, the Monkey King. With the lost relic in hand, the teenager unexpectedly finds himself traveling back to ancient China to join a crew of warriors from martial arts lore on a dangerous quest to free the imprisoned Monkey King.
I was so hyped for this show, Jet Li, Jackie Chan, lot of Kung Fu. The movie delivered on the Kung Fu, and the plot and story is actually quite good, especially the way they melded in the current time line and introduced an American boy as the "hero".
Most of the show is in English but some sections are mandarin with subtitles, not many though. This is definitely to cater to the American audience. And sadly this was a failing of the show for me. Jackie's english has has improved a lot but Jet Li has a longggg way to go. Still, the really bad part is all this fortune cookie dialog that they spout, what's that about? Cheng Yu or Chinese Idioms are 4 words in chinese that tell a story or have a hidden meaning, but the shit they were spouting made me cringe.
This is not another Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Its more of a Last Action Hero movie. Popcorn movie if you will. Fun if you can over look the bad fortune cookie speeches they spout.
I also wonder what the American Audience think about the Monkey King and the Jade Emperor. To those familiar with chinese mythology their use of "magical powers" is familiar but to the uninitiated, it might seem very Harry Potter like.
Oh and there is a fight scene between Jet Li and Jackie Chan, It was good. In fact all the Kung Fu in the movie is excellent, kinna expected though.
I rate this movie a 7/10. 8.5 if you like Kung Fu movies.
Labels: Movies
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