The Forbidden Kingdom

Starring: Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Michael Angarano
Directed by: Rob Minkoff
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy
Box Office: $
2008

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A martial arts movie lover (Michael Angarano) travels to ancient China with a magical staff, and gets caught up in a battle between an evil Emperor and the imprisoned Monkey King. Although he doesn't know martial arts himself, he finds himself the only one who can save China.

Review:

Tim: This is a fairly forgettable movie that is notable for one reason only- this is the first film that stars two martial arts masters, Jackie Chan and Jet Li. The significance of this shouldn't be dismissed. It is incredible to see Chan and Li together on the big screen. They have some great scenes together. You can't tell me that their fight scenes together aren't impressive.

One of the flaws of this movie is that the film is really a silly almost-children's movie. If you are looking for a hard-hitting kung fu movie, this probably isn't your best bet. Yes, there are some decent action sequences, but they are played more for comedy than for anything else. I don't mind too much that the film tried to skew its story to younger audiences, but it left something to be desired for the Chan-Li collaboration.

I have to say that I absolutely loved Jackie Chan in this movie. While he is certainly aging and getting slower, the film was able to cover this fact up pretty well. Chan is so incredibly likeable as a drunken immortal. I loved every second of his screen time. He was so much fun to see on screen. Jet Li is decent, but he pales in comparison to Chan's performance. Li does have some good moments as well. As I mentioned, it was so much fun to see these two legends on screen battling each other. I have to give some credit to Michael Angarano. He is just a goofy kid, but he holds his own against Chan and Li. He represents the audience well, and is believable as a normal person caught up in something extraordinary.

The Forbidden Kingdom is a decent, run-of-the-mill martial arts movie that pays tribute to previous, better movies. It does enough right to be somewhat entertaining, but it ultimately feels too flawed and weak to be considered a great movie.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 6.5


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