The curiosity got the better of me and I asked my friend to go watch The Forbidden Kingdom with me in the cinemas. My thoughts about it?

Read on.



Synopsis from IMDB.com

An American teenager, Jason Tripitakas, 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.

Review

To sum it up, for someone who grew up on a diet of Hong Kong action/kung-fu/wuxia cinema since the 80s, The Forbidden Kingdom was just about average.

I know it garnered 7.5 over 10 on IMDB.com, which is rather impressive for a movie. But I guess I shouldn't be surprised as the votes were probably given by a majority of Western audiences. And judging by the overwhelming, almost illogically wonderful reviews the Western audiences gave Croaching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, it does seem to confirm the observation that they would lap up anything that has reasonable kungfu action and recognizable Chinese stars.

To be fair, the movie was not as bad as I thought, looking at how they seem to bastardize elements of classic Chinese stories such as Bride with White Hair and Journey to the West initially. Because really, thinking back, hasn't Chinese cinema been doing this since its industry boom from the 80s to the 90s? In fact, rather than actually aiming to stay faithful to a particular story, the movie makers made it clear from the beginning that this movie was meant as a tribute to all these familiar characters which graced Chinese cinema for years. So I guess this is the reason why the twists in the stories of these characters was really something quite acceptable for me.

I have to admit that the movie had its moments, and it was an overall enjoyable experience with a reasonable storyline. However, if you're not a big fan of any of the cast, this movie will probably be a forgettable one as well. But of course, as a disclaimer, I'm mainly referring to Asian audiences who grew up on the real deal.

The look

Reminds me of Lord of the Rings at times especially when the camera pans to show troops marching into the Jade Warlord's palace - reminisent of the scene at Helm's Deep. But I suppose that's the impact LOTR had on modern-day cinema. Other than that, the look of the whole movie was suitably authentic. Would have liked to see a more realistic portrayal of Chinatown in modern-day America though. The whole place looked like something that came out of a fairytale.

The action

Being marketed as an action movie, the cinematography in the fighting scenes certainly gets a special mention. Frankly, it was impressive. And it's little wonder why looking at the people who were behind it all including Peter Pau for cinematography and Yuen Woo Ping as action coordinator. To me, it was a successful blend of traditional kung-fu cinema and modern techniques in CGI where lots of stunts and styles are materialized and made more spectacular than previously possible. For example, the use of Qi in manipulating weapons is no longer an element for a comical scene whereby swords are clearly hung by wires and a wisp of cloud is drawn in to connect the palm to the weapon. Instead, in the movie, it becomes a formidable technique that packs quite a punch.

One of the highlights of the film where Jet Li (The Silent Monk) and Jackie Chan (Lu Yan) meet each other in a face-off certainly is a showcase of raw martial arts skills in action by two of the greatest martial arts stars of our time, with the help of some awesome coordination and impressive cinematography. The fight scene is clearly a cummulation of the experiences these people have gathered over the years of making kung-fu movies. In fact, watching them fight was like a throwback to the good old times where movies such as Once Upon A Time in China ruled the big screens.

However, the one who surprised me in the action department was actually Michael Angarano, who really seemed like he packed a decent punch especially towards the end of the movie. I'm sure he must have had a stunt double but if current standards of filming are to go by, he would have trained rather vigourously to at least manage the close-ups. Quite a surprise for this young man who is better known for his dramatic performances.

The acting

Jackie Chan and Jet Li have never been really known as wonderful dramatic actors and this surely wouldn't be the movie project that would prove otherwise. However, if I had to choose between the two of them, Jackie Chan gets my vote. I'll tell you why...

Jet Li played both the Monkey King and Silent Monk in the movie. Perhaps the image of CCTV's classic Journey To The West serial left too deep an impression on me - Jet Li's Monkey King was just inadequate. He wasn't playful enough, wasn't arrogant enough, and just lacking in poise and character. Even the make-up was lacking and very much unlike the Monkey King. While skilled in the martial arts department, Jet Li was simply unable to incorporate the subtle actions that would define his character as a monkey born out of rock at Hua Guo Shan. Perhaps it is true that no other person can play the Monkey King to perfection than the original actor in the classic China version.

As the Silent Monk, Jet Li had little to do than to look serious, showcase his awesome fighting movies and dispense wisdom to Jason.

In comparison, Jackie Chan had the more colourful character of the perpectually drunk taoist priest Lu Yan with a touch of wit and humor. He got some of the best lines, and some of the more dramatic moments which successfully defined him as a character. You emphatized more with his character, and scenes which had Lu Yan in them were much more entertaining. I particularly liked the way he humbled Jason into forgetting all the fanciful moves he saw from movies and experience the true meaning of martial arts.


Who's the better actor? Speak!

Michael Angarano is one of my favourite young actors. Like Jamie Bell, he is currently sought after by some of the most acclaimed filmmakers by the tender age of 21. This movie, however, is not the one which will be remembered for his dramatic performance. He does have his tender moments but the premise of the movie makes these moments rather out-of-place in the story. Nevertheless, like I mentioned, he did impress me with his agility and did a fine job with the fighting scenes, complementing the maestros Jet, Jackie and Colin Chou. Wonder how much of his fight scenes were done by stunt doubles...? Still, look towards movies such as Black Irish and One Last Thing... for a sample of his acting instead.

Liu Yi Fei as Golden Sparrow is an unfamiliar face though a very pretty one. Unfortunately, her character was quite forgettable and it doesn't help that she played it with very little facial expression. The romance between her and Jason was rather under-developed too though given the context of the story, I suppose that was forgivable. However, I must say it was tad irritating that she always referred to herself as "she". This definitely was in reference to the trauma that Sparrow went through, which was reinforced at the end when she finally referred to herself as "I" in the last moments. However, too much of the character was left unexplored for this to be significant.

Collin Chou as the Jade Warload was suitably diabolical particularly with the heavy eye make-up. He retains his usual agility and poise in this movie. Strangely though, even though he was born in Taiwan, he speaks heavily Cantonese-accented Mandarin.

Li Bing Bing as the Bride with White Hair had little to do in the movie than to look evil... She had surprisingly little screen time as well. I'm quite surprised she spoke decent English though.

Things left to be desired...

I have said this before and I'll say it again - the English-speaking part of the movie still remains something that is hard to stomache. I liked when, in the beginning of the film, Jason was truly the lost traveller as he found himself in a foreign land with people who spoke in an alien language. However, the magic was lost once Lu Yan came into the picture and surprised Jason and the audience with a mouthful of fluent English. If I were given the choice, I would want Jason to pick up the language along the way, like how he picked up his kung-fu skills, while the rest of the cast continued to speak Mandarin throughout the whole film. That would have potentially made the movie more interesting and more believeable. I know it's a fantasy at the end of the day but to make everyone in ancient China speak English even amongst themselves just to accomodate Jason the American is going a little too far. I mean, how weird it is when even the Jade Emperor speaks English while decked in ancient costume! Of course, we know that the main Western investors in this movie aren't going to allow that but it's high time they learnt to accept other languages in films and to read subtitles!

There was also another part of the movie which I'm sure would make any self-respecting Asian movie-goer shudder - that was when Jason disregarded the Silent Monk's advise about taking into consideration the plight of an entire country and went ahead to return the staff to the enemy, just to save one man. Then, in his stupidity, he gets rescued and nothing else is mentioned about the selfish act and he is instead celebrated as a hero... Believe me if I were that man he wanted to save I would have punished him left and right for putting an entire country at stake for me by giving in to the evil forces. I know he was loyal to him but the whole idea is simply off-putting as it betrays the whole spirit of a martial arts film.

And try as I may, the idea of sprouting Chinese wisdom in English still sounded a little jarring. Very "Karate Kid"...

There was also the poorly made prelude to the main story, which I will talk more about in the section of the things that were "Plain weird".

Funny moments

Not surprisingly, all involving Lu Yan...

- When Lu Yan and the Silent Monk fought over what Jason should learn with a poor Jason, exhausted from performing the horse stance over a long period, sandwiched in the middle of the brawl.

- When Jason asks Lu Yan when he will get to learn all those fanciful martial arts styles and moves. Lu Yan listens to Jason as he goes on and on about it while pouring hot water into his cup. Lu Yan purposely allows the cup to overflow and explains to the teenager that since he knows so much, what else is there to learn? This was in reference to the cup which is already filled to the brim, hence it is impossible to try to pour anything else into it. Jason listens but looks on blankly, obviously puzzled by the analogy. Lu Yan goes on to tell him that to learn successfully, he has to empty his cup, to which Jason immediately threw the water in his cup away, taking Lu Yan's words literally. Lu Yan stares at Jason in exasperation and walks away in a huff, leaving Jason still puzzled and lost.

- When the Lu Yan, the Silent Monk, Golden Sparrow and Jason are trapped in a desert with no water for days, and Sparrow asks if Lu Yan, who was supposed to be immortal, was able to make rain. Lu Yan straggers ahead of them, kneels and takes out his praying equipment which were clearly left untouched for eons. Then, as he writes on his tailsman, a miracle occurs, only to be revealed as 'showers of blessings' by the Silent Monk.

Favourite moment

No, not the iconic Jet Li v.s. Jackie Chan fight, but when Jason, back in modern-day America, kicked the daylights out of the bullies with his newly-aquired martial arts skills. Impressive and strangely satisfying.

Favourite quote

As accurately as I can remember...

Jason: (to Lu Yan) You could teach me to fight!

(Lu Yan scrutinizes the young traveller and considers seriously)
(Cut to a scene where Jason whacks weed with a bamboo pole with all his might like he's training in martial arts, but he clearly is struggling)

Lu Yan: (to Sparrow, shaking his head) He is terrible...

Jason: (to Lu Yan, exhausted and exasperated) Look, I've been your weed-whacker for days. When are you going to teach me kung-fu?

Lu Yan: You wanna learn kung-fu?

Jason: Yeah!

(Lu Yan walks over and snatches the pole from Jason)

Lu Yan: Ok, I'll teach you.

(Lu Yan whacks Jason on the arm with the pole)

Jason: Oow!

Lu Yan: This is the attack. (Returns the pole to Jason) Tomorrow, I'll teach you the block. (struts back to his horse)

(Jason returns to weed-whacking to clear the path for Lu Yan and Sparrow to cross)

The plain weird...

Several scenes get my vote for the plain weird and as a result seriously affect the credibility of this movie. I count them as weird because they don't give me a good vibe yet I can't put a finger to what is wrong... For example...

- After dispensing some instructions to the Jade Warlord in a story told by Lu Yan, the Jade Emperor and the Empress floated unnaturally into air and 'gostan' (local term for "backtracked") into a cloud. No string was seen though it sure as hell looked like they were pulled up by wire.

- Again in another scene, when Jason goes home after being blessed by the Jade Emperor, he clearly gets pulled up by an unseen wire and disappears into a cloud, and the next moment he is shown enjoying the breeze amongst the clouds as he descends into the unknown.

- During the final fight when, all of a sudden, irrelevant young warrior monks pop out from no where to save the day.

- Is it just me but the all the other Americans in the movie in modern day America, excluding Jason, spoke in a very weird accent?

- The bullies not only speak in a weird way, they act weird too. Don't ask me why - it's just weird. It's like how Caucasians would talk and act in a Hong Kong-made film, which makes it even more puzzling as this is a film made by Americans for Americans.

- Come to that, the whole manner in which Jason is bullied into doing the unspeakable was also pretty unbelieveable. In fact, it is also one of the things left to be desired. The whole prelude to the main story appeared to be done hastily and without much thought going into it. Very bad....

Verdict

It's decent entertainment, but as an wuxia/martial arts film nothing beats the old school Hong Kong cinema. That is perhaps the reason why despite my praises for some aspects of the movie, I still wouldn't give it a high rating. Call it biasness as I admit that this movie certainly has much higher production value compared to those movies that were churned out in Hong Kong during the boom. Nevertheless, to me, it simply isn't good enough to be remembered as one of the martial arts movies to look for.

Rating: 2 1/2 over 5