If you’re in love with martial arts, Jackie Chan, Jet Li or
all three together, then your dream will come true, as Lionsgate’s release “The
Forbidden Kingdom” will run in the U.S. theaters this weekend.
“The Forbidden
Kingdom” is a total surprise
for the fans of the two action heroes as this is their first appearance onscreen
together. Talking about this, director Rob Minkoff (“The Lion King,” “The
Haunted Mansion,” “Stuart Little”) told The Vancouver
Sun: “They're huge stars around the world, but in China they're like mega-superstars.
But that was also the tricky thing, because Jet and Jackie have not been
together in a movie for a reason. They are very different in their personas --
not only in their martial arts styles but in their acting styles. That was a
big part of the job -- creating a movie in which they could coexist and that
presented them in the same universe.”
The movie, a martial arts fantasy, is likely to sweep away
the number one place at the American box office this weekend with up to $20
million during its first three days.
“We’ll be very happy with a gross of $15 million or beyond,
but tracking certainly indicates that we have a shot at doing in the high teens
or better,” said Steve Rothenberg president of distribution at Lionsgate, which
is partnered on the project with the Weinstein Co., Reuters reports.
To make the story short, the subject of the movie is silly and
the characters seem like hand-me-downs from kung fu classics. The concept for “The
Forbidden Kingdom” is essentially, “What if you got to live a kung fu story?”
Filmed in China
and based on the Chinese legend of the Monkey King, the movie tells the story
of Jason (Michael Angarano), a nerdy Boston
teenager who loves kung fu movies. He has become friends with an elderly pawnshop
owner in Chinatown who has a great collection
of Tsui Hark and Shaw Brothers DVDs, as well as a mysterious staff.
When the owner gets shot in a robbery, he tells Jason to
return the staff to its rightful owner. Chased by the robbers, Jason falls off
a roof and passes away. He wakes up in the Middle Kingdom and his pursuers are
replaced by the minions of the tyrannical Jade Warlord.
Rescued at the last second by the deceptively deadly drunk
Lu Yan (Chan), Jason learns that the staff belongs to the Monkey King (Li), who
was tricked by the Warlord into parting with it. Along the path to the Jade
Warlord's castle, they meet a fighting monk (also Jet Li) with long, whip-like
sleeves, and a beautiful young assassin, Golden Sparrow (Yifei Lui).
“The Forbidden
Kingdom” is nothing like
the other movies that jump between two worlds like “The Wizard Of Oz,” “Back To
The Future” or “The Terminator.” Novelty doesn’t seem to be a top priority on its
screenwriter’s list. John Fusco indulges in a number of clichés from different
genres, such as teen movies (the bullies who mock Jason for his kung fu
interests), kung fu movies (his “master” is shot early) and revenge movie
(soldiers raze a village for no apparent reason, leaving one survivor to seek
vengeance).
The movie struggles to keep interest whenever Li and Chan
aren’t onscreen or someone isn’t fighting. However, one thing is for sure: Chan
and Li acting and fighting together in a film will likely never happen again. In
fact, this is what producer Case Silver relied on when he first thought about
making the movie.
“The Forbidden
Kingdom” takes the insane
fight choreography from “Crouching Tiger”/ “Matrix” trilogy’s Woo-Ping Yuen and
transforms it into an athletic ballet. Too bad these scenes take only half an
hour while the remaining 90 minutes are mere mediocrity.
However, Chan and Li will likely bring “The Forbidden Kingdom”
supremacy over other movies scheduled to appear this weekend such as Universal’s
R-rated comedy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” Sony’s thriller “88 Minutes”
starring Al Pacino and the
creation-theory documentary “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed.”
“The Forbidden Kingdom”
Released by: Lionsgate
Cast: Michael Angarano, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Collin Chou,
Liu Yifei, Li Bing Bing
Director: Rob Minkoff
Screenwriter: John Fusco
Producer: Case Silver
Running Time: 113 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for violence, language, racism
Where: Bay Area Theaters
