If acting and story were the reasons behind the worldwide success of Hong Kong kung fu movies, there wouldn't be many in existence beyond ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.' And the current summer release, ‘The Forbidden Kingdom' would not have made it beyond the idea stage. For a lot of teenagers, perhaps, that might be a good thing. The marquee value of this kung fu fight fest comes from the two biggest names in kung fu cinema appearing above the title: Jackie Chan and Jet Li. Neither of these guys can act their way out of a paper bag but when it comes to taking a karate chop, deflecting a punch, delivering a solid kick to just about anyone's solar plexus and bringing all sorts of supernatural beings to their knees, there's nobody better. And since this is the first pairing of the two stars, this film is a must-see for kung fu fans. The Forbidden Kingdom also stars Michael Angarano as Jason, a kung fu movie-obsessed teenager who spends a lot of time at a second-hand store run by an old Chinese man (Jackie Chan) in South Boston, a legendarily tough neighborhood. That's where he stocks up on the latest and the most arcane Hong Kong movies in existence. But as the new kid in town, he is subject to bullying by a gang of teenagers who force him to con the old man into opening the door late at night, allowing the gang in to rob him. What the gang doesn't know, however, is that there is an ancient staff in the musty shop that has passed through the hands of the Chinese man's grandfather, father and now him, waiting to be returned to its rightful owner. Its rightful owner happens to be the Monkey King (Jet Li), a jokester of sorts who lived in medieval China and while fighting honorably with the head of the Jade Army, who guards the elixir of immortality in his palace on the Mountain of the Five Elements, he is outfoxed and turned into a stone statue. But not before he flings the all-powerful staff through the castle window and far, far away. The Monkey King can only be returned to the world of flesh and blood when the staff is returned to him. Jason, of course, is the one to accomplish this feat. Whether it all happens or not is open to question since the teenager is given to vivid kung fu-laden dreams and when he takes up the staff after the old Chinese man is shot in the robbery attempt, he is lifted off the top of the roof and transported to the Chinese countryside of long,long ago. His life is threatened by a marauding army and were it not for the fortuitous arrival Liu Ying (Jackie Chan), who amazingly speaks English as everyone else apparently did in China back then, Jason would meet his demise. From that point on, the plot doesn't make a lot of difference. A young and pretty girl whose parents were murdered by the Jade Army warlord hooks up with Jason and Liu Ying and eventually they come across the Silent Monk (Jet Li) who has been on a quest to recover the staff and return it to the Monkey King. There is the long-awaited face-off between Chan and Li, which Chan nominally wins but not by much. Then they not only have to deal with the Jade Army but with a witch “who was born of wolves” who has been promised the elixir of immortality should she bring the staff to the Jade King. She's the one who refers to the quartet of antagonists as “three misfits following a misfit to rescue a misfit.” And that's when we decide that we pretty much like the good guys. Along the way, of course, there are countless fights, otherwise it would be pretty hard to justify making this film. The choreography of The Forbidden Kingdom is really what sets it apart from more mediocre examples of the genre as there is little, if any, repetition of moves from fight scene to fight scene. Actually, aside from some kicks to the chest, there's very little that similar in such scenes. Which, perhaps, is to be expected given that the fight choreographer, Woo-Ping Yuen, also choreographed the fight scenes in “The Matrix,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” and “Kill Bill.” For kung fu afficionadoes, this film will serve its purpose. There are arcane references to old kung fu films and karate moves from video games. There is also a lot of puffy philosophy that has a kind of profound sound to it without really being of much importance. It's not much in terms of cinema, but for a good time with friends, “The Forbidden Kingdom” might just hit the spot. __
