THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM
Rating: ** ½ (out of ****)
Cast: Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Michael Angarano, Crystal Liu, Collin Chou, Li Bing Bing
Director: Rob Minkoff
Opening in wide release on April 18.

According to the Internet Movie Database, Jackie Chan has appeared in ninety-four movies (including bit parts and stunt work), and Jet Li has been in thirty-nine. Together, they are undoubtedly the two most internationally famous Asian actors working today, and the only two truly financially viable Asian actors in Hollywood. Yet astonishingly enough, The Forbidden Kingdom represents their first screen appearance together. It’s the kung fu equivalent of when Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton acted together in Limelight.

Something you should know going in, though: a lot of this movie is about some white kid. The white kid in question is Jason (Michael Angarano), who enjoys going to a store in Chinatown run by kindly old Hop (Jackie Chan, in old age makeup) to buy bootleg kung fu DVDs. Catching wind of this, the local bullies make Jason help them rob Hop’s store, but during the frenzy, Jason grabs hold of an ancient Chinese staff that transports him back in time to ancient China.

Okay, stay with me, because it gets better. In ancient China, Jason meets Lu Yan (Jackie Chan, again), an immortal kung fu master who speaks English, conveniently enough. Lu Yan can only remain an immortal kung fu master, however, if he drinks plenty of wine. Casting Chan (who became a star with 1978’s Drunken Master) as a kung fu master who needs wine to fight is like casting Robert De Niro as a taxi driver. Lu Yan reveals that the staff once belonged to the Monkey King (Jet Li), who has been trapped in stone by the evil Jade Warlord (Collin Chou). The only way to free the Monkey King is by returning the staff. They’re joined on their journey to the Monkey King by another kung fu master, Silent Monk (Jet Li, again).

As stupid as that plot description sounds, it flows fairly well on the screen, in a comic book sort of way. The Forbidden Kingdom is at its best when it’s just trying to be dumb fun. There are some really enjoyable action sequences that, while not exactly thrilling, are at least fun to look at, with their bright colours and heavy use of computer generated effects. The climactic battle scene, which is like an orgy of supernatural martial arts kitsch, is very entertaining. Fans of kung fu movies will enjoy spotting references to older martial arts films, not just Drunken Master but also The Bride With White Hair, the Shaw Brothers canon, and some pop philosophy that I’m pretty sure was taken word-for-word from some old Bruce Lee interview footage. I could have done with a little less of the Karate Kid rip-off shenanigans with Angarano. The present-day bookend scenes feel like they come out of a bad after-school special. (My favourite part was when one of the bullies called Angarano a “pissant”). I assume Angarano’s character was meant to appeal to family audiences, or else he was included to reassure North Americans that yes, this is indeed an American film.

But anyone who’s paying to see The Forbidden Kingdom has come for two reasons: Jet and Jackie. Does it work on that basis? Yeah, pretty much. The two kung fu titans are both “good guys” here, but they do get one Yuen Woo-Ping-choreographed fight together that lasts at least five minutes and generally satisfies the appetite for some Jackie vs. Jet whoop-ass. Separately, both of them remain enjoyable screen presences. Chan in particular is fun to watch here: his performance is reminiscent of the cheeky, rascally Jackie Chan of the 1970s and 80s. The Forbidden Kingdom is not a return to the glory days of Once Upon a Time in China and Drunken Master II, but it’s still Jet Li and Jackie Chan. As far as I’m concerned, that’s worth the price of admission.