The Forbidden Kingdom Directed by Rob Minkoff Written by John Fusco Starring Michael Angarano, Jackie Chan and Jet Li Classification: PG
The ostensible draw of The Forbidden Kingdom is that it offers the first-ever on-screen pairing of martial-arts legends Jackie Chan and Jet Li, but it's a bit of a bait-and-switch. Both stars get plenty of screen time, yet their fight scenes feel routine. Although veteran choreographer Yuen Woo-Ping ( Kill Bill, The Matrix) handles the wire action, the camera work is merely okay and the sequences are on the familiar side. Still, it's fun to see Chan resurrect his loopy, staggering "drunken master" fighting style.
The martial-arts displays are really just a side dish for what's a mainstream, family-friendly, American coming-of-age story, blending elements of The Karate Kid and Star Wars in spectacular Chinese locations. The film is directed by Rob Minkoff ( The Lion King, Stuart Little), and his aim here is to appeal to 10-year-old boys who like to leap about and hit things, more than to deep connoisseurs of Chinese acrobatic fighting.
The star is Michael Angarano ( Sky High, Snow Angels), a baby-faced actor who looks like a younger Shia LaBeouf. He stars as Jason, a bullied American teen from South Boston who's infatuated with kung-fu movies. He buys used and bootleg DVDs from a local pawn shop run by Old Hop, played by Jackie Chan in old-age prosthetics (apparently Hop is a third-generation American who still struggles with English).
Young Jason is bullied by a school gang led by Lupo (Morgan Benoit), who speaks in an ersatz movie slang (Yo - does anyone ever call Chinatown "C-Town"?). Lupo forces Jason to help him rob the pawn shop, and during the hold-up, Old Hop gets shot. Chased by the gang, Jason tumbles off a roof while holding an antique Chinese staff which magically transports him back to feudal China.
Soon, Jason is recognized as the long-prophesied hero who will overthrow the evil Jade Warlord and restore the "monkey king" entrapped in stone to his rightful throne. Serving as coaches and mentors are a wine-swilling, garrulous beggar (Chan) and a stone-faced warrior-monk (Li).
Next come many predictable sequences of Jason punching the tall bamboo and learning the lessons of patience. Eventually the team sets off across the desert to the palace of the Jade Warlord. Coming along for the journey, to strum her musical instrument and make eyes at Jason, is the beauteous Golden Sparrow (Liu Yifei), an orphan with some good kung-fu moves of her own who wants revenge on the Jade King for killing her parents.
The villainous warlord (Collin Chou) is a stock snaky villain. Much better is his accomplice, the sexy White-Haired Demoness (Li Bingbing), who shakes her luminescent silvery mane and cracks a bullwhip to tame her enemies. The fighting doesn't really get interesting, though, until the revival of the Monkey King (also played by Li), a furry-faced, chattering master of mischief who even manages to out-imp Chan's drunken master.
You really miss both Li and Chan, however, during the movie's witless coda, when Jason teleports back to Beantown, ready to give Lupo and the rest of the gang the kung-fu butt-kicking they've been waiting for since the start of the movie.
Liam Lacey