by Tasha Chemplavil
Jason Tripitikas (Angarano) breathes and dreams kung fu, devouring every martial-arts movie the local Chinatown video store offers. But his inability to defend himself makes him go along with the local band of bullies, and Jason winds up getting his friend (and the owner of said video store) Old Hop (Chan) shot in a botched robbery.
Before the old man can fade into unconsciousness, he thrusts a bo staff into Jason’s hands. This turns out to be a magical weapon that transports young Jason back in time to ancient China, where we discover that he is the prophesied keeper of the staff sent to free the Monkey King (Li) from his stone prison and end the tyranny of the Jade Warlord.
Luckily for Jason, drunken kung-fu master and professed immortal Lu Yan (also Chan) agrees to accompany him on his quest, teaching him kung fu along the way.
The many storylines create a discombobulated mess of a movie whose narrative is as confusing as its action sequences are boring.
For a kung-fu movie, The Forbidden Kingdom’s choreography is lackluster. Combining moves copied from House of Flying Daggers and Shaolin Soccer, Kingdom has nothing that hasn’t been done better in better movies with better stories. Not even the usually mesmerizing Li manages to escape an emphatic eye roll.
The only bright spots in this mostly dismal kung-fu fantasy are the beautiful shots of the Chinese landscape and the far-too-rare one-liners delivered by Chan. In lieu of entertaining fight sequences, the scenery provides much-needed visual stimulation. And in lieu of any semblance of a logical story, Chan’s infrequent funny moments provide a welcome distraction from the movie’s complicated plot.
Despite being the first onscreen collaboration between Li and Chan, from its convoluted story to its recycled action choreography, Kingdom proves that two fists of fury are not necessarily better than one.
The Forbidden Kingdom
* 1/2
Michael Angarano, Jackie Chan, Jet Li
Directed by Rob Minkoff
Rated PG-13