The first real look at the upcoming kung fu extravaganza, THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM has arrived online and you can check it out BELOW:
Yeah, this thing is like the HEAT of Hong Kong kung fu movies; Jet Li and Jackie Chan! I love how the title card reads 'A Band of Unlikely Heroes' and then cuts to Jet Li is his standard pre-fuck-you-up meditation pose. As if anyone ever looked at Jet Li in a movie that didn't star Mel Gibson and thought, no way is that guy gonna be the hero.
The film is about a bullied New York teenager (Michael Angarano) who is obsessed with Hong Kong cinema and classic Kung Fu movies. One day he discovers a legendary warrior’s staff, which transports him back to ancient China. He meets kung fu master Lu Yan (Jackie Chan), and becomes his disciple. He goes on a journey with kung fu master Golden Sparrow (Liu Yifei) and the Silent Monk (Jet Li) to fulfil an ancient prophecy
Extra Tidbit:Even though I would usually hate seeing a goofy white kid tearing up ancient Chinese kung fu masters, I'll give Angarano a bye for his (albeit tenuous) connection to Mary Elizabeth Winstead (SKY HIGH).
jchasse
on Nov 16 2007, 11:17:09 AM writes: ZANSHIN What is it with westerners always feeling like they have to blow there cheeks out like a puffer fish when doing martial arts.
what makes the great martial artists great (besides lots of training and natural talent) is the ability to kick ass with a straight face. Like they were taking out the trash not doing a set of reps on the bench.
Frankly thats a big part of what makes movies like this look stupid or "childish".
pg13myass
on Nov 15 2007, 11:36:48 PM writes: ANOTHER... They already made a similiar movie to this in the form of Warriors of Virtue and the made-for-television movie about the Monkey King. Although, I do admit, this looks slightly better. A bit of the classic wuxia movies of the 80's that HK was popular for. I'm neutral on this for now until I see it. I won't knock it yet. I haven't seen any of Jet's or Jackie's latest stuff because they have been picking bad projects. I just might go for this one.
HessenRoots
on Nov 15 2007, 6:16:09 PM writes: Looks good but this kid must have some skill if they're going to put him in fight scenes with the afore mentioned.
Movie-goers will have an expectation for the action and it's going to be pretty obvious if they have it "dumbed down" just to make the kid look good.
JCPhoenix
on Nov 15 2007, 2:19:45 PM writes: I loved 1. the idea of doing a Journey to the West movie 2. Jet Li & Jackie Chan in a film together. 3. Yuen Wo Ping doing the martial arts choreography. I did not like 1. Rob Minkoff directing and 2. A random kid thrown into the mix (not that I dislike Angarano, just adding that character is beyond retarded. Basically, those last two elements pretty much sunk this project for me which is sad considering how much I was looking forward to a Jet Li/Jackie Chan collaboration.
Jackie Chan and Jet Li's bad comments about this film really don't help its case. However, after all that, the footage itself looks nice and the martial arts choreography will be awesome I'm sure with Yuen Wo Ping behind it (I don't think he's ever disappointed me in that regard). I just don't like how this has become a kids film now which is completely the wrong way to approach this. What's weirder is how that montage tries to make it look all artsy with the Hero score...I mean it makes some of the footage look fantastic but then some of it looks a little too comedic to fit the mood of the music. And then the ending shot (which is probably truest to the mood of the film) completely makes you go wtf after they try to make it look incredibly dramatic.
brightboyalert
on Nov 15 2007, 1:10:18 PM writes: LOOKS FAMILIAR The premise for this movie reminds me of 'Last Action Hero' which was a hit as I remember
Kings-Rook1
on Nov 15 2007, 12:03:31 PM writes: EH Looks alright sets and scenery wise but I don’t know about the kid (Michael Angarano) and the action in the trailer didn’t do much for me. Hopefully the Wire-Fu is at a minimum. Looks like A Kid in King Authors Court meets Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.
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