Review by Peter Adamakos To some fans, The Forbidden Kingdom (2008) will be martial arts epic.
To others interested in Asian culture it will be Crouching Tiger
Hidden Dragon. But for action and fantasy fans, it will keep you
entertained. No matter what your looking for the highlight of this
movie is watching Jacki Chan and Jet Li kick the crap out of
each-other!!! This is a, westernized East, where another poor American boy taught by
old masters saves the world, more or less a grander Karate Kid. Not
the most original however it is very well done. The production is
handsomely designed and photographed, the costumes and sets lavish but
not overdone. The cast is solid all around, and Jackie Chan finds a perfect niche on
his way back to career rehabilitation after mistakes like Around the
World in 80 Days. Jet Li is in perfect contrast, and Michael Angarano
as the young man is fine throughout and doesn’t say “dude” once. Director Robert Minkoff has a good eye. In one scene he has people
running down many floors of a winding staircase, which we see from
above, as we have many times in films. But he has his camera rotating
with the actors, giving an old cliché a nice twist. Enjoy this one. That being said this movie is exactly what it set out to be, tones of
elaborate martial arts fights and very little plot!
To others interested in Asian culture it will be Crouching Tiger
Hidden Dragon. But for action and fantasy fans, it will keep you
entertained. No matter what your looking for the highlight of this
movie is watching Jacki Chan and Jet Li kick the crap out of
each-other!!! This is a, westernized East, where another poor American boy taught by
old masters saves the world, more or less a grander Karate Kid. Not
the most original however it is very well done. The production is
handsomely designed and photographed, the costumes and sets lavish but
not overdone. The cast is solid all around, and Jackie Chan finds a perfect niche on
his way back to career rehabilitation after mistakes like Around the
World in 80 Days. Jet Li is in perfect contrast, and Michael Angarano
as the young man is fine throughout and doesn’t say “dude” once. Director Robert Minkoff has a good eye. In one scene he has people
running down many floors of a winding staircase, which we see from
above, as we have many times in films. But he has his camera rotating
with the actors, giving an old cliché a nice twist. Enjoy this one. That being said this movie is exactly what it set out to be, tones of
elaborate martial arts fights and very little plot!
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