The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Rob Minkoff

Writer (WGA):

John Fusco (written by)

Release Date:

18 April 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

The path is unsafe. The place is unknown. The journey is unbelievable.

Plot:

A discovery made by a kung fu obsessed American teen sends him on an adventure to China, where he joins up with a band of martial arts warriors in order to free the imprisoned Monkey King.

Plot Keywords:

Warrior | China | American | Martial Arts | Kung Fu

Awards:

4 nominations

Cast

Jet Li	...	The Monkey King / The Silent Monk
Michael Angarano	...	Jason Tripitikas
Jackie Chan	...	Lu Yan / Old Hop
Yifei Liu	...	Golden Sparrow / Chinatown Girl
Collin Chou	...	Jade Warlord
Juana Collignon	...	Southie Girl
Morgan Benoit	...	Lupo
Bingbing Li	...	Ni Chang
Jack Posobiec	...	Southie
Thomas McDonell	...	Young Southie
Zhi Ma Gui	...	Old Woman
Shen Shou He	...	Farmer
Bin Jiang	...	Young Village Man
Shaohua Yang	...	Jade Soldier
Yu Yuan Zeng	...	Inn Keeper

Also Known As:

Gong fu zhi wang (China: Mandarin title)
Gong fu zi wong (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
Jackie Chan/Jet Li Project (USA) (working title)
King of Kung Fu (Hong Kong: English title) (literal title)
Untitled J&J Project (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sequences of martial arts action and some violence.

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA | China

Language:

English | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Malaysia:U | Hong Kong:IIA | USA:PG-13 (certificate #44223) | Philippines:G (MTRCB) | UK:12A | Ireland:12A | Portugal:M/12 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-13 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Anji bamboo forest, Jiangsu, China

Company:

Casey Silver Productions

Trivia:

The characters are mostly taken from Chinese mythology and adventure pulps. Lu Yan is a famous Taoist Saint (He's better known as Iron-crutch Li, one of the Eight Immortals). The Jade Emperor is the ruler of the Heavens in Chinese myth. The Monkey King is from a 16th Century fantasy epic by Wu Cheng En. Golden Sparrow was the name of the character played by Cheng Pei Pei in a number of Shaw Bros films like Da zui xia (1966). The White Haired Demoness is the anti-heroine of a pulp novel by Liang Yusheng (filmed twice) with the same title.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the Jade Warlord slams the Silent Monk onto the Monkey King's altar at the end, it cuts to a different shot and the Silent Monk disappears, reappearing in the next shot.

Quotes:

Lu Yan: If one does not attach himself to people and desires, never shall his heart be broken. But then, does he ever truly live? I would rather die a mortal, who has a care for someone, than a man free from his own death.

Movie Connections:

References Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)

good but Jackie Chan/Jet Li deserves better

I have been a big fan of Jet Li/ Jackie Chan since I can remember. All I have to say is that they deserve better. A movie that consists of both these remarkable actors should be incredible and unforgettable, but, in my opinion, this movie can only be remembered probably because it's their first tandem. I don't know what the writers in this movie are thinking. They should have watched the old movies of these two and studied it. They should have written a story that will compliment both their strengths in the screen (not just their martial arts techniques), and the tone of the movie is well-off. Needless to say, if you want to see a feel-good, relatively entertaining then this movie is definitely your cup-of- tea.