In South Boston, Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano) is a clumsy teenager obsessed in martial arts, movies of kung fu and Chinese culture. He frequently goes to the pawn shop of Old Hop (Jackie Chan) to buy Chinese movies; while snooping the store, he sees an ancient stuff in the deposit. Old Hop tells him that many years ago, a man left the stuff with his grandfather but has never returned to take it back. While walking back home, Jason is forced by a gang of punks leaded by Lupo (Morgan Benoit) to return to the pawn shop and lure Old Hop to open the door. The criminals break in the shop and Lupo shots Old Hop that orders Jason to run with the stuff. In the runaway, Jason falls from the roof of a building and awakes in ancient China with the stuff. Sooner he befriends the drunken immortal Lu Yan that tells him the story of the Monkey King (Jet Li),who was lured by the evil Jade Warlord (Collin Chou) and turned into stone. Jade Warlord transforms the peaceful realm in a kingdom of fear and violence. However in accordance with the prophecy, a traveler would bring the stuff back and save the Monkey King. During his journey with Lu Yan, Jason teams-up with the orphan Golden Sparrow (Yifei Lui),whose parents were killed by Jade Warlord, and the Silent Monk, learns kung fu and faces the powerful witch Ni Chang (Bingbing Li).

"The Forbidden Kingdom" is a delightful adventure with a pleasant story disclosed through an engaging screenplay that has many funny moments with the always nice Jackie Chan and a surprisingly hilarious Jet Li. I am still laughing with the scene in the desert with the rain. The wonderful cinematography is full of colors; the special effects are magnificent; but the choreography of the fights is spectacular. I liked the dubious conclusion when Jason awakes in the alley chased by the punks. I really liked a lot this highly recommended wonderful movie. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "O Reino Proibido" ("The Forbidden Kingdom")

Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano) is a kung fu movie fan. A group of thugs forces Jason to help rob shop owner Hop (Jackie Chan). Lupo shoots Hop who asks Jason to return a staff to its rightful owner. Jason is transported to ancient China. The village is harassed by ruthless soldiers. Jason is saved by drunken master Lu Yan (Jackie Chan). There is a prophecy of a Seeker who will return the staff and free the Monkey King (Jet Li). Then the rein of the Jade Warlord would end. Golden Sparrow who vowed revenge on the warlord helps rescue them. They encounter Silent Monk who eventually joins them on the quest. The Jade Warlord sends the witch Ni-Chang to stop the group.

The fights are good. It's got Jackie Chan and Jet Li. They have some good chemistry. The white kid is alright. I think Golden Sparrow's 3rd person speaking is suppose to be funny but it doesn't feel funny. Ni-Chang could be scarier. The drama tension isn't that high. It's still fun to see Jackie and Jet fight.

THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM is one of those Asian-loving Hollywood movies that always seem to have the need to cast a Western actor in the central role in case audiences are put off by seeing a foreign face as the lead. Thus we get THE KARATE KID remake with Jaden Smith and BULLETPROOF MONK with Seann William Scott. This film features the very first on-screen pairing between Jackie Chan and Jet Li, but the whole plot is centred around an American teenager who becomes involved in a mystical Chinese adventure.

Put simply, I could have done without the kid. He's not great, and he's a distraction, getting in the way of what we really want to see, which is more Jackie and Jet. Thankfully, they do both get quite a lot of screen time, which means that THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM is a fairly enjoyable movie. Jackie plays his Drunken Master role for the most part, while Jet Li has fun in a dual role as both the Monkey King and a mysterious monk. Their eventual showdown in a massive martial arts battle is doubtlessly the highlight of the movie.

The rest of the film is okay, and features some passable villain duties from the reliable Collin Chou. In comparison to the other films Jackie had done in Hollywood, it's pretty decent, and it's a lot better than the previous Chinese version of the story I saw, MONKEY MAGIC. That's not to say it's brilliant, because it's a bit too cheesy, stylised and reminiscent of THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR to be a great film, but kung fu fans should enjoy it if only for the presence of the two genre icons.