Everything Action Theater: The Forbidden Kingdom

Promising the first-ever on-screen pairing of Jet Li and Jackie Chan, 2008’s The Forbidden Kingdom didn’t quite live up to the epicness that kung-fu/martial arts fans built up in their heads when they heard those two legends were pairing up but it was still a decently fun action-adventure.  Starring Sky High’s Michael Angarano as martial arts superfan Jason Tripitikas, he discovers a magical golden staff in a pawn shop run by Jackie Chan’s Hop, which transports Jason to a fantastical version of ancient China where he meets Lu (also Chan), The Monk (Jet Li) and Sparrow (Liu Yifei).  Together, the group sets out on a quest to help free the Monkey King and defeat the evil Jade Warlord. It’s one of the many, many pieces of media that is inspired by the classic Journey to the West.  It drew some criticism for perhaps relying too much on special effects and a fairly weak script but it mostly didn’t disappoint as far as showcasing Jet Li and Jackie Chan together for the first time.  You can check out the entire movie below thanks to YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQVpyNOWoWk