The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)

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.

Director:

Rob Minkoff

Writer:

John Fusco

Stars:

Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Michael Angarano

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jet Li	...	The Monkey King / The Silent Monk
Michael Angarano	...	Jason Tripitikas
Jackie Chan	...	Lu Yan / Old Hop
Juana Collignon	...	Southie Girl
Morgan Benoit	...	Lupo
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
Deshun Wang	...	Jade Emperor
XiaoLi Liu	...	Queen Mother
Collin Chou	...	Jade Warlord

Storyline

An American teenager who is obsessed with Hong Kong cinema and kung-fu classics makes an extraordinary discovery in a Chinatown pawnshop: the legendary stick weapon of the Chinese sage and warrior, the Monkey King. With the lost relic in hand, the teenager unexpectedly finds himself traveling back to ancient China to join a crew of warriors from martial arts lore on a dangerous quest to free the imprisoned Monkey King.

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Plot Keywords:

urination | wuxia | time travel | based on novel | psychotronic film | 

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Taglines:

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

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie went through five script re-writes before it was completed, many of which were done in the middle of filming.

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Goofs

Jason, referring to the game Virtua Fighter 2, states that a character uses the "Buddha's Palm" technique. The only Virtua Fighter character that uses the move is Lei Fei. Lei Fei did not appear in the series until Virtua Fighter 4, and didn't get the "Buddha's Palm" move until Virtua Fighter 5.

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Quotes

[Lu Yan meets the Silent Monk for the first time]
Lu Yan: Ahh, good to get off my feet! Long day. So, where you from? Shangdong Province? You look like the Shangdong Province type. You come here often?
[the Monk doeesn't answer]
Lu Yan: That staff doesn't belong to you. You have to give it to me, or somebody might get hurt.

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Crazy Credits

Jackie Chan and Jet Li are credited together before the title. Jackie Chan's name is spelled out horizontally, but Jet Li's is spelled out vertically, and the same "J" is used for both.

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Connections

References Longstreet (1971)

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Soundtracks

The Shepherd Girl
Traditional
Arranged by Cheng Yu
Performed by Cheng Yu
Courtesy of Extreme Music

User Reviews

The NeverEnding Kung-Fu story

The Forbidden Kingdom strikes me as a Kung-Fu version of the brilliant "The NeverEnding Story" I saw as a kid in the 80's. The parallels are obvious.

Like "NeverEnding Story", it's a fantasy movie that tells the tale of a boy's coming of age journey, from picked-on weakling to warrior and savior. On the way friendships are woven, difficulties are overcome, and lessons are learned. Both films cater to children audiences, but will satisfy grown-ups as well. Both bring to the table a good mixture of fantasy, action, comedy blended with a dash of romance and drama - Baked just right and garnished with magnificent special effects and stunning visuals.

The Kung-Fu battles are dazzling, and having both Jet Li and Jackie Chan sparring in this movie is just the sugar on top of the wholesome family fun.

Details

Official Sites:

Sina Entertainment [China]

Country:

USA China

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

18 April 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jackie Chan/Jet Li Project

Filming Locations:

Anji bamboo forest, Jiangsu, China

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$21,401,121, 20 April 2008

Gross USA:

$52,075,270

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$128,792,411

Company Credits

Production Co:

Casey Silver Productions, China Film Co-Production Corporation, Huayi Brothers Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1