Journey to the West

The style of the movie immediately brings to memory Kung-Fu Hustle, also written and directed by Stephen Chow, but its target is a reinvention of the Journey to the West story.

Unfortunately, much of the symbolism used in the film is lost on me, since I know nothing of Chinese mythology. I am sure much of the characters and word games that I suppose mean a lot to a Chinese person, to me are just wacky and incomprehensible. That being said, the film is very nicely done, combining drama and comedy in a way that is mostly foreign to western cinema, good acting and cool special effects.

I have to admit that the movie makes me want to read some translation of Journey to the West, one of the Four Great Classical Novels, so, if that was Chow's purpose, the film is a success. I also have to admit that I liked the movie, considering whether to keep it for later viewing or not. As such, it is clearly above average, but the nagging feeling that a lot got lost in translation makes me rate it only so: above average.