The Forbidden Kingdom

At first, I wondered why Rob Minkoff got the job, but as it started to follow the storyline of The Neverending Story, I regretted not being twelve because then I would have definitely appreciated it. The film was actually made for one scene, but it's unnecessarily overwrought and you’ll forget the rest of it with the closing credits. Minkoff is just a dry routinist that throws up one pretty image after another, but there’s nothing to it. The plot doesn't resolve much and Yuen Woo-Ping can't do much without wires. In an Asian production, it would have been the battle of the decade, but this is a fairy tale that I watched for less than two hours that doesn't entertain the kids and doesn't excite the adults. At least it went by fairly quick. (25/10/2008)

Impatiently awaited for years by many fans of Asian action movies, the meeting of Jackie Chan and Jet Li on the silver screen ended up being a bizarre update of the nineties fanboy’s wet dream Sidekicks. (17/03/2013)

For it to be truly special, it shouldn't have been so clichéd from the beginning. However, I just love the legend of the Monkey King, no matter which version it's presented in. The story is quite straightforward, but the fight scenes are fantastic, which is thanks to the Chinese co-production. I really liked the exteriors, which are sometimes simply beautiful. Other than that, though, I probably won't remember this movie for very long. It’s something like a version of The Karate Kid in a fantasy fairy tale. (28/03/2014)

The Forbidden Kingdom is an outdated, unremarkable and unoriginal film. At the same time, however, it is harmless and without any specific mistakes, so there’s simply nothing to criticize. Despite that, I will probably only remember it because of the actors who appear in it. And I appreciate that the screenwriter treated them fairly, providing them with really nice roles that made use of their respective characters. (05/11/2008)

NeverEnding Story with Chinese motifs. If it weren’t for Jet Li or Jackie Chan, I doubt the producers would have ever approved a screenplay like this. All possible clichés fill out the “journeying" breaks between fights which, luckily (thanks to Yuen Woo-Ping), are really good. Perhaps the next collaboration between Jet and Jackie will (allegedly for China) turn out better. This is just slightly above average. (25/05/2008)