'Forbidden Kingdom' a long-awaited meeting of masters

The Forbidden Kingdom is the ultimate fantasy of teenage boys everywhere, provided that those teenagers watch Bruce Lee movies and know their kung fu. Luckily, Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano, Sky High) is such a teenager.

Upon discovering an antique staff in Boston's Chinatown, Tripitikas finds himself transported to feudal China. Tripitikas is tasked with returning the staff to its rightful owner, the Monkey King, with the help of the tipsy Lu Yan (Jackie Chan), the mysterious Silent Monk (Jet Li) and the vengeful Golden Sparrow (Yifei Liu).

What follows is a melee of martial arts movie references. Throughout the film, director Rob Minkoff and writer John Fusco find ways to slip characters, movie titles and Chinese folklore seamlessly into the plot.

Things we liked about the movie

1. Jet Li and Jackie Chan fight each other! It's the martial arts equivalent of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino having coffee in Heat.

2. The film has a lot of respect for martial arts history and mythology. The Monkey King is from a 16th century Chinese legend, like our tales of Paul Bunyan. Chan's character Lu Yan is a famous Taoist Saint, and his drinking habits are reminiscent of his 1978 movie Drunken Master. The White Haired Demoness and the Golden Swallow  characters have also appeared in martial arts movies of the past.

3. Michael Angarano was able to hold his own in the fight sequences. We were so proud of him when he actually used his kung fu.

Things we disliked about the movie

1. The "real world" prologue felt forced and unnecessarily harsh.

2. Golden Sparrow refers to herself in the third person throughout the movie. It confused and annoyed us.

3. Don't try and waste brain cells trying to figure out any sort of logic or timeline pertaining to the plot. In this movie, just turn your brain off and enjoy watching Chan and Li kick each other.

All in all, the film is an enjoyable adventure. But because there are so many references to Chinese and martial arts folklore, it is necessary to have a background in the genre to truly appreciate The Forbidden Kingdom.