You Don’t Mess with the Kung Fu Panda Zohan

Master Shifu teaches Po a lesson in Kung Fu Panda (Dreamworks)

This week I am pleased to introduce two new KPBS Teen Critics, Raymond Mai and Vikram Bhoyrul. They both had reviews up this week (of Kung Fu Panda and You Don't Mess with the Zohan,respectively) and I hope you check them out. Raymond is someone I've known since he was in elementary school with my son and he's always had very strong opinions about movies, so I'm thrilled to have him aboard. Vikram, on the other hand, I just met. I was introduced to his father at an Indian film screening and his dad explained how Vikram had started his own paper at Bishop's. Now that's initiative. Anyway, I hope you check out their reviews. But I wanted to throw my two cents in about Kung Fu Panda and You Don't Mess with the Zohan (both opened June 6 throughout San Diego). Also, being a martial arts fan I thought it was worth mentioning that three films that opened on Friday - Kung Fu Panda, You Don't Mess with the Zohan, and Foot Fist Way - contained martial arts to varying degrees.

First let me start with Kung Fu Panda, an American animated martial arts film about a panda with big dreams. The film seems in part to tap into the fact that all eyes are on China as it prepares to host the summer Olympics. The film starts with a strikingly animated prologue that turns out to be a dream. Po (voiced by Jack Black) is an eager, out of shape panda that wants nothing more than to be like the heroes that he worships (and has a full set of action figures of). This open got my interest up because the animation style recalled the Emmy-winning Cartoon Network show Samurai Jack. Unfortunately, when the dream ends, so does the innovative visual style and we're back to the standard 3-D computer animation that everyone is using. I know it's state of the art and I should appreciate how the hair looks so real... but all right already. Kudos to the technicians and animators. But this style of animation seems to place more emphasis on the technology than the artistry, and I've begun to grow weary of it.

Get Ready for Some Intense Kung Fu…and Eating!

Jack Black's panda eyes some food during training in Kung Fu Panda reviewed by one of our new Teen Critics (Dreamworks)

By Raymond Mai

I am actually not a big fan of animated movies having animals that speak and perform like humans. So I didn't expect much from Kung Fu Panda (opening June 6 throughout San Diego) but after 88 minutes, I was impressed. I walked out of the movie theater with my friends, Tony and Terry, recapping the many entertaining scenes from the film.

Po (voiced by Jack Black) is an obese panda that dreams of being a kung fu fighter, while his dad Mr. Ping (James Hong) is trying to entice Po with the wonderful world of noodles (the family business). Meanwhile, Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) is warned of the escape of Tai Lung (Ian McShane), a likable snow leopard that beats on everyone. Master Shifu prepares his Furious 5 Warriors -- Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Mantis (Seth Rogen), Viper (Lucy Liu), and Crane (David Cross) -- to battle Tai Lung. Unexpectedly, Po 'comes out of the sky' (literally, which is hard to believe), and is chosen to fight Tai Lung. Master Shifu makes a commitment and promise to train and believe in Po, and soon Po takes on the challenge to fight for peace in his valley.

What I admire about this flick is that it's a comedy that actually develops its likable characters without having you to nudge the person next to you with questions. I especially love the voiceover cast for this movie. Each person is well suited to their character. Take Jack Black who provides the voice of the curious and funny panda. Or Ian McShane's voice for the dark and wicked snow leopard.

If you have a kid and you take him to this movie, you get the added bonus that he or she may learn a good life lesson. Though the movie is very entertaining, there is nothing unique about the storyline. The storyline is there and simple, but it is a weak one even if it is a martial arts film. This movie is very entertaining and the funny jokes, mostly about being fat, did put a smile on my face. But the jokes are still cheap.

Kung Fu Panda (rated PG for sequences of martial arts action) is not as good as Over The Hedge, an animated film with talking animals that I did like. But this movie is still worth your money and you won't have to take bathroom breaks to kill some time. Overall, this is an enjoyable movie, but with an unsophisticated storyline.

Raymond Mai is a soon to be sophomore at Mount Miguel High School where he's on the football and baseball team. When he is not studying or playing a sport, he loves to have fun, whether it's watching movies or just kicking it behind the TV with his Nintendo Wii. He enjoys the opportunity to voice his opinions about movies.

Redbelt

Mike Terry (Chiwetel Ejiofor) instructs Laura Black (Emily Mortimer) on how to defend herself in Redbelt (Sony Pictures Classics)

Redbelt (opening May 9 at Landmark's La Jolla Village Theaters) was one of the films up for discussion on last month's Film Club of the Air. You can listen to our discussion and hear a clip from the film or read on for my review. The film is the latest from playwright-turned-filmmaker David Mamet. As a playwright, Mamet is known for American Buffalo, Oleanna, Sexual Perversity in Chicago (made into the awful film About Last Night) and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Glengarry Glen Ross. As a filmmaker, he has given us House of Games, Things Change, Homicide, State and Main, and Spartan among others. Although his first films had felt a bit stiff cinematically, as if he hadn't quite left the confines of the stage, his dialogue has always crackled and he has improved his visual style over the years. Redbelt may not surpass any of his plays but it's certainly one of his strongest film works.

Forbidden Kingdom

Jet Li and Jackie Chan are kung fu masters fighting over the training of wimpy white boy Michael Angarano in Forbidden Kigdom (Lionsgate)

Forbidden Kingdom (opening April 18 throughout San Diego) is being pitched to audiences as the first film to ever pair martial arts masters and Hong Kong superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li. But there's another pairing going on that in some ways may prove more important for the industry, and that's the behind the scenes partnership between China and the U.S. that brought the film to the screen. Variety describes the co-production as a possible "blueprint for a new wave of East-West cooperation." The film boasts an American director but with many of the actors and crew coming from Asia, and most of the scenes shot on location in China. The film also had a Hong Kong press junket and an April 15 release in Beijing before opening today in the U.S. The film serves up a mix of styles and languages as it strives for the widest possible global audience. Plus, by co-producing the film with China, Hollywood gets around that Asian country's import quota (that limits the number of foreign films released in China each year). So in many ways there's more at stake than just finding out who's the best kung fu master Chan or Li.

Teen Critic Enters the Forbidden Kingdom

Jet Li versus Jackie Chan in Forbidden Kingdom (Lionsgate)

By Carlos Sepulveda

I have always wondered who would win in a fight between Jackie Chan and Jet Li. When I heard they were making a movie together, I thought that maybe my question would finally be answered. The Forbidden Kingdom (opening April 17 throughout San Diego) is a movie that mixes fantasy, action, humor and adventure. The beginning of the movie dragged a bit, until we started to see more of Jackie Chan and Jet Li. The story line of the movie wasn't very exciting or original, I even found several similarities between The Forbidden Kingdom and The Lord of the Rings.

Forbidden Kingdom starts off with a boy named Jason who is obsessed with Chinese Martial Arts movies. He stumbles across an ancient Chinese bow staff as he looks for more movies at a pawn shop. After falling from a building, Jason is unexpectedly transported back to ancient China to find the owner of the bow staff. Once in China he meets a drunk Kung Fu master, Lu Yan, who is played by Jackie Chan. Lu Yan and Jason embark on the journey to return the bow staff to the Monkey King who is trapped in stone until he has his staff again. On their way to the Monkey King they meet a girl, Golden Sparrow (played by Crystal Liu Yi Fei) and the Silent Monk (played by Jet Li). The four amigos join forces to beat the evil Jade Warlord who wants to keep the Monkey King from having his bow staff again.

When I was thinking about the film, I found similarities, as I mentioned earlier, to Lord of the Rings. I saw a connection between the two movies. In Lord of the Rings, the ultimate goal is to get the ring to the top of the volcano and have it destroyed. In Forbidden Kingdom, the plot is similar. In this film, they must get the staff to the Monkey King, but first they must defeat an evil Jade Warlord who resembles the evil Saruman from Lord of the Rings. In the scene where the Silent Monk makes his first appearance dressed in white riding on a horse, he looked very much like Gandalf. Those are a few of the things that reminded me of Lord of the Rings. But even though Forbidden Kingdom lacked originality, the movie made up for it with its humor and great fight scenes.

Although the movie left my original question unanswered -- I still don't know who would win in a fight between Jackie Chan and Jet Li -- it was still worth watching. It was very fun to see Jackie Chan and Jet Li fight each other. I like watching Jackie Chan movies because he uses no special effects or flying scenes. But in Forbidden Kingdom that's not the case. Since the movie had Jackie Chan and Jet Li in it, I was expecting the fight scene of the year along with lots of humor. The movie was not exactly what I expected but was still worth watching.

-- Carlos Sepulveda is a senior currently attending Mount Miguel High. Carlos enjoys reading in his spare time and running. He is most interested in history, politics and world issues. Carlos likes to watch foreign films, comedies and dramas.

Hot Fuzz plus interviews with Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright

Here come the fuzz! Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg, the comic geniuses behind 2004's Shaun of the Dead, take on the American cop film to deliver Hot Fuzz. While Tarantino and Rodriguez are sending bloody valentines to the grindhouse pictures they love, Wright and Pegg reveal their affection for the American action films of the 80s.

Three years ago Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg decided to make a romantic zombie comedy, and their first thought was to call it Teatime for the Dead. That perfectly summed up their cheery British take on the American cult horror classic Night of the Living Dead. Then, the pair decided to take on the American cop movie. But Edgar Wright says he and his partner faced some problems: In the U.K. there really arent any action films and theres really not many cop films at all. Theres far too many gangster films so we felt that it was time to redress the balance and do a British cop film. And also address the fact that not really a lot of crime happens in the U.K. and so how can we make that interesting for a two hour running time.

Shanghai Noon

Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson in Shanghai Noon

East meets west both in front of and behind the camera as Hong Kong action star Jackie Chan teams with American actor Owen Wilson and with Hollywood's Touchstone Pictures for a period western entitled Shanghai Noon (opening citywide May 26).

There was a time when Jackie Chan was getting younger and younger with each film released in the U.S. That was because American distributors kept reaching further back in time for Hong Kong titles (First Strike, Mr. Nice Guy, Twin Dragons) to release in order to satisfy the growing U.S. demand for Jackie Chan. But now that Hollywood has discovered Chan's box office potential here, they are willing to back new American films with the stuntman extraordinaire. So now Chan is beginning to look but not quite act his age. It's just a shame that Hollywood couldn't have come to this realization a couple decades ago when Chan first tried to crack the U.S. market and was in peak physical condition. Anyone who's seen films from that era -- Police Story, Project A, Drunken Master II -- saw Chan at his best and is bound to be somewhat disappointed by this film. But his fans are going to have to deal with the fact that he is getting older and that Hollywood still doesn't quite get the over the top, in your face style of Hong Kong cinema.

That being said, Shanghai Noon is a delightfully entertaining action comedy with Chan and co-star Owen Wilson making a highly appealing buddy team. The story involves a kidnapped Chinese princess, a con man, a Chinese Imperial guard and a whole lot of gold. In case you cant figure it out. Chan plays the Imperial guard sent from China to America in order to bring the Princess (Lucy Liu) back. Owen Wilson is the con man who, like Han Solo, doesnt take an interest in anyones predicament until money is involved.

Shanghai Noon borrows from quite a few films -- Star Wars, Once Upon a Time in China and America, Little Big Man, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. But it does so with such self-deprecating humor and unabashed openness that it's hard to resist. Chan still displays flashes of inspiration that draw on his love of silent comedians like Buster Keaton. Chan continues to prove that anything is a potential prop and unusual weapon from saplings in the forest to a horse shoe on a rope. And Chan's physical agility is still a wonder. He makes everything from scaling scaffolding to escaping a hangman's noose look easy.

Shanghai Noon is not Chan at his best but it's such good humored fun and has such a joyous spirit that it's hard to resist.