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'The Forbidden Kingdom'

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BY RAFER GUZMÁN | rafer.guzman@newsday.com

April 18, 2008

For true fans of martial-arts flicks, the first-ever pairing of the genre's two biggest stars, Jackie Chan and Jet Li, might have generated more sparks in a tougher, meaner film. Instead, "The Forbidden Kingdom" is a family film, aimed at those who have probably never seen earlier chop-sockies like Chan's "Drunken Master" or Li's "Shaolin Temple." That means the action is slowed down for younger eyes, mostly bloodless and often played for laughs.

The story is thin as a bamboo reed, but it works. It begins with Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano), a generic youth whose age is up to you - could be 12, could be 20. He loves kung-fu movies but can't defend himself against the local bullies. When a pawn shop owner (Jackie Chan) hands him a magical staff, he's transported to ancient China, where he must return the weapon to its rightful owner, the Monkey King (Jet Li, who also stars as a nomadic monk). But that means getting past the evil Jade Warlord (Collin Chou, cool and cruel in emerald-colored eyeshadow).

Based on Chinese legend, the script, by John Fusco, earns points for creative sourcing, if not originality. It borrows liberally from "The Wizard of Oz" (Jackie Chan appears, again, as a traveling martial-arts master) and from "The Karate Kid" (Jason's kung-fu training consists of chores like weed-whacking). Likewise, director Rob Minkoff ("Stuart Little") gilds the film with a computer-aided glow borrowed from nearly every fantasy film of the past decade.

But will your preteen boy care about all that? Not likely. The fight scenes are what count, and they're fun: Choreographer Yuen Woo-ping ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," the "Matrix" trilogy) works his much-imitated magic with wire-borne acrobatics and slightly softened punches. Thanks to the two stars' disparate styles - the laser-like focus of Li and the whirlwind whimsy of Chan - "The Forbidden Kingdom" makes up for its flaws with plenty of eye-popping moments.

THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM (PG-13). Jackie Chan, Jet Li and a group of martial-arts filmmakers go for the family audience with mostly enjoyable results. 1:53 (some violence and scary imagery). At area theaters.