Forbidden Kingdom

I recently watched FORBIDDEN KINGDOM, a movie filmed in China, starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li . Both of these men are Chinese born, and both have huge followings globally as action stars. This movie is of the action/adventure genre, featuring many great scenes of martial arts, fantasy, life in ancient China interlaced with life in current Boston. Especially notable in this movie is the remarkable, jaw dropping action choreography of Wo Ping, best known for his choreography of The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. While hunting down bootleg kung-fu DVDs in a Chinatown pawnshop, a young teenager makes an extraordinary discovery that sends him back in time to ancient China. There, the young man is faced with a monumental task: he must free the fabled warrior, The Monkey King, who has been imprisoned by the evil Jade Warlord. The young man, Jason is joined in his quest by wise kung fu master Lu Yan (Jackie Chan) and a band of misfit warriors including Silent Monk (Jet Li). Jason must learn the skills and higher meaning of kung fu can Jason hope to succeed ,and find a way to get back home.
This was my first venture into a martial arts movie, and I was estatic. The fighting scenes were fluid and graceful. The scenery and special effects astounding. I would highly recommend this movie to anybody with an open mind about a new cinematic and cultural experience.