The synopsis is taken from IMDB.

An American teenager who is obsessed with Hong Kong cinema and kung-fu classics makes an extraordinary discovery in a Chinatown pawnshop: the legendary stick weapon of the Chinese sage and warrior, the Monkey King. With the lost relic in hand, the teenager unexpectedly finds himself traveling back to ancient China to join a crew of warriors from martial arts lore on a dangerous quest to free the imprisoned Monkey King.

I figured since I am getting all these free passes, might as well make the most of it. This film marks the first pairing of Jet Li and Jackie Chan. This movie is a pretty good martial arts film. The fantasy elements are well played. The story is nothing new, boy bumps head, goes to fantasy land and becomes a hero which in turn helps him be a hero. Not the kind of story that makes an oscar worthy film, but hey, get over it and enjoy the movie. The fight scenes are very well choreographed, especially the fights between Li and Chan. They both have stated that working with each other was very fluid and rhythmic, and it shows on film. There are many fighting scenes from movies where the camera would jump around the action, trying to make it more intense, when it really does nothing but give most people a headache and make the work look shoddy. That wasn't the case here, every fight scene was very well played out and believeable(even those involving our hero kid).

In all we have a story thats unique in a way, but also that has been done. Does that make the movie unwatchable? Not at all, This is a good martial arts film with a few laughs thrown in that will please the viewer from start to finish.

Good early start to the movie season.

8/10 stars
Go See it!!!!