The Forbidden Kingdom

Can you believe it has taken this long to get Jackie Chan and Jet Li in the same movie? They are no longer young men in their physical prime, but when they finally throw down in this American take on the classic Chinese "Monkey King" tale, the result is exhilarating. Michael Angarano is the South Boston teenager transported to ancient China who trains under the two masters on his kung fu "Wizard of Oz" journey down the yellow silk road. The film plays like a tribute to classic Hong Kong martial arts movies and adventure odysseys by an appreciative American fan, and Disney veteran Rob Minkoff has the right attitude, if not the chops for action spectacle. But he has fun with the martial arts fantasy conventions without ridiculing them, and he Americanizes the film without losing the pleasures of the Hong Kong inspirations. And it doesn't hurt to have fight choreography by the great Yuen Woo-ping and cinematography by Oscar-winner Peter Pau ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon").

The commentary by director Minkoff and screenwriter John Fusco (accessed through the audio menu rather than special features on the Blu-ray disc) feels like a prepared conversation, more explanatory than introspective, and aimed at younger audiences. Also includes six dutifully functional production featurettes (less than 10 minutes apiece), six deleted scenes (with optional commentary), and a blooper reel. The Blu-ray edition also features the "bonus view" picture-in-picture mode, a kind of audio-visual commentary with interviews and behind-the-scenes footage popping up through the film, and an interactive feature for viewers with Blu-ray Live capabilities. Both the two-disc special edition DVD and the Blu-ray edition feature a digital copy of the film that can be downloaded to PC, iPod or other compatible players.