Over the course of my time in this job I have acquired a reputation as someone who reviews and appreciates lots of foreign films. Of course, at the same time I have occasionally been accused of not understanding these films at all, which is partially true. It's not technically possible for one person to fully absorb and comprehend every facet of every industrialized culture in the world. For one thing, subtitles never accurately translate what's being spoken, and then there are little cultural things, certain behaviors, for example, that may not translate either. Conversely, it's impossible for any one person -- filmmakers included -- to represent a culture. It gets even more complex than that, if you want to boil it down. For example, I could say that I identify with the characters in High Fidelity (2000), but if you consider that I've never been to Chicago, and consider further that the book was originally set in London, then it creates a cultural divide. That movie has levels that will forever be out of my grasp.

You do your best. You keep an open mind. Although, I admit I'm usually disappointed when I see too many Western filmmaking elements slavishly copied in Eastern films (Mongol, The Counterfeiters, etc.); it shows the overwhelming influence of Hollywood on other parts of the world. I'm sure more people in Portugal saw Transformers than saw Manoel de Oliveira or Pedro Costa's latest films.

After the disappointing box office of both Speed Racer and The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian last month, it's apparent that May was too busy a month for all its blockbusters to succeed. Last week, Eric D. Snider initiated a discussion about Caspian's release date and many of our readers agreed that it should have been released in December, or any other month, for that matter. Couldn't it have been a success in February or October, too? As part of an initially popular franchise, you'd think it could stand to be released anytime of the year.

Earlier today, I responded to an interview in which two cinema industry honchos argued that big movies should be released 12 months in the year. Or, at least, the summer movie season should begin earlier, in April. Imagine, the first blockbuster of the year being released on Easter weekend. Or, when Easter is in March, April Fool's Day weekend. Unfortunately, the month doesn't have any Monday holidays with which to capitalize on a three-day-weekend release, but a two-day weekend didn't seem to hurt Iron Man's enormous opening.

One commenter on my earlier post noted that moving the summer season up to April will only make that month the busiest release month, just as May is currently. But there's a good chance Hollywood will recognize, after May 2008, the benefits of staying spread out. Plus, Memorial Day weekend will continue to be prime real estate, so tentpoles might be better spread out, as they should be according to their name (imagine going camping and placing all your literal tentpoles in one corner).

What do you think? Should the summer movie season begin earlier? Or is it just fine as is? Or did you think it actually began on April 18 with the release of the fantasy martial arts flick The Forbidden Kingdom?

This weekend's release of The Forbidden Kingdom, starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li, features the first teaming of the two Asian action heroes. (My review is here.) Jackie is older and got established first as a comic martial arts master before making a string of modern-day thrillers and adventures. Jet came along later and became known as an ultra-serious, ultra-deadly lethal weapon. Their relative merits have been debated endlessly, and The Forbidden Kingdom finally gives fans a chance to see them go man to man -- first against each other, and then against the bad guys.

Now it's your turn to weigh in. Who's your favorite Asian action hero? (For the purposes of this poll, we'll stick to the living, so that's why Bruce Lee is not included.) Do you prefer Jackie's humor and larger than life thrill-seeking stunts? Or do you favor Jet's solemn precision and frequently death-dealing fighting?

Or ... have you always been a secret backer of Donnie Yen? (He had his own square-off against Jackie Chan in Shanghai Knights.) Sammo Hung? (The former Martial Law TV star is still active in Hong Kong.) Michelle Yeoh? (Tomorrow Never Dies, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) Or the younger generation represented by Tony Jaa (Ong Bak, The Protector), Collin Chou (Jade Warlord in The Forgotten Kingdom), and Wu Jing (Invislble Target, Kill Zone)? Sound off in the comments to tell us your faves and let us know about anyone else we haven't mentioned.

Welcome back to another fun-filled edition of Insert Caption -- the game Totally Wicked Awesome Magazine called, "Delightful, Delicious and a Damn Good Time!" Last week we asked you to give us your bestest captions for a photo from this week's new release, The Forbidden Kingdom -- starring Jackie Chan, Jet Li and some white kid, who, judging from the picture, is quite obviously stuck in the middle with you ... and I'm wondering what it is I should do. Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right ... okay, that's enough. Congrats to our three winners below ...


1. "The MPAA's ongoing battle with illegal movie downloads in China as an interpretive dance routine." -- Todd G.

2. "This is my dance space, this is your dance space. Spaghetti arms!" -- Kathi F.

3. "Oh I know this! Wax on! Wax ggghhhhttt!" -- Paul R.

See full image and all captions


And speaking of things stuck in the middle, this week we're catching up with our old SNL pals Tina Fey and Amy Poehler as they prepare to launch their new comedy, Baby Mama. The three winning captions this week will carry away one Baby Mama poster, one Baby Mama t-shirt, one Baby Mama baseball hat and one Baby Mama baby blanket. (One Baby Mama baby unfortunately not included since you have to make that yourself.) Now push ... harder ... and sound off below!



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The good news? Two of Asia's biggest action superstars have teamed up for the first time. The bad news? It's 15 years too late. And what's with the white kid?

The Forbidden Kingdom is yet another picture in which we are meant to experience an exotic locale peopled entirely by "others" through the eyes of a Caucasian character. In this case, it's a fantasy world cobbled together from classic Chinese literature and period martial arts movies. As the latest entry in the category of "low expectation, Asian-themed, English-language movies written and directed by respectful American creative talent," the film is slightly above average entertainment. But I grow tired of having to lower my expectations in exchange for the pleasure of seeing talented Asian performers make an appearance on the big screen in America.

Writer John Fusco and director Rob Minkoff make fun of some of the stereotypes inherent in period martial arts pictures, while also sprinkling shout-outs into the material to demonstrate their love and knowledge of the various source materials that inspired them. Jackie Chan and Jet Li are cheerfully engaging as a drunken beggar and monk on a mission, respectively, providing most of the film's comic and action highlights in supporting roles. That's right -- Chan and Li have both achieved Hollywood stardom, are top-billed, are no doubt top-paid, but play second fiddle to "the white kid," Michael Angarano. We waited years for this?

It was a tough race to call, but looking back and realizing that if I had just swapped Prom Night and Street Kings I would have had a perfect prediction, all I can say is "D'oh!" The slasher reimagining took the lead by quite a margin, with the Keanu Reeves cop drama taking the silver. Say what you will about PG-13 horror and/or horror remakes, but Prom Night made back its $20 million budget in a single weekend, so we can probably expect more of the same. Smart People, last week's third new release, came in seventh. Here's the top five:

1. Prom Night: $20.8 million
2. Street Kings: $12.4 million
3. 21: $10.4 million
4. Nim's Island: $9.1 million
5. Leatherheads: $6.2 million

What's new for this week? Glad you asked:

88 Minutes
What's It All About: Al Pacino plays a university professor and an expert in forensic psychiatry, and he's just been informed via an anonymous phone call that he has only 88 minutes left to live. Kind of a cross between DOA and 24.
Why It Might Do Well: Pacino is still the man ...
Why It Might Not Do Well: ...however, his star power may not carry much weight with younger ticket buyers, and a 22% rating from Rottentomatoes.com does not bode well. Also, of this week's new flicks, this one is hitting the smallest number of theaters.
Number of Theaters: 2,000
Prediction: $9 million

Welcome to another edition of Insert Caption -- the game where we provide the photo and you provide the funny! Last week, we asked you to throw on your lamest Hawaiian t-shirt and give us your best captions for a photo from Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Congrats to our three winners below for sharing their warmth, their passion, their creativity ... and their ability to conjure up a mental image of Jonah Hill on a spit. Our apologies to you Mr. Hill -- we still love ya man!


1. "I was speaking figuratively when I said I had a lot of baggage." -- Mike R.

2. "Crap... I thought I ditched the Verizon guy at the pig roast!" -- Russell K.

3. "They just put Jonah Hill on a spit and fired up the tiki torches. I'm outta here!" -- Andrew W.

See full image and all captions

This week, we're taking a trip back to ancient China for a visit with legendary martial arts stars Jet Li and Jackie Chan. Their new movie, The Forbidden Kingdom, arrives in theaters on April 18 -- and ... I just feel so bad for that poor, innocent white kid right now. It'd be hard enough running into one of those guys in a dark alley -- imagine getting stuck between both AND you have to go to the bathroom real bad? Ouch. The three lucky winners from this week will run (as fast as they can) away with one Forbidden Kingdom poster, one pack of Forbidden Kingdom trading cards, one box of green tea and one container of incense. Hmm, I smell a lot of captions this week ... and for some reason they smell like burnt roses with a splash of lemon vanilla? Sound off below ...



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The first footage (more like a teaser trailer) for The Forbidden Kingdom has popped up online, and the flick -- which stars both Jet Li and Jackie Chan -- looks pretty damn awesome. There's that one female with the grey hair who kept reminding me of Storm from the X-Men flicks, but aside from that it appears we're in store for a wild ride. According to the teaser's intro, the film has wrapped principal photography and is now in post-production. Rob Minkoff (The Lion King) directed, with fight choreography from Yuen Wo Ping (The Matrix films, Kill Bill) and cinematography from Peter Pau (Shoot 'Em Up). Needless to say, I wouldn't expect anything less than awesome with that team behind the camera.

Apparently the film follows an American teen obsessed with martial arts who uncovers a magical staff that transports him back to ancient China. There, he meets up with a band of martial arts warriors on a quest to free the imprisoned Monkey King. I know, it all sounds nuts, but check out the video above -- the film, visually, looks fantastic. The Forbidden Kingdom is set to arrive in theaters on April 18.

[via Coming Soon]

Aging martial artist Jackie Chan apparently keeps a blog, and has written the following on it, according to the AP: he's fully aware that Rush Hour, Rush Hour 2 and Rush Hour 3 all sucked. He knew they were crap when he made them, and he knows it now. (I think Richard Corliss of Time Magazine is now the last remaining person on Earth who doesn't know it -- he gave Rush Hour 3 a glowing review.) Of the first Rush Hour, Chan says "When we finished filming, I felt very disappointed because it was a movie I didn't appreciate and I did not like the action scenes involved. I felt the style of action was too Americanized and I didn't understand the American humor." Okay ... thanks for sharing. So why did he return for more of the same, after such a negative experience? Because, he says, he was offered an "irresistible" sum of money. He doesn't even bother giving a reason for the third one, apparently.

The interesting thing about all of this is that Chan seems to equate the bad humor of the Rush Hour movies with American taste, in general, as if we're a nation of people who think Rush Hour is the bar by which good taste is measured. He uses the word 'American' over and over again, when pinpointing the flaws of his various projects. Of his upcoming movie, The Forbidden Kingdom, with Jet Li, he tells us -- at least it's in advance, this time -- that the movie is no good. Why? It's "a movie made for Americans." I can't wait for the press junket for that one ...

It was probably the squeal 'heard round the world' for martial arts fans when Scott first reported on the historic pairing of Jet Li and Jackie Chan. That was over a year ago, and now Variety is reporting the film has just wrapped shooting and is ready for that special 'F/X touch'. Titled The Forbidden Kingdom, the story "is a loose adaptation of classic Chinese tale "The Monkey King" which sees an American teenager transported back to ancient China, where he learns about honor, loyalty and friendship, and the true meaning of Kung fu". It has been rumored that both Li and Chan will play the Kung fu masters who help the boy in his quest. Stuart Little director, Rob Minkoff, was at the helm, but Hong Kong cinematographer Peter Pau (Shoot 'em Up) was on hand to oversee the whole production. Pau is one of the most respected cinematographers in Hong Kong cinema, and won an Oscar for his work on Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Unfortunately, he also was in charge of Dracula 2000. Oh well, they can't all be masterpieces.

The Forbidden Kingdom was shot on location in the Zhejiang Province over the summer. Now, the film is headed for South Korea for some final touches. According to Kingdom's producers, it will be the most expensive non-Korean film to use the state of the art facilities. The film has a current budget of $70 million, but we all know how these things can get away from you sometimes. There is no word on what kind of FX are being added, but when your leads are Jet Li and Jackie Chan, you know it's probably not going to be any physical stunts. The Forbidden Kingdom is set for release on April 18th, 2008.

[Thanks to Rotten Tomatoes' Kathryn Kenworth for the Jet-Jackie mockup.]