A Chinese Odyssey, Part One (3 Stars)

This is a comic adaptation of the classic Chinese novel "Journey to the West".

The film begins with the Monkey King being chided by the Goddess – which Goddess? – for betraying his master, the Longevity Monk. He's stolen Pandora's Box, a device with which he can visit the past. The Monk pleads for his servant's life, so the Goddess gives the Monkey King a second chance by allowing him to be reincarnated.

500 years later the Monkey King is reincarnated as a mortal called Joker, the leader of a gang of robbers. Two female demons arrive, Spider Woman and Jing Jing, who are looking for the Longevity Monk. They want to eat his flesh to make themselves immortal. The only person who knows the whereabouts of the Longevity Monk is the Monkey King, but Joker has no memory of his previous life. Jing Jing is the Monkey King's former lover, who was abandoned by him.

The plot is complex, as you can tell from this short summary. It's the sort of thing that can be adequately described in a classic novel, but it's difficult to follow in a film. Maybe I'm at a disadvantage as a westerner. Chinese viewers probably know the novel and would smile appreciatively as the familiar plot unfolds. For me everything was lost in the slapstick humour, which wasn't even funny. The timing was off. For instance, in an early scene Joker's clothes catch fire, and his assistant puts the fire out by kicking him in the balls. That would be funny as a short joke, five seconds or even ten, but the kicks go on and on for 35 seconds. I was bored long before it was over. To make things worse, later in the film the joke is repeated and it lasts a whole minute.

Watch the old Laurel and Hardy films. There's slapstick with perfect timing. No joke is too short or too long.

The only time I really enjoyed the film was in the martial arts sequences. The fights are perfectly choreographed. This is what's saved the film from receiving an even lower rating.

I feel compelled to watch the second part, even though the first part was disappointing. I hope it will be better.

The film is out of print on disc, but it's available on Netflix.