The Forbidden Kingdom
As the great-grandson of Sherlock Holmes, one is often subjected to inquiries of all sorts. Did he ever marry? (No.) How badly was he addicted to cocaine? (Not at all, it was a ruse.) Where did he learn that obscure martial art called “baritsu?” Well, try to envision this:
Sherlock Holmes, standing atop the cliff at Reichenbach Falls, faced with the most evil foe on Earth, Professor Moriarty. Moriarty charges him, Holmes doesn’t know what to do. But at the last second, he’s whisked away magically to ancient China to learn kung fu from a drunken immortal and a warrior monk who is not what he seems, so he can attempt to free the Monkey King from his stone prison.
If that’s too hard to envision, go to your local theater and see “Forbidden Kingdom.” It doesn’t have Sherlock Holmes in it, but it is a story of learning martial arts in a “Wizard of Oz” kind of way. (Except in this story, the great and powerful Oz has the witch on his side and needs his butt kicked.) And if you’re not even more confused by trying to envision Dorothy doing training montages on her way to the Emerald City (or the Jade Warlord in this tale), well, perhaps this kung fu spectacular is just what you’ve been looking for.
Not a movie for over-serious adults, but one for that thirteen-year-old boy that so many of us still carry inside of us, “The Forbidden Kingdom” is a charming little first taste of the summer blockbuster season to come.
What Great-Grandfather Sherlock might have said:
“I get so little active exercise that it is always a treat.”
Past Investigations
An Introduction to
Mr. Sherlock Holmes IV
Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day
In The Name Of The King:
A Dungeon Siege Tale
Fantastic Four:
Rise of the Silver Surfer