Laying aside, momentarily, the unexciting cinematography, the mediocre acting, the derivative fight scenes, and the unsettling plot similarities to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3: Turtles in Time, we must call attention to a deeper and slightly more troubling issue in The Forbidden Kingdom: its confusing relation to Mao.

All the action in film—including Jet Li urinating on Jackie Chan’s face—is inspired by the imprisonment of the legendary Monkey King Sun Wu Kong. In this new version of the ancient legend, the rebellious trickster with a heart of gold is imprisoned by the deception of the evil Jade Warlord. The benevolent Jade Emperor is also imprisoned.

So the movie significantly departs from Chinese lore. Tradition has it that the Monkey King was such a bother to the Jade Emperor that the ruler had a mountain dropped on the cheeky monkey, then a magical yoke attached to its head, keeping it in constant pain. His goal was to tame the rebellious primate and force it to do the Emperor's bidding. It’s a story of eternal rebellion and eternal oppression, but it’s funny.

So what does any of this have anything to do with Mao? The Monkey god was one of Mao’s favorite symbols of revolutionary Chinese spirit, strength, and innovation. He spoke frequently of the impish chimp and even dedicated a poem, “Kunlun," to the trickster.

It is unclear which interpretation of the Monkey King informs The Forbidden Kingdom. Perhaps director Rob Minkoff supports Mao’s view: bringing the yoked Monkey god back from imprisonment to save China. On the other hand, he could be freeing the Monkey King from Maoist dogma, reclaiming it as a symbol of rebellion and free-spirited joy. Then again, maybe the movie is just an elaborate excuse to see Jackie Chan revisit his 1976 The Drunken Master role and for Jet Li to act like a monkey. They also fight each other in an old temple. It’s pretty cool.

-Nicholas Mott

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