Kung Fu Hustle

Kung Fu Hustle is a 30s Gangster Comic Book Kung-Fu Chinese Western for the CGI generation. Wild Wild West meets Sin City meets Who Framed Roger Rabbit.  This film draws on so many styles and genres that Stephen Chow (writer/director) must have been reading too much of The Big Book of Movie History; it’s set somewhere that just shouldn’t exist. There’s a rip-off of The Shining at one point that doesn’t work at all.

Nevertheless, it is a lot of good silly fun - although, considering this, it is strikingly violent. Once you get past the fact that it doesn’t really make a lot of sense, the plot is simple to follow, there are some funny bits, and some good shots and set pieces with silly sound effects, including Matrix moves #49, #21, and #8. An enjoyable film, but not a classic.