Part of what makes a Stephen Chow comedy special is his ability to deliver a combination of non-sequitur humor while reminding us the harsh-realities in life. There's the betrayal by his apprentice chef in GOD OF COOKERY, the hardship of an aspiring actor in KING OF COMEDY, and the lost-cause martial artists in SHAOLIN SOCCER. What is missing with KUNG-FU HUSTLE is exactly that ingredient that made his past films so successful, and what would turn Stephen Chow into a local hero both in China and Hong Kong.

To be fair, Chow had all the ingredients ready on the table, but somehow they just weren't fully utilized as they should have been. What results is a very CG-heavy film that's a cross between MATRIX, VOLCANO HIGH (2001, a Korean film directed by Kim Tae-gyun), and KILL BILL.

There is greatness to homages when they are done in the right way, and KUNG FU HUSTLE seems to be full of tributes... whether it is the Tarantino tribute with the Axe-gang scenes, King-Hu with the DRAGON'S INN set-design, VOLCANO HIGH's CG-texture and feel, or even scenes reminding us of Keanu Reeve's fight-sequence with over a hundred black-suited villains in Matrix Reloaded... the list goes on, and he even throws in a Stanley Kubrick shot from THE SHINING... at one point, it's almost as if we're asked to name the movies certain scenes or shots were inspired by.

Innovations? Chow broke-away from the typical Director/Actor/screenwriter formula of having the lead (i.e. chow) take up all major scenes in the story (e.g. ask yourself if you've ever watched a Jacky Chan film where he's not in almost every scene). Instead he gives ample time to the support cast of long-time-no-see martial arts experts who were at the top of their game during the 70's and early 80's. The Villain (Leung Siu-Lung) in KUNG FU HUSTLE was one of the top 'B' film stars known for his Bruce Lee-type roles 20 years ago. We haven't seen him since then, and Chow gave him a big home-coming in this film... The same also applies to the Land Lady (Yuen Chao). She was one of the few stuntwomen in Hong Kong's film industry during the 70's. If you've watched THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN(yes, a bond film), you would remember her as the butt-kicking school girl who saved Roger Moore's behind. We all know of Sammo Hung & Jacky Chan, but few of us know that she was actually trained under the same martial arts teacher as these guys since childhood.

Chow had the opportunity to follow his sentimental-lead early on in the film. In the scenes when we find out who the real kung-fu masters were at PIG-STY, and how they explain they've moved to the village to get away from all the fighting and reminisce over their faded past... those were some of the best scenes in KUNG FU HUSTLE, but sadly all the potential gave way to special effects soon after. What follows is a combination of 3D-cartoon with contrived humor.

As a Chow fan, like most of the audience whom I shared the theatre with, we all went to be entertained - to laugh, to feel the melancholy... but quoting a middle-aged housewife as she leaves with her husband at the end of the movie, "It's no Shaolin Soccer." Was this film made this way to make a better export? The minimal dialogue after the 1st act, all CG-action... basically you could turn the volume off after 30 minutes and still get what's going on... I wonder if this is a marketing decision so the film will be more easily digested overseas....

Oh well, what began as the most feared competitor in HK theatres during the Xmas holidays (no other HK film wanted to be released at the same time), is at best a could-have-been-better Chow film. Hopefully his next films will once again have more weight on story and clever dialogue...

that's the stuff dreams are made of, and we expect nothing less.