Shaolin Kickers

This has to be one of the goofiest, dumbest, strangest - and funniest - films ever made! It made sound like a cliché, but you truly have to see this movie to believe it. It's that outrageous, far-out: a slapstick film containing martial arts, supernatural power and the sport of soccer.

We get the usual misfits-make good story, which is nothing new, but how it happens in unlike anything I've ever seen. I can't recall how man times I literally laughed out loud watching these ludicrous scenes. The climactic soccer game at the nd got carried away, of course, but it was still fun to watch.

Earlier in the story, the bizarre dialog, odd encounters with different characters and the humor is stupid many times.....but so stupid, it's comical! I just shook my head in amazement at what I was seeing and hearing. Be prepared, as I said, for some incredible dumb things, but also for much weird but definitely entertaining stuff.

Note: I watched the short "English theatrical version" which runs 89 minutes. You can also view the 112-minute Chinese version. From what I've heard, read, and witnessed, the 89- minute is sufficient. Any more of this insanity would be too much.

Wow, I was really surprised by this movie. It is totally unique, I've never seen anything else like it. There is a very charming love story, and the effects are really cool. The idea of combining kung fu with soccer is very original.... even though it's so bizarre, you'll find yourself asking why nobody has done anything like this before. I laughed constantly throughout this movie and went out and bought it a few days after I first saw it.

I would recommend it to everyone I know. This is the best Asian comedy since the heyday of Jackie Chan and "Fighting Benny"! Go see it, buy it, whatever, just make sure you do see this film.

I would be surprised if there is not a sequel. This film should have been released theatrically in the US; I've heard Miramax handled it. Sorry guys you lost millions of dollars, this film would have been a smash hit. They probably just didn't think that soccer would sell in America, but word of mouth would have sold this movie very well.

Stephen Chow writes, directs and stars in probably his funniest and most accessible (to Western audiences, at least) film to date.

Sing (Chow) is trying to find a way to encourage his countrymen to re-embrace their Shaolin kung fu heritage. When he meets down-at-heel ex-soccer coach Fung (Ng), the pair hatch a plan to form a soccer team with Sing's Shaolin brothers. Unfortunately, these guys have lost their kung fu skills. Sing resolves to help his brothers regain their dignity, then lead them into a championship showdown with the seemingly unstoppable Evil Team. He also finds time to fall in love with Tai-Chi baker Mui (the usually lovely Vicki Zhao), who gets some of the funniest scenes in the movie.

As a non-Chinese speaker, my experience with Chow's previous films is patchy, his wordplay humour rarely making a decent transition to subtitles. The comedy here though is mostly physical, possibly even deliberately geared more towards a Western market. The plot - however clichéd - is a pleasing tale of underdogs made good, and the movie has a definite feelgood feel and uplifting ending. Even the CG is impressive and well used. It's the most entertaining movie I've seen in ages.

I was watching the Universe DVD. Subs are decent enough, without too many typos, and the 'making of' and other extras have English subs also.

I've seen this movie many, many, many, many, many & many times. A friend recommended this to me and unfortunately that's still the only way people in europe know about this movie: from mouth to mouth. Absolutely one of the most brilliant comedies i've ever seen. Must see. Won't tell anything else.

What a wonderful sports film. STOP, read that line one more time. I ask you to do this because you will probably never see this again.

This was a sports film, for me to say that it wasn't would be a bold faced lie. This had all the characteristics of the modern Hollywood sports film, but what made it stand out and enjoyable is that it did not take itself seriously … AND … it had some amazing CGI action sequences. I recently watched a film called Equilibrium where it was mentioned that it could rival the popularity of The Matrix, well I would have to say that perhaps this film, Siu lam juk kau, would probably do more in toppling the king of bullet-time cinematography than Equilibrium would. I was impressed from the beginning till the end of this movie. The characters were all animated and individual in their own way. There was time used to set them up and learn about each of them. This wasn't one of those films where you spent most of your time with one of the characters then never really got to know the rest of them … you knew them all and couldn't wait to see what they were going to bring to the table next. Hong Kong has crafted a spectacular film here. They have taken the popularity of the bullet-time effect and applied it to a genre that definitely needed a face-lift. I am surprised that America wasn't the first to do this, but we are a nation that loves the standard sports film, so why change what we love. PWFSSSST. We are so lazy sometimes.

Siu lam juk kau tells a spectacular story coupled with some amazing graphics to create a story about love, teamwork, and superpowers. I also enjoyed the fact that this film also tried to say that kung-fu is not an old topic, that it can and should still be used in society today. When we think of the martial arts films (and physical aspect), we see them as a very old and dated genre. Well, let me be the first to say that they are coming back, and coming back with a vengeance. I enjoyed the fact that this was a revenge film. So many of our kung-fu films are revenge films, I was happy to see that this one was not far off. This film used techniques that I have not seen used in any other films. They took the old, skillful ways of the dated kung-fu film, added the work of bullet-time, and added the sports flare to it to create Siu lam juk kau. It had us laughing, it kept us based in reality, and it focused my attention to the screen for the entire film (a task that no other sports film has been able to do). I think that by having your star also direct it (directed and starred Stephen Chow) it builds upon a sense of comfortability with the story. Chow is a master of slapstick, yet seldom overdoes the silliness, choosing carefully timed gags and meticulously mounted visual construction over slapdash comedy. The film is also no stranger to the bizarre, with Chow's multiple homages to Steven Spielberg, and a weird egg gag that I'm honestly shocked still remains the American cut of the picture.

Overall, Siu lam juk kau is a amazing combination of comedy, action, romance, and dazzling soccer footage, forming an irresistible package to those looking for something they haven't seen before. We see that it is a personal story that everyone is having fun being a part of. That also helped this film … the characters really wanted to be in this film and it shined like the North Star through our screen. The dubbing (which seemed off a couple times) only added delight to this film. Chow's Siu lam juk kau, is and will always be breathtaking.

Grade: ***** out of *****