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Critical Consensus: “Kung Fu Hustle” Best Reviewed Wide Release of the Year
by Senh Duong | April 21, 2005
Discuss Article
It looks like a busy weekend at the movies this week, with four movies either opening wide or expanding into wide release. There’s something for everyone. For more mature audiences, there’s the Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn political thriller “The Interpreter.” For teens looking for love, there’s the Ashton Kutcher and Amanda Peet romantic comedy “A Lot Like Love.” For laughs, there are two choices – the Stephen Chow kung fu comedy hit “Kung Fu Hustle” and the Anthony Anderson kidnapping comedy “King’s Ransom.”

Expanding to 2,500 theaters this weekend is Stephen Chow’s “Kung Fu Hustle.” It has already broken box office records all over Asia and is doing spectacular business in limited release here in the States. Stephen Chow plays a wannabe bad guy who gets caught in the middle of a war between the menacing Axe gang and peaceful inhabitants of Pig Sty Alley. Critics are heaping praise on this action-packed, highly imaginative, outrageously funny slapstick comedy. It scores an uproarious 85% on the Tomatometer, making it the best reviewed film in wide release this year so far. It pushed “Sin City” (78%) to second.

Opening in even more theaters (2,700) is “The Interpreter,” an international political thriller featuring the United Nations as a central setting. Nicole Kidman plays a South African U.N. interpreter who overhears a hushed conversation that could topple a government. The film features three Academy Award winners - Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, and director Sydney Pollack. Despite that, the film has only scored a modestly Fresh Tomatometer of 62% as of this writing. It’s slightly higher than Kidman’s average Tomatometer of 58%. Despite plot inconsistencies and improbabilities, critics think this polished, old-school thriller still thrills and entertains because of great performances from Kidman and Penn.

Ashton Kutcher returns to the big screen with another romantic comedy, “A Lot Like Love,” just a month after “Guess Who” topped the box office. This time, he’s paired up with Amanda Peet. The film follows the relationship of two casual friends who, after seven years, realize that they might just be meant for each other. Critics marginally agree. The film scores a marginally Fresh 61% on the Tomatometer, an improvement over the 43% scored by “Guess Who.” Critics think its first half is more original, witty, and charming than other assembly-line romantic comedies, until it starts reverting back to a more conventional second half. Compared to Ashton Kutcher’s average Tomatometer of 24%, this is considered high quality product from him.

King’s Ransom, Anthony Anderson’s comedy about a wealthy businessman who sets up his own kidnapping to avoid losing his wealth to his soon-to-be ex-wife, was not screened for critics, which is about as ominous as a kidnapper’s note.

This is a rare week, with three films in wide release being Fresh. If you want to know what all the fuss is about, be sure to check out Stephen Chow’s “Kung Fu Hustle” this weekend. “The Interpreter” and “A Lot Like Love” sound like great alternatives, too.

Related Items
Movie: A Lot Like Love
Kung Fu Hustle
King's Ransom
Celeb: Amanda Peet
Sydney Pollack
Sean Penn
Nicole Kidman
Jay Mohr
Stephen Chow
Catherine Keener
Anthony Anderson
Ashton Kutcher
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Comments (1-2 of 2 posts) | Reply
kenporules
kenporules writes:
on Apr 21 2005 10:43 PM

I really want to see Kung Fu Hustle tomorrow night, but I just know the theater will be filled with whiny bastards who are pissed off that the film is subtitled. This is one of the rare occasions (such as with Hero, thanks to Tarantino's name platered on it, and Passion of the Christ) in which a subtitled movie is being advertised to appeal to mainstream audiences - which can be pure hell for everyone else.

Evidently, to the average move-goer, subtitles mean that it's perfectly okay for them to talk loudly, talk on their phones, and scream stupid jokes across the theater (that often get laughed at which is even more depressing), because hey, it's not like we need to hear anything since the words are all up there for us!

Well, looks like I'll be catching this one Saturday afternoon then. =)


(Reply to this)
The Senhman
The Senhman writes:
on Apr 22 2005 03:56 PM

In reply to this comment (#821566)
When I saw Hero, this kid was reading the subtitles for his mom throughout the entire film. I guess his mom was either illiterate or has bad eye sight. Nice of him to do that for his mom, but it was kinda distracting...

(Reply to this)
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