| Shaolin
Soccer |
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How many times have you been trying to decide what movie to go see on a Friday night and wished that there was one that featured your two favorite things to see on screen: hyperactive kung fu, and soccer? Most red-blooded Americans share this common problem. Sure, for all those soccer fans out there, we had that lovable Bend It Like Beckham thing, but where was the kung fu in that? Luckily, your cries have been answered in the form of the deliriously entertaining and surprisingly sweet-hearted film Shaolin Soccer. Released way back in the summer of 2001 and currently only getting limited American showings, the film combines soccer and kung fu, a mix that attains a level of success not witnessed since peanut butter met chocolate. Shaolin Soccer tells the story of Sing, (played by Stephen Chow, also the film’s writer and director) a down-on-his-luck modern Shaolin monk. Sing eventually meets up with a soccer coach who is trying to find a new team to take down the champion Team Evil. Yes, their name is actually Team Evil. Sing figures out that the best way for him to use his incredible kung fu skills is in the game of soccer. But before that can happen, all of his fellow monks must quit their jobs as stockbrokers and dishwashers and assemble a team. Once this happens, this typical underdog story flies straight into the air as they use their special-effects-soaked, gravity-bending skills to play some of the most ridiculous soccer matches imaginable. The film became the highest grossing film in China’s history and took home several awards. It wasn’t long until Hollywood took notice; Miramax announced an April 5th, 2002 release date for American audiences. Only trick was that it would now have the honor of being called Kung Fu Soccer and would be trimmed from its original length of 112 minutes to a lean, mean 88 minutes. Like dropping French fries into wonton soup, the film would also be adapted for sophisticated American tastes by giving it a dub job which would do away with all the film’s original humor. Over the next two years, while the film enjoyed a healthy American video life via the internet, Miramax delayed the big screen release more than six times. Finally, thanks perhaps in part to Miramax’s Kill Bill lending kung fu a bit of critical cred, Shaolin Soccer is finally showing up in a few cinemas here in the States a full three years after its original release. You can understand the studio’s concern, seeing how kung fu soccer plus a you-gotta-believe-in-yourself attitude could easily turn out to be not only too foreign and weird for audiences in Des Moines, but also totally lame. But the film shines with a cartoon-like frenzied energy and has a smart-silly sense of humor not seen in American films. Chow, who also directed and starred in the phenomenal Hong Kong film King of Comedy, adds just enough visual sparkle to make sure that even someone who could care less about soccer or kung fu is completely sucked into Shaolin Soccer’s absurd world. A flaming soccer ball ripping a field in half, stripping a goalie naked or making a camera’s lenses explode are only a few of the logic-defying moments during the film’s outrageously insane climax. Unfortunately, with its small current theatrical run, Shaolin Soccer may never become the hit it could be in this country. Hopefully, once it makes its way onto our video store’s shelves, positive word-of-mouth will give the Shaolin Soccer a much deserved third, fourth, or maybe seventh life. Shaolin
Soccer is showing at the Maple Art Theatre in Birmingham.
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