VeteranLight I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Zoe Aymaya Bidner I figured this movie was like martial arts movie meets cheesy movie, with bad dialogue that made me want to take an ax and butcher the screenwriters. Seriously guys, actually embark on a daring voyage outside of your little writing hole and learn how people REALLY speak to each other. And for god's sake, put some effort into those special effects! Despite the terrible FX that practically leapt from an animated video game and the unrealistic and unconvincing script, it was still a fun movie. The only reason I even watched it was because of Thomas Gibson, and his acting wasn't top notch, but it was somewhat earlier in his career, so I forgive him. The other actors did an exceptional job as well, but none of them lived up to their full potential because of that STUPID SCRIPT! I've neither read nor had any interest in reading Journey to the West, therefore I can't share others' hatred for this movie. Personally? I was laughing at the humor, gaping at the martial arts, and rolling my eyes at the attempts at realism with flying. I recommend this movie.

tcmg-imdb As I started watching, within half an hour I heard my 11 year old son's voice echoing in my mind. "wow". That's what he says to me in response to something I've said or done, which he says it in such a flat tone and with such a blank expression on his face that its meaning is absolutely clear. Wow, this is one of the lamest things I have ever seen. It's so lame that if I were out with it in public I'd walk 20 feet behind it and pretend I didn't know it. I cringed as I watched the scholar and the monkey king "snow boarding" through the clouds. I had to stop watching for fear of seeing the goddess of mercy "snow boarding" on her cloud.

faylander WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE GIVING IT BAD RATTINGS!!!!!!! it's the greatest thing since Indiana Jones and The Mummy! I am familiar with the Chinese legends and admit the movie doesn't get them exactly to the point yet they are WONDERFUL characters. The Monkey King was brilliant, pigsy works and sandy is cool. It's filled with adventure and believe me I loved it it is now my favorite movie. So definitely rent it guys!Okay so Confucias comes off as a snob, I don't completely agree with that but I think it shouldn't be such a big deal. I've read about Confucias and it does seem a little dishonorable but Idon't think it hurts Chinese culture.It has action, adventure, romance, great characters, so take my word for it it's awesome.

Robin Turner The Lost Empire, or The Monkey King, as it was called when I saw it on the Hallmark Network, is a silly film, but a very enjoyable one. It attempts to put a new spin on the Chinese classic, Journey to the West, which tells the story of how a monk went on an epic journey to recover some sacred scriptures, aided by the mischievous Monkey King, the gluttonous Pigsy and the sombre Sandy.In this modern version the companions are the same, but the monk is replaced by a modern American sinologist, and the "scripture" is the original manuscript of Journey to the West itself, which is about to be destroyed by the "five traditional masters", who represent the forces of conservatism. Confused? It gets worse; if the book is destroyed, all the human progress that has taken place since the book was written will be reversed and the world will revert to feudalism. To cap it all, the Jade Emperor, Confucius and Kuan Yin, the goddess of compassion, are all weighing in.With a scenario like this, the film cannot help but being absurd in places, but the absurdity, intentional or otherwise, is part of the fun, as it was in the original Journey to the West, which is a comedy as well as an analogy of the spiritual journey. Viewers who have read Journey to the West will enjoy the references to it; others can sit back and enjoy the visual richness, which as well as some spectacular scenes and SFX, includes Bai Ling as Kuan Yin, looking far more sexy than a goddess of compassion ought to (but then that's one of the twists in this tale as well).