Good Heaven! Kung Fu Hustle!

[Tref]

Great God Almighty, Kung Fu Hustle is a good movie!

The best movie of 2005?

Could be! And Stephen Chow may just well be the best comedy director working to-day.

Could he be the best comedy director since ... Chaplin? Ahhhh, I do not know about that. So, don't ask me. However, if you twisted my arm and pressed me on this issue .. I would say, yes, Mr. Chow could very well be! He's at least as good as Chuck Jones or Buster Keaton. But having said that, then we would have to fight. Cause you resorted to being physical and that sh*t ain't right! Let go of my arm, chump!

Kung Fu Hustle pays tribute to all three of the above (as well as the great Hong Kong directors like Woo & Lam) and includes one silent set piece that is as much Keystone cop as it is Looney Tune. Of course, trying to describe this scene to you would be a waste of my valuable time. You must see it.

The film features an unlikely tribute to The Matrix 2. At first, I was somewhat baffled, because the scene was nearly a shot for shot take on a key scene from that otherwise horrendous flick. Then it all made sense to me. This was not a tribute -- this was a snub. This was Mozart, as portrayed in the film, Amadeus, playing a Salieri tune and then saying, "Kind of simple and repetitive, right? But what if we did this instead?" Then taking the tune to another, higher, level.

Kung Fu Hustle is good fun. It is not a perfect film, and it is even a little too violent for my tender sensibilities, but it is an ambitious film. Probably the most ambitious film since, Fahrenheit 9/11. Both films set out to grab you and shake your marble head until you are dizzy. And I have to respect that.

I've all ready ordered my copy (HK version is 5 minutes longer) and you are all welcome to come over and watch it with me. Well, not really, but I do encourage you to see it.

That Stephen Chow -- he's all right with me.

Tref says, Check it out.