Fortunately, rather than dabbling in the reincarnation and time-slip hokum that made “The Myth”a garbled mess, “Kung Fu Yoga” mostly sticks to its contemporary plot. In Tong’s last film “The Myth” (2005), Chan also played an archaeologist named Jack, who goes to India to seize a magical gemstone, in the process recalling his past life as a Qin dynasty general. Bhima, who’s been sent by Princess Gitajani to escort him.īack in the present, Chan is archaeologist Jack, who’s approached by Professor Ashmita (Disha Patani) and her assistant, Kyra (Amyra Dastur), to help locate the lost treasures carried by Bhima and his troops, who got swept away by the avalanche. On his way back to China to get reinforcements, he’s cut off by an avalanche, and can’t reach Gen. He plays real historical figure Wang Xuance, Tang dynasty envoy to India, who defended the Kingdom of Magadha from renegade general Arunasva. And many of those musicians, now in their 80s, show they still have the chops to give life to their music, including Bobby Rush, Barbara Lynn, Little Freddie King and many others.Mimicking Bollywood war epics like “Baahubali” and “Bajirao Mastani” with a bit of “300” thrown in, the splashily animated prologue features Chan in motion capture, battling an elephant cavalry in 647 A.D. This Canadian documentary travels through the swamps of the Louisiana Bayou, the church halls of the Mississippi Delta and the juke joints that showcased blues musicians along the legendary Chitlin’ Circuit. “I Am the Blues” (Film Movement, 2017, not rated/probable PG, bonus footage). But he unexpectedly finds romance with one of the kaiser’s maids (Lily James) and then discovers she is Jewish. This unexceptional thriller has a German officer (Jai Courtney) sent to a castle in the Netherlands to protect Emperor Wilhelm II (Christopher Plummer) and ferret out a Dutch spy. “The Exception” (Lionsgate, 2017 R for sex, nudity, language, violence audio commentary, featurette). How far would you go to protect your family? That’s the obvious poser in this uneven exploration of family ties and mental illness. A stand-up politician (Richard Gere) and his volatile high school history teacher brother (Steve Coogan) meet for dinner with their wives (Rebecca Hall, Laura Linney) to discuss what to do about their respective sons, who have committed a heinous crime but have not yet been identified. “The Dinner” (Lionsgate, 2017, R for violence and language, audio commentary, photo gallery).
Charlie Hunnam stars as the adult Arthur. It is co-written and directed with a very heavy hand by Guy Ritchie, whose usual over-the-top, convoluted filmmaking style makes the beloved (and oft-filmed) Arthurian legend barely recognizable. When young Arthur’s father is murdered and his uncle (Jude Law) uses black magic to seize the throne, the child is forced to grow up on the streets of London - until he comes across that sword in the stone.
“King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” (Warner, 2017, PG-13, featurettes). This is the seventh Chan film directed by Stanley Tong, whose résumé includes one of Chan’s best, 1992’s “Supercop.”
Kung fu yoga movie jackie chan 2017 full#
The result is far from Chan’s best work, but the martial arts star’s boyish charm is in full force, even at age 63. Ultimately, the film doesn’t so much end as it just abruptly stops then erupts into a lengthy Bollywood-style dance number led by Chan. And, as this is a Chinese-Indian co-production and co-stars Indian actors Disha Patani and Sonu Sood, quite a bit takes place in India. Jackie Chan is back in action-comedy mode with this Indiana Jones-style farce filmed in such far-flung locations as Beijing, Iceland and Dubai. “Kung Fu Yoga” (Well Go, 2017, not rated/probable PG-13, in Mandarin with English subtitles or dubbed in English, featurettes, bloopers, trailer). The latest from Jackie Chan leads off these new movies on Blu-ray, DVD and video streaming sites this week.