Kung Fu Soccer review by Bobby Blakey
25 years ago, director Stephen Chow brought his martial arts comedy Shaolin Soccer to the masses and became a major hit. Throughout the years he has delivered more in the genre including the hilariously brilliant Kung-Fu Hustle. Now he has returned to the world of soccer with a new tale Kung-Fu Soccer starring Zhang Xiaofei, Dilraba Dilmurat, Lay Zhang Yixing, Carina Lau, Takeru Satoh, Sisley Choi, Louis Cheung, Jimmy O. Yang and MC Jin. Could this new game bring the same fun and silliness or will it fail to score a goal?
Kung Fu Soccer follows the Emei Women’s Football Team as it enters the Supreme Invincible Cup. Captain Shuangshuang, star striker Yulong and mentor Xu Feng lead a squad determined to prove its doubters wrong, combining kung fu mastery and football skills in a bid for the championship.
Like most I loved Shaolin Soccer and have watched numerous times so needless to say I was eager to see what Chow brought to the idea this time around. Part of what made the first film so fun was the underdog losers coming together and figuring out how to blend Kung Fu with their soccer skills. This time around we are dropped into a team that is already badass and while it finds a new way to bring the underdog idea to the story it feels like a completely different tone that doesn’t always work.
There are times it just feels all over the place with it trying to set a bigger back story for these girls, most notably the two leads. I felt like it bogged down some of the story and made it limp along at times. It doesn’t bring in as much training stuff as I had hoped that is always a ton of fun, but instead spend more time in the varying games of the season and championship.
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Like the original film the action is over the top and ridiculous, but some of the more fun elements of the film. You know what you are getting into and they play it up like it’s all just normal and that is why it works on that front. There are plenty of them that are laughable in execution and idea, but I think its on purpose to go all in on the fun of it. Some of the effects are cheese, but once you are sucked into the dumb nature of it all then you will no doubt have some fun.
This film doesn’t hit the mark like Shaolin Soccer but does bring more of the fun of blending the martial arts and soccer that it promises. This film isn’t for everyone and doesn’t always work, but my love for Chow’s work and the swings he takes to create something that has no business working is always a treat. It’s a unique film that won’t likely have the same cross popularity as the first film, but will no doubt still find its core audience.
Decide for yourself and check out Kung Fu Soccer in theaters now from Encore Films