The Lost Empire (2001)

This three-hour made-for-television epic based on the classic Chinese story Journey to the West is an engaging mix of fantasy and martial-arts adventure, and it features a veritable tsunami of special effects. The plot involves an American China scholar (played by Thomas Gibson) whose knowledge of Asian mythology becomes astoundingly useful when he is magically transported into other dimensions by terra cotta warriors who come to life. The American scholar soon finds himself face to face with a wisecracking Monkey King (Russell Wong), a mystical warrior whose martial-arts skills are matched only by his sarcastic one-liners. The mismatched heroes have only three days to find an ancient manuscript and thereby save the world from destruction, and they're assisted by the timely interventions of the Goddess of Mercy (played by Bai Ling). The rambling plot puts the characters into confrontations with tigers, dragons, and evil giants, and at times they're joined by such unorthodox allies as a human with the head of a pig. As his quest progresses, the scholar has to learn to think like a warrior, and there are innumerable obstacles put in his path. Even if the plot doesn't always seem terribly coherent, the computer-generated special effects are entertaining, and the film has no shortage of bizarre villains, flashy martial-arts scenes, and sardonic quips from the Monkey King. --Robert J. McNamara Amazon.com

A GREAT MOVIE!!!!!!

I Have seen this movie 2 times now on TV, and will be getting the DVD very soon. Being called "The Monkey King" and not "The Lost Empire"makes me wonder--WHY?, ANYWAYS, I am just a country person and this caught my eye, I thought that this was a Great "FANTASY" movie. It had all the things I like, a little Comedy, A lot of Action, And some romance to offset things.It is a good movie for all ages (I am 54 years old). My grandson is 11 and he liked it too. I hope that more people will see this movie, It's very good. Thank You. December 19, 2008

The movie is just the beginning.....

I rarely write reviews because it is so time consuming to write a good/thorough review.

I have read the other reviews for this movie and would like to submit an alternative way of looking at this movie. First, I do like the movie. It is exactly as it was designed to be - bloodless battles, villians that are larger than life, heroes that are equally large, and special effects that will never win any awards. The movie is simply 'fun' if you can leave your brain at the sidelines for a while. Who wouldn't want to learn to fly on clouds, learn martial arts from a mystic instructor, and battle dragons, demons and evil spirits all for the love of the beautiful goddess (ladies, just substitute 'handsome god') and to save the world?

That hardly seems like enough reason to give a movie a '4 star' rating though. I grant that the movie is hardly accurate in its portrail of Chinese mythology and/or religious beliefs. However, it is the kind of movie that makes the viewer want to know more. Does the book "Journey to the West" really exist? Are there really stories about The Monkey King, Piggsy and the other gods that appear in the movie? Are the stories similar to the mythology and fables of other countries that teach lessons as they amuse the young (and not so young)? Who is the Jade Emporer and what is his place in Chinese history/theology? China is a country that is rich in history and this movie can make the viewer ask the questions that can start him/her down the road to appreciating another culture.

In summation, I found "The Lost Empire" to be an enjoyable film with the potential to cause the curious viewer to begin an appreciation for another culture.
February 25, 2008

What a fun movie!

Chinese mythology, campy modernism, a bit of "stretching", an interesting story line and some not-bad acting combine to make this a movie that the whole family can enjoy. A favorite in our family for many years, we were pleased to be able to add it to our CD collection. July 25, 2007

DO NOT waste your time...

This movie was so bad and yet I watched it all just to see if possibly it would get better. It didn't. The only one that can act is the damn monkey and even then the character development is slim. I always buy Halmark movies, they've been great (10th Kingdom etc) but this one is the worst movie they've ever endorsed. I read all the reviews and decided to give it a chance-save yourself the dissapointment. The movie could have been so good. The plot is quite good but the screenplay, acting, effects, are not. A goddess having a drink at the bar...come on, even I won't watch something that lame. Mythology is something I love but the way these people portray it becomes laughable, and disrespects the story it's trying to tell. Most of all you can't even like the hero because he is so annoying! Buy the Snow Queen, Jack and the Beanstalk, DEFINETLY 10th Kingdom, but don't buy this movie!
(no, don't even think about giving it a chance because it has a cool cover) June 25, 2007

awsome!!!!!

i liked this movie so much i don't know what to say about it other than it's friggin awsome!!!!! it has a great story line, i liked it so much i bought it. i originally saw it on the scifi channel but didn't get to see the whole thing. if you want something to make you laugh then you ought to get this movie. May 31, 2007

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