Kung Fu Hip-Hop (DVD) (Hong Kong Version) DVD Region All

The story is the stuff of B-movie dreams. A kung fu-savvy street vendor (Jordan Chan) with mad dancing skills enters a dancing contest in hopes of winning the prize money to pay for his blind sister's operation. But to get the prize he has to beat the reigning dance king (Poppin Hyun Joon), who's of course a bit of a prick. But enough about the story. Since this is a dance film, the most important question is: how's the dancing? Surprisingly good.

No spring chicken, Jordan Chan is clearly aided by a body double and strategic editing at various points, but as a former dancer, Chan's still got some moves left in him. Dance group Kung Fu Pop, who play Chan's mechanic-turned-dancer buddies, manage to live up to the title with impressive dancing routines that integrate hip-hop and martial arts. The solo show though goes to Korean dancing sensation Poppin Hyun Joon whose appearance in Kung Fu Hip-Hop just about takes the prize in random Mainland China film casting. If China had to bring over a B-list Korean star for a dance movie, Poppin Hyun Joon is about as good as it gets. His questionable acting skills fit right in with the crew, and his background and talent give the film a big boost of dance cred and spectator value.

Already confounding logic with the lineup of Jordan Chan, Poppin Hyun Joon, and Fan Bingbing as a world-class DJ, Kung Fu Hip-Hop throws one more casting curveball with Shaw Brothers veteran Chen Kuan Tai as a peanut-chomping zen garage owner. There are also some tickling cameos like newcomer pop duo By2 dancing around in bunny ears and Olympic athletes stepping in as dance teachers. Add in blatant product placement, pro-China cheers, power ballad moments, Fan Bingbing's ridiculously large earmuffs, and hilarious English subtitles to boot, and Kung Fu Hip-Hop has more than earned its spot on my DVD shelf between Wong Jing and Save the Last Dance for Me.