History Film / TheForbiddenKingdom

* NeverBringAGunToAKnifeFight: [[spoiler: Lupo gets kicked through a wire gate before he can even draw his gin on Jason]].

* DesignatedGirlFight: Sparrow vs. Ni Chang, just as glorious as any other fight scene in the movie.

* ThirdPersonPerson: Golden Sparrow. It is probably meant to signify her traumatic past, and the way she has subsumed her identity into her mission, though in the end, she does get one line in first person.

* BladeOnAStick: The Jade Warlord wields a qinglong ji in his first battle against Sun Wukong. The next time, he wields a guandao.

* AbsurdlySharpBlade: The blade of the Jade Warlord's weapon is smashed into the floor, and then dragged across the room. It cuts through the stone floor like butter.

* ActionSurvivor: Jason has no skills in his new martial arts world but gets skilled enough to survive many ordeals.

* ArtisticLicenseGeography: Apparently, the Sahara and Gobi deserts are very close by.

* BladeOnAStick: The Jade Warlord wields a [[http://klipd.com/screenshots/d8b1106c40fce8636a85fd7b05982b23-2.jpg guandao]] in his first battle against Sun Wukong. The next time, he wields a [[https://img.csfd.cz/files/images/film/photos/000/116/116184_7b805e.jpg qinglong ji]].
* BlackAndWhiteMorality: Pretty straightforward tale of good vs. evil.

* BothSidesHaveAPoint: The Jade Warlord already promised the elixir to Ni Chang in exchange for finding the Monkey King's staff. However, Jason is the one who brings the staff to the warlord in exchange for the elixir, something that Ni Chang failed to do. Amused at seeing the two argue on who's right, the Jade Warlord says this trope almost word-for-word, and suggests another option; the two would fight to the death and the elixir goes to the victor.

* CallBack: At the start of the film, Lupo and his GangOfBullies mocks Jason for buying kung-fu movies and goads him to show off some kung-fu moves. [[spoiler:Near the end of the film, Jason beats up the bullies using kung-fu, thanks to his training and experience from ancient China.]]
* CantCatchUp: Although Jason clearly becomes a better fighter, he still loses to [[spoiler:Ni Chang]] due to the latter's greater experience.

-->''"The seeker from the prophecy. I find that quite amusing. Do you really think even for a minute, you stood a chance? I didn't think so."''

* GangOfBullies: The protagonist gets harassed and almost killed by a few.
* GrailInTheGarbage: Jason finds the staff of the Monkey King at a store specializing in wuxia movie [=DVDs=].

* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: One of the evil {{Southies}} has a three-minute long fist-fight with Jason before finally pulling the gun he was so trigger-happy with earlier. To be fair though, as far as he is concerned, Jason just fell off a roof about a minute ago. How is he to know that about a year's worth of kung fu training from ''Jackie Chan'' and ''Jet Li'' occurred between roof and ground? Guns are messy and bring the cops.

* DarkActionGirl: Ni Chang, a [[MysticalWhiteHair white-haired]] witch with a cutthroat attitude, [[ImprobableAimingSkills improbable archery skills]], and a love for [[WhipItGood lashing]] her enemies.

* WhipItGood: [[TheDragon Ni Chang]] not only wields a whip as her primary weapon, but also uses her own PrehensileHair as a whip when disarmed.

* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: One of the evil {{Southies}} has a three minute long fist-fight with Jason before finally pulling the gun he was so trigger-happy with earlier. To be fair though, as far as he is concerned, Jason just fell off a roof about a minute ago. How is he to know that about a year's worth of kung fu training from ''Jackie Chan'' and ''Jet Li'' occurred between roof and ground? Guns are messy and bring the cops.

* BaitAndSwitch: Lu Yan tries to pray for rain in the middle of a desert. It seems to work... but then Yan looks up and realizes it's not exactly the kind of "rain" he was looking for, courtesy of the Silent monk.

* BaitAndSwitch: Lu Yan tries to pray for rain in the middle of a desert. It seems to work... but then Yan looks up and realizes it's not exactly the kind of "rain" he was looking for. The Silent Monk randomly decided to pee on Lu Yan.

* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Ni Chang plummets off a cliff after having her hair cut as she was holding on to Lu with it, [[TakingYouWithMe trying to drag him off]] as well.]]

* AdaptationalWimp: The Monkey King in Chinese Mythology is a literal god who defeated all of Heaven's army which consisted of ''600 thousand different deities, the 28 constellations and heavenly generals and lords SINGLEHANDEDLY''. He moved across the Milk Way Galaxy and lifted it on the top of head, which in mythology is '''''EVER EXPANDING AND INFINITE'''''. He also wrote his and all monkeys out of the Book of Life and Death, granting him CompleteImmortality and an attempt to try and convert him into an elixir by boiling him in a divine crucible, he not only survived, but when he jumped out of it was impervious to physical harm with the only means of defeating him being trickery or seals from high-ranking gods. In the film however the Monkey Kong's power appears to mainly come from his staff and only retains his ability to create clones of himself with strands of his hair. While he is physically unbeatable with the staff and capable of matching the Jade Warlord blow by blow, he never shows any of the levels of power he had in mythology. As for his immortality, it's quite possible he still did wrote his name out of the Book of Life and Death as the Jade Warlord turned him to stone rather than use an immortal-slaying weapon.

* BookEnds: The beginning and end of the movie are set in an extreme version of [[HahvahdYahdInMyCah Hollywood Boston]]. Since parts of the movie were actually filmed in Boston's Chinatown district it is justified.

* CallBack: At the start of the film, Lupo and his GangOfBullies mocks Jason for buying kung-fu movies and threatens the latter to show off some kung-fu moves. [[spoiler:Near the end of the film, Jason beats up the bullies using kung-fu, thanks to his training and experience from ancient China.]]

-->'''Ni Chang:''' "An orphan girl, a lost traveler, an old drunk, and a monk who has failed at the same task for half his life... Misfits following misfits, in the hope of rescuing a misfit."

* SceneryPorn: Mountains, valleys, forests, deserts, bamboo grove, peach tree grove... yeah, the film doesn't waste any time showing off Chinese landscape.

* SimpleStaff: The {{MacGuffin}}, true to the legend this movie references.

* MysticalWhiteHair: [[RapunzelHair It gets even longer]] whenever Ni Chang uses it [[PrehensileHair as a weapon]].

* ShoutOut: Lots of these, including:

* TheReveal: Two minor ones: First [[spoiler:the Silent Monk turns out to be one of the Monkey King's clones]], and then at the end [[spoiler:Lu Yan is the old Chinese man Jason was friends with in the present.]]

-->'''Ni Chang''': "An orphan girl, a lost traveler, an old drunk, and a monk who has failed at the same task for half his life... Misfits following misfits, in the hope of rescuing a misfit."

* ChekhovsGun: [[spoiler:The Monkey King's clones. It turns out that Jet Li's character is a clone all along.]]

* ImprobableAimingSkills: Ni Chang is able to shoot Lu Yan in the back from miles away.

* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: "An orphan girl, a lost traveler, an old drunk, and a monk who has failed at the same task for half his life... Misfits following misfits, in the hope of rescuing a misfit."

** Film/DrunkenMaster, obviously.

* TeachMeHowToFight: Kung fu isn't the main reason that Jason's wandering in ancient China with a magical staff, but then again he's bound to ask for lessons given his fascination with wuxia movies.

--> '''Sparrow:''' You will die, witch!\\
'''Ni Chang:''' Not before you, orphan bitch!

* ActionGirl: Golden Sparrow knows Kung Fu and is a master at throwing darts and DualWielding short-swords.

* RealityEnsues: Although Jason clearly becomes a better fighter, he still loses to [[spoiler:Ni Chang]] due to the latter's greater experience.

** Ni Chang to 1993 ''wuxia'' film ''The Bride With White Hair'' (白发魔女传).

* LetsFightLikeGentlemen: Subverted in the prologue, when the Jade Warlord challenges the Monkey King to a fair fight without using magic or weapons. Monkey puts aside his staff and the Jade Warlord quickly breaks his own promise.

* TheDogBitesBack: After Jason resurfaces in present day South Boston, Lupo, accompanied by his gang, confronts and attacks him. Thanks to the training he underwent in ancient China, Jason is able to fight back against him, and disarms him when he attempts to gun him down, scaring the rest of the hooligans into retreating.