Xuan Zang (Zhang Wen) is an aspiring demon hunter and Buddhist priest but he's not very good at the former which is preventing him from achieving the latter. To make matters worse, a beautiful and very accomplished demon hunter named Miss Duan (Qi Shu) has set her sights on marrying him. To become a better hunter, he quests to find the Monkey King (Bo Huang), who has been imprisoned under a mountain for 500 years.
This is a classic Chinese tale and there are dozens, if not hundreds, of adaptations. Stephen Chow has a Looney Tunes approach to action in his films generally, but there's real reverence and heart in each one as well. This is no exception. The humor is a little broad for my personal tastes but the actors are totally game for it. It's fun and silly and pretty family-friendly. There is some gore and if you have really little children, some of the demons may be a little much, but I'd say 10 and up. It's currently streaming for free on Tubi.
(Side note: if you've noticed there have been a lot of Tubi and Criterion picks lately, it's because all my other streamers are absolutely awash with TV shows that I keep skipping because I don't have time. If you were wondering, Queen's Gambit: good! Transparent: unlikeable characters! Battlestar Galactica season 2: too much filler in the second half! Great British Bake Off: worst season I've seen! WTF was that? Dave?? You put fucking Dave in and not Lottie? Or Hermine? Or Mark L.? Fucking Dave, the embodiment of white male mediocrity??? I'm fine. Shut up. I'm fine. The Mandalorian season 2: perfect! So that's what I'm watching on TV.)
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