Typically schizophrenic Hong Kong cinema with a little bit of everything from everywhere (Raiders Of The Lost Ark, E.T, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind and so on and so on) crammed into the partially Greece-set film. Wong Jing does nothing but putting his stamp on the film via frequent usage of silliness of the less intelligent kind. Making him and Nat Chan (who literally has no purpose in the structure of the actual narrative) some slightly mild versions of horny perverts (but still horny perverts), you'll have to endure the commercial sensibility of the low-brow kind (at least two gags of said annoying performers slip through into funny territory) in between the terrific Tony Leung Siu-Hung action. Getting the players looking their best and trying their best (Andy Lau in particular) in his fast and bone crunching fights, it's a bearable element erasing thoughts of the unbearable ones but yet Magic Crystal overall charms as a product of its time. Especially cute IS the story of Pin Pin and his newly found jade-friend and the adventure/sci-fi aspect of the last reels provides a cheesy atmosphere of a more correctly tuned kind. Sharla Cheung appears as window dressing as well as Sek Kin, Phillip Ko and Shum Wai.

First of all, it is directed by and stars Wong Jing, hardly a hallmark of quality kung fu films. Second, it has a funky sci-fi story element, and stars a funky little kid. Third, Jackie Chan is not in it.

What it does have going for it is action choreography by Tony Leung Siu-Hung, whose stock in trade seems to be turning out quality fight choreography without ever getting much credit for it. Here he action-directs a mix of martial artists and non-martial artists, with impressive results. Andy Lau, not particularly renowned for his martial arts prowess, really shines here as a nearly invincible kung fu machine, holding his own alongside the likes of Cynthia Rothrock and Richard Norton. The choreography is innovative and fun, and the falls look agonizingly painful--pretty much all you could ask for.

I won't go much into the downsides of the film, as they are many, involving bad comedy (thanks, Wong Jing and Nat Chan), and that bizarre little kid playing with his magic crystal. In fact, the crystal is even more annoying than the kid--quite a feat.

Bottom line: you need to watch this film, and simply tune out the bad parts, because the good parts really shine. It's a safe bet that you'll be very impressed by the fight sequences here.