Kung Pow! Enter the Fist (2002)

11% of critics liked it
(53 reviews)
63% of users liked it
(76,589 ratings)

Writer, director, and star Steve Oedekerk lampoons the martial arts genre with this action spoof that digitally mixes new scenes with poorly dubbed footage from the vintage 1976 film Savage Killers. Oedekerk stars as "the Chosen One," a kung-fu prodigy even from the womb, who grows up to seek… More Writer, director, and star Steve Oedekerk lampoons the martial arts genre with this action spoof that digitally mixes new scenes with poorly dubbed footage from the vintage 1976 film Savage Killers. Oedekerk stars as "the Chosen One," a kung-fu prodigy even from the womb, who grows up to seek vengeance on the evil, legendary "Master Pain" (aka Betty), who murdered his parents. Along the way, he is aided in his quest by the kindly, wizened Master Tang as well as Whoa (Jennifer Tung), a karate queen with a cleavage problem. The Chosen One is also called upon to employ his unique fighting styles, including the "gopher," and faces not only Master Pain, but a gay henchman and the lethal lactation of a deadly, karate-chopping cow. Originally entitled "The Dubbed Action Movie," this broad parody saw its release delayed several times, finally reaching theaters two years after it was shot. Kung Pow! Enter the Fist co-stars Tad Horino and Philip Tan. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 21 min.
Directed By: Steve Oedekerk
Written By: Steve Oedekerk
Genres: Action & Adventure, Comedy

In Theaters: Jan 25, 2002 Wide
On DVD: Jul 23, 2002
Studio: 20th Century Fox

Critic Reviews

Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
Naturally, much fun is made of the poorly synchronized dialogue inherent in kung fu flicks, but the gag pales with repetition, especially since Billy Crystal and Robin Williams did it better years ago.
Robert K. Elder, Chicago Tribune
Not since Freddy Got Fingered has a major release been so painful to sit through.
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
A processed comedy chop suey.
Edward Guthmann, San Francisco Chronicle
Full of flatulence jokes and mild sexual references, Kung Pow! is the kind of movie that's critic-proof, simply because it aims so low.
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
The laughs are as rare as snake foo yung.
Jean-François Vandeuren, Panorama
Totalement con et absurde, mais aussi totalement hilarant.
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena
Eu não me surpreenderia caso descobrisse que este filme foi realizado por um grupo de adolescentes bêbados durante um churrasco da escola.
Brian Mckay, eFilmCritic.com
As deadly to brain cells as huffing paint thinner, but more delightful!
John R. McEwen, Film Quips Online
I haven't seen such self-amused trash since Freddy Got Fingered.
David Grove, Film Threat
The film is so bad it doesn't improve upon the experience of staring at a blank screen.
Jimmy O, Film Snobs
If you like this sort of thing or this kind of genre, Kung-Pow has its brief yet fun moments.
Urban Cinefile Critics, Urban Cinefile
The year may be young but it's going to take something extraordinary to top this as the worst film of 2002.
Stefan Birgir Stefansson, sbs.is
Never has an 80 minute movie been so long
Jamie Gillies, Apollo Guide
This is a horrible film.
Scott Weinberg, DVD Clinic
I'd never begrudge any ten-year-old giggling incessantly at the stupidity of Kung Pow, but I could find nothing amusing about it...and I generally adore infantile humor.

Read all 15 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Jeff "

Pointless, uninspired and above all awful parody of great martial arts films, Kung Pow is a film that is poorly conceived and has an awful, sloppy script to work with. I laughed maybe once during the entire length of the film, and once I was finished it, I realized that this was one… More
Pointless, uninspired and above all awful parody of great martial arts films, Kung Pow is a film that is poorly conceived and has an awful, sloppy script to work with. I laughed maybe once during the entire length of the film, and once I was finished it, I realized that this was one of the stupidest films that I had seen. The film relies on bland jokes and crappy voice over, and yeah I know that's the whole point, but still, it's terrible. Even if the over exaggeration and bad dubbing is intentional, they could have made it funnier than this. This film is just bad. Kung Pow is a sloppy parody film that is lazy, uninspired and a total waste of time. I hated this film and thought it should never have been made. I just thought it was a pointless film that offered nothing anything funny or creative for the viewer. Seeing this was boring, and the result was a mediocre film that did not deliver anything funny. The humor in the film is more irritating than anything, and it just ends up making you feel made at how pointless this whole film is. The era of great parody films is over; Hollywood should stop making trash like this as it is quite unfunny, lazy and dull. If you want a great parody film, watch Airplane! That film is a classic and a perfect example of good satire. This, this is a sad example of a bad parody film that fails on every level. Avoid this if you're considering watching it. Watching paint dry was more hilarious than this.
Chris W

Really silly and kind of dumb, but the filmmaker's hearts were in the right place. It's just too bad that theiir skills are a little weak and evidence of ineptitude is obvious. They're not as bad as Ed Wood, but I think his films are a tad more entertaining. This… More
Really silly and kind of dumb, but the filmmaker's hearts were in the right place. It's just too bad that theiir skills are a little weak and evidence of ineptitude is obvious. They're not as bad as Ed Wood, but I think his films are a tad more entertaining. This wasn't real terrible, but I didn't laugh as much as they probably wanted me to.
Luke B

Kung Pow! Enter the Fist is a film you either get, or don't. It's incredibly stupid and simple, but it works. To view the trailer is to watch the worst parts of the movie, parts that should have been cut out. The kung-fu cow and the woman with one breast are really out of… More
Kung Pow! Enter the Fist is a film you either get, or don't. It's incredibly stupid and simple, but it works. To view the trailer is to watch the worst parts of the movie, parts that should have been cut out. The kung-fu cow and the woman with one breast are really out of place and distract from Oedekerk's surreal genius of simply overdubbing an existing film. Technologically it's also impressive, inserting Oedekerk into an existing film seamlessly. Kung Pow also has some great characters which are all voiced by Oedekerk. Whether it's squeaky shoes or the ventriloquists, there's plenty here to love. Let's not forget the quoteability "THAT'S A LOT OF NUTS".
Arash X

The only funny moment was that "so cute" scene in the begining
moon r

please don't tell anyone i watched this...please.
Ginny

I feel so guilty rating this with 3 stars, but Im gonna be honest its so freakin daft that youll just have to laugh! Its mindless, but its not like one of those forced comedy movies that gives you a migrane or a headache. Right, just to defend myself from yall, I didnt watch this… More
I feel so guilty rating this with 3 stars, but Im gonna be honest its so freakin daft that youll just have to laugh! Its mindless, but its not like one of those forced comedy movies that gives you a migrane or a headache. Right, just to defend myself from yall, I didnt watch this out of curiosity, I got forced to watch it, lol!
Dan S

Stupid, but you gotta love the dubbing, as retarded as the story gets sometimes.
Lafe F

Kung Pow! Enter the Fist is the greatest! They took a few old martial arts movies, re-dubbed the dialogue and digitally inserted the star Steve Oedekerk and a few other interesting "creatures". It's a classic, with scenes like the cow battle and the baby escape. The… More
Kung Pow! Enter the Fist is the greatest! They took a few old martial arts movies, re-dubbed the dialogue and digitally inserted the star Steve Oedekerk and a few other interesting "creatures". It's a classic, with scenes like the cow battle and the baby escape. The whole movie has a strange brand of humour that you either love or hate. Weird stuff happens for a reason. They did a good job of assembling it all into a semi-coherent plotline. I didn't get all of the jokes, but it was a fun ride. It looks like the sequel is going to happen.
Cindy I

Not even close to great, but better and funnier than I expected, which admittedly wasn't very much.
Dean M

Worst and dumb spoof kung fu and I never expected to see Steve Oedekerk vs a cow in kung fu.
Steve K

One of those rare films where you can find something different to snicker at each time you watch it. By no means great, but surely funny.
Kalel J

Such a terrible, terrible film. The concept behind the movie is good, taking an old movie and contorting it into something new, but ultimately the execution of this film does not fill the potential. When watching the film you will constantly ask yourself - why? Why was this film made,… More
Such a terrible, terrible film. The concept behind the movie is good, taking an old movie and contorting it into something new, but ultimately the execution of this film does not fill the potential. When watching the film you will constantly ask yourself - why? Why was this film made, why did they include this scene, why am I still watching this tripe? Steve Oederkerk has some talent, which is shown in other films, but as a director and actor in this film he is terrible. In the end, Kung Pow is a film that utilizes mindless, pointless humour to rarely get laughs. Avoid this film, it's not so bad it's good, but rather so bad it's....well really bad.
Byron B

Nice effects when Oedekerk inserts himself into old film footage! Some funny scenes, but most of the lower budget original kung fu movies are humorous enough by themselves.
Steven V

Worst and dumb spoof kung fu movie. It had its funny moments, but for the most part is pretty boring. This movie was so crazy and it didn't make a whole lot of sence.
August S

I withdrew after 30 seconds they started making jokes, that's how bad it was. The joke's are all too corny, all too stupid, and all too pathetic to even comprehend the reason behind the making of this anomaly of a film. It was so bad in every level that I'm embarrassed… More
I withdrew after 30 seconds they started making jokes, that's how bad it was. The joke's are all too corny, all too stupid, and all too pathetic to even comprehend the reason behind the making of this anomaly of a film. It was so bad in every level that I'm embarrassed for the actors who'd shown their faces in this mirthless, pathetic, and abominable "spoof" that doesn't even pass as a spoof because a spoof supposed to re-create a film and turn it into a a funny one but this--I call this rape. This film just raped and disgraced the Kung-fu genre not spoofed it.
Duncan R

Some of the jokes fall flat, and painfully so. But when I laughed, I laughed <i>hard</i>. It ain't <i>Kung-Fu Hustle</i>, but it's not a waste of time.
William G

I KNOW it's incredibly silly and stupid. What's your point?
Marion R

muh
Sunil J

I hate this movie more than almost any other.
Adam M

Clever idea that mostly works and is occasionally very funny!