On the same day I listed down my top 5 movies watched in 2004, I watched Kung Fu Hustle, an incredibly funny and original comedy.

Directed by and starring Stephen Chow, pioneer of mo lei tau (Cantonese for "nonsense comedy") and director of Shaolin Soccer, this show has everything you could ask for: great slapstick humour, breathtaking martial arts scenes, tastefully done parodies of Kill Bill and The Matrix, romance, Roadrunner-style chase scenes and even old martial arts stars - Yuen Qiu (a popular stuntwoman and kung-fu actress in the '70s) and Wah Yuen (stuntman for Bruce Lee). The movie was hilarious (there was a moment when I laughed so hard I was crying) and the soundtrack great, yet at the same time, contributing to the overall comedic factor.

Regardless of whether you're a fan of Stephen Chow, you'll love this show.

Plot: In Shanghai in the thirties, times are dangerous and gangs rule the streets. The most notorious of these, the Axes, strike fear into the hearts of honest citizens and inspire admiration in one young wannabe, Sing (Stephen Chow). One day, in a nondescript slum on the outskirts of town, he wreaks havoc when he recklessly poses as an Axe member and causes a veritable riot between the real gang members and the denizens of a housing project – who happen to be strangely well-versed in the art of kung fu.

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