Kung Fu Hustle, which opens nationwide April 22, is basically a Chinese Matrix but without all the trippy head stuff and with a sense of humor. So in a way, it’s sort of a Spaceballs treament of The Matrix … in China.

Yeah, I know that sounds weird. But it’s good; trust me.

Basically, there are these bad guys (dressed in black) called the Axe Gang. There’s also a street full of seemingly common people, some of whom are actually kung fu masters trying to keep a low profile. The two eventually clash, and there’s a lot of cool fighting. There’s also a sort of loser guy who ends up being The One — an unrivaled kung fu master — who ends up saving the small neighborhood and defeating the Agents, err, Axe Gang and kung fu killer The Beast.

Entertwined with all the fighting is a story of friendship, love and finding out one’s potential. Oh, and a little bit of dancing (as the name would imply).

But really, you’re just going for the comedy and the fighting.

As the commercials keep reminding us, the choreography is from the same guy that worked on The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. And the fighting does look similar, with some innovative ideas. But there’s a humorous touch (as shown by the Road Runner-type chase scene). The comedy is intended to be over-the-top, and while I wasn’t laughing nearly as much as some of the people in the audience, I still laughed at plenty of the scenes.

Kung Fu Hustle has good fighting and good laughs. What’s not to like? It’s simply a fun movie to see.