Here’s Our Spoiler-Free Review Of Stephen Chow’s ‘Kung Fu Soccer’

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After 25 years since Shaolin Soccer, Stephen Chow is back with Kung Fu Soccer, an all-woman football comedy that serves as a sequel to the classic sports comedy

We had the opportunity to watch the one-hour-and-46-minute movie ahead of the local release this Thursday, 13 August, at TGV Pavilion Damansara Heights yesterday, 10 August. To our delight, we discovered that Stephen Chow still has it after more than 40 years in the movie business.

Malaysians were effectively locked out of the film for a month after it premiered on 11 July, just a week before the 2026 FIFA World Cup final.

That created some distance between us and the movie as we watched reviews from China and Hong Kong roll in, with opinions ranging from overwhelmingly positive to decidedly negative. But, as is often the case with reviews, it was the negative ones that stuck with us.

After yesterday's screening, however, we can safely say that if you've been a fan of Chow's work and grew up watching him deliver his signature slapstick and self-deprecating jokes, you are in for a treat of a lifetime.

We understand why some moviegoers may feel that Chow's mo lei tau (nonsensical) humour has no place in 2026, and that is a fair criticism. But if you're as much of a sucker for his films as we are, we believe his particular brand of comedy deserves to make a comeback every few years — this time, seven years after his last movie, The New King of Comedy (2019).

The movie feels like Chow had spent the past two decades collecting his best jokes in a notebook

We absolutely loved the female-led cast, particularly the pairing of Zhang Xiaofei (Hi, Mom and YOLO) and Dilraba Dilmurat (You Are My Glory and Keep Running Season 5 ).

Both actresses bring a fresh perspective and grittiness to their farcical athletic characters while displaying impeccable comedic timing, giving Chow's screenplay a new energy without losing the spirit of his signature style.

To illustrate just how absurd the script can get, we kept thinking back to From Beijing with Love (1994), particularly the famous reverse-shooting gun scene involving Chow and Anita Yuen's characters. Watch here.

Similarly, Kung Fu Soccer builds its comedy through a rhythmic succession of increasingly ridiculous moments. One joke lands, then another takes things even further, and just when you think you've figured out where the scene is going, Chow's clever screenplay defies your expectations, leaving you utterly impressed by how creatively he constructs each joke.

This is perhaps where the film will divide audiences. If you've never been a fan of Chow's particular brand of comedy, Kung Fu Soccer is unlikely to change your mind.

But if you've never grown tired of it and want to see how much his writing has evolved — or perhaps how little it has evolved — since Shaolin Soccer, his first solo directorial effort, this feels like a love letter written specifically for you.

At times, the movie even feels like a Asian reparative fantasy, with Chow recognising some of the repressed struggles many Asians encounter throughout our lives, only to resolve them in his own exaggerated and fantastical way.

We cannot definitively say which of the two Soccer films is better, and perhaps making that comparison misses the point entirely.

Instead, Kung Fu Soccer feels like an invitation to rediscover a style of slapstick and mo lei tau comedy that the world sometimes feels like it is missing.

And for fans who have been waiting for Chow to bring that magic back, this is an open invitation.

We highly recommend giving it a watch

Kung Fu Soccer opens to the public on 13 August, with special screenings beginning as early as today, 11 August.

Side note: There is a short mid-credit scene after the movie, so be sure to stick around a little longer for it.

Secure your tickets now at TGV Cinemas and GSC.