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 Why did you opted for the era of warlords?
 Benny Chan: The story concerning thirteen cudgel monks rescuing Tang prince has been adapted too many times. So, I checked with the abbot, the notable legends of Shaolin Temple in the past 1500 years, there was this legend, concerning a warlord ransacking Shaolin Temple to look for another warlord, before setting it ablaze. Being partial to this legend, I settled for the warlords era. That period was very turbulent, China was already facing foreign invasion, yet the Chinese were still fighting among themselves. Continue reading "Benny Chan Interview on Shaolin: Advocating The Spirit of Martial Arts"

-- Ocean Heaven --
Press conference for Ocean Heaven, was held on May 5, 2010 in Beijing. Ocean Heaven, a non-mainstream film directed by Xue Xiao Lu, starring Jet Li, Wen Zhang, Guey Lun Mei, shot on a budget of 7m yuan, explores the subject of parental love and autism in kids. It's expected to be released in summer.

 

Jet Li, who has no action scenes in the film, took almost no pay for the film, but he'll get a cut of the profits. Jet Li reveals that his nephew once suffered from autism, withdrawing himself for 9 months before stepping out of darkness after constant family support and encoragement. Most importantly, Jet Li, who has been dedicating most of his time to charity, says he'd still be doing action films, or the kids would not let him off.  Sina

 

Trailer: People

At Ip Man 2 press conference on March 23, 2010, Donnie Yen boldly declares, "While there are a handful of Yip Man projects out there, this is the one and only film everyone has actually seen. So, from my standpoint, there is only one Ip Man film - the one I acted in. Yip Man is an otaku who fights very well, the movie's success has nothing to do with Wing Chun (Spring).

Continue reading "Spreading His Fame Across the Galaxy, Ip Man Fends Off Aliens in Third Instalment?"

-- Monkey King: Wreaking Havoc in Heavenly Palace --
Filmko's 3D live action 《大闹天宫》 Monkey King will be shot on IMAX and directed by Cheang Pou Soi, while Jet Li and Donnie Yen are being eyed for the title role Sun Wu Kong. The production is now scouting location for Mountain of Fruits and Flowers, Water Curtain Cave, etc and has finished blueprints for the sets of three fantasy realms Inferno Mountain, Heavenly Palace, Dragon Palace, and will soon be building the sets. The film, written by Edmond Wong, is budgeted at 250m yuan and scheduled for production in October 2010.  Netease

 Among those martial arts stars/directors in the entertainment industry that are from Guangxi, perhaps the most famous is Xiong Xin Xin. Yet, few know of 谭俏 Tan Qiao, who also hails from Guangxi - or more specifically, Guilin. While the name Tan Qiao may not ring a bell to most people, he ranks alongside the foremost kickers and martial arts choreographers ever to grace the silverscreen. Continue reading "Tan Qiao: Fighting from Guangxi to Hollywood"

Over 10 million yuan and around 4 months were spent on building the 1:1 life-size replica of Shaolin Temple in Yanshi, Yongkang. Some structures or props of the new Shaolin Temple were actually built larger for ease of filming or to impart a more numinous feel, such as the towering giant Buddha statue.

Continue reading "Shaolin: Andy Lau Teams up with Wu Jing, Xing Yu and Yu Shao Qun Against Nicholas Tse and Xiong Xin Xin"

 With his rising popularity and big sellouts of his films, Donnie Yen is fast becoming one of the top earners in the industry, commanding up to 20m yuan per film this year, after Jackie Chan (30m yuan), Jet Li (25m yuan) and Chow Yun Fatt (25m yuan). Hailed as the new King of Kung Fu, he is getting even more offers this year, running the gamut from historical epic  on 《关云长》 General Guan Yun Chang by Felix Chong and Alan Mak, through comic book adaptation 《中华英雄》 A Man Called Hero remake, to mythological feature 《大闹天宫》 Monkey King. Continue reading "Donnie Yen Seeks Quantum Leaps for Each Film He Does"

At the pre-production press conference (video) at the famed Shaolin Temple on Mt Song on October 22, it was announced that apart from Emperor Motion Pictures and Shaolin Cultural Communication, China Film Group, Huayi Brothers and Henan TV are also co-producing the kungfu epic, Shaolin, budgeted at close to 200 million yuan. Continue reading "Benny Chan Narrates A New Story of Shaolin"

-- New Shaolin Temple --  
Rumours have been floating around for some time regarding who is set to star in Hong Kong veteran director Benny Chan’s upcoming - all star cast laden - martial arts epic Shaolin. Well now it seems most of the talent has signed on the dotted line and it’s quite the who's who of A-list Action stars. Andy Lau, Nicholas Tse and Wu Jing!! are confirmed, with that added plus of a cameo appearance by none other than Jackie Chan. Soooold!
 
 This movie is not be a remake or sequel to Jet Li’s 80s classic Shaolin Temple. Rather, it is an entirely new story, written by Alan Yuen, that is set in early 1900s Republican period. Shot in a real Shaolin Temple it will also feature real life Shaolin monks in the supporting cast using exotic Shaolin kung-fu. Filming is due to start this December, and is expected to be completed by April 2010.
 
 Synopsis: China is plunged into strife as feuding warlords try to expand their power by warring over neighboring lands. Fuelled by his success on the battlefield, young and arrogant Hao Jie sneers at Shaolin's masters when he beats one of them in a duel. But the pride comes before a fall. When his own family is wiped out by a rival warlord, Hao Jie is forced to take refuge with the monks. As the civil unrest spreads and the people suffer, Hao Jie and the Shaolin masters are forced to take a fiery stand against the evil warlords. They launch a daring plan or rescue and escape. 24FramesPerSecond, via Maz

 Duan Yi Hong - "Leopard" Yue Lu Xiang
 An ailing, languid leopard that constantly puts itself in a state of hunger, ever alert to the slightest movement of even the tiniest of his preys. Waiting and pursuits are his second natures, quickly following up with capture.
 
 Specialises in Tae Kwan Do; creating and defusing bombs; surviving in the wilderness; skilled in all kinds of weapons, especially derringer. Continue reading "An Introduction to the Fantastic Four Detectives"

Kungfu Cyborg: Metallic Attraction (Oct 2, 2009)

In this romantic action comedy directed and written by Jeffrey Lau, Alex Fong, the newly invented android with emotions and reasoning ability being, gets planted in a remote town, under the charge of sheriff Hu Jun, to test its functionalities. Being a "perfect human", Alex Fong soon becomes the town's idol, with Sun Li falling for him. But he's forbidden by his programme codes to fall in love. Soon, Hun Jun and Alex Fong are sent to track down Wu Jing, an android seeking independence and questioning the orders of his creator. With box-office takings of 50m yuan, the film was better received in China than Hong Kong.

 

Order

YesAsia: Blu-ray, DVD | Related products: Soundtrack CD, Making-of Documentary Book

HKFlix: Blu-ray, DVD

Continue reading "Coming on DVD in September/October 2009: Kungfu Cyborg, On His Majesty's Secret Service, etc"

-- New Shaolin Temple --

Representing Shaolin Temple's investment in the film New Shaolin Temple that Benny Chan is directing, producer Fu Yang Hua, head of Shaolin Cultural Communications, says that their negotiations with Andy Lau for a year have been fruitful, and he'd be playing a feudal lord's son who's a crack shot [While it could also be referring to spear in Chinese, gun is more likely given that the persona belongs to the military ruling class] if all goes well.

While Jet Li denies involvement, Fu Yang Hua says they're still trying their best to persuade Jet Li, hoping to bring about a pleasant surprise, "Even if we succeeded in bringing Jet Li on board, he won't have too many scenes, it's basically a cameo."
 
There's a good chance of Wu Jing, who was at One Foundation C1 Charity Race, organised by Jet Li, in Chengdu last weekend, joining too.
 
New Shaolin Temple, which showcases exotic Shaolin martial arts and involves the participation of real-life Shaolin martial monks, begins production in December 2009 and would wrap up by April 2010.  Shanghai Morning Post