News Archives
September 2004

2046 Official French Updated With The Return Of The International Full Trailer (Océan Films / G-Film)

September 30, 2004

(Océan Films)

Trailer: International Full Trailer (French) (QuickTime / 2:30)

New press kit, French poster, logo and more.

 

(Thanks to Christian Parkes.)

 

The official international site just had its second update.

 

 

 

MonkeyPeaches' Monthly Recap - Movies Released In September (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 30, 2004

MonkeyPeaches' Monthly Recap

Click here for 11 movies released in September.

 

Review: 2046 (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 29, 2004

(Block 2 Pictures / Shanghai Film Group Corp.)

****

A writer arrives in Singapore for starting a new life, which is nothing but counting time at dealing tables. His name is Chow Mo-Wan (Leung Chiu-Wai). A mysterious woman, only known as Black Spider, quietly walks into his life and brings back his lost memory, the memory of the time he spent with an married woman named Su Li-Zhen (Maggie Cheung). Black Spider helps the writer to win back his money then he could buy a ticket returning to Hong Kong. She refused to share her past with him, except her name, which is also Su Li-Zhen (Gong Li).
 

Click here to continue.

 

The Wong Kidman Project Now Has A Title - THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 28, 2004

wireimage.com

According to Hong Kong's Oriental Daily, the title or at least the working title for the Wong Kar-Wai and Nicole Kidman project will be The Lady from Shanghai. The story will be set in Shanghai during the 1930s. An earlier rumor suggested that Takeshi Kitano might play the "bad guy". Chang Suk-Ping, the art director and costume designer has arrived in the States to work on Nicole Kidman and prepare her for her role. Filming is expected to begin in February most likely in Shanghai.

Related Story:

Update on The Wong Kar-Wai / Nicole Kidman Project (AICN) September 21, 2004

Director Wong Kar-Wai To Work With Nicole Kidman (Various) September 19, 2003

 

Review: NEW POLICE STORY (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 27, 2004

(JCE / China Film Group.)

***1/2

 

When Rush Hour came out, I considered it as a smart move for Jackie Chan and the follow-up, Shanghai Noon, was equally exciting for me. Then I realized the Hollywood formula was only treating Jackie Chan as a funny stuntman, or worse, a circus clown. Every time he was forced to act as a man half of his age and to partner with an half-of-his-age American sidekick, who usually took half of the show. Sequels to Rush Hour signed the fatal flaw of such formula, but because it was so profitable, the alarm was ignored, which contributed to the total failure of some of his most recent Hollywood projects. However, just when you thinks Jackie Chan's career is going through a downward spiral, he returned to Hong Kong, reclaimed his roots, and made New Police Story

 

Click here to continue.

 

Woman Director Xu Jinglei Received Silver Shell For Her LETTERS FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN At San Sebastian International Film Festival (Official Festival Site)

September 26, 2004

(Asian Union Film & Media)

Click here for detail.

 

UNLEASHED, Formerly Known As DANNY THE DOG, North American Trailer (IGN.com)

September 25, 2004

(Europa Corp. / Rouge Pictures)  

North American Trailer:

Unleashed (aka. Danny The Dog)

QuickTime: Hi  Low

Windows Media

 

(Thanks to Vinh,  Hong Kong Action)

 

John Woo Briefs On BATTLE OF RED CLIFF (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 25, 2004

(About.com)

During an interview with China CCTV in Beijing, John Woo has briefly talked about his vision of the upcoming epic, based on several chapters of classic historical novel Romance Of The Three Kingdoms. Woo said, "Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, especially the part featuring Battle of Red Cliff, is the best example for showing the spirit of loyalty and righteousness among our Chinese." It was also the best example for showing the wisdom of our China, he said, and for combats of the battle, he would blend Sun Tze's art of war into the storytelling. He would also emphasize a little bit on the romance side of the epic by inserting stories of several small characters.

 

In 208 AD, the joint force of two warlords Sun Quan and Liu Bei defeated the much stronger invading army of warlord Cao Cao. Shortly after the battle, the Han dynasty officially ended and China split to three. Written by Luo Guanzhong at the turn of the 14th and the 15th century, Romance Of Three Kingdom was a fiction based on the Chinese history during the 2nd and the 3rd centuries. It chronicled the fall of Han Dynasty, civil war among warlords, founding of three new empires and the final reunification under a new Dynasty.

 

More on Battle Of Red Cliff

 

 

SMMF News 112 - SHI MIAN MAI FU / HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS North American Teaser (Sony Pictures Classics)

September 24, 2004

 

Sony Pictures Classics has booked December 3 as the day for its North American release.

 

Teaser Trailer: Shi Mian Mai Fu / House Of Flying Daggers

QuickTime:

Hi   Low
Windows Media (ASX): Hi   Low
Real Video: Hi   Low
   
Official Site by Sony

                   

 

 

 

 

                   

 

More About SHA PO LANG (DonnieYen.us)

September 23, 2004

(DonnieYen.us)

More photos

More

 

(Thanks to Chelle, owner, operator, DonnieYen.us)

 

Related Story:

Stills Of SHA PO LANG, A New All-Star Hong Kong Martial-Art Production (DonnieYen.net / hkfilmart.com) September 11, 2004

 

 

2046: International Full Trailer (Océan Films / G-Film)

September 22, 2004

Trailer: International Full Trailer (French) (QuickTime / 2:30) (Thanks to Scott Kelly.)

Trailer: International Teaser Trailer (Chinese) (Real Video / 1:10)

 

Update on The Wong Kar-Wai / Nicole Kidman Project (AICN)

September 21, 2004

wireimage.com

One year ago Nicole Kidman said she would work with Wong Kar-Wai in a film and nothing has happened ever since. Now according to a short message "Grozilla" wrote to AICN, the project is still alive and a French producer is "very close to sign the next Wong Kar-Wai film, with Nicole Kidman as the main female part for sure." Takeshi Kitano (Zatoichi) has also been mentioned as the candidate for playing the "bad guy". The story would be set in Shanghai during the 1930's.

 

Wong Kar-Wai has a very unusual interest in the old Shanghai. Story of his In The Mood For Love was originally set in the 1930's Shanghai and he moved it to the 1960's Hong Kong only after his attempt of shooting it in Shanghai failed. The film still gives you a feeling of the old Shanghai. 2046, a sort of sequel to In The Mood For Love was partially shot in Shanghai using some of the city's old building as the interiors, even though the story was still set in Hong Kong during the 1960's.

 

Has been in making for over five years, 2046 will finally get released in China (including Hong Kong) in less than two weeks and Wong Kar-Wai could finally move onto his next project, unless he is thinking about re-editing it again. The theatrical version of 2046 is no longer the one shown in Cannes.

 

Related Story: Director Wong Kar-Wai To Work With Nicole Kidman (Various) September 19, 2003

 

 

More KUNG FU / KUNG FU HUSTLE Reviews (AICN)

September 21, 2004

Click

here

here

and here.

(Thanks to Christian Parkes.)

 

 

2046 Premièred In Shanghai (Sina.com)

September 20, 2004

L to R: Dong Jie, Faye Wong, Leung Chiu-Wai, Wong Kar-Wai, Lau Kar-ling, Chang Chen.    

(Nanfang Daily)

(Sina.com)  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here for more photos from the première.

 

The official international site just had its first update.

 

NEW POLICE STORY Premièred In Beijing (Sina.com)

September 20, 2004

(Sina.com)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More photos from the première: A B

 

China's Golden Rooster Awards And One Hundred Flowers Awards (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 19, 2004

Golden Rooster Awards

One Hundred Flowers Awards

Winners of these two annual awards are announced tonight during a grand ceremony. Winners of Golden Rooster Awards were selected by a jury formed with "film specialists" and most winning movies have never been publicly released, including the biggest winner, Shanghai Story. Winners of One Hundred Flowers Awards were selected according to a ballot from the general public.

 

Click here for the winner list.

 

 

Promotional Stills: 2046 (Sina.com)

September 18, 2004

Zhang Ziyi / Leung Chiu-Wai

Chang Chen / Zhang Ziyi

Chang Chen

     
Lau Kar-ling Faye Wong / Leung Chiu-Wai Faye Wong
     

Gong Li / Leung Chiu-Wai

Gong Li / Wong Kar-Wai Gong Li / Wong Kar-Wai
     

 

 

 

 

(Block 2 Pictures / Shanghai Film Group Corp.)

Leung Chiu-Wai / Wong Kar-Wai Wong Kar-Wai

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Director Tian Zhuangzhuang Begins Making Weiqi Master WU QINGYUAN's Biopic (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 18, 2004

Teaser poster design. Director Tian Zhuang Zhuang and a child actor.

Chang Chen

Click here for more.

 

Costume designer Emi Wada (2nd to the left).

(Century Hero Film)

(Sina.com)    

At a press conference held inside Beijing Film Studios yesterday, director Tian Zhuangzhuang announced that the production of Wu Qingyuan had officially begun. (Shooting has begun on Monday in fact.) Taiwanese born actor Chang Chen will play the title role and 91 year old Wu Qingyuan may actually show up to play himself. Other member of the cast includes Li Xuejian, Sylvia Chang, Xin Baiqing, Huang Yi, Mei Baojiu, Teruyuki Kagawa and Keiko Matsuzaka. The script was penned by A Cheng and Zou Jingzhi. Wu Qingyuan is a master of Weiqi (a board game, called "Go" in Japanese) who has been living in Japan since he was 14. He Shooting in Beijing will end in a few days and the rest of the film will be done in Japan.

 

Click here for more photos from the press conference.

 

Stephen Chow Will HUSTLE More KUNG FU (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 17, 2004

According to Hong Kong papers, Stephen Chow will do a sequel to Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle, hopefully, early next year. He said he was working on a few scripts and one of them was for this sequel. Reportedly, Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle cost about US$ million to make, much of which was from the pocket of Sony Pictures. Chow said the sequel would definitely out-budget the first one. Sony began lobbying Chow for a sequel right after he finished Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle. The film will be release in China, including Hong Kong, on December 23, and then spread to the rest of east and southeast Asia.

 

More coverage on Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle

 

Snapshots: More Actions From Jackie Chan's THE MYTH (Gansu Daily)

September 17, 2004

Hong Kong posters

    Yu Rongguang  

(Gansu Daily)

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here for more.

 

2046 Posters (Sina.com / Oriental Daily)

September 16, 2004

Hong Kong posters

Leung Chiu-Wai / Zhang Ziyi

Chang Chen /

Lau Kar-Ling

Kimura Takuya /

Faye Wong

Faye Wong /

Leung Chiu-Wai

       

(Block 2 Pictures / Shanghai Film Group Corp.)

Cannes Posters

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stunts Of Jackie Chan's NEW POLICE STORY (Sina.com)

September 16, 2004

(Sina.com / TungStar)

Click here for more snapshots.

 

 

 

 

John Woo Arrived In Beijing To Initialize BATTLE OF THE RED CLIFF (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 16, 2004

L to R: Terence Chang, John Woo and Dong Ping.

(The Beijing News)

The Beijing News reports John Woo and his long-time partner, producer Terence Chang have arrived in Beijing to meet Dong Ping, the president of Beijing based studio Asian Union Film and Media, which will co-produce the historical drama with Woo and Chang' Lion Rock Picture. Among the actors Woo would like to work with, there are Chow Yun-Fat, Jet Li, Leung Chiu-Wai, Chen Daoming and Jiang Wen. Of cause, casting them all would make the project ultra expensive. A team of three are working on the screenplay. The pre-production will take at least a year and shooting will begin in late 2005 or early 2006. Budget of the project is a record of US$ 50 million. Woo said he would do Spy Hunter and All The Invisible Children first. His long overdue Land Of Destiny was still not ready, because the American writers were unable to come out a script portraying the Chinese correctly, he said.

 

Related Stories:

Two BATTLE OF THE RED CLIFF Battle For Supremacy (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive) August 16, 2004

John Woo Made BATTLE OF THE RED CLIFF Deal With Chinese Studio (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive) August 11, 2004

John Woo To Adapt ROMANCE OF THREE KINGDOMS With Chow Yun-Fat (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive) June 4, 2004

Johnnie To's BREAKING NEWS Will Hit North American Theaters (Screen Daily)

September 16, 2004

(Milkyway Image (HK) Ltd. / Media Asia Films / Tungstar)

According to Screen Daily, the North American rights of Hong Kong crime thriller Breaking News has been acquired by Palm Pictures. According to the paper, Palm Pictures has planned "a theatrical release sometime in 2005 followed by a DVD release on the Palm Pictures label later in the year."

 

Related Stories:

BREAKING NEWS Official Site (Media Asia Group) May 30, 2004

BREAKING NEWS Premièred Today (Various) May 21, 2004

BREAKING NEWS Stills (Various) May 13, 2004


(Thanks to "Paul".)

First Known Review Of Stephen Chow's KUNG FU / KUNG FU HUSTLE, Very Positive (sonic splendor)

September 15, 2004

Review: Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle, by Yin.

(Spoiler Alert!)

 

(Thanks to Ian.)

More On-Location Photos Of THE MYTH (Gansu Daily)

September 15, 2004

Jackie Chan.

Jackie Chan (2nd to the left) and Shao Bing (horseback).

Qin Calvary.

Dummy corpses.

(Gansu Daily)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More photos.

 

(Thanks to Marie M for the reminder.)

 

Hong Kong's Pang Brothers Get A SCARECROW Deal (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 14, 2004

Scarecrow

According to The Hong Kong Sun, horror specialists Oxide Pang and Danny Pang (The Eye series) will co-helm their first Hollywood project, Scarecrow, along with Spider-Man director Sam Raimi. The new horror flick was written by Stuart Beattie (Collateral, Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl).

 

Zhang Ziyi's Three Roles In JASMINE WOMEN (Sina.com)

September 14, 2004

(Asian Union Film & Media / Century Hero Film)

More on Jasmine Women

 

 

Zhang Yimou Is Planning His Third Martial Art Film (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 14, 2004

(wkw2046.com)

Director Zhang Yimou said he would not do anymore martial art film, right after he finished making Hero and House Of Flying Daggers back-to-back. In fact, he has already worked on his third martial art installment. Zhang Yimou's long-time working partner, producer Zhang Weiping told Chinese paper Business Times, that they had come out a rough idea for the movie. A a writing team was working on the screenplay and Zhang Yimou would join the discussion once he came back from Toronto. He said Zhang Yimou would not repeat what he did in his first two films and would emphasize more on storytelling this time. Production would start when the script was ready.

 

Zhang Weiping has also dismissed the report that Zhang Yimou said Hero and House Of Flying Daggers originally belonged to one story and was spilt to half later because the story was overly long. He said the misunderstanding was probably due to some translation problem.

 

As for Zhang Yimou's upcoming project, Zhang Yimou said he would take the sensitive subject of China's Culture Revolution, again. A decade ago, Zhang Yimou made To Live, about a family enduring decades of political and social unrests. It is hailed as one of the best works by Zhang Yimou but has not been treated fairly in China. He was prohibited from making films with overseas financing for two years and To Live has been banned in China ever since. The accusation was presenting the film to several international festivals without the the official approval but many said it was because of Zhang Yimou's handling of the subject.

 

Jackie Chan Shoots War Scene For THE MYTH (Sina.com)

September 13, 2004

(Sina.com)    

Click here for more.

 

(Thanks to Marie M.)

 

 

2046 Plot Description (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 12, 2004

(Block 2 Pictures / Shanghai Film Group Corp.)

1966, when Chow Mo-Wan (Leung Chiu-Wai) left Hong Kong, he was carrying a secret with him, until, in Singapore, he met Su Li-Zhen (Gong Li). She reminded him another woman, a woman from his past (Maggie Cheung), whose name was also Su Li-Zhen. He followed the Su Li-Zhen of 1966 everywhere she went inside a casino. She salvaged him from self-delusion and refused to go with him.

 

Chow Mo-Wan returned to Hong Kong alone and on Christmas Eve, he met Lu Lu (Lau Kar-ling), another woman he knew, and now had no memory of their relationship in the past. Chow discovered a familiar number at the hotel Lu Lu stayed in - 2046. Room 2046 was filled with memory of the days he had with Su Li-Zhen, and trace of the good time Lu Lu spent with her boyfriend CC (Chang Chen).

 

Chow Mo-Wan moved into Room 2047. He met two daughters of the hotel owner (Wang Sum), Wang Jie Wen (Dong Jie) and Wang Jing Wen (Faye Wong). Jie Wen just started to learn what love was and Jing Wen's relationship with her Japanese boyfriend (Kimura Takuya) was not allowed by his father. A new tenant, Bai Ling (Zhang Ziyi), moved into the hotel and started seducing Chow Mo-Wan. When she finally fell for him, she realized he no longer had any feeling for women.

 

Chow Mo-Wan starting writing a new book, titled 2046. In the story, a train departed for 2046 and people boarded the train would recover their lost memories. No one wanted to leave 2046, except Tak (Kimura Takuya). In the book, the real life Wang Jing Wen became a senseless robot, who offered Tak great joy he had thirsted for. Her existence was the biggest secret of Tak.

 

In the year 2046, the train still routinely departed for 2046...

 

This is the plot description, originally written in Chinese, is released by Shanghai Film Studios, which co-produced the film. It suggested the film is a sequel to In The Mood For Love, but do you really believe Wong Kar-Wai is making a sequel?

The 42nd New York Film Festival Lineup (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 12, 2004

The 42nd New York Film Festival

October 1 - 17, 2004  

Film Title

Director

MAIN PROGRAM  

House Of Flying Daggers (China)

Zhang Yimou

The World (China)

Jia Zhangke

Café Lumière (Taiwan / Japan)

Hou Hsiao-Hsien

   
SPECIAL EVENTS  
The Infernal Affairs Trilogy (Hong Kong) Lau Wai-Keung, Mak Siu-Fai

 

 

ELEGANCE, PASSION, AND COLD HARD STEEL: A TRIBUTE TO SHAW BROTHERS STUDIOS (Hong Kong)

The Love Eterne

Li Han-Hsiang

Vermillion Door

Lo Chen

The Kingdom And The Beauty Li Han-Hsiang
The House Of 72 Tenants Chu Yuan
The Empress Dowager Li Han-Hsiang
Intimate Confessions Of A Chinese Courtesan Chu Yuan
Hong Kong Nocturne Inoue Umetsugu
Love Without End Doe Chin
Clans Of Intrigue / Killer Clans Chu Yuan
Heroes Two Chang Cheh
Blood Brothers Chang Cheh

The Last Tempest

Li Han-Hsiang

   
(Thanks to Jason Powell)  

 

SMMF News 111 - SHI MIAN MAI FU / HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS Premièred In Toronto (Various)

September 11, 2004

(Sina.com) (Reuters / Andrew Wallace) (AP Photo / Aaron Harris)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stills Of SHA PO LANG, A New All-Star Hong Kong Martial-Art Production (DonnieYen.net / hkfilmart.com)

September 11, 2004

Sammo Hung (L) and Donnie Yen (R) Simon Yam (C)

(DonnieYen.net)

  (hkfilmart.com)

Set in present day, Sha Po Lang features a story about two cops (Donnie Yen and Simon Yam) and a crime lord (Sammo Hung). Simon Yam is raising a kid, the sole survivor of his family wept out by the crime lord years ago. Donnie Yen is hunting down a hitman (Wu Jing, former Chinese wushu champion) and the trail leads him to the crime lord as well. Mainland Chinese actress Liang Jingke played the female lead. The cast also includes Hung Tin-Ming (Sammo Hung's son) and Wai Tin-Chi. The film is directed by Yip Wai-Shan and the action is done by Donnie Yen. It will wrap up this month and is scheduled for a November release.

 

Sha Po Lang is short for the names of three stars, Qi Sha, Po Jun and Tan Lang. According to the Taoist believing, variation of the three stars' positions is decisive to everyone's faith.

 

More stills: A   B

 

(Thanks to Kington Jiang)

 

James Ivory's THE WHITE COUNTESS To Be Filmed In Shanghai (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 11, 2004

The White Countess

According to Chinese media, filming of James Ivory's The White Countess will begin in Shanghai one week from today. Based on an original screenplay by novelist Kazuo Ishiguro, the story is set in Shanghai from 1936 to 1937, when foreign refugees arrived in the city for a peaceful life and only discovered the Japanese was gearing up its war machine. It centered around the relationship between a disillusioned former American diplomat (Ralph Fiennes), who lost his sight several years earlier, and an exiled White Russian countess (Natasha Richardson), who worked hard to support her late husband's aristocratic family. The cast also includes Vanessa Redgrave, Lynn Redgrave, Kimura Takuya from 2046, John Wood and Madeleine Potter. Filming will take place at a few historical houses and bars of the city as well as Shanghai Film Studio in Chedun, with recreated streets and buildings from the old Shanghai. It is expected to wrap up by the end of this year and the production will move to Rome for the interior. Russia was also mentioned as a location. The film is budgeted at near US$30 million by Merchant Ivory Productions, and Shanghai Film Studios, which will coordinate the filming in China, has put in about US$1.2 million.

Lions Gate Acquired North American Rights To THREE ... EXTREMES (Variety via Yahoo! News)

September 11, 2004

(Mov3.com)

According to Variety, Lion Gate Entertainment has acquired the North American rights to pan-Asian horror triptych Three ... Extreme, the follow-up to Three released in Asia two years ago. Unlike THREE, which tells three unrelated supernatural stories, Three ... Extreme focuses on the dark side of human nature.

 

Related Story: Lions Gate leaves Lido with 'Three', by David Rooney (Variety)

 

(Thanks to "Paul".)

2046 Official International Site Pre-Launched (wkw2046.com)

September 10, 2004

(wkw2046.com)

Click here.

 

(Thanks to Scott Kelly and Jessica Shp.)

INFERNAL AFFAIRS' Date In North America Pushed Back For One Week (HSX)

September 10, 2004

(TFM Distribution)

According to D. Mac (aka "Antibody), the new date for Infernal Affairs is September 24, 2004, and it will still be exclusively for New York. Click here for the original report. (Thanks to "Paul")

 

Official French site

French trailer

(Thanks to "Ludaofu".)

KUNG FU / KUNG FU HUSTLE - More Stills And More Trailers (Sina.com / Sony Pictures Japan)

September 9, 2004

(China Film Group Corp. / HTF / Columbia Tristar Film Distribution  International)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More stills.

 

Teaser trailer No. 3: Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle (Windows Media Video / 0:43)

 

Teaser trailer No. 2: Kung Fu / Kung Fu Hustle (Windows Media Video / 0:48)

 

Official Japanese Site (with teaser trailer No. 1 in Japanese).

 

INFERNAL AFFAIRS North American Trailer (Zap2it.com)

September 9, 2004

(Miramax)

(Media Asia) (Media Asia)

North American Trailer: Infernal Affairs (Windows Media, 1:22)

 

(Thanks to "Paul".)

 

Wong Kar-Wai's Classic DAYS OF BEINGS WILD To Be Released In North America (Variety / indieWIRE)

September 9, 2004

(In-Gear Film)

Wong Kar-Wai's classic film Days Of Being Wild will be released in North America on November 19.

 

Related Stories:

Kino imports quartet for U.S. distribution, by Zachary Pincus-Roth, Variety via Yahoo!

 News)

kino International picks up four for fall/winter release, by Brian Brooks, indieWIRE

 

More about the film: IMDB  AMG

 

(Thanks to Christian Parkes and "Paul".)

KUNG FU / KUNG FU HUSTLE Official Site Launched With Teaser No. 2 (KungFuHustle.com)

September 8, 2004

(China Film Group Corp. / HTF / Columbia Tristar Film Distribution International)

Click here

 

(Thanks to "Jay".)

2046 Trailer And Wallpapers (LG / Sina.com)

September 8, 2004

(LG / Sina.com)

Trailer: 2046 (QuickTime / 0:25)

 

Wallpapers

See General Jackie Chan In THE MYTH (Various)

September 8, 2004

(Gansu Daily)

 

(PhotoCome)

(Gansu Daily)

More photos:

A  B  C

 

(Thanks to Marie M.)

NEW POLICE STORY Videos - Links Corrected (EMP)

September 7, 2004

(JCE / China Film Group.)

The Making Of: New Police Story (ASX  / 15:37)

 

Music Video: New Police Story (ASX  / 2:38)

- 'September Storm (literal)', Music by Wang Chieh, lyric by Chen Tao, song by Jackie Chan.

 

Trailer 2: New Police Story (ASX  / 1:37)

(Thanks to Marie M and "Johnny" for the correction.)

More "Time-Travelers" From Jackie Chan's THE MYTH (Gansu Daily)

September 6, 2004

(Gansu Daily)

A group of 19th century Koreans "traveled" to the 3rd century B.C., thanks to the costume and production designer. Among the travelers, a Koguryian (Kim Hee-seon), who is forced to marry the Qin ruler, The First Emperor of China.

More photos

 

(Thanks to Marie M.)

HERO News 317- HERO Remains As North American Box-Office Champion (Reuters)

September 5, 2004

According to Reuters, Chinese film Hero tops the North American box-office for the second week by earning US$ 9 million during the weekend, sending four new releases into quick fade. It is "traditionally one of the slowest of the year," said Reuters, and "the next few weekends promise to be similarly quiet as well."

 

Related Story:

Chinese 'Hero' Still Tops at U.S. Holiday Box Office, (Reuters via Yahoo! News Australia & NZ)

 

Follow-Up Report:

The number now is estimated US$11.5 million during the four-day Labor Day weekend. The accumulated number is US$35 million. (Click here for detail.) Warriors Of Heaven And Earth earned US$17,850 with four screens in New York and Los Angeles.

 

Related Story:

Belabored B.O., by Gabriel Snyder, (Variety via Yahoo! News)

 

Huge Size 2046 Stills (Océan Films)

September 5, 2004

Leung Chiu-Wai

Zhang Ziyi

 

 

Takuya Kimura

Faye Wong and Leung Chiu-Wai

 

 

Leung Chiu-Wai and Zhang Ziyi

Leung Chiu-Wai and Zhang Ziyi

 

 

the city

the city

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Block 2 Pictures / Shanghai Film Group Corp. / Paradis Films / Orly Films)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Faye Wong

More stills are available from the official French Site by Océan Films

(click here)

 

(Thanks to Christian Parkes.)

NEW POLICE STORY's New Trailer (G-Film.com)

September 5, 2004

(JCE / China Film Group.)

Trailer: New Police Story (Real Video / 1:37)

(Thanks to Marie M.)

Wong Kar-Wai's EROS - THE HAND (Fandango.it / mysan.de)

September 4, 2004

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Fandango Films)

Set in 1963's Hong Kong, The Hand tells the love affair between a young tailor (Chang Chen) and a famous courtesan (Gong Li). Setup of the story and the production design make it looks like a parallel of Wong Kar-Wai' In The Mood For Love.

 

Official site by Fandango.it

 

Photos from the other two installments of Eros.

 

(Thanks to Christian Parkes.)

THE SEVEN SWORDS Goes Into Production (Information Times)

September 3, 2004

1

2 3

(?)

Filming of Tsui Hark's The Seven Swords officially began two days ago in China's northwestern region Xinjiang. It will last about three and half months and the release day has been aimed at the summer of 2005.

 

 

1. The opening ceremony - director Tsui Hark (middle) and action director Liu Chia-Liang (right);

2. Leon Lai (right) trained with Liu Chia-Liang (left);

3. Charlie Yeung (middle) and Lu Yi (right) learnt riding from Liu Chia-Liang (left).

More: Charlie Yeung is getting physically fit for her role, reportedly, a male warrior.

Jackie Chan's Action In NEW POLICE STORY (The Hong Kong Sun)

September 3, 2004

(JCE / China Film Group.)

He is trying to toss a grenade into the sewer.

 

More photos

(Thanks to Marie M.)

Jackie Chan's THE MYTH Shows Time-Traveling Costumes (Gansu Daily)

September 3, 2004

(Gansu Daily)

The scene is Gen. Meng (Jackie Chan)  escorting a Koguryian  princess to marry the Qin ruler. However, the costumes and the symbol on the cart, distinctively Korean, would not be available until the second half of the second millennium and the event was supposedly took place during the Third century B.C. The designer is simply an idiot.

 

More stills: A B C

 

(Thanks to Marie M.)

WARRIORS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH Opens In NY And LA Today (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 3, 2004

Official site by Sony

Reviews (RottenTomatoes.com)

Click here for more coverage

Harvey's Scaling - An Open Letter (MonkeyPeaches Exclusive)

September 2, 2004

Harvey Weinstein just wrote an article to show us his side of the story, the story of how Hero was treated during the past two years. I was an interesting read, honestly to say, but still, there are so many questions remain unanswered.

 

Harvey did not mention why he asked director Zhang Yimou to cut his film, a practice contributes the most to the notoriousness of his studio. Was getting rid of twenty minutes or so really made the film significantly better, or it was just because a short film usually a higher number of showings?

 

It would be somewhat understandable that why Hero was not released at the end of 2002, if that were not delivered the film until December, as what Harvey claimed, was the fact. It seams that his studio was fully committed to get the film a full Oscar push, in 2003 not 2002, and the film’s producers were responsible for ruining the plan. Was there some communications problem across the Pacific? After Hero was nominated for best foreign language film of 2002 Oscar, why he gave it absolute no support, which greatly contributed the film’s defeat in the category. The only explanation I can come out is that they decided not to release it around or right after the Oscar and showing any support at that point would dilute the public interest which would harm the box-office later on.

 

Harvey said Jackie Chan’s The Medallion took date pre-selected for Hero and subsequently they had to push it back. That might explained what happened to that pushback. But, what about the other four?

 

In the letter, Harvey claimed imported DVDs on the Internet did not affect on the box-office because “few audience members had seen the film on DVD.” It was true but there he missed several points here. Those DVDs are not just available online, they are also available in every video store in every Chinese community of the continent; many individuals, much more than “a few hundred”, had owned the DVD and many of them had shown it to their friends and relatives prior to the release. It functioned like an advanced screening, which greatly ensured positive word-of-mouth for the film. But still, Harvey sent out his storm-layers to hunt down every seller online, claiming they were fighting the piracy.

 

The release of Shaolin Soccer in North America was a disaster. His explanation was that they mis-selected the wrong target market with the wrong tactic – dubbed for broader American family audiences was not as good as subtitled for the niche Asian film fan core. Then Shaolin Soccer was released in a few selected cities. It never went wider and never stayed in theaters for long. In fact, Harvey’s common practice of manipulating Hong Kong films actually scared the fans away from the theaters.

 

Once again, Harvey tried very hard to persuade us that he was a loyal fan of Asian cinema and would push the best of Asian to the wider American audiences wherever he got a chance. Infernal Affairs is coming this fall and King Hu’s Touch Of Zen is currently on the front list of Harvey’s restoration.

 

It seams Harvey has always shown us how deeply he is possessed by Asian cinema and how hard he works to introduce it to the world. However, Harvey always thinks he has the rights to decide what people can see, how people can and when people can see. He claimed it was for good for the films his presented but serving the interest of his business had always come first. Films are routinely manipulated rights of the original creators are often ignored.

 

However, Harvey finally decided to give Hero a full push is very implausible. Whether it was one-time affair and a small step toward the right direction, it is another question waiting to be answered.

 

Related Story: Scaling the Chinese wall (Varity via Yahoo! News) By Harvey Weinstein

Jackie Chan Does Desert Scene For THE MYTH (Lanzhou Daily / Chengdu Economics Daily)

September 1, 2004

1 2 3 4
5 6

(Lanzhou Daily / Chengdu Economics Daily)

1. Shields made of paper;

2. Jackie Chan's horse with a saddle does not belong to the 3rd century B.C.;

3. Flag on the left: "Meng", last name of Jackie Chan's character; Flag on the right: "Qin", name of the the empire / dynasty;

4. The horseman is Shao Bing, not Jackie Chan.

5/6. The troop led by general Jackie Chan. (Thanks to Marie M.)

 

More stills: A B C

2046 Promotional Stills (Jiefang Daily)

September 1, 2004

Leung Chiu-Wai

Zhang Ziyi

   
Kimura Takuya
 

Faye Wong

 
 
 
 
(Block 2 Pictures) Lau Kar-ling

Faye Wong