Wu Xia (2011) (aka 武俠, Dragon)

[ben]

Found this article posted on CRIENGLISH

"Peter Chan to Shoot a Remake of "One Armed Swordsman"

Renowned Hong Kong director Peter Chan will start shooting a remake of the 1969 classic "One Armed Swordsman" directed by Chinese director Zhang Che in August, M1905.com reports.

Chan got the idea from the film "One Armed Swordsman," but he decided to create a new story which is more bloody and cruel.

Hong Kong actor Donnie Yen and Japanese-Chinese actor Jing Chengwu will star in the film. Yen will play a cruel killer who has become a fugitive. But he undergoes a transformation after he is captured by Jing Chengwu, who played a similar role in Director Zhang Yimou's film "House of Flying Daggers."

The film is the first time Yen and Jing have cooperated on a movie project, and they are excited about the challenges it offers. Yen is also the film's choreographer. Jing may have to undergo fighting training before the shooting begins.

http://english.cri.cn/6666/2010/07/01/2481s580349.htm

[Asmo]

Sounds good, but I hope Donnie doesn't burn out from doing so many projects at the same time. This seems to be that 'Wu Xia' (that must be the working title) project I heard about.

[fiol]

donnie yen..again ? lol

[DiP]

The original was great. It's good to see Donnie and Peter Chan working together again, they make a great duo. Plus Donnie's action directing which is a huge plus for me.

[Improvisation]

Did Donnie Yen split into three clones that are working on the 7+ current projects he's been linked to?

[lillippa328]

well good 2 hear itll be its own story and all...original is such a classic....and good to see donnie in more shit! lol

[OpiumKungFuCracker]

Good for you Donnie, you working too much though not that it's a bad thing...

[blue_skies]

Dear God it's Donnie Yen overload! Quantity OVER quality? The man needs to say No and make a contemporary film, making plenty of time for lots of solid choreography.

Anyway whatever happened to Donnie Yen's dislike of wirework? I remember seeing an interview of him slating it, I guess it's different now he is successful?

[mark187]

I love Donnie Yen's work, but I have to agree with blueskies. counting Guan Yu, this, and that Monkey King film, that's 10 non-contemporary films in a row. of course, ultimately what matters most is that he makes good films. the Ip Man films were exceptional, especially the first one, and I think Chen Zhen looks amazing, it's my most anticipated of the year. but really, I was hoping he would do some more modern day stuff after that.

[Yakuza954]

Let Donnie make as many films while he can now because he's not getting young anytime soon. It may seem like a lot because of the slow output lead stars have now, but back in the old days, Jackie, Sammo Hung and all of the old martial arts stars were churning them out at an even more expeditious rate. Besides, the current climate in HK right now is that for most martial arts actors, you're lucky to get one lead role a year, instead living off a steady diet of TV series and small supporting roles. Donnie's just striking the pan while it's hot. Yeah, a couple of them are going to be misfires (I mean, who ever wanted to see him as the Monkey King?), but if it means we still get an Ip Man or Legend of Chen Zhen in between, I can't complain.

[DiP]

Anyway whatever happened to Donnie Yen's dislike of wirework? I remember seeing an interview of him slating it, I guess it's different now he is successful?

Haha, how did you make that out? It's not even been shot yet.

[blue_skies]

Haha, how did you make that out? It's not even been shot yet.

I have no idea. I was really tired when I read it. Regardless he has been using wire work in a number of his most recent films. I would be surprised if he didn't use it in this one.

but back in the old days, Jackie, Sammo Hung and all of the old martial arts stars were churning them out at an even more expeditious rate.

Yakuza, I was under the impression in the old days Jackie Chan and Sammo hung spent more time on the choreography and fight sequences alone than the entirety of production time for the average Donnie Yen film. I thought they used to spend months and months filming fight sequences?

[DiP]

Regardless he has been using wire work in a number of his most recent films. I would be surprised if he didn't use it in this one.

Yeah but, apart from one fight scene in Bodyguards & Assassins, he wasn't in charge of the choreography in those movies.

[Guest ekisha]

I've read at hkcinemagic an interview with Scott Adkins, he says there he would like to make a movie with Donnie Yen. Well, if that's ever possible by any means, that would be much better than these remakes or "rope and flying" things. I understand he won't be young forever but at least he can do movies with more realistic fight scenes for now. Otherwise he's doing the same mistake which Jackie & Jet did. Yes, i know money is a sweet thing, but without Tiger Cage 2, In The Line Of Duty, Flash Point and SPL there wouldn't be any chances for him to play in so many big productions, he would end up rotting like many other action stars.

I have another idea, which seems impossible from lot of angles but what do you think of a Johnnie To directed movie, script wrotten by his Milkyway and Donnie as action-director & star. That should make our days. But I suppose that's just my childish dream.

[daisho2004]

Looking forward to another Donnie Film!

[mrnicejai]

I've read at hkcinemagic an interview with Scott Adkins, he says there he would like to make a movie with Donnie Yen. Well, if that's ever possible by any means, that would be much better than these remakes or "rope and flying" things.

While Scott might be good for bringing Donnie to attention more in the West I don't think he can really bring anything new to the table for Donnie in terms of fight direction or choreography. It's all about what sells and I guess the gritty action crime genre just doesn't bring in as much $ in Asia vs. the fantasy stuff.

[Delirious]

I have another idea, which seems impossible from lot of angles but what do you think of a Johnnie To directed movie, script wrotten by his Milkyway and Donnie as action-director & star. That should make our days. But I suppose that's just my childish dream.

I would like to have the dynamic trio (Anthony Wong, Lau Ching Wan, Francis Ng) over Donnie Yen anyday if Johnnie To or Ringo Lam involve in it. And I want all three at the same time, may be adding Tony Leung Fa-Kai in the mix. Yes I am greedy.

[Yakuza954]

Yakuza, I was under the impression in the old days Jackie Chan and Sammo hung spent more time on the choreography and fight sequences alone than the entirety of production time for the average Donnie Yen film. I thought they used to spend months and months filming fight sequences?

Sorta. The old school guys would put most of their time and effort in the film's action choreography during its production. The thing is, most of those films were filmed in under a month's time, so that usually amounted to a couple weeks of action choreography and one week for everything else. Jackie Chan was notorious for going past-schedule and over-budget on his films, which was rare in Hong Kong action cinema, so he was part of the exception rather than the rule. A large part of the value of those films was that they were made cheaply and quickly.

Now for Donnie Yen's big-budget films, yeah, they're not going to have that proportionately large of the production time focused on the action choreography. With all the sets, extras, pre and post-production work, wardrobes, annoying agents, camera crews, etc, that have to be taken care of, the action choreography is one of the things that goes by fastest on the set. That's just how big budget action films work now. Again, there are always exceptions. For example, Flash Point and SPL (particularly Flash Point) spent a large amount of time on action choreography, just like the old-school days.

But like I said, a whole lot more goes into making these films now than they did in the past, i.e, headaches and trying to attract a billion chinese viewers. The average Donnie Yen film now takes about 4 months to film (also take into account a couple are usually filmed simultaneously), and that's when you don't factor in the long pre and post-production process. Even the Jackie Chan films and the Golden Harvest classics didn't spend that long on just action choreography. Is it time better spent? Probably not, but I hope that answers your question.

Back to my point: To those who think Donnie Yen is going to burn himself out making all these films, my response is: Sammo Hung starred and/or directed The Victim, Two Toothless Tigers, The Magnificent Butcher, Encounters of the Spooky Kind, and By Hook or Crook, and all in 1980. That was par for the course back then.

If Donnie does in fact burn himself out? So be it. He's about to be 47, and not too far away from Jackie Chan-type Karate Kid roles. Be thankful people that he is not pulling a Tony Jaa and only making 3 films in 7 years, then leaving us folding our arms and complaining when he comes a monk. To those who think he's sacrificing good choreography in favor of a bunch of movie roles, Ip Man, Flashpoint and SPL all kicked ass, and Donnie films still spends as much time as anyone on action choreography not named Tony Jaa, who by the way did I mention, has become a monk.

[DiP]

I understand he won't be young forever but at least he can do movies with more realistic fight scenes for now. Otherwise he's doing the same mistake which Jackie & Jet did.

While I agree that he could do contemporary movies from time to time, I think his choices have been good so far (minus the Monkey King movie and Stanley Tong's Daring Guard). The thing is that he has changed over the years and want to achieve something beside fighting in movies so you can't really blame him. People change. But if it also means that he is still going to continue to do something new with MA choreography (modern, traditional or freestyle) at the same time, I don't see how he's making the same mistakes as Jet and Chan did. So as long as he pairs himself with good directors and choreographers (like Sammo) while focusing on improving his acting in some movies, and acting under good directors and choreograph action scenes himself in others movies, that's a good thing.

Yes, i know money is a sweet thing, but without Tiger Cage 2, In The Line Of Duty, Flash Point and SPL there wouldn't be any chances for him to play in so many big productions, he would end up rotting like many other action stars.

Choices are choices. But not everyone would want to stick to the same cards forever so I'm certain that Donnie will return to making contemporary movies. Donnie has said that he would develop a new concept of modern MA choreography that he would realize when they time comes because MMA has already become so familiar to him that he fears would get repetitive after a while which he doesn't want.

I have another idea, which seems impossible from lot of angles but what do you think of a Johnnie To directed movie, script wrotten by his Milkyway and Donnie as action-director & star. That should make our days. But I suppose that's just my childish dream.

Indeed. That being mentioned, Szeto Kam-Yuen was actually the co-writer of SPL and Flash Point so that's the closest Johnnie To/Milkyway connection in Donnie's movies.

[DiP]

Takeshi Kaneshiro to trade blows with Donnie Yen

Acclaimed director Peter Chan will be directing a re-telling of Chang Cheh's classic, One-Armed Swordsman, but he will not be allowed to use the same title as he was not able to acquire the rights to the original.

The rights to the original movie was acquired by Celestial Pictures and the company had an agreement with Peter's long-time partner, Teddy Chan. Due to a fall-out earlier, Peter will be flying solo and has decided to do a re-telling of One-Armed Swordsman.

Having last worked with Takeshi Kaneshiro on The Warlords, Peter was very impressed by the actor and thought Takeshi was a perfect fit for the role of a constable in the movie. He even called Takeshi personally to offer the role, to which the star accepted readily.

Takeshi revealed that he took on the role not just because he was interested in the character, but also at the idea that he would get to trade blows with famed martial arts star, Donnie Yen.

For the movie, Donnie stars opposite Takeshi as an abominable murderer, who eventually was guided onto the right path by Takeshi's character. This is a major breakthrough for Donnie, since so far he has only been seen in heroic roles.

Donnie will also double as the action director for the movie, set to commence production in August.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/xin/20100702/ten-463-takeshi-kaneishiro-trade-blows-d-3c1b9bc.html

[shelliegal]

donnie and takeshi????!!! someone's going to DROOL big time!!!

Takeshi Kaneshiro to trade blows with Donnie Yen

Acclaimed director Peter Chan will be directing a re-telling of Chang Cheh's classic, One-Armed Swordsman, but he will not be allowed to use the same title as he was not able to acquire the rights to the original.

The rights to the original movie was acquired by Celestial Pictures and the company had an agreement with Peter's long-time partner, Teddy Chan. Due to a fall-out earlier, Peter will be flying solo and has decided to do a re-telling of One-Armed Swordsman.

Having last worked with Takeshi Kaneshiro on The Warlords, Peter was very impressed by the actor and thought Takeshi was a perfect fit for the role of a constable in the movie. He even called Takeshi personally to offer the role, to which the star accepted readily.

Takeshi revealed that he took on the role not just because he was interested in the character, but also at the idea that he would get to trade blows with famed martial arts star, Donnie Yen.

For the movie, Donnie stars opposite Takeshi as an abominable murderer, who eventually was guided onto the right path by Takeshi's character. This is a major breakthrough for Donnie, since so far he has only been seen in heroic roles.

Donnie will also double as the action director for the movie, set to commence production in August.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/xin/20100702/ten-463-takeshi-kaneishiro-trade-blows-d-3c1b9bc.html

[blue_skies]

Sorta. The old school guys would put most of their time and effort in the film's action choreography during its production. The thing is, most of those films were filmed in under a month's time, so that usually amounted to a couple weeks of action choreography and one week for everything else. Jackie Chan was notorious for going past-schedule and over-budget on his films, which was rare in Hong Kong action cinema, so he was part of the exception rather than the rule. A large part of the value of those films was that they were made cheaply and quickly.

Now for Donnie Yen's big-budget films, yeah, they're not going to have that proportionately large of the production time focused on the action choreography. With all the sets, extras, pre and post-production work, wardrobes, annoying agents, camera crews, etc, that have to be taken care of, the action choreography is one of the things that goes by fastest on the set. That's just how big budget action films work now. Again, there are always exceptions. For example, Flash Point and SPL (particularly Flash Point) spent a large amount of time on action choreography, just like the old-school days.

But like I said, a whole lot more goes into making these films now than they did in the past, i.e, headaches and trying to attract a billion chinese viewers. The average Donnie Yen film now takes about 4 months to film (also take into account a couple are usually filmed simultaneously), and that's when you don't factor in the long pre and post-production process. Even the Jackie Chan films and the Golden Harvest classics didn't spend that long on just action choreography. Is it time better spent? Probably not, but I hope that answers your question.

Back to my point: To those who think Donnie Yen is going to burn himself out making all these films, my response is: Sammo Hung starred and/or directed The Victim, Two Toothless Tigers, The Magnificent Butcher, Encounters of the Spooky Kind, and By Hook or Crook, and all in 1980. That was par for the course back then.

If Donnie does in fact burn himself out? So be it. He's about to be 47, and not too far away from Jackie Chan-type Karate Kid roles. Be thankful people that he is not pulling a Tony Jaa and only making 3 films in 7 years, then leaving us folding our arms and complaining when he comes a monk. To those who think he's sacrificing good choreography in favor of a bunch of movie roles, Ip Man, Flashpoint and SPL all kicked ass, and Donnie films still spends as much time as anyone on action choreography not named Tony Jaa, who by the way did I mention, has become a monk.

My mistake. I was under the misguided opinion that each fight sequence would take weeks and that was part of the problem with Jackie and Jet's Hollywood movies. In that they didn't have that time that they had in Hong Kong. I must admit I'm surprised after hearing stories of how Sammo was a task Master and how they would just have to keep doing one part of one fight sequence over and over and over. I'm amazed they could make such action-packed movies within a month. Am also amazed if they could knock them out that quickly why aren't there more top films per year from Sammo, Jackie, Yuen Biao, Jet Li ?

On the other hand I expected Donnie Yen films to be made immensely quickly seeing how they are knocked out so fast. Plus not being particularly action packed.

Personally I think Mr Yen needs to include more fight sequences. I'm not saying minimise the drama just add more action.

[Tosh]

I want to see some blood and guts, if your going to redo this movie do it right, it doesn't matter if Yen is in it or not if you omit the blood it's just going to be another bloated wuxia.

[KUNG FU BOB]

This is a major breakthrough for Donnie, since so far he has only been seen in heroic roles.

Don't forget, Donnie played the badder than bad eunich (spelling?) in DRAGON GATE INN.

I want to see some blood and guts, if your going to redo this movie do it right, it doesn't matter if Yen is in it or not if you omit the blood it's just going to be another bloated wuxia.

YES! I agree completely.

I'm on the "This should be awesome" side of the fence. I've always been a fan of DY and Takeshi Kaneshiro, so this could be a very cool movie.

[DiP]

I want to see some blood and guts, if your going to redo this movie do it right, it doesn't matter if Yen is in it or not if you omit the blood it's just going to be another bloated wuxia.

With Peter Chan directing, we might get another great remake.