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¡¥Wu Xia¡¦ comes to Australian cinemas Posted on July 3, 2011 by Justin
Continuing with their series of Chinese cinema releases in Australia, China Lion are bringing us Peter Chan Ho-sun¡¦s new film Wu Xia this week. It¡¦s nice to see they¡¦ve resisted the urge to re-title it ¡X it¡¦s apparently going to be titled Dragon for its release in the USA.
Fans of Chinese cinema will be familiar with the name: wuxia describes a whole genre of film and literature, in which heroic swordsmen (and women) compete for mastery of the martial arts world. (Spike¡¦s article on the topic, one of the earliest pieces on the current incarnation of the HC site, is a good intro if you¡¦re interested!)
Back to the film itself. Directed by HK heavy hitter Peter Chan (Comrades: Almost a Love Story, Perhaps Love), Wu Xia sounds like it hits many of the targets you¡¦d expect: a period action film centred around a simple paper-maker with a buried past, an unusual detective with a bee in his bonnet and a marauding band of assassins. The cast looks impressive, too: Donnie Yen and Takeshi Kaneshiro star as the paper-maker and detective respectively, with the supporting cast filled out by Tang Wei (Lust, Caution) and action cinema veterans Kara Hui and Jimmy Wang Yu.
Takeshi Kaneshiro in Wu Xia
There are two trailers up on YouTube here ¡X they do reveal a few plot points from the looks of things, so no peeking if you want to avoid spoilers:
Trailer One
Trailer Two
The film opens on July 7 at the following cinemas:
Sydney: Event George St, Event Macquarie Megaplex, Greater Union Hurstville, Greater Union Burwood. Melbourne: Village at Crown, Village Doncaster, Village Century City. Brisbane: BCC Garden City Mt Gravatt.
Donnie Yen is a deceptively humble craftsman in Wu Xia.
Reviewer rating:
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
MA Selected release (116 minutes)
FROM the Crank series to 127 Hours, many recent films have used digital effects to show events occurring inside the body: blood rushing through veins, a rapidly beating heart. The technique gets a workout in Wu Xia, an entertaining martial arts mystery capably directed by Hong Kong veteran Peter Ho-sun Chan.
On the surface, paper manufacturer Liu Jinxi (Donnie Yen) is simply a humble craftsman, living quietly with his wife and sons on the outskirts of China in 1917. That's until a neighbouring shopkeeper is menaced by a couple of thugs, and Liu comes to the rescue, revealing unexpected cunning, agility and knowledge of anatomy.
Word of his victory spreads, and soon Liu receives a visit from the forensic investigator Xu (Takeshi Kaneshiro), a dapper but implacable gent who regards his fellow men as mere "sacks of stinking fluids".
Xu is convinced there's more to the object of his investigation than meets the eye, but his suspicion is blended with an increasing awe at Liu's uncanny physical gifts, from warding off flies with his aura to altering the density of his body at will.
It's a plot device that suits a film where everything is amplified, made bigger than life. When a gang boss (Jimmy Wang Yu) declares his rage, the trees tremble in sympathy; in the fight scenes characters routinely smash each other through walls, or somersault into the air.
Rapidly edited, these fights are often rendered in slow or fast motion: much of the impact stems from the sound effects, mingled with Peter Kam and Chan Kwong Wing's eclectic, rock-influenced score.
Disappointingly, there are only three major action sequences: the best involves guest star Kara Hui as a vengeful swordswoman who chases Liu over the village rooftops, a scenario as exuberantly improbable as anything in Kung Fu Panda 2.
Yet even in its slower stretches the film is never dull. Formerly best-known as a comedy director, Chan offsets the melodrama with lightly handled moments of incongruity - children gazing eagerly at an autopsy, Xu's use of acupuncture to reduce his empathy quotient.
He maintains interest, too, by creating a zone of mystery around both his protagonists, stressing the gap between staid appearance and inner turmoil. If Liu waits till the last minute to confess his true identity, Xu seems equally reluctant to remove his glasses and his Panama hat.
by Jarrod Walker | July 06, 2011 13:39 | Edited July 06, 2011 13:40
Rating: MA
Running Time: 116
Country: China
Director: Peter Chan
Cast: Takeshi Kaneshiro, Xiao Ran Li, Yu Wang, Donnie Yen
Distributor: China Lion
Release Date: July 07, 2011
Film Worth: $18.00
FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Meshing western and Asian style sensibilities, the martial art sequences are dazzling but we¡¦re always invested in the action, thanks to the intelligent script.
It's 1917 and paper maker Liu Jinxi (Donnie Yen) lives with his small family in an idyllic Chinese country village. Liu Jinxi attracts the unwanted attention of the law when he accidentally kills two robbers who bust up his workshop and threaten to kill his fellow shopkeepers. Eccentric Police detective Xu Baijiu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) soon arrives, putting his unique knowledge of martial arts, acupuncture and homeopathy to task (in a stylishly CSI flourish) and deducing that that the two men can only have been killed by someone with extraordinary fighting prowess. Xu Baijiu's convinced that Liu is Tang Long, a violent mass murderer and a member of the 72 demons, a bloodthirsty criminal gang. Liu Jinxi's peaceful existence is shattered as he's forced to fight to protect the family he loves and to maintain the happy life that he has built for himself.
Aubrey Lam's understated script devotes a lot of time to establishing character and setting up drama, so when the fighting does start, the stakes are ratcheted high and there's a curious feeling of actually being invested in the action. It's a dazzling fusion of western style sensibilities and the staple martial arts themes of Asian cinema. That it works is a testament to Peter Ho-Sun Chan's solid direction and Jake Pollock's detail-oriented cinematography.
Yet despite all the talents involved, Donnie Yen deserves a share of the praise, not only does he deliver a subtle and nuanced lead performance as a loving husband protecting his family but also as the film's action and fight director, he manages to make the intricate and brutal fight scenes leap from the screen with emotion, immediacy and gravitas.
Chinese martial arts noir epic, set in the late Qing Dynasty (early 1900s). Liu (Donnie Yen) is a papermaker leading a simple life with his wife Ayu (Tang Wei) and their two sons. Into their remote village comes Detective Xu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) who is investigating the deaths of two bandits who died during a robbery. Xu realises that the incident was no ordinary botched robbery, and his dogged inquiry dredges up sinful, dark secrets of Liu¡¦s buried past. The detective becomes convinced that Liu¡¦s real identity is Tang Long ¡V a runaway member or a murderous gang.
Adapted from the classic 1967 film One-Armed Swordsman.
Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro, Xiao Ran Li, Wei Tang, Donnie Yen
Directed by Peter Chan (¡¥The Warlords¡¦, ¡¥Pehaps Love¡¦)
Written by Oi Wah Lam.
World Cinema, Thriller, Martial Arts, Drama, Action | 116mins | Rated (M) | contains violence | Origin: Hong Kong, China
In many ways, director Peter Chan Ho-sun's WU XIA has redefined the martial arts genre. His intention to create something unique and special is clear, and to a large extent, he has succeeded. The first half of the film involves the investigation of the deaths of two notorious criminals who are highly skilled fighters. The dissection of the fight scenes, which takes place in the investigator's mind, uses science to explain the injuries, and is a highly innovative way to tell the story.
After a strong start, the movie goes into action overdrive in the second half. Action fans will no doubt be very satisfied by the spectacular fight scenes, which are played, designed and choreographed by Donnie Yen himself. They are certainly up to the usual high standards that audiences have come to expect from him. The most interesting thing about Yen's performance here is that he seems to spend just as much time in scenes that involve drama as ones that involve fighting. He actually gives a most credible performance, which might be sadly overlooked because the action scenes are so attention-grabbing.
Takeshi Kaneshiro (RED CLIFF, WARLORDS, HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS) plays the investigator and gives an entertaining performance, while Tang Wei (LUST, CAUTION) is good to watch but appears somewhat restricted by her role as an ordinary woman living in a small village. One very pleasant surprise is the inclusion of Wai Yin-hung in the cast. She is an experienced actress and martial artist, who has been playing mostly dramatic roles recently and it is great to see her in action again.
WU XIA is a gorgeously and gloriously filmed martial arts film. It has top notch production values and some breathtaking action sequences. What impresses the most is the determination to create something new, something different and something original. It would have been nice to see the approach to the early action scenes also adopted in the second half of the movie, but this is just minor quibble for an otherwise wonderful film that can easily be considered a new martial arts classic.
WU XIA is distributed in Australia by China Lion Film Distribution. It is currently showing in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.