New Hong Kong Martial Arts Movies — Will They Redefine The Genre?
By Norm Schrager at June 22, 2007 | 3:53 pm | Print
Forget elegant high-wire martial arts films. A new team is ready to deliver some old-style bone crunching — with an updated twist. A newly formed collaboration has announced the development of three new martial arts action movies.
The players: 1) The Weinstein Company, owners of a reported $275 million Asian film fund and 2) Qi (pronounced “chee”), a partnership between Tony Krantz, producer of Mulholland Drive and the series “24″; and Andrew Lau, director or co-director of over 30 Asian films, including the Infernal Affairs trilogy (basis for Scorsese’s The Departed).
The films: A promised rejuvenation of the martial arts genre, with an emphasis on plot and character… and fighting. Krantz told Variety, “We think we’re coming at this with a very different foundation than the typical Hong Kong action movie.”
This sounds exciting, but two other Asian projects from The Weinsteins sound like sorry ideas: A live-action version of Mulan (what?) and a Seven Samurai remake (double what?!).
QUESTION: What do you think of this new approach to martial arts movies? TELL US
Mark, 3 years ago
The New version of “7 Samurai” seems impossible to screw up so Im really looking forward to that one.
….”Mulan” on the other hand…..
Norm S., 3 years ago
Mark-
I’m too much of a purist when it comes to Seven Samurai. I just think Kurosawa’s masterpiece should probably left alone.
(We do agree on Mulan though)
-Norm S.