射雕英雄传:侠之大者 - Legends of the Condor Heroes: The Gallants

射雕英雄传:侠之大者 (Legends Of The Condor Heroes: The Gallants) is an 2025 film. The movie stars Xiao Zhan and "Sabrina" Zhuang Dafei. The supporting cast includes Tony Leung Ka-fai and Zhang Wenxin. The film is directly by the legendary Tsui Hark. The movie is based on the novel 射鵰英雄傳(The Legend Of The Condor Heroes) by 金庸 (Jin Yong/Louis Cha). The Condor Heroes story has been made into both movies and wuxia series over and over. This is just in a long line that love to tell the Condor Heroes story.



Xiao Zhan plays the main male protagonist of the film, Guo Jing. Sabrina Zhuang plays the main female protagonist of the film, Huang Rong. The film starts with the fall of the main Song Dynasty into North and South Song to the Jin Dynasty. Mongolia is united under Ghanis Khan and starts to retaliate against the Jin. Guo Jing is looking for Huang Rong and lands in one of the Mongolia and Jin skirmishes. Huang is trying desperately to get away from Ouyang Fang who is looking for the Novem Scripture (Novem = “nine” in latin). Guo Jing has mastered the Novem Scripture and is now more powerful than Ouyang. But Ouyang wants to force Huang Rong to cough up the Novem Scripture. In the Khan camp, Huang Rong secretly helps Guo Jung. Will Guo Jing and Huang Rong reunite or will Ouyang get his hands on them to obtain the Novem Scripture?

I am really excited that Condor Heroes is getting another high quality shot at the movies. The storyline itself is impossible to tell in one movie. For those that know the story after seeing all the wuxia series, you'll have to prepare yourself for a much more condensed version. The movie itself runs for over 2 hours of fun.

One thing you'll notice right away is that Guo Jing is already at the top of his powers in the movie with brief flashbacks to how he got there, but it does not go into much detail. Guo Jing is not at the top of his powers in the novels until Return Of The Condor Heroes, the sequel storyline novel. Ouyang Fang is just as dangerous as he is in the novels with his obsession with gaining the Novem Scriptures.

I also like that Guo Jing's slowness in the novels was only slightly touched on in the movie. But Huang Rong is just as smart in both. One thing about this movie is that it spends a very long time in the Mongol storyline. Whereas the novels did not spend as much. And the whole Yang Kang story was written out.

I also think that they did a really good job with Hua Zhen. Generally, the wuxia series, Hua Zhen is considered an afterthought plotline or she's presented as trying to break up Guo Jin and Huang Rong. However, in this movie, she is not and is presented as a strong female protagonist. Zhang Wenxin was in my opinion really good for her first role.

I caught this at a local Harkins theatre. By my guesstimate, the theatre could have fit 150 or so people, but there were only 5 people watching and I was the youngest. One couple ended on their phone for half the movie.

It you are a fan of wuxia movies, this is right up your ally. If you are a Condor Hero purist, you will not like this movie. I loved the movie and will try to get the digital copy when it becomes available via Sony International.

影 - Shadow

影 (Shadow) is an 2018 movie out of Zhong Guo. The movie stars Deng Chao and Sun Li. The supporting cast include Zheng Kai, Wang Qianyuan, Hu Jun, and Guan Xiaotong. The film is directed by Zhang Yimou.

Set during the Three Kingdoms. The kingdom of Pei of has lost control of the city of Jing. The commander of the army wants to get it back from the Yang family. The king of Pei does not want it back and wants to keep the status quo. The commander however has had failing health over the past year and send his Shadow in his place. The Shadow is someone that looks just like the original. In the case of commander, he must guide his shadow in court matters and train him to defeat the Yang general in battle. Will the King of Pei find out that this is a shadow?

This was one of the best films I've ever seen. Zhang Yimou out does himself with this latest epic. The real life married couple of Deng and Sun have instant chemistry onscreen. From the court politics to the shadow training, I was at the edge of my sofa the whole movie. I was kept on my toes scene after scene trying to see how things would unfold.

I ended up watching it again a couple of nights later to figure more things out. OMG, the second time around, I was even more impress. I had recently started watching Hero on Netflix. I was halfway through and remember just how awesome that film was. Shadow is an even better made film and shows Zhang's growth in this genre.

I caught the movie via iTalkBB. It'll be released in the USA in May.

As the Light Goes Out - 救火英雄

救火英雄 (As The Light Goes Out) is an 2014 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Nicholas Tse. The rest of the supporting cast include Shawn Yue, Simon Yam, Hu Jun, Bai Bing, and Andy On.



On the eve of Christmas Eve, a power grid station is determined to keep the energy flowing to the all of Hong Kong. When a factory near one of the pipes for energy is disrupted, its up the brave firemen of the Hong Kong fire division to contain it. The crew goes in to save the trapped people and have to fight their way out. On top of this drama is the political drama of promotions and hurt feelings from the fire station. Add to is kids of the firemen are also trapped, you got yourself a story.



This was a Hong Kong movie through and through. Even with the addition of Hu Jun and Bai Bing to give it a little "mainland" feel, it was still very HK. Which is why I liked it so much. I got me back to those days of intense HK movies with extreme situations that put our heroes mettle to the test. If the movie was to end on a sad note, it should. If it were to end on a happy note, it would. In the case of this movie, it ended the way it should have.

This movie was atop of the HK box office at the start of year. It did the same on the Mainland front a few weeks later. It's worth the ride.

Firestorm - 風暴

風暴 (Firestorm) is an 2013 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Andy Lau. The supporting cast include Gordon Lam, Yao Chen, and Hu Jun. The movie takes place in Hong Kong and reach number in the local film markets of Hong Kong, Zhong Guo, and Taiwan.

Andy Lau plays a lead officer of the police department, Lui. Lui is trying to nail a group of criminals hitting security trucks. When Lui's team engages a team in mid-robbery, there's a standstill that takes the life of an hostage. The police seem to know some of the parties but they don't cooperate and the police have no evidence to make arrest. While the way, Lui goes after those that can and enlist the help of a friend in the black trade business. Situation after situation, Lui has to adjust to the criminal activity.



I can see why this film was so well liked. There were many cheezy film special effects, but I understand this is HK and not Hollywood quality. I also know the style of going more realistic since "Breaking News". Which this movie really reminded me of. The acting was semi-over the top, but still good enough to bring along the movie.



Surprised I was able to see in only 4 weeks after its release. But there are many more from December that haven't made it to LA yet.

Let the Bullets Fly - 讓子彈飛

Let the Bullets Fly (讓子彈飛) is an 2010 film out of Zhong Guo. The movie stars Chow Yun-fat, Jiang Wen, and Ge You. The large supporting cast include Carina Lau, Feng Xiaogang, Zhou Yun, Jiang Wu, Chen Kun, Hu Jun, Liao Fan, Wei Xiao, Shao Bing, and Miao Pu. There were many more. I only listed the ones I know.

The movie starts with a train going through southern Zhong Guo in 1920. The train is hijacked by bandits. The bandits demand money. The man on the train suggest that they can get money from a nearby town if they pretend to be the governor. The bandits and the man goto Goose Town to get money. Once there, the bandits find that a business man functions as the town warlord. The bandits go into battle of wits with blood and lives.



The movie is a thriller about how a bandit group takes on a local warlord and wins. I don't know if this was to play on the current state of how the people in Zhong Guo feel about some of the government corruption. When the people feel hopeless, they go with the one with power for safety. When they feel that fairness is within reach, they will fight for it. At least, that's what I walked away from the film thinking.

The acting in this film was pretty awesome. From Chow to Wen to Ge. It was pretty amazing to see them at work. Through in there a who's who of the current Zhong Guo actors landscape, you have a pretty amazing film, in terms of acting. The story was also quite convoluted. You have to pay attention to follow. No bathroom breaks for this. But you have the pause button.

It took me two sittings to get through this. The first was over a year ago via a local video store. The second was via Netflix.

The Robbers - 我的唐朝兄弟

我的唐朝兄弟 (The Robbers) is a 2009 film out of China. The movie stars Hu Jun, Jiang Wu, Wang Xiao, Lichun Lee, Li Sa, Yin Jian, and Yu Xiaolei. There is a large supporting cast, but its too numerous to list.

Two hunters enter a village. The two hunters are played by Hu Jun, as Shisan, and Jiang Wu as Chen Liu. Shisan carries bow and arrows along with a long and short knives. Liu carrys a pole blade with long and short swords. They ask for water at a house on the outskirts of town and starts to rob them. But Tang soliders start their way to the village. Shisan and Liu force the grown daughter of the hut, Lue Niang to lie to them. But the Tang are more interesting in raping Niang. Liu kills the solider, which cause them to kill others and bring trouble to the village. The villagers now come and capture the two and plan on handing them over to the Tang soldiers that are surely to return. The robbers trick the villagers and escape falling into a well. The Tang soliders return the next day but the do not give mercy to the villagers. And back and forth they go, the robbers, villagers and Tang soldiers.



The movie is loud and hard to follow. There are so many characters among the villagers and it was hard to connect to them. But when the movie shifted back to Shisan and Liu, the movie seemed to set the tone for why the movie is. It is their relationship to each other that drives the film.

The movie was entertaining but I didn't understand the point at the end. But I still haven't figured out if it was worth the time. Which usually means it wasn't.

Kung Fu Cyborg - 機器俠

Kung Fu Cyborg (機器俠) is a 2009 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Hu Jun, Betty Sun, and Alex Fong. The supporting cast include Ronald Cheng and Jacky Wu.

In the year 2046, cyborg robots have been created and are going into production. But they need to test it out in the field. Hu Jun as Dachun is recruited to partner up with their finest model, K-1, played by Alex Fong. Dachun is the chief of police of his village and Betty Sun as Sumei is one of the police officers. K-1 starts to develop feelings for Sumei. But a directive of his programming states that he will shut down if he develops real "love" emotions. K-88, played by Jacky Wu, has developed "religion" and is on the loose. K-1 is recruited to stop him. A battle between K-1 and K-88 goes all CGI.

But the movie doesn't end with that epic battle. We're treated to the next half the film where Dachun is combined with K-88 for a all out funny experience. Sumei now takes the lead in the pursuing K-1. What will happen if K-1 gives in to his emotions?

The movie had received some unfavorable reviews from some the English HK movie sites. You can tell why. The movie is all over the place and the storytelling is rather convoluted. The placing of the story into a rural village also makes this film way less "cool". The country bumpkin stuff didn't work well.

In all, I was expecting it to suck to a certain degree. Which is did, but it was still rather enjoyable for being completely absurd and irrelevant.

天龍八部 - Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils - Tian Long Ba Bu - Broadcasting

天龍八部 (Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils/Tian Long Ba Bu) started broadcasting last week in Taiwan. I had recently watch this in its entirety and did a review late last year.

Well, its on daily from Monday to Thursday in Taiwan. So you can get your Jin Yong on.

This is a top 5 Jin Yong story for me.

Bodyguards and Assassins - 十月圍城

Bodyguards and Assassins (十月圍城) is a 2009 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Donnie Yen, Leon Lai, Nicholas Tse, Li Yuchun, Wang Xueqi, Hu Jun, Tony Leung, Eric Tsang, Simon Yam, and Fan Bingbing. The movie is based on visit to Hong Kong by Sun Yat-sen in 1905.

Sun Yat-sen will touch down in Hong for a mere 1 hour to talk to the revolutionaries. But the Qing officers don't want that to happen and would like to assassinate him while he's in Hong Kong. Enter Wang Xueqi as the money behind the supporters based in Hong Kong. The people you see in the poster all work to protect him. And one that wants to take him out.



The movie is not very action based until Sun Yat-sen arrives. The movie up to that point is all character development and back story on why its important to protect Sun Yat-sen with their lives!

It was both intense and thought provoking. Because of Donnie's presence, you might think this is an action film. But its only a third of the film. You shouldn't miss this one.

天龍八部 - Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils - Tian Long Ba Bu

天龍八部 (Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils/Tian Long Ba Bu) is a 2003 wuxia series out of China. The 3 main male stars are Hu Jun, Jimmy Lin, and Gao Hu. Female supporting cast include Liu Yi Fei, Liu Tao, Christy Chung, and Yang Rui. This wuxia series is based on the novel of the same name by Jin Yong.

The wuxia series follows the lives of the three main male stars. The majority of the focus is on Hu Jun's character, Qiao Feng. Jimmy Lin plays the heir to Dali's throne, Duan Yu. Gao Hu as Xuzhu, a shaolin monk. Qiao Feng is the head of the Begger's Sect and has helped the Song army defend against Khitan invaders. But a big mysterious plot unfolds before us regarding Qiao Feng's origins.

Along the way, Duan Yu gets girls to fall for him left and right. It isn't until Duan Yu meets Liu Yi Fei's Wang Yu Yan that his story gets interesting. Duan Yu is very smart but very lazy at learning kung fu. Duan Yu learns some of the most powerful kung fu by accident. Because its by accident, Duan Yu has trouble using the skills on a consistent basis. Which gets him into trouble.

Qiao Feng is the head of the Beggars Sect and is considered the most powerful master. But he's framed for many murders and than finds out he's not even Han, but Kitan.

Xuzhu stumbles upons his skills. But the skills he acquires are quite powerful.

These 3 somehow become sworn blood brothers.



This Jin Yong adaption is one of my favorites. All three main characters had things going for them. Qiao Feng with his righteous look on life. Duan Yu with his undying love for Wong Yu. Xuzhu with his innocent take on life.

In the mist of it all, I was instantly taken away from Liu Tao's performance as Ah Zhu. It's a shame that Ah Zhu had to die and that the story was very heavy in it's ethnic exploration.



I first learned about this series as Faye Wong sang the ending credits song. It wasn't long after that I watch the series withing days.

If you're a wuxia series fan, this is a must watch.