Outcast (絕命逃亡) is being released in Zhong Guo the following weekend. The movie stars Crystal Liu, Hayden Christensen, Nicolas Cage, Ji Ke Jun Yi, and Andy On.
Nicolas Cage and Hayden Christensen but make their way to Zhong Guo after suffering guilt as warriors in Briton's involvement of the Crusades. Crystal Liu plays a princess with the named heir to the throne being chased by Andy On as their throne stealing older brother.
From the trailer, looks like the Asian actors all speak English. Crystal Liu and Andy On both spent many many of their education years in the United States.
Unbeatable (激戰:勇者不敗) is an 2013 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Eddie Peng and Nick Cheung. The supporting cast include Mei Ting, Crystal Lee, Li Fei-Er , Andy On, and Jack Kao. Vivian Leung and Wang Bao-Qiang make cameo appearances.
Cheung plays Fai, a former 2 time Asian boxing champion from 1988. Fai throws some matches for money and does jail time. Now 48 and a taxi driver in Hong Kong, he's owes 20K of money to some loan sharks. Fai escapes to Macao to dodge the loan sharks. Once there, he resides in a room with a mom and daughter pair. The mom lost a son recently and was left by her former husband. Fai works at a local gym teaching aerobatics and does janitorial duties. Li is a young buck that travels the country (Zhong Guo) on his bike refusing to use his fathers money. Li's father is a big shot real estate mogul. In Beijing, Li find out through a newspaper article that his father is now bankrupt. Li finds him in Macao and tries to straighten him out. Li takes on a construction job and takes on MMA in order to enter the Golden Rumble tournament. Li and Fai find a special connection. Fai coaches Li to enter the MMA tourney. Fai takes to his host family he rents from. However, things go south when the loan sharks find Fai and the mom goes a little crazy again. Li strives to show his father that if he can do MMA, his father can start over. You don't always have to win all your fights, but the journey there and the reasons for the fight are emphasized.
So far, this could be my favorite movie of 2013, US or Asian. I loved it. Maybe because I am also an MMA fan, this movie speaks to me a little more. The story of the two leads is easy but also complex. You have both male leads trying to find their way in life having to start over in Macao. Both have a love story at play away from the gym. Both have a family element in play. Throw in the stuff in the gym and the goal to achieve something in life. The human element of a kid always gets to me. Maybe because I am a father with young daughters, those types of story lines get me all emotional. The love interest both have similar looks and in the beginning of the film, I had a little bit of a hard telling them apart. But you figure it out real quick.
So, if I were to pick the best of 2013, this would be on that list and very high if not #1. I have to look back at all the films I watched in 2013 to figure this out. This is up there. Don't miss it and get watch it.
Black Ransom (撕票風雲) is a 2010 film out of Hong Kong. The movie stars Simon Yam and Michael Miu. The movie also features Liu Yang, Fala Chen, Qu Ying, Andy On, Kenny Wong, and Xing Yu.
The movie is about a cat and mouse chase between cops and kidnappers. In this movie, Michael Miu as Sam, is the mastermind behind the kidnappings. However, the people he kidnaps are mob bosses that do not get prosecuted. Simon Yam as Mann is a the leader of a group of misfit cops. Looked down upon for his old age, Mann is recruited by new police Madam Koo, played by Fala Chen. Mann is to help track down the kidnappers. You get a cat and mouse game after that.
This was a very good movie. Flawed in many areas, but still good enough to put those to the side. The movie does go back and forth in theory of good and bad. Does vigilante-ish merit the law to turn a blind eye? Does playing Robin Hood put you above the law?
Both Michael Miu and Simon Yam put on a performance for the ages. You can see the conflict in their eyes and you can see that really believe their side is the only way.
La Lingerie (內衣少女) is a 2008 movie out of Hong Kong. It was released the same day that the 2008 Beijing Olympics started. Starring Stephy Tang, Janice Man, JJ Jia, Kathy Yuen, and Ronald Cheng.
The movie follows Stephy Tang as Miu as she tries to find "love". Miu is a bra researcher. Miu's aunt dies and leaves her apt for half a year. Miu moves in with her best friend, Janice Man as Donut. Downstairs, Kathy Yuen as Celine is a strange neighbor looking to marry a well to do guy, without love. Donut works at a bra store and JJ Jia as CC is a call girl that shops there for new bras frequently. So, all four girls are interconnected in some way to Miu.
The movie does feature a lot of skin and a showing of the next wave for HK's female leads. Janice Man, JJ Jia, and Kathy Yuen remind me of when Cherrie Ying burst onto the scene in the early 2000s. Stephy is already in a lot of movies the last 4 years. Of the 4, I liked JJ and Kathy Yuen the best. I am looking forward to what they do with their careers.
Ronald Cheng as Miu's boss and getting Miu at the end of the film was a major stretch and was totally unbelievable. What can you do?
