A Kung Fu summer
| By Shang Zuo Good news! Two new Kung Fu movies are coming this summer: “Kung Fu Panda” and “The Forbidden Kingdom.” “Kung Fu Panda” is an animated comedy film by DreamWorks, featuring Jack Black as the leading voice actor. “The Forbidden Kingdom” is a mythical adventure movie about a Boston boy who teleports to ancient China through a mysterious force and meets — guess who? — the Monkey King! (Asian Wisconzine's readers might remember my brief introduction of Monkey King in the October 2007 issue.) For Jackie Chan and Jet Li fans, the movie is a must-see, because this is the first collaboration of the two actors. Many Hollywood movies incorporate Kung Fu elements in them, including “The Matrix,” “Kill Bill,” and movies made by Jackie Chan and Jet Li for Hollywood. In the case of “Kung Fu Panda” and “The Forbidden Kingdom,” however, the stories are even set in China. Despite this, they are not typical Kung Fu movies. Yet, the Kung Fu movie, as a genre, probably cannot be narrowly defined. It has been evolving and changing since its beginnings. I know little about Kung Fu movies prior to the ‘80s. Of course I know Bruce Lee and really liked some of his movies. Compared to later generations, I have to say the actions in old movies are much slower. Jackie Chan changed Kung Fu movies with his action comedies, which are often set in modern times. He is fast, strong and astonishingly flexible. Any ordinary place can become a battlefield for him. Everything in his hands can become a weapon. Chan’s sense of humor and popularity have transformed him into a cultural icon. Regardless of their age, fans in Hong Kong call him "big brother." While Jackie Chan is a trained Kung Fu master, not everyone can act like him. The film industry changed Kung Fu when it incorporated wired acrobatic technique into filmmaking. When the wire technique was combined with wide-angle camera and quick montage, filmmakers created a new and wild visual effect. It seemed very real. Actually it's better and ‘cooler’ than real! People could fly and fight in a seemingly impossible way, as if gravity didn't exist. The most successful ones from this period were “Swordsman 2” and “New Dragon Gate Inn,” a remake of the classic “Dragon Gate Inn.” Moviegoers loved this new creation. But it rendered a new problem to actors. Their Kung Fu skills became more and more irrelevant, because everyone could instantly act like a master. Moreover, the market for Kung Fu movies has cooled down. Jackie Chan and Jet Li moved to Hollywood, leaving a vacuum in the Chinese film industry. Many don't realize its profound consequence. To me, I see a gap between Kung Fu superstars. Bruce Lee was born in 1940, Jackie Chan in 1954, while Jet Li in 1963. Every decade has its own superstar. But this cycle was broken. In the ‘90s, there were notable efforts to create a new and younger superstar, though the industry failed in doing so because of the change in the market's landscape. Will there be any more Kung Fu superstars? I hope so. New opportunities in Kung Fu movied appeared from an unexpected director, Ang Lee (“Sense and Sensibility,” “Brokeback Mountain”). In many respects, “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon” was a strange movie. It was written, directed and performed by Chinese, but it was produced by Hollywood and targeted to the American market. Despite its success in the U.S., the movie received only a lukewarm response in China. Many years later, however, the movie seemed to inspire other Chinese filmmakers. Their conclusions seemed to be that the Chinese film industry could operate like Hollywood, and Kung Fu was the key to entering the American market. Zhang Yimou made "Hero" in 2002. And everything changed. This was yet another surprise from an unlikely director. Zhang Yimou was not a commercial director at all. He made art films and was a frequent winner of different European film awards. With “Hero,” he defined an aesthetic standard. Equally important, he copied Hollywood business models. Yes, it's about money. Build an all-star cast from different regions, be it Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea or Japan. This will guarantee a movie's success in overseas markets. Invest heavily in filmmaking and marketing alike. Big budgets make it possible for directors to pursue bigger movies and generate lucrative profits. In this decade, we're witnessing a wave of ever higher budgeted movies from the Chinese film industry. Some failed miserably; some won applause. Fairly speaking, they're making good progress and have attracted more people back to the theatre. “Kung Fu Panda” and “The Forbidden Kingdom” both promise to be good choices for summertime entertainment. Back in the Chinese market, this year will be dominated by war movies. The most anticipated one is “Red Cliff,” directed by John Woo. Its cost has approached US$100 million. I hope it is worth the money, and I am ready to feel the trembling. |
