THE SORCERER AND THE WHITE SNAKE

And we watched a movie at Times Square... which is THE SORCERER AND THE WHITE SNAKE. The movie staring Raymond Lam, Jet Li and Charlene Choy

STORYLINE

White Snake (Eva Huang), in the incarnation of a beautiful lady, falls in love with a young herbalist Xu Xian (Raymond Lam). With the help of Green Snake (Charlene Choi), she ventured into the human world and got married to Xu Xian. In a twist of event, Fa Hai (Jet Li), a sorcerer from Jin Shan Temple, crosses path with White Snake. A fiery battle is about to begins

1000s of Chinese Artists (CN, TW, HK) microblog-power for earthquake disaster relief

Thursday April 15, 2010 Hong Kong
Source: Mingpao, Oriental Daily
Translated by: aZnangel @ http://asianuniverse.net/forums/



At 7.1 magnitude earthquake hits Yushu County of Qinghai Province, China. The news shook our hearts, there current death toll has rised to 617, nearly 10,000 wounded. A Hong Kong volunteer (Wong Fok Wing) for the local disaster relief was killed due to the buildings crushing in on him. The hero shocked our hearts, even the Mainland, Taiwanese and Hong Kong artists. Everyone expressed their feelings and sent their condolences through their microblogs, showing how united the community is. Many donated materials, money and sent blessings to the earthquake victims.

The big 7.1 magnitude earthquake hits the Chinese region once again, testing the power of love and unity. Regardless, people living in Hong Kong are blessed. The recent Taiwanese and the SiChuan earthquake two years ago are still fresh in Mainland artists memories. The heroic acts of the disaster relief volunteer (Wong Fok Wing) in saving others lives was named "Hong Kong Hero" by Gigi Leung on her microblog.

Thousands of Mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwanese artists expressed on their microblogs of the united spirit, no separation of power, constantly calling for donations, disaster relief activities and charities. Aaron Kwok and Lynn also did not avoid each other, working hard together in doing charity work. Miriam Yeung, Steven Ma and Jet Li paid their tributes to the hard working rescue team, hoping they can look after their own health too. Others who wrote on their blogs about the earthquake: Karen Mok, Andy Lau, Alan Tam, Myolie Wu, Janice Man, Michelle Reis, Kenny Kwan, Ivana Wong, Angelababy, Michelle Ye, etc.

Other facts:
- Twins plans to donate the money they earned from the concert to the disaster relief
- Anthony Wong donated 200,000 yuan
- Joey Yung donated 100,000 yuan
- Li Yuchun's Fund raised 1 million yuan

Jet Li: Never Heard about 'Shaolin' Remake

CRI.English

Chinese action superstar Jet Li has denied reports that he is to star in a remake of the 1982 smash-hit film "The Shaolin Temple", which launched his celebrated career.

Jet Li was promoting his self-developed exercise "Wuji" in Beijing on Wednesday. When reporters asked him to confirm his involvement in the project, the actor said, "I never heard about this film."

Several media reports had suggested Jet Li was in talks to play a supporting role in the remake.

The 46-year-old actor made his screen debut as a teenager, playing the leading character, monk Jue Yuan in "The Shaolin Temple". The film, named after the martial-arts hotbed in central China's Henan Province, not only made Jet Li an idol for many, but also brought an influx of kung-fu hopefuls to the temple.

Previous reports say a remake of the film is being planned with a budget of 200 million yuan (US$29.3 million) and the Shaolin Temple would allow the film to be shot on location.

New Shaolin Temple invites Jet Li; Andy could become male lead

More than 20 years ago, Jet Li made his name with Shaolin Temple, it cost 10 cents per movie ticket and the box office exceeded $1 billion. After more than 20 years, New Shaolin Temple is being planned, Jet had already been invited to join the cast.

New Shaolin Temple would not be a re-shoot as it will be a brand new movie, Alan Yuen, the scriptwriter of New Police Story fame had been tasked to write the script, the story will take place in the 20th century.

With regards to the cast of the movie, reporters got news from insider that Jet Li had agreed to be casted in the film, whereas Jet already had 2 discussion with the film company but what are the details and discussed till which stage is still unknown.

There is another allegation that Andy Lau will also be joining the cast. With regards to this, one of the film’s investor Henan Film Group CEO Mr. Lee expressed: “We have yet made the final decision.”

With the asking fee of Jet different from the past, would his fees alone burst the budget of the film, the film company said that there would be a possibility that Jet will be paid less or he just made a cameo and will not be the male lead.

There is also another saying that Andy will be the male lead, if everything is confirmed, this movie will be the second collaboration between these 2 superstars after The Warlords.

news from: ent.163.com, m1905.com
Credits: http://andylausounds.com

Li, Chan star in 'Founding' film

BEIJING -- Top Chinese and Hong Kong actors will appear in a film depicting the founding of the People's Republic of China, China Film Group head Han Sanping said at a press conference this week.

"The Great Cause of the Country's Founding" ("Jian Guo Da Ye"), also directed by Han, will star Jet Li, Jackie Chan, Andy Lau, Tang Guoqiang and Zhang Guoli.

The film focuses on the Chinese Civil War from 1945 to 1949, and is set for release in China on Sept. 17, and Hong Kong around Sept. 20. It may also get a screening in Taiwan, thanks to the recent warming in ties between the two sides.

China celebrates the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic, under the Chinese Communist Party, on October 1 this year.

THR Asia

Jet Li takes Singapore citizenship

SINGAPORE—Chinese action star Jet Li has taken up Singapore citizenship and bought a property in the city state worth nearly 20 million Singapore dollars (US$14 million), according to a report Wednesday.

The Business Times did not say when the Beijing-born star took up his new nationality or bought the upmarket property. It did not give its source.

Singapore's Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) would not confirm the newspaper report when contacted by Agence France-Presse for reasons of confidentiality.

A Beijing-based staff member at Li's One Foundation contacted by AFP declined comment.

Li is the latest Chinese star to have taken up Singapore citizenship, following in the footsteps of leading actress Gong Li, who shot to fame with her roles in "Farewell My Concubine" and later "Memoirs of a Geisha."

Gong Li, who is not related to Jet Li, became a Singapore citizen last year.

AFP via Inquirer

Andy Lau has more commercial value than Jay Chou & Jackie Chan

source: sina
translated by: Sarah @ http://asianfanatics.net

Yesterday, mainland China released a ‘Chinese Artists Commercial Value Report’. This report is based on public reputation, trust and expectations. The total statistical data contained 379,879 samples. The results were released and ‘old King’ Andy Lau was 92.47%, beating ‘new King’ Jay Chou and ‘big brother’ Jackie Chan, taking first place.

Among the artists, who is the ‘most valuable star’ in the eyes of the public? Surprisingly, survey results revealed that ‘old King’ Andy Lau took first place with 92.47%, and has become the artist with the highest commerical value, in a total survey of 700 artists. As for Jay Chou, who attracted $150,000,000yuan this year, took second place with 91.19%. Following on, ‘big brother’ Jackie Chan took third place with 89.76%.

4th = Jet Li (89.21%)
5th = Zhang Zi Yi (88.65%)
6th = Vicki Zhao (88.65%)
7th = Chen Dao Ming (88.30%)
8th = Li Ming (87.94%)
9th = Sun Hong Lei (87.80%)
10th = Maggie Cheung

In the top 10, male stars’ commercial value are evidently higher than female stars, as males occupied 7 places, furthermore top 5 are all male. Comparatively, Edison Chen, Deng Jie, Zang Tian Shuo etc have been bogged down due to too much negative news, and their placings are far behind. Comparatively, the ‘mass destruction’ brought on Deng Jie from the poisonous milk scandal*, seems to be more than Edison’s nude photo scandal.

*Deng Jie endorsed the San Lu milk powder for infants

Isabella Leong in The Curse of King

The Curse of king (Mummy 3) was Isabella Leong's first step into Hollywood's movie world. The other night was the premier show at 仁濟 charity. Anthony Wong and Jessey Meng attended the premier without the big stars such as Isabella Leong and Michelle Yeo. Anthony Wong told reporter it was a good thing that they were not present, otherwise he would not be interviewed. Anthony praised Isabella that she is a very talented actress and her English is fluent. She can fight too. She is still quite young and she will do well . Anthony said Isabella has been in contact with him by phone.
The Curse of King has been in cinema in the United States. Since the premier in Hong Kong, there have been numerous comments about her performances. Some reported she has improved but her English is not as good as Michelle Yeo and Jet Li. The fighting scene was very sharp, but Michelle Yeo and Anthony Wong were criticized for not speaking proper Mandarin. Some critics said the film concentrated to much on graphics.



Remarks from Sherming Yiu : Isabella's English is fine. She had a big role in the film. Jet Li only really appeared at the beginning and at the end. In terms of fighting, the actors did very well.
Remarks from Janice Man: Isabella's acting skills and her English are fine, they came out quite naturally. Some of her fighting scenes are quite dangerous. I give her 80% still has room for improvement.


Source:MingPao/Wenweipo
Translated by:dragon888 @ http://www.asianvn.com

Jet Li Introduces New Way to Fitness

CRIENGLISH.com

Martial-arts superstar Jet Li considers the healthy balance between exercises for one's body and mind an important contribution to his success, and now he is helping others to find that balance.

At a press conference on Sunday in Shanghai, Li introduced a new system of exercise he calls "Wuji," which blends martial-arts moves with yoga positions, Sina.com.cn reports.

Li and some other fitness professionals demonstrated the exercise with several hundred bodybuilders on site. He believes that Wuji can help long-term practitioners reach tiptop conditions both physically and mentally.

With joint creation by Jet Li and sportswear brand Adidas, Wuji also inaugurated a three-year-long cooperation between the two to promote new fitness concepts among urban Chinese, Sina.com.cn says.

Jet Li Shanghai Charity Race - Bowie Lam, Michelle Ye, Ruby Lin, Lee San San, etc participates

May 26, 2008
Source: Screen Power
Picture credits: Michelle Ye's Realm Forum (click for more pictures)

Jet Li Shanghai Charity Race

Jet Li’s The One Foundation C1 Celebrity Charity Race was held at the famous Shanghai International Race Circuit on May 25th, 2008. Jet signalled the start of the race, participated by Michelle Yip, Sun Nan, Wu Jing, Stanley Tong, Wu Jia Le, Bowie Lam, Chen Juan Hong, Zeng Li, Lee San San while Ruby Lin and Wang Zhi Wen turned up as cheerleaders.

Due to both hiccups and accidents, there were only a few left by the end of the six-lap race. On the first few laps, cars driven by Stanley Tong, Wu Jing, Michelle Yip crashed, collided, broke down, or suffered from flat tires. The champion male and female racers were Wu Jia Le and Chen Juan Hong. However, to the participants, it was not about winning, everyone was just concerned about doing their part for charity.

The 700 thousand yuan raised for the day will be contributed towards the China earthquake relief.

clips regarding the event...

More Donations for Quake Relief as Engines Roar

Action film star Jet Li took a break on Sunday from his relief work in quake-hit Sichuan Province and led a fund-raising car race in Shanghai.

The One Foundation Cup charity race, named after Jet Li's disaster-relief foundation, raised 700,000 yuan (US$100,846) with the help of its star-heavy racer roster. It was the latest effort by the One Foundation which has so far contributed more than 56 million yuan (US$8 million) since the deadly earthquake on May 12.

The emphasis on winning was downplayed at the race, which was held at the Shanghai International Circuit, while racers and onlookers highlighted their best wishes for quake survivors. While supermodel Chen Juanhong and actor Carlo Ng won the female and male games respectively, they held their arms high when receiving the trophies, a gesture to mourn the dead and encourage the living.

Outside the racing track, spectators flooded a reception center to sign their wishes on a huge banner, which will be presented to survivors in Sichuan.

Jet Li said earlier while volunteering in Chengdu, Sichuan's provincial capital, that he has prepared for long-term reconstruction effort in quake zones, and would stay away from the silver screen throughout the year.

The Beijing-based One Foundation recently set up an office in Chengdu to help its staff better carry out relief work.

CRI

Jet Li Prepares for Long-Term Work in Quake-Hit Sichuan

Jet Li's disaster-relief One Foundation set up an office in quake-hit Sichuan Province Wednesday, shifting its focus from emergency relief to reconstruction.

"Our work here is going to be long-term," Jet Li explained at a press conference in the provincial capital of Chengdu, where the office is based. The action film star flew there from Shanghai shortly after the May 12 earthquake, and has been an active volunteer since.

Foreseeing that rebuilding the quake-hit areas will take several years, Jet Li thinks a local office is needed to help his staff work more effectively. The focus of the foundation, he says, will be rebuilding schools and providing special care for those left orphaned or disabled.

Because the foundation has a star-studded volunteer line-up, the office will also serve as a reception center for them when they are volunteering in Sichuan, Jet Li says.

Jet Li and his foundation have raised 56.5 million yuan (US$8.1 million) for quake victims by Wednesday noon.

Crouching donkey, hidden turtle

Rob Minkoff, director of the charming ‘Lion King’ and ‘Stuart Little’ series, applies the same quaint sensibilities to what might have been stronger as an all-out martial-arts genre flick

By Bryant Manning
TaipeiTimes

Beware when a new film insists on reminding you of its “first” onscreen pairing of star actors X and Y. Like Nigerian “investors” e-mailing strangers for their credit card number, it’s the kind of scam that can leave you in the cold.

It’s a clever way to divert your attention away from the other parts of the film that might fizzle and flop. Think of Danny DeVito and Arnie in the subpar comedy Twins, or the Bennifer tag team in the dud Gigli. This year’s edition couples fu fighters Jackie Chan (成龍) and Jet Li (李連杰) in Rob Minkoff’s The Forbidden Kingdom, a promising adventure movie whose potential is sweep-kicked to the curb.

Minkoff has the charming Lion King and Stuart Little series under his belt, but he applies those same quaint sensibilities to what might have been stronger as an all-out martial-arts genre flick. The hokey but whimsical story line (based loosely on a traditional Chinese legend) could’ve been a boon if it weren’t so mired in John Fusco’s unmemorable script.

Michael Angarano (24, Seabiscuit) is Jason, a wimpy South Bostonian who gets pushed around by the neighborhood gang. He’s an avid martial arts DVD collector and finds a hangout in a slummy Chinatown pawnshop. The teen discovers that the store’s aging proprietor, Old Hop (a heavily powdered Jackie Chan), has an ancient sword in the back room with powers untold. When the bullies decide one night to rob the shop, Jason defends himself with the magical instrument. Then at the brink of death, he finds himself transported back to ancient China.

His troubles have only begun. Instead of dopey hoods from South Boston, he’s confronted by the wicked Jade Warlord (Collin Chou, 鄒兆龍), who has turned the all-loving Monkey King (Jet Li, 李連杰) into solid stone. Jason’s mission is to set him free and restore order to civilization, but he first needs a lesson or two in kung fu vernacular.

Chan doubles as the wine-addled Lu Yan, who teaches young Jason those very skills he’s long admired on those bootlegged DVDs. Along the way, they meet the Silent Monk (Jet Li, again) who delivers excitement in his every frame. Unfortunately, the principal female lead (Liu Yifei, 劉亦菲) is subjected to every eye-rolling stereotype as the submissive, grief-stricken Golden Sparrow, who plays sorrowful melodies on her lute-like instrument. Of course she naturally falls for the clumsy American hero.

Kung fu just isn’t as fun to experience when it feels like a synthetic video game. Rather than letting the natural flow of the action take over, extended slow-motion sequences dice it all up. It’s one thing to remind us of the craft’s balletic qualities, but it’s another to impede its driving motion. Which is too bad, since action choreographer Yuen Wo-ping (袁和平) did wonders with The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (臥虎藏龍).

Kingdom falls even harder when it gets the urge to genre hop. In one rare comical scene, Chan tries to conjure up some raindrops in the desert, only to realize that Li is urinating on him. Then there are long, irritating stretches where characters want to wax contemplative and share phony, hoary truths. “Music is the bridge between Earth and heaven,” says the straight-faced Golden Sparrow to Jason. This patchwork mess of slapstick, computer-generated Buddhist fantasy, Eastern epic, etc, doesn’t ever quite allow the viewer to happily abandon to any of them.

Film Notes
The Forbidden Kingdom
DIRECTED BY: Rob Minkoff
STARRING: Jackie Chan (成龍) as Lu Yan/Old Hop, Jet Li (李連杰) as Silent Monk/Monkey King, Collin Chou (鄒兆龍)as Jade Warlord, Liu Yifei (劉亦菲) as Golden Sparrow, Li Bing Bing (李冰冰)as Ni Chang
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH AND MANDARIN
RUNNING TIME: 113 MINUTES
TAIWAN RELEASE: TODAY

Finally, the pairing of Jackie Chan and Jet Li - in a story about someone else

By Matt Pais
Metromix
April 18, 2008
Critic's Rating: 2.5/5
source: http://chicago.metromix.com/movies/movie_r.../379931/content

During a fight with local Boston bullies, high school kid/kung fu movie buff Jason (Michael Angarano) magically disappears and reappears in ancient China, where a kung fu master (Jackie Chan) says that he must free the long-imprisoned Monkey King (Jet Li) by bringing a powerful item to a dangerous mountain. Jason’s allies are the not-so-silent Silent Monk (Li) and the mildly flirtatious Golden Sparrow (Yifei Liu) as they take on hordes of soldiers, an immortal war lord and an immortality-seeking witch—whose hair looks stolen from Halle Berry’s “X-Men” wardrobe.

Big question: Is the first-ever flick starring two martial arts legends as exciting as it could be?

Skip it: Apparently someone thought it was more entertaining for Li to urinate on Chan than for the two to square off. (No joke.) The masters fight each other only once, early on, which eliminates any anticipation and leaves the pair to battle stock villains in support of a story that feels like a mix of “Lord of the Rings” and Chuck Norris’ “Sidekicks.”

Catch it: If you agree with Golden Sparrow’s claim that, “It is said that music is a bridge between Earth and heaven.” Ancient disclaimer: Myth may not apply if the bridge is built with Daughtry songs.

Bottom line: The one Li-Chan showdown delivers, and Angarano’s (“Man in the Chair,” “Snow Angels”) good at controlling the wonderment of an innocent kid learning the ways of the world (or a warrior). But whether or not a teen can take down a bully after learning from great teachers isn’t especially compelling when those teachers have bare-bones backstories and comic timing that's not nearly as precise as their moves.

Bonus: An elderly salesman of bootleg kung fu movies (Chan) assumes the only martial arts film a teenager like Jason cares about is “Crouching Tiger, Spanking Monkey.” It’s the epic tale of a technique that many practice but few truly master.

Jet Li foundation allocates 2.3 mln yuan for charity in 1st year

The One Foundation Project, initiated by Chinese kung fu star Jet Li in 2007, has raised over 10 million yuan in its first year, and has allocated 2.3 million yuan for relief work.

Zhou Weiyan, executive chairman of the Foundation, said on Friday that by April 15, the foundation has received donations of 10.6 million yuan (about 1.5 million U.S. dollars) from all facets of society.

The number includes 648,287 yuan donated from about 600,000 mobile phone users, each donating one or two yuan through text messaging, he added.

Zhou said the Foundation allocated 100,000 yuan for disaster relief after the Pu'er earthquake in Yunnan Province last June, another 100,000 after the Shandong flooding last August, and donated 1 million yuan to the "Sunshine in your heart Project", a youth education program by the Red Cross Society of China.

It also allocated 1.1 million yuan to 17 provinces for immediate relief for the unprecedented snowstorms that hit central and southern parts of China between mid-January and February.

The One Foundation under partnership with the Red Cross Society of China calls for each person to donate at least one yuan each month, so that individual donations can be transformed into a much greater fund.

The foundation was founded on April 19, 2007 by action star Jet Li, who starred in Kiss of the Dragon in 2001, Hero in 2002 and a number of other kung fu movies.

Li's latest kung fu hit, "The Forbidden Kingdom" premiered in Beijing on April 16. The movie also stars Jackie Chan, another well-known kung fu star in China.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-04/...ent_8004406.htm

When Jackie met Jet

If Jet Li fights Jackie Chan, who will win? The audience will, says Rob Minkoff, director of The Forbidden Kingdom (Gongfu Zhi Wang), which premieres in North America today opens in China six days later.

It has been a dream come true for Chinese martial art lovers to see the two icons in one film. The story starts with a dream. Jason, an American teenage kungfu fan enters a fantastic world through the "gate of no gate," and embarks on the mission to rescue the Monkey King, who's trapped in a stone by his foe, Jade Warlord. Like the young Hobbits in The Lord of the Rings, Jason has several powerful escorts, including a silent monk played by Li and a drunken wanderer played by Chan.

The family-friendly film is a collaboration of scriptwriter John Fusco and Li. Several years ago Li was seeking a story for his daughter, and from a number of candidates sent to him he picked Fusco's, which was loosely adapted from the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West. It is a mix of Chinese mythology and tales and features a chaotic scene in which the Monkey King and Shaolin Temple monks fight together.

However, Li worried that the story was too much of a spoof for Chinese audience to accept. He suggested changing the storyline into a dream sequence. In dreams, anything can happen.

Minkoff is also quick to assume Chinese cinemagoers that the film in no way cheapens Chinese culture. He was even told by his Chinese wife, a descendant of the saint Confucius, and her parents that they would not tolerate cultural mockery.

"They put great pressure on me," he says jokingly. "I made sure that the characters are true to themselves, and to the core values they were endowed by Chinese culture."

Li has also helped introduce Chinese philosophy to the film. For example, when Jason asks Li's monk what to do when he is in danger, the monk replies: "Keep breathing". The two masters not only teach the boy kungfu, but also the importance of respecting his teachers.

"It has long been my wish to promote Chinese culture," Li says. "But it is a huge and complicated culture, so we may have to start with a simple approach first.

"To present a little bit of everything in an interesting way may be easier for Western audiences."

The good news for kungfu enthusiasts is that fight scenes take up a lot of screen time. There are a variety of kungfu styles on show, including the crane and tiger fist, no shadow kick and drunken kungfu. Minkoff grew up in the bay area of San Francisco. Like Jason in the film, as a little boy he went to China town a lot. But what piqued his interest in Chinese culture were kungfu films.

"In Chinese kungfu movies, typically two things are being expressed," he says. "One is the physical act of the fighting, and the spiritual side of the teaching, involving experience and conscience."

Minkoff's first Chinese kungfu film was King Hu's Come Drink with Me (Da Zui Xia), in 1966. He is fond of Bruce Lee and Shaw's films, too. In The Forbidden Kingdom, he goes out of his way to pay tribute to the old kungfu films.

Chan's drunken wanderer is a nod to his 1978 film Drunken Master (Zui Quan), while the silent monk Li reminds many of his character in The Shaolin Temple (Shaolin Si). Young actress Liu Yifei's supporting role as Golden Sparrow is inspired by Pei-pei Cheng's character in Come Drink with Me, while the white-haired witch is almost a replica of Lien Ni-chang, the heroine in Ronny Yu's The Bride of White Hair (Baifa Monu Zhuan).

The battles between Li and Chan, choreographed by Yuen Woo-ping, give each a chance to express his different style and personality.

"Jet was serious. He has learned traditional martial arts from a very young age, while Chan was hilarious and lighthearted," Yuen says.

"He can do a bit of everything," Yuen says.

A scene from the movie featuring Jason as an American teenage kungfu fan, Jackie Chan as a drunken wanderer and Jet Li as a silent monk. Photos courtesy of Huayi Brothers

In Minkoff's eyes, the two superstars are just like Buddha and his disciple.

"Li was like a disciple of the Buddha, but Chan is the Buddha himself," he says. "Jet is very serious and religiously dedicated to Buddhism. Jackie is not, he is free, always bringing happiness to people around him."

The crew took part in a big ceremony for the opening of the film, which was a very traditional Chinese gesture to pay tribute to the Buddha. As Minkoff recalled, Chan was quite lighthearted about it, while Li was serious and dedicated.

The two's cooperation, says Minkoff, is like the Beatles. Each is good, but when you put them together, it is magic.

"It's history. As time goes on, it will become historic. Even if you do it again, this is the first time," he says.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/entertainment...ent_6627073.htm

Opening Ceremony of "Forbidden Kingdom"

April in Beijing is not hot yet, except for the Chaoyang Park in Eastern Beijing, where the world premiere ceremony of Huayi Brother's kungfu epic "The Forbidden Kingdom" was held Wednesday night.

At the press conference on Tuesday, organizers claimed it will be the most shining show biz gala before the opening of the Beijing Olympics. So it was. Dozens of stars were invited to walk the red carpet and sign names on the promotion board.

Singers like Chinese pop duo Yu Quan, Sun Nan, Bobo, Zhang Liangying, and Shang Wenjie as well as Taiwan hostess A-Ya and mainland actor Huang Xiaoming attended the red carpet ceremony. Of course, the peak of the ceremony came as the cast members appeared. Chinese kungfu superstar Jet Li also brought his daughter in the hope of entertaining her.

Besides showbiz stars, hundreds of reporters from world's major media organizations came to report on the film's premiere. Besides the shining stars, the film itself attracted overseas reporters. Western public seems to be satisfied with a westerner's interpretation of the Monkey King legend.

As the first film starring both kungfu masters Jackie Chan and Jet Li, the Forbidden King will hit cinemas in North America on April 18, and in Asia on April 24.

source: CRI

Jet Li, Siqin Gaowa Crowned King and Queen at HK Film Awards

Action star Jet Li and mainland actress Siqin Gaowa were honored with the Best Actor and Actress awards at the 27th Hong Kong Film Awards on Sunday.

Jet Li, who portrayed a conspirator in the war epic "The Warlords," said his 28 years of hard work had finally paid off.

This is the second time Siqin Gaowa has nabbed the Best Actress award.

"It is truly beyond my expectations," the actress said, applauding at how the awards have evolved in the 23 years since she was first given the Best Actress award.

"The Warlords" was the biggest winner at the awards, sweeping another seven titles including Best Film, Best Director, Best Visual Effects and the Best Costume Make-Up and Design.

scoure: CRI

FACE-OFF: Jackie vs Jet

CONVERSATIONS With Ricky Lo
Sunday, April 13, 2008

HONG KONG — The team-up is long overdue. It comes as a puzzling surprise because the two action superstars made a name in the same industry before conquering Hollywood — and the world.

Together for the first time in a movie, The Forbidden Kingdom, a $78-M potential blockbuster, Jackie Chan and Jet Li explained why it took this long during a press conference in this city, conducted in Cantonese (with an interpreter for English-speaking journalists), with The STAR the only Philippine newspaper represented.

“I was attracted to The Forbidden Kingdom because Jet would be in it, “ said Jackie, who turned 54 last April 7. “ I have always wanted to do a movie with Jet but the right material didn’t come...until now. For 10 years, I’ve been looking forward to working with Jet who is one of the people whom I truly admire. Other stars I want to work with are Dustin Hoffman and Robert DeNiro before I retire from this business. Working with Jet has been great fun!”

Nodding in agreement, Jet said, “Of course, I am very delighted to be working with Jackie who is my good friend. Working with him is a great opportunity for me. Given a chance, I would love to work with him again.”

The synopsis: American teenager Jason, who is obsessed with Hong Kong cinema and kung fu classics, finds an antique Chinese staff in a pawnshop. It’s the legendary stick weapon of the Monkey King, the Chinese sage and warrior. With the precious find in hand, Jason unexpectedly finds himself transported back to ancient China. There, he meets Lu Yan (the drunken kung fu master), the Silent Monk (who’s enigmatic and skillful) and Golden Sparrow (a vengeance-bent kung fu beauty) who lead him on his quest to return the staff to its rightful owner, the Monkey King who is imprisoned in a stone by the evil Jade Warlord for 500 years. Along the way, while attempting to outmaneuver scores of Jade Warriors, Cult Killers and Ni Chang the deadly White Hair Demoness, Jason learns about honor, loyalty and friendship, and the true meaning of kung fu, and thus frees himself.

As mentioned in an earlier story, The Forbidden Kingdom is an East-West collaboration, produced by Emperor Motion Pictures and released by Viva Films International in the Philippines. Besides Jackie (as Lu Yan the drunken master) and Jet (as both the Monkey King and the Silent Monk), it also stars American actor Michael Angarano as Jason, and Chinese actors Liu Yifei (as the Golden Sparrow), Li Bingbing (as the White Hair Demoness Ni Chang) and Collin Chou (as the evil Jade Warrior).

Directed by Rob Minkoff (The Lion King, etc.), an American, from a screenplay by John Fusco (Young Guns I and II, etc.), also an American, The Forbidden Kingdom is produced by a mixed Chinese-American team: Casey Silver (American), producer; Ryan Kavanaugh (American), executive producer; Raffaella De Laurentiis (American, daughter of Dino De Laurentiis and Silvana Mangano), executive producer; Wang Zhongjun (Chinese), executive producer; and Wang Zhonglei (Chinese), associate executive producer.

The movie’s stars and producers, together with the behind-the-camera talents, also a mix of Chinese and Americans, were all present at the presscon held at the ballroom of the Grand Hyatt, kicked off by an exhibition by kiddie kung fu artists.

Commented Li Bingbing, “This is a film which has incorporated a Western point of view to traditional Chinese mythology and culture.”

How The Forbidden Kingdom came to be is in itself like Jason’s dream-to-reality journey.

Screenwriter Fusco, who has an unwavering interest in martial arts and its philosophy, conceptualized the movie as early as five years ago as a bedtime story for his young son who is also a fan of kung fu movies. Producer Silver liked the idea. The casting followed. Silver only had two actors in mind as leads: Jackie and Jet. He got in touch with Jet who is based in Southern California and gave him a copy of the script. Jet said yes without any second thoughts. Silver recalled that he had to fly to Hong Kong to talk to Jackie who readily also said yes. It’s a casting coup by Silver who also scored the feat of having the entire film shot in China.

Actually, Jackie and Jet almost starred together in a movie in 1993 and then in 2000.

Said Jet, “I have made a lot of violent movies. I think it’s time for me to do a movie which my own children and those of other people can enjoy. I did this movie for my two girls.”

On the set, the two actors felt as if they had been working together for a long time.

“I have to practise when working with other people,” Jackie confessed. “With Jet, it’s different. All we did was look at each other, as if to say, ‘Let’s just do it!’ Maybe we were trying to test each other. I don’t know. Maybe Jet wanted to find out how fast I am and maybe I wanted to see how good he is. We did our first two takes so fast that everybody was telling us to slow down. So we did. Otherwise, the cameraman would have put the camera speed slower.”

The fight scenes were done in a breeze. Easy does it.

Continued Jackie, “With other people, it takes 10 to 15 takes. With Jet and me, only three to five takes. All I did was tell Jet that I would do a few strokes and let him know my rhythm. And then he just reacts with his strokes. The kind of chemistry that Jet and I have is the same as the chemistry I have with Samo Hung and Yuen Biao.”

Director Minkoff made sure that the film would be fun and enjoyable for the entire family.

“People have been taking martial-arts films too seriously,” he said. “So this film is something that everyone can enjoy — kids, teenagers, parents and even grandparents.
According to executive producer De Laurentiis, putting together Jackie and Jet in a movie is already special, something that might take a long time to duplicate.

“Being both a martial arts film and a contemporary American film makes The Forbidden Kingdom unlike any martial arts film. All we want to do is make a good movie — a fun, good movie that will appeal to both the East and the West. I think we have done it.”

Watch the movie and you will think so, too.

(E-mail reactions at rickylo@philstar.net.ph or at entphilstar@yahoo.com)

Jet Li Unites One Foundation for Charity

CRIENGLISH.com

China's film industry leader Huayi Brothers Film Corporation officially announced their cooperation with One Foundation, the charity fund launched by Chinese kung fu master Jet Li, in a press conference held in Beijing on Wednesday afternoon, March 5.

Wang Zhongjun, CEO of Huayi Brothers, said that Huayi, together with their partners, four major theater companies, will donate part of their box office income in the next decade to One Foundation for charity. If one film ticket was sold, Huayi Brothers would donate 0.1 yuan and the related theater would donate 0.01yuan. And the donation starts from the action blockbuster "The Forbidden Kingdom", which is scheduled to premiere in North America on April 18.

Starring Jet Li and another superstar Jackie Chan, the movie has been the focus of public attention since shooting began. This film marks the first collaboration between two stars. It is estimated to break the box office record by Peter Chan's epic movie the Warlords in 2007.

Jet Li, who was present at the press conference, was very glad to have this tycoon on board. "Since the fund's launch last year, many film companies, directors and actors have offered help to the One Foundation. Today, we have set up cooperation with Huayi Brothers. That means more and more celebrity friends will join in to promote the charity campaign". Jet Li is confident that his fund will benefit more people. It's believed the two joining hands will result in more donations for the One Foundation.

Last April, Jet Li put his years' plan into reality and launched the One Foundation, hoping to help youth suffering from mental health problems, as well as victims of natural disasters. After near a year's effort, he persuaded many entrainment stars to get involved in the project, including Jackie Chan, Jay Chou, Andy Lau and Peter Chan.