Keanu Reeves’ Man of Tai Chi is a film that caught me off guard. I didn’t think much of it until I saw the concept trailer and teaser, but things are shaping up to be really interesting. Some new images of the film were released today, and it’s pretty easy to see that there will be a fair share of fighting as well as some crime/mystery mixed in.
I really think this movie is going to take people by surprise, and that’s always a good thing. Don’t forget that Iko Uwais is also said to have a part in the film, and I’m sure there will be plenty of other surprises in store for fans as well.
Police Story 2013 and the Iceman Cometh remake are 2 of the most highly-anticipated films that are coming out this year. Thankfully, both of them had posters released today. Check them out.
Here is the one for Police Story 2013, which I think is a drastic change in tone for a Jackie Chan film.
I can tell that both films are going for something different. The Iceman Cometh remake is clearly going for the “epic” story while Police Story is more personal and gritty. I think that both films will have a big impact in different ways, and hopefully we’ll see a trailer for them in the coming weeks.
It looks like every action star has a full schedule this year, and I’m not complaining about that at all. Let’s start with JCVD’s new film called Swelter. In it, Van Damme plays a bank robber that works with his crew to steal $100 million dollars. Naturally, some of them are caught and ten years pass. By this time, Van Damme is a sheriff of a small town, somehow forgetting about his turbulent past. Some of his former members find him and demand to know what happened to the money, which is where the action will heat up.
This story seems basic enough, and it will all depend on how the material is handled to determine how things go. It could be something deep and emotional like Gran Tourino or A History of Violence, or be something like the Last Stand.
Another person that seems to be getting a lot of job offers is Dolph Lundgren. The man has pretty much worked with all of the Expendables by now, and word is that he’s teaming up with Cung Le for a new film called Justice (or maybe Certain Justice or Justice is Coming.) There aren’t very many details about the film except that it’s something that Le has kept close to his chest for years now. He’s called it a blend between First Blood and No Country for Old Men. The film is going to be directed by James Coyne.
I’m glad to see that there are so many different talents working together, and hopefully that will give us fans something to look forward to. I’ll keep you guys posted when I learn more about each film, but feel free to state how excited you are (or aren’t) for these two films that are coming out.
It’s been a while since I’ve covered anything about Berandal, but that doesn’t mean the team isn’t hard at work on the film. Evans has been tweeting updates very frequently, giving away little tidbits of info for those that are hungry enough. It sounds like they are just about finished filming a 5-day long car chase:
Final prep ahead of day 5 of the car chase. Promise we won’t disrupt traffic too much
I’m really curious to see how Evans and the team will handle a car chase, as you know it won’t be your typical chase scene. What makes it even more curious is the fact that Bruce Law and Mike Leeder will be joining the team for the sequences.
Very excited to have Bruce Law, his stunt team joiningfor the car chase. Exciting times.
Bullet In The Head, Operation Condor, Hard Boiled, Special Identity – just some of Bruce’s work. To say we are excited is an understatement.
I love how Evans just dangles the carrot right in front of our faces, letting us know that the film is still going strong and that there will be plenty more to come. Don’t believe me? Read this tweet:
Yeah so far I’ve cut 48mins worth of action scenes. We still have around 4-5 action scenes left to shoot. Fun fun fun
Anyways, I’ll try to keep you guys posted when the big news gets revealed. Be sure to follow Gareth Evans on twitter to get all the best details the moment they drop!
Martial arts fights can be used to convey a number of different messages. Many simply shrug it off as a simple form of entertainment, but there are some special exceptions to the case. Videos can be created that strike a blow to a person’s heart, lingering in their thoughts for days to come. The Forge is such a video.
Eric Lim is an up-and-coming filmmaker with a lot of passion. He’s made creative shorts in the past, and has proven his talent time and again. However, his life was shaken when his sister took her own life back in 2011. People cope with loss in a number of different ways, and Lim struggled to find meaning of it all. Eric’s sister left her savings behind for him to use, and he tried to come up with a method that would use the money in a proper manner.
He eventually turned to friend Stephen Reedy, who interviewed Eric and his family to get a better grasp of the emotional struggle each member faced. He watched home videos, paying attention to the funeral eulogy video as well. It was then that Reedy recalled an idea that he had but on the back burner. Coming from a metal art background, he had always wanted merge fighting with Blacksmithing. This became the concept for the Forge, a project that gave Eric Lim a way of expressing himself while extending a hand out to those who are in a personal hell themselves.
The funding helped start the idea, but several miracles made this video something even more special. The Forge took a year to make, and the list of helping hands is impressive. Talented people like Dennis Ruel and Vadislav Rimburg used their martial arts filming expertise to create a believable fight sequence. Director/writer Stephen Reedy was able to take Eric’s message to the next level, creating a visual style and story that fit Eric’s message perfectly and filming it accurately with his knowledge of fight choreography.
Grammy-nominated composer Austin Wintory, singer Malukah, and renown cellist Tina Guo created the soundtrack for the Forge. Visual effects were created by Chris Saul and Lincoln Smith, while the monster’s look was created by Alex Pardee. All of these people worked on this project for free because they believed in Lim’s message. The video was also hosted by the Youtube Channel SoulPancake, which was created by Rainn Wilson (frequently known as Dwight from the Office) at no charge because they were moved as well.
Give the video a look and see what moved so many people:
The Forge is a video that will have a different meaning to everyone who watches it. Those that are in a dark place may see a glimmer of hope while those that have lost someone might feel the pressure lessen slightly. Regardless of what it means to you, the Forge is a stunning work that needs to be seen by everyone.
It was said back in April of last year that Donnie Yen was going to reprise his role as the title character in the film, Ip Man 3 and Wilson Yip would also be back to direct. But now, according to a Hong Kong magazine, the film has lost the two men who are responsible for bringing the film franchise to life, Donnie Yen and Wilson Yip.
Director Yip was not happy with the film’s lack of funding and finance and decided to leave the project and he has been replaced with producer Raymond Wong’s son, Edmond. Donnie Yen soon followed after the director’s departure saying that the film would not work withouth Wilson Yip’s involvement. Yen and Yip have worked together on several films including their first outing together, SPL.
Ip Man 3 has been struggling to get funding from Chinese companies who are unwilling to finance the film. Raymond Wong and Wilson Yip obviously disagreed on the film’s progress as Wong wanted to keep going as scheduled but Yip thought that without the proper funding, the film would be a much lesser effort.
With the duo’s extremely busy schedules conflicting with the film’s shooting schedule set to begin in July and the film producers’ intentions on releasing the film in 3D, it’s very unlikely that the duo will come back to sign onto the film. Raymond Wong’s daughter, Alvina, said to the possible scheduling conflicts, “We are a listed company, and we signed a contract with the investors. No matter who is in the cast, we will start filming.”
Obviously, this is a massive blow to fans of the Ip Man film series. Knowing that Donnie Yen and Wilson Yip were planning on coming back and now they will no longer be a part of the film is a major disappointment. We already know that Wilson Yip has been replaced with producer Raymond Wong’s son, Edmond, to direct the film but who will replace Donnie? Casting the lead role is going to be a huge task and whoever they cast, that person has some major big shoes to fill and unfortunately, will be compared to the epic talents of Donnie and his performances in the first two films.
What do you think? Are you still excited to see this film or is Ip Man 3 now out the window for you? Let us know in the comments!
Donnie Yens 3D remake of the Iceman Cometh has had its fair share of turbulent times. The film has gone over-budget as well as well over schedule, and there are no signs of the film coming to a halt. Producers are looking to figure out how to make up the costs, and there is now news that the film may be split into 2 parts.
Impact Online states that the split will let the story be told on an epic scale, with the second half finishing up around Christmastime. The crew will be hard at work while the first film is being shown at theaters, not taking a break from production.
I can see how this is a smart move for those involved on the film, but how in the world are they going to have enough story to carry 2 films? The first film was less than 2 hours long. I can understand if more time is needed for effects in the film, but I’m really worried that it will be really apparent that this is one movie stretched out into 2. Plus, what happens if the first half flops?
With Special Identity still in legal limbo, I guess some Donnie is better than no Donnie. What do you guys think? Is splitting the film into 2 a justified idea?
There will be some changes with the seventh (I never would’ve imagined there would be 7 Fast films) film in the Fast & Furious film series. First, Justin Lin will no longer be directing after directed the previous 4 films. Instead, James Wan of Saw will be directing. Now, it has been confirmed that Jason Statham will be in the seventh film. What role he will play has not been disclosed. In an interview with DesdeHollywood, Michelle Rodriguez, who has played Letty Ortiz in three of the films, more or less confirms Statham’s involvement.
“Jason Statham, Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, when you see these guys in a room you know they belong together [...] You can see in their eyes that they have gone through a lot [...] I applaud Universal for getting him on-board!”
Having Jason Statham on board will hopefully mean more hand to hand combat. It will be interesting to see who he will ultimately play and once that information becomes available, we will let you know.
I finally get to tell you guys about some awesome films that are coming down the pipeline. The first is called Favela, and it stars Undisupted 2 and Spawn star Michael Jai White. The film is going to be a series, tracking the story of a man named John ‘Falcon’ Chapman and his journey for revenge.
The film will be directed by Assassination Games and Six Bullets director Ernie Barbarash, who also hopes to pump out 1 to 2 of these films a year. The first film will take place in Brazil, where Falcon journeys to find the killer of his sister. If these images are anything to go by, there will be plenty of action to be had.
I don’t know how the filming schedule will be, since 1 to 2 films on this series is pretty demanding. If things go well, White has a solid role ahead of him, but he won’t be able to do many more projects. I’ll keep you posted as I learn more.
Next up, I want to cover a film that features a star from the film Merantau. While most people think about Iko Uwais and Gareth Evans (among others) there are some that didn’t appear in the Raid. However, the end fight to the film was a spectacular one, and Laurent Buson was one of the opponents. He also belongs to a talented stunt group called the Z Team, and they have just released a trailer for their next film, the Price of success.
The film will follow a group of men that are forced to fight one another to save their loved ones until only 1 remains. The plot isn’t anything new, but the trailer gives off a Kill Em’ All or BKO vibe. Check it out here:
I’m excited to see how this film turns out, and I love any movie that doesn’t rely on wires and CG. The team looks like they are in top shape, and the fights may surprise a few. I’ll be checking it out, for sure!
Eric Tsang may be known for his more comedic roles, but he’s a dedicated actor in his own right. 7 Assassins (Glory Days) is co-directed by Tsang and Xin Xin Xiong, and features a some pretty good action sequences.
The story revolves around a group of royal guards that are sent on a mission to retrieve some stolen gold, but they soon run into complications and discover that there are more people after the gold than just them.
The film looks pretty good, though it may not be anything super special. This film came out of left field for me, but it’s something that’s coming out soon and may help with the wait for other movies. 7 Assassins will be coming out on June 9th.
