Fearless

[Dialectic]

Saw the whole movie today in Mandarin with no subtitles (version I got only had Chinese ones). I understood about 80 - 90% of it, which was great, though I was fortunate because I'd read all the philosophical stuff in English (and some in Chinese) before so I could piece together the gist of what they were saying in Mandarin. The hardest stuff for me was stuff related to business and more worldly affairs.

Loved the movie, absolutely loved it. Very nice how they treated the Japanese with respect, too. I had tears in my eyes at the end!

[aelward]

One of my friends picked up a copy for me last week, and I'm dying to see it myself... the trailers look pretty good.

[BIG_Canon]

Referring to this movie??

Huo Yuan Jia
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0446059/

Links:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10006530-fearless/
http://www.fearlessthemovie.com/

The offical release is Aug 4/2006. You saw the 'fan ban' version??

[Dialectic]

I live in Toronto. I see the fan ban everything!

(But I'll catch it in theatres too.)

[Synthetic]

yeah, i "acquired" it last week and i was pleasantly pleased with it......though i was beginning to get used to the whole "implied" violence without the need to show the blood, i.e. Hero....and this movie undid that..

but yeah, good movie.

[nskripchun]

I got it off BitTorrent and saw it a few weeks ago... great stuff! I like how Jet is really conscious about incorporating more philosophical aspects in his films, especially his Buddhist beliefs.

I'll be sad if it really is his last action movie.

[evil_FUX]

^No, he just meant martial arts movie involving that type of era or genre. He'll be doing more modern stuff like his new movie Rogue.

[aelward]

I watched the first half last nite... looking good so far.

[lopan]

Overall, it was FANTASTIC -- the kind of Jet Li movie that made him famous and the kind of Jet Li movie that I've always come to expect from him. None of that "Crade 2 the Grave" or "Romeo Must Die" hip-hop soundtrack bullshit.

However, the one thing that I'm disappointed at is how much was cut from the film. Sure, it was already 2 hours long, but i could have done with more. Apparently the American editor they had working on it trimmed it from an "american audience" perspective, which meant that audiences overseas may have become restless for a film any longer than 2 hours. Which is why the Second Act, with Jet living in self exhile, seemed "choppy" and "rushed". I think the original act had a much longer, more rounded feel, similar to Tom Cruise's character's experiernce in the Last Samurai. However, that was all chopped. As well as the whole scene with Michelle Yeoh (who was also providing narration to the film -- after cutting her scenes, they had to figure out how they would cut out her narration without compromising understandability).

If you manage to find the Fearless DVD with the special features, you'll also see footage of Jet scouting the WORLD for top-notch fighters. Apparently there was also to be a scene where Jet takes on a Muay Thai fighter (his answer to the recent hooplah surrounding Tony Ja). I think he was also meant to take on some grapplers as well -- ala UFC style shootfighting. It's too bad they cut all this stuff out, and I hope it all returns for the Director's Cut DVD!

[cattygurl]

^^ Actually the 2 hour cutoff in the US for movies isn't as much about the audience- the audience will sit through long-ass movies if it's decent. It's about profit- the theaters cannot show as many showings for longer films, so they resist carrying them as it cuts into their profit margin.

[BIG_Canon]

^^ Actually the 2 hour cutoff in the US for movies isn't as much about the audience- the audience will sit through long-ass movies if it's decent. It's about profit- the theaters cannot show as many showings for longer films, so they resist carrying them as it cuts into their profit margin.

...unless it's a blockbuster through review audiences and pre-screenings. In that case, the managers just open more screens for the same film.

[lopan]

Right. But a movie that's more than 2 hours, based on a Chinese guy kicking white-ass, where all the white people in the audience are forced to read subtitles through the whole thing?

Not going to sell.

[BIG_Canon]

Right. But a movie that's more than 2 hours, based on a Chinese guy kicking white-ass, where all the white people in the audience are forced to read subtitles through the whole thing?

Not going to sell.

To clarify, by blockbuster, I meant movies like Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and such... You're right, this movie will play well on main screens of movie chains for like the 1st week and eventually moved to independant screens where like 20 people show up.

[nskripchun]

Right. But a movie that's more than 2 hours, based on a Chinese guy kicking white-ass, where all the white people in the audience are forced to read subtitles through the whole thing?

Not going to sell.

All they have to do is slap a scantily-clad Asian girl on the front in a whore-ish cheungsam and the DVD will fly up the shelves into unsuspecting whiteboy hands...

[maogirl]

All they have to do is slap a scantily-clad Asian girl on the front in a whore-ish cheungsam and the DVD will fly up the shelves into unsuspecting whiteboy hands...


got problem with whorish cheongsams meh?? :x

[aelward]

If you manage to find the Fearless DVD with the special features, you'll also see footage of Jet scouting the WORLD for top-notch fighters. Apparently there was also to be a scene where Jet takes on a Muay Thai fighter (his answer to the recent hooplah surrounding Tony Ja). I think he was also meant to take on some grapplers as well -- ala UFC style shootfighting.

Hmmm, I think Tony Jaa is much more impressive to watch than Jet Li. It's not to say Jet isn't fun to watch, he just doesn't have jaw-dropping "how the heck did he do that" moves that Tony does. Of course, in a Muay Thai vs. Kung Fu movie scene, the winner would be decided by the nationality of the movie's producers... anyone seen Shaolin Challenges Ninja? :P

[aelward]

I just finished watching it. Pretty good movie. With hHuo Yuan Jia's attitude toward martial arts, I wonder how the legend of Chen Zhen ever got started.

[Kuroyama]

Damn fine flick. I saw it in the theater here. Its a real head exploder referring to Japanese subtitles because I dont understand the Mandarin.

Like it so much I downloaded it... with French subtitles... damn.

[aelward]

It was cool that the Japanese fighter was honorable. So different from Bruce Lee's interpretation in Fist of Fury. But similar to Jet's remake in Fist of Legend....

[toml]

Just saw it as well.

It was ok, but I wish they would have had some connection to Chen Zhen's character. Like at least show a scene where he shows up to learn.

Also, didn't he have a son?

[nskripchun]

Just saw it as well.

It was ok, but I wish they would have had some connection to Chen Zhen's character. Like at least show a scene where he shows up to learn.

Also, didn't he have a son?

There is a brief "Chen Zhen cameo" in the final scene, where Yuanjia says, "Chen Zhen, don't seek revenge".

[maogirl]

Just saw it as well.

It was ok, but I wish they would have had some connection to Chen Zhen's character. Like at least show a scene where he shows up to learn.

Also, didn't he have a son?

There is a brief "Chen Zhen cameo" in the final scene, where Yuanjia says, "Chen Zhen, don't seek revenge".


i cracked up over that, did you? i mean, you know, the whole irony of the situation, jet li's first movie, etc.

you know, when huo yuan jia was planting those seedlings, i felt sooo much empathy for him...gardening was an actual subject when i was in convent school and that whole scene brought back a lot of bad memories.

[toml]

There is a brief "Chen Zhen cameo" in the final scene, where Yuanjia says, "Chen Zhen, don't seek revenge".

Oh! I didn't notice that... I'll have to check out that scene again.

[Ike]

I just saw Fearless, subtitled in English, in an American theater with my European-American friends. I loved the movie, but my situation made me feel kind of dirty.

[Meltfire Lightspear]

I saw it. There were a whole set of white college kids and one FEA family there. Some dickhead farted out loud during the credits. Afterwards I commented to my companion, in an intentionally loud voice, that whoever made the noise in the silence was a gigantic fuckwit.