TTheatersheaters Show Lo (F) and Jackie Chan in “Bleeding...
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14 ❘ Movies CONTACT US AT: 8351-9409, [email protected] Fri/Sat/Sun December 29~31, 2017 (Dec. 29) Theaters Theaters Schedule Schedule Currently playing Bleeding Steel (Mandarin) —————————————— Youth (Mandarin) —————————————— Loving Vincent (English) —————————————— Legend of the Demon Cat (Mandarin) —————————————— The Liquidator (Mandarin) —————————————— Coco (English) —————————————— 《机器之血》 WITH “Bleeding Steel,” Jackie Chan literally wraps up 2017 by revisiting every archetype he has dabbled with during the past 12 months. As an upstanding cop trying to protect his daughter and also save the world, Chan’s protagonist here is at once a comical vigilante (“Railroad Tigers”), globetrotting fighter (“Kung Fu Yoga”) and a grieving father (“The Foreigner”). All that is packaged in a futuristic narrative peopled by a mad scientist and mutants, a back- drop shared with “Reset,” the sci-fi actioner on which Chan was credited as a producer. Having made his directorial debut in 2012 with “Chrysanthemum to the Beast,” a gangster flick starring Chan’s son Jaycee, musician-turned- filmmaker Leo Zhang struggles to maintain a coherent tone with such inconsistent characterizations — not just the protagonist’s, but the sup- porting roles as well. Spiced up with moments of crude humor (bared brassieres and burned backsides, for example) and extreme violence (someone gets shot in the head, another has his heart ripped out of his body), the screenplay disintegrates as the plot careens forward with ever more inexplicable turns. “Bleeding Steel” is hardly ground- breaking. Then again, by playing a rewritten version of Chan’s theme song to the 1985 film “Police Story” over the actor’s trademark end-credit gag reel, both the director and star probably had the idea of making a throwback all along. Fans of Chan and derring-do actioners will have a lot to marvel at, such as the tautly choreographed shootout at the begin- ning of the film and the skirmish on top of the Sydney Opera House. It’s a spectacle that will also go down well with Chinese audiences seeking some festive entertainment during the lucrative run-up to the New Year holidays. The film begins with special forces agent Lin (Chan) speeding his way across town, split between his desire to bid a final farewell to his ailing daughter and an order to escort bioen- gineering expert James (Kim Gyngell) to a high-security facility. This being a Jackie Chan film, Lin naturally fore- goes the personal in order to fulfill his professional duties. It’s a decision that leads to deaths aplenty: Lin’s daughter’s at the hospital, of course, but also most of his team at the hands of Andre (Callan Mulvey), a mutant warrior hunting down James for the immortality serum he has invented. Flash forward 13 years, with the narrative relocated to Sydney in 2020 and Lin working odd jobs in order to remain close to a Chinese university student named Nancy (cellist-turned- actor Nana Ouyang). It’s hardly a spoiler to reveal who she is, given that she’s shown dreaming of James and his medical experiments in just her second scene. While Nancy struggles to contend with these suppressed memories, people begin to appear because of them: a bumbling rogue called Leeson (Show Lo, “The Mer- maid”) is soon followed by Andre’s henchwoman (Tess Haubrich). Cue endless chases along Sydney’s streets and inside (and atop) the Australian city’s buildings, followed by more set-pieces — including showdowns first with the villainess and then with Andre himself — filmed in Taipei, here masquerading as the fictional city of Xingan. Not that the geography — or the science, or the psychology — matters anyway. “Bleeding Steel” is all about old-school thrills, and Zhang has delivered a wide range of them, from cafeteria catfights to expansive pyrotechnics — with not just one but two crotch-kicking gags thrown in for good measure. (SD-Agencies) Bleeding Steel Starring: Jackie Chan, Show Lo, Nana Ouyang, Erica Xia-Hou, Callan Mulvey, Tess Haubrich, Kim Gyngell Director: Leo Zhang Show Lo (F) and Jackie Chan in “Bleeding Steel.” File photos Jackie Chan in “Bleeding Steel.” OSGH Cinema Add: Inside The MixC Metro: Line 1 or 2, Grand Theater Station South Movie City Add: Inside Kingglory Plaza Metro: Line 1, Guomao Station UA KK Mall Add: Inside KK Mall Metro: Line 1 or 2, Grand Theater Station Broadway Cinema Add: Inside Coco Park Metro: Line 1 or 3, Shopping Park Station Bona Cinema Add: Inside Maoye Department Store Metro: Line 2, Huaqiangbei Station China Film Cinema Add: Inside OCT Harbor Metro: Line 9, Shenzhen Bay Park Station Holiday Cinema Add: Inside Yitian Holiday Plaza Metro: Line 1 or 2, Window of the World Station Coastal City Cinema Add: Inside Coastal City Metro: Line 2 or 11, Houhai Station Lumière Pavilions Add: Inside Gateway One Metro: Line 2, Sea World Station Shenzhen Jinyi Intl. Cinema Add: Inside Central Walk Metro: Line 1 or 4, Convention and Exhibition Center Station Huayi Brothers Cinema Add: Inside All City Metro: Line 2, Haiyue Station Donghai Pacific Cineplex Add: Inside Donghai Shopping Plaza Metro: Line 1, 7, 9, Chegongmiao Station OSGH Cinema Add: Inside Injoy Mall Metro: Line 9, Shangmeilin Station Golden Carnival Center Cinema Add: Beside Shenzhen Concert Hall Metro: Line 3 or 4, Children’s Palace Station MCL Cinema City Add: 5/F, Garden City Center Metro: Line 1, Daxin Station, change to bus 332
Transcript of TTheatersheaters Show Lo (F) and Jackie Chan in “Bleeding...
14 x MoviesCONTACT US AT: 8351-9409, [email protected]
Fri/Sat/Sun December 29~31, 2017
(Dec. 29)
TheatersTheaters
ScheduleScheduleCurrently playing
Bleeding Steel (Mandarin)——————————————
Youth (Mandarin)——————————————
Loving Vincent (English)——————————————
Legend of the Demon Cat(Mandarin)
——————————————The Liquidator
(Mandarin)——————————————
Coco(English)
——————————————
《机器之血》
WITH “Bleeding Steel,” Jackie Chan literally wraps up 2017 by revisiting every archetype he has dabbled with during the past 12 months. As an upstanding cop trying to protect his daughter and also save the world, Chan’s protagonist here is at once a comical vigilante (“Railroad Tigers”), globetrotting fi ghter (“Kung Fu Yoga”) and a grieving father (“The Foreigner”). All that is packaged in a futuristic narrative peopled by a mad scientist and mutants, a back-drop shared with “Reset,” the sci-fi actioner on which Chan was credited as a producer.
Having made his directorial debut in 2012 with “Chrysanthemum to the Beast,” a gangster fl ick starring Chan’s son Jaycee, musician-turned-fi lmmaker Leo Zhang struggles to maintain a coherent tone with such inconsistent characterizations — not just the protagonist’s, but the sup-porting roles as well. Spiced up with moments of crude humor (bared brassieres and burned backsides, for example) and extreme violence (someone gets shot in the head, another has his heart ripped out of his body), the screenplay disintegrates as the plot careens forward with ever more inexplicable turns.
“Bleeding Steel” is hardly ground-breaking. Then again, by playing a rewritten version of Chan’s theme song to the 1985 fi lm “Police Story” over the actor’s trademark end-credit gag reel, both the director and star probably had the idea of making a throwback all along. Fans of Chan and derring-do actioners will have a lot to marvel at, such as the tautly choreographed shootout at the begin-ning of the fi lm and the skirmish on top of the Sydney Opera House. It’s
a spectacle that will also go down well with Chinese audiences seeking some festive entertainment during the lucrative run-up to the New Year holidays.
The fi lm begins with special forces agent Lin (Chan) speeding his way across town, split between his desire to bid a fi nal farewell to his ailing daughter and an order to escort bioen-gineering expert James (Kim Gyngell) to a high-security facility. This being a Jackie Chan fi lm, Lin naturally fore-goes the personal in order to fulfi ll his professional duties. It’s a decision that leads to deaths aplenty: Lin’s daughter’s at the hospital, of course, but also most of his team at the hands of Andre (Callan Mulvey), a mutant warrior hunting down James for the immortality serum he has invented.
Flash forward 13 years, with the narrative relocated to Sydney in 2020 and Lin working odd jobs in order to remain close to a Chinese university student named Nancy (cellist-turned-actor Nana Ouyang). It’s hardly a
spoiler to reveal who she is, given that she’s shown dreaming of James and his medical experiments in just her second scene. While Nancy struggles to contend with these suppressed memories, people begin to appear because of them: a bumbling rogue called Leeson (Show Lo, “The Mer-maid”) is soon followed by Andre’s henchwoman (Tess Haubrich).
Cue endless chases along Sydney’s streets and inside (and atop) the Australian city’s buildings, followed by more set-pieces — including showdowns fi rst with the villainess and then with Andre himself — fi lmed in Taipei, here masquerading as the fi ctional city of Xingan. Not that the geography — or the science, or the psychology — matters anyway. “Bleeding Steel” is all about old-school thrills, and Zhang has delivered a wide range of them, from cafeteria catfi ghts to expansive pyrotechnics — with not just one but two crotch-kicking gags thrown in for good measure.
(SD-Agencies)
Bleeding SteelStarring: Jackie Chan, Show Lo, Nana Ouyang, Erica Xia-Hou, Callan Mulvey, Tess Haubrich, Kim Gyngell Director: Leo Zhang
Show Lo (F) and Jackie Chan in “Bleeding Steel.” File photos
Jackie Chan in “Bleeding Steel.”
OSGH CinemaAdd: Inside The MixCMetro: Line 1 or 2, Grand Theater Station
South Movie CityAdd: Inside Kingglory PlazaMetro: Line 1, Guomao Station
UA KK MallAdd: Inside KK MallMetro: Line 1 or 2, Grand Theater Station
Broadway CinemaAdd: Inside Coco ParkMetro: Line 1 or 3, Shopping Park Station
Bona CinemaAdd: Inside Maoye Department StoreMetro: Line 2, Huaqiangbei Station
China Film CinemaAdd: Inside OCT HarborMetro: Line 9, Shenzhen Bay Park Station
Holiday CinemaAdd: Inside Yitian Holiday PlazaMetro: Line 1 or 2, Window of the World Station
Coastal City CinemaAdd: Inside Coastal CityMetro: Line 2 or 11, Houhai Station
Lumière PavilionsAdd: Inside Gateway OneMetro: Line 2, Sea World Station
Shenzhen Jinyi Intl. CinemaAdd: Inside Central WalkMetro: Line 1 or 4, Convention and Exhibition Center Station
Huayi Brothers CinemaAdd: Inside All CityMetro: Line 2, Haiyue Station
Donghai Pacifi c CineplexAdd: Inside Donghai Shopping PlazaMetro: Line 1, 7, 9, Chegongmiao Station
OSGH CinemaAdd: Inside Injoy MallMetro: Line 9, Shangmeilin Station
Golden Carnival Center CinemaAdd: Beside Shenzhen Concert HallMetro: Line 3 or 4, Children’s Palace Station
MCL Cinema CityAdd: 5/F, Garden City CenterMetro: Line 1, Daxin Station, change to bus 332
