The latest project by renowned Vietnamese-French director Anh Hung Tran (44). "I Come With the Rain", Tran's first movie in eight years, stars Josh Hartnett (29) as former L.A. cop turned private eye, Kline. Hired to find Shitao (Kimura), the son of a Chinese billionaire, he travels to Hong Kong where he teams up with an old friend and local cop (Shawn Yue). His search leads him to the gangster Su Dongpo (Korean star Lee Byung Hun) and his druggie mistress (Tran's wife, actress Tran Nu Yen Khe). But he is haunted by memories of the serial killer Hasford (Elias Koteas) whose crimes almost drove him insane and made him quit the LAPD. The movie is scheduled to open in the autumn of 2008, with a possible screening at next year's Cannes Film Festival. Director Tran is best known for 1993's Academy Award nominee "The Scent of Green Papaya".

Source: japan-zone.com, movie still thanks to lovelbh.com for the highlight

Written by Vicki Rothrock & Mark Schilling

HONG KONG—Thriller “I Come With the Rain” has a cast that packs a major punch across Asia.

In addition to Josh Hartnett, who stars as a private investigator in Tran Anh Hung’s English-lingo psychothriller, pic also has Japanese megastar Takuya Kimura (“2046”), Korean superstar Lee Byung-hun (“A Bittersweet Life”) and local star Shawn Yue Man-lok (“Infernal Affairs”) on its roster.

The US$18 million high-definition pic is about a private detective who, haunted by a past encounter with a serial killer, heads to Asia in search of a missing heir who has the power to heal with his touch.

Pic started shooting in Hong Kong two weeks ago and should be done by the first week of October, said Chu Chen On, producer at October Pictures who is handling the Hong Kong portion of the film’s shoot. Cast will spend most of that time on location, but also do two to three weeks of interior work at the Shaw Studios.

About 80 percent of the pic will be shot in Hong Kong. Thus far, pic has been battling summer rainstorms and typhoons while shooting here. “The weather has been unpredictable…it’s been hard to plan,” Chu said, but added that the cast has been in good spirits.

Cast was previously shooting in the Philippines for a week and will return to LA after their Hong Kong stint to wrap up filming, which is expected to be in November with a summer 2008 preem.

Pic is fully financed through French paybox Canal Plus, the British fund Aramid and several French Sofica funds. It’s produced by Fernando Sulichin’s Paris-based Central Films and Jean Cazes with John Kilik executive producing.
International sales are being handled by TF1 Intl.

Kimura appeared in Wong Kar-wai's mood romance "2046," but "I Come with the Rain" will be his first English-language pic. He also starred in Yoji Yamada's period drama "Love and Honor," a major hit for Shochiku in 2006.

Source: Variety Asia, image from empas.com

http://www.varietyasiaonline.com/content/view/1935/53/