[jisung]

Chinese director hopes 'The Promise' will appeal to Westerners

TAIPEI (AP)- Chinese director Chen Kaige said yesterday he hoped Westerners will be able to see classic Oriental beauty amid the state-of-the-art special effects his newly-released fantasy epic "The Promise."

Chen, who is in Taiwan for the film's premier, said Chinese directors have traditionally shunned fantasy adventures like the "Lord of the Rings" and "Harry Potter" as products "being created to promote Western film technologies." But the director said he tried the genre in hopes of producing a more lighthearted film than his other productions, such as the 1993 Oscar-nominated "Farewell My Concubine," which chronicles the tragic lives of two actors.

"The Promise"recently won a Golden Globe award nomination for the best foreign language film. The movie is about a royal concubine who makes a deal with a deity to give up true love in exchange for everlasting beauty and affluence.

Chen said he used strong colors, like crimson armor and robes, to portray the distinct characters in the film.

"It created strong and direct effects, unlike the light and poetic touch typical of Chinese art," Chen said in a meeting with art students at a theater in Taipei. But Chen maintained "The Promise" is Oriental in essence. For example, he said he tried to use scenes of falling petals to capture the "Oriental view of life as transient but splendid."

"I hope to let Westerners see the beauty, the Oriental beauty," Chen said.

Human nature is also revealed in Chen's fantasy world.

Japanese actor Hiroyuki Sanada plays a general compelled to choose between love and power, while the royal concubine played by Hong Kong's Cecilia Cheung is doomed by her destiny to give up love for fame, Chen said.

The slave, played by South Korean Jang Dong-gun, is "treated like a dowtrodden but lives more like a human being by sticking to his ideals," Chen said.

The fantasy adventure is the most expensive Chinese production ever at $35 million and is one of the first major projects, for TWC, a new company launched by Miramax co-founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein.

source: The Philippine Star, World section, Celebrity News, December 19, 2005

[dontot85]

so no one knows when the movie is coming out in the US then??? i really want to see this movie. I'm such a sucker for these epic asian movies haha

[damn.u]

Probably the only reason I'm going to watch this movie is for Nic Tse. He looks damn HOT and IRRISITABLE! The movie Trailer wasn't all that interesting. Cecila looks like a whore, the graphic looks cheap, JDG seems like slave. Just pretty weird... Hopefully it doesn't turn out bad.


-noudles

[jisung]

Kung fu film breaks China records


Kung fu epic film The Promise has taken $9m (£5.1m) in its first four days of release, making it the biggest-ever movie opening in China.

The Promise sees Jang Dong-Gun's slave
fall in love with a princess

Chen Kaige's film broke the previous record set by Kung Fu Hustle, according to trade website Screen Daily.

The Promise, which cost a reported $42m (£23.7m) to make, is China's submission for the best foreign film Oscar and is up for a Golden Globe.

The film stars Korean actor Jang Dung-Kun and Japan's Hiroyuki Sanada.

Comedy

The Promise's budget is reported to be the highest in Chinese history, overtaking the $30m spent on 2002's Hero, directed by Chen's former cinematographer Zhang Yimou.

It took $2.6m (£1.47m) on its opening day and highest single day revenue on 17 December was estimated to be £3m (£1.7m) - again breaking the record set by Kung Fu Hustle of $2.7m.

Martial arts comedy film Kung Fu Hustle, directed by Stephen Chou, was released in China in 2004.

The Promise - renamed Master of the Crimson Armor in the US - enjoyed a modest debut in Hong Kong where it took $310,000 (£175,500).

It opened against King Kong which raked in $1.3m (£735,600), while a limited release of Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire took $480,000 (£271,650).

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4545128.stm

credit: YoonEe, just jang dong gun

[freebird]

so no one knows when the movie is coming out in the US then??? i really want to see this movie. I'm such a sucker for these epic asian movies haha

According to movietickets.com, there will be a limited release on 6 January 2006 and nationwide release on 20 January 2006. The date might change.

[Luly]

i still think the story is not touching enough. & some special effects look laughably fake, it seems like a common problem for all the chinese kung fu blockbusters.

overall it's one of the better chinese movies. oh nic tse is so funny in the movie.

[dontot85]

thanx for the info free bird, and nic tse is funny in the movie?? i thought the movie was supposed to be one of those super dramatic/touching movies. Oh well, i'll watch it anyways cuz it looks awesome

[ponkie]

Probably the only reason I'm going to watch this movie is for Nic Tse. He looks damn HOT and IRRISITABLE! The movie Trailer wasn't all that interesting. Cecila looks like a whore, the graphic looks cheap, JDG seems like slave. Just pretty weird... Hopefully it doesn't turn out bad.
-noudles

I thought that was funny, I mean he does play a slave, how else can he seem?

i still think the story is not touching enough. & some special effects look laughably fake, it seems like a common problem for all the chinese kung fu blockbusters.

overall it's one of the better chinese movies. oh nic tse is so funny in the movie.

I wouldn't call this a "blockbuster" as of yet, it didn't seem to do that well on its first opening week.

[freebird]

I've watch the movie. I'm a bit dissapointed with the way the story goes.. coz I imagine something more to be shown and 2 hours seems not enough. I'm a bit confused since some audience laughed in some conversation. I dont understand mandarin, maybe it's the matter. Anyway the cast is worth to watch.. and Kunlun slave is still my fave

[freebird]

Chen Kaige's The Promise Academy Screening Location!
(Posted by Todd at twitchfilm.net)

Chen Kaige's The Promise - coming to these shores as Master of the Crimson Armor - has been generating some majorly negative press in Asia but that hasn't stopped it from setting box office records throughout China. We reported a while back that the film would be receiving a week long Academy-qualifying run in LA at the end of the month and we've jsut gotten word from a reader on where that's happening:

Starting December 30th the film will be at the Laemmle Music Hall 3. LA Twitchers: I expect detailed reports.

[jisung]

Probably the only reason I'm going to watch this movie is for Nic Tse. He looks damn HOT and IRRISITABLE! The movie Trailer wasn't all that interesting. Cecila looks like a whore, the graphic looks cheap, JDG seems like slave. Just pretty weird... Hopefully it doesn't turn out bad.
-noudles

I'll take that as a compliment, damn.u, coz he does play a slave there! That means he totally got into the role, eh, leaving no traces of the dong gun we so admire, right freebird?

I thought that was funny, I mean he does play a slave, how else can he seem?
I wouldn't call this a "blockbuster" as of yet, it didn't seem to do that well on its first opening week.

To be honest, the critics have been so stingy in their praises, some have downright trashed the film which just breaks my heart really, but the box-office has been the exact opposite, it's been merrily ringing since it opened! Still, I remain hopeful about its chances at the Oscars, and even the Globes!

I've watch the movie. I'm a bit dissapointed with the way the story goes.. coz I imagine something more to be shown and 2 hours seems not enough. I'm a bit confused since some audience laughed in some conversation. I dont understand mandarin, maybe it's the matter. Anyway the cast is worth to watch.. and Kunlun slave is still my fave

Yeah, he'll always be my fave slave too, freebird, and I have yet to see the film! Well, I could be his slave too!

And freebird, thanks for updating the thread and answering our friends' queries! I do post articles and maybe pics, occasionally, but I seldom read them, am allergic to spoilers! Well, whatever reason people may have in trooping to the theaters, personally am going for Dong Gun and maybe H. Sanada, doesn't really matter, just go! Try to have fun in the process, if not with the movie, then at least ur popcorn!

[jisung]

Source: http://en.chinabroadcast.cn/349/2005/12/23/44@38355.htm

Visuals in Chen Kaige's Film "The Promise" Stun Movie-goers in Asia

2005-12-23 11:01:42 AP

Chen Kaige's mythological epic The Promise is one of the most visually stunning Chinese movies in recent years, so aesthetically mesmerizing that it overwhelms - and perhaps redeems - a convoluted and at times bizarre plot.

In one scene, a goddess appears sporting a halo-like ring around her upright hairdo and a robe complete with tentacles that wriggle as if she were underwater. A slave runs at the speed of light and walks on water.

Among the amazing sets, a red palace resembles Beijing's Forbidden City - except it is designed as a circular maze. Another scene takes place in a half-sphere-shaped cage in a building with red backlit oval windows. Two characters face off in a room with screens sliding along circular tracks.

Chen's epic is largely the artistic vision of Tim Yip, who won an Oscar for art direction for his work on Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and the special effects wizardry of Centro Digital Pictures, whose credits include Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill series and Stephen Chow's Shaolin Soccer and Kung Fu Hustle.

And the breathtaking visuals came at a steep price: the movie cost $35 million US to make.

The Promise marks a strong comeback for Chen, one of China's most respected directors - after the heartwarming but low-key Together and the disappointing English-language erotic thriller Killing Me Softly.

It's already garnered a Golden Globe nomination for best foreign film and will represent China in the same category at the Oscars. The movie set a new opening weekend box office record in China last weekend, grossing 74.52 million yuan ($9.2 million), the official Xinhua news agency reported.

But the sheer artistic brilliance of The Promise is tempered by a long-winded plot.

Cecilia Cheung plays an ordinary girl transformed by a goddess into a princess on one condition - that she will never find true love.

Nicholas Tse portrays a duke who threatens to take the princess by force. A general's slave (Jang Dong-gun) comes to the rescue, and the princess falls in love with her saviour whom she wrongly believes to be the general (Hiroyuki Sanada).

The truth is uncovered and the princess' destiny is lived out as the general, the slave and the duke engage in a battle, eventually killing each other.

Some plot twists don't quite work. When the duke accused the princess of deceiving him as a youth, saying "You destroyed my chance to be a good person," the line was met with incredulous chuckles at one Hong Kong theatre.

The acting has bright spots, but isn't outstanding overall. Sanada - who also appeared in the Tom Cruise movie The Last Samurai - brings out the haughty quality of the general, despite having to deliver lines in Mandarin. South Korean Jang's intense gaze highlights the downtrodden status of the slave he portrays, while Chinese actor Liu Ye gives depth to another slave character.

The multinational cast reflects an increasingly popular strategy to fashion movie productions with a pan-Asian appeal.

Chen's choice of The Promise is also consistent with a recent trend of Chinese directors to shift from depictions of traditional Chinese culture and life under communism to action epics.

[freebird]

Thanks Jisung I hope you can watch it soon.. in big screen..

[jisung]

Thanks Jisung I hope you can watch it soon.. in big screen..

I hope so too, freebird! And MERRY CHRISTMAS to u and everyone who visits this thread! Hey, doesn't it get lonely here, sometimes? U're welcome to join us at dong gun's thread!

[S!n]

Everybody can download The Promise (full version).
Download HERE
Host: YAN
Version : Cam
Format : Rmvb
Size: 348 mb - 　128 Mins
Lang : Mando
Credit: YAN@com

This post has been edited by S!n: 23 December 2005 - 05:47 PM

[Luly]

Teaser poster


Source: CRIENGLISH

this poster is much better than the official one. the official one.. i feel like JDG is hugging a ghost rather than a beauty.

I wouldn't call this a "blockbuster" as of yet, it didn't seem to do that well on its first opening week.

i read from papers that it refreshes the chinese box office & becomes the 1st out of all movies, the moment it opens in china.

[dreamsicle]

Master of the Crimson Armor

I hate whoever did this. Why?!?!? It sounds like the kind of cheesy title that I would make up in 6th grade.

[appleworm]

I haven't watched it yet.

Is the ending a good one. I am OK with spoilers.

[kneekey]

i cant wait to watch it..looks really good bec. it was able to break records. and the cast is superb!

[freebird]

The Promise Suffers from Piracy

2005-12-28 09:02:17 CRIENGLISH.com

The most expensive film ever made in China, The Promise, has been hijacked by pirates, who are showing the film on a television station in 16 parts and charging viewers two yuan per show to sneak a peek.

The Promise, directed by Chinese helmer Chen Kaige, who first rose to fame 12 years ago with Farewell My Concubine, cost $35 million to make --not huge by Hollywood's extravagent standards, but very spendy for a Chinese flick.

The film is China's official entry for Best Foreign Language film in the Academy Awards, but has not been very acclaimed by Chinese film critics.

Ref: en.chinabroadcast.cn