Stephen Chow unveils new Monkey King epic
- By Zhang Rui
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E-mail China.org.cn, November 21, 2012
Hong Kong comedian and director Stephen Chow announced on Tuesday in Beijing that his new epic "Journey to the West" is set to hit Chinese screen during the 2013 Spring Festival holiday season.
A first short teaser was unveiled at the press conference, along with the official movie poster. The "Kung Fu Hustle" director said that he didn't take on any acting in this film and focused on the directing aspect of the production.
"I can't afford myself because my remuneration is too high," Chow joked. But the film's producer Wang Zhonglei, boss of Huayi Brothers Media, said it was Chow himself who had asked not to let him act, because Chow only wanted to be the best director he could possibly be.
Chow, once the most popular comedian in all of China, didn't elaborate on any of the movie's plots, but did reveal there is definitely a love story somewhere in there.
Chow has previously spoken of his plans to create the most spectacular domestic special effects film ever to be produced in China in order to match Hollywood blockbuster standards, though the concept teaser shown to the press was not that impressive. Chow explained that it is still a work-in-progress and doesn't deem it necessary to disclose the film's final version just yet.
Although shooting wrapped a year ago, there was a long period of post-production due to the large proportion of computer generated special effects involving creatures and supernatural elements.
"We have a 500-member special effects team, "Chow said, "a home-made special effects film can still be on par with the Hollywood ones; the key to making that happen lies in the creative ideas." Wang also revealed that he has seen the unfinished version, which is full of oriental fantasies and stretches far beyond human imagination.
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Stephen Chow and Wang Zhonglei meet the press in Beijing, Nov. 21, 2012. [China.org.cn] |
The Chow-styled humor will also be present in this film. Wang said audiences are in for a good laugh from beginning to the end.
A sequel to the Monkey King saga is highly possible, Chow said, "It will be such a waste if the story were to end here." Even the title gives a hint as it reads "Journey to the West: Fell Monsters Chapter", implying there will be more chapters. "'Journey to the West' is a most fascinating novel to dig into," Wang added, "Stephen Chow carries his version in his heart, and he is the best director to take the novel from its pages to the big screen."
According to previous reports, Derek Kwok is co-directing and the cast includes Shu Qi, Huang Bo, Wen Zhang and Show Lo.
Lauded as one of China's "Four Great Classical Novels," "Journey to the West" has inspired operas, a string of cinema hits dating back to the 1940s, cartoons and popular online games.
It will be the third time Stephen Chow has used it as material for a film. He once played the lead of Monkey King Sun Wukong in a pair of 1994 films "A Chinese Odyssey Part One: Pandora's Box" and "A Chinese Odyssey Part Two: Cinderella," directed by Jeffrey Lau, which are loosely based on the Chinese classic and combine slapstick comedy, Kung Fu adventure and a love story. "A Chinese Odyssey" films became a cult classic among young adults on Chinese mainland.
It will vie against another film adaption version of "Journey to the West" to be screened next year, featuring heavyweights Chow Yun-fat and Donnie Yen in the Cheang Pou-Soi directed 3D epic "The Monkey King," costing an estimated 400 million yuan (US$64.16 million) and which is currently also in post-production.
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