Tuesday's Film Roundup
Film News
Local singer Helen Feng, best known for fronting rock outfit Ziyo and more recently appearing as vocalist for Pet Conspiracy (in the past, you also might have caught her hosting CCTV 9’s Culture Express), appears in the closing scenes of the new Mummy film. After watching the film last week, I was wondering who the sultry jazz singer serenading dancers in a '30s Shanghai club was, the next day we received an e-mail from Neebing at Song telling us that it was indeed Helen. According to Neebing, Helen also composed the song that she sings in the movie. (My Sweet Eternal Love), you can take a listen to the track here, but you’ll have to go see the movie to see Helen. Well you could also go to Song this coming Thursday as she’ll be performing there with Pet Conspiracy – click here for more details or take a look at this Youtube clip for a taste of what to expect.
Speaking of The Mummy, ChinaSMACK have been combing the interweb for irate Chinese netizens' opinions of the American film starring Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh – and it seems some of them aren’t so taken with the picture.
After the disappointment that was The Forbidden Kingdom (Gongfu zhiwang 功夫之王), Jet Li has decided hang up his acting hat for the rest of the year – he’ll steer clear of teaming up with Jackie Chan again too – and instead devote his time to his charity – the One Foundation.
It seems that Chinese actresses are seeking to escape the confines of a career in mainland China, with recent reports suggesting that Tang Wei has obtained Hong Kong citizenship and that Gong Li might already be a citizen of Singapore.
Fans of the uber-kitsch Spring Festival Gala will be delighted to know that CCTV also organizes a Mid-Autumn Festival Gala too. This years event will screen on Sun, Sep 14 and will be hosted by Taiwanese model and the star of Red Cliff, Lin Chiling.
Finally, can’t make it to the cinema on Tuesday? Don't worry, you can still get to see films for as little as RMB 30 by taking advantage of the various special offers available at cinemas across town. Some of our favorites include:
Half price for women at Wanda's CBD location on Thursdays. Wanda also offer one film a day for RMB 10 at 10am and RMB 18 at 6pm.
At Show Max – Thursday is also a half-price day. Before Sep 23, university students aged 23 or below can get half-price tickets with their student cards and the first movie of the day is always half price.
In Other Film News
A poem written by Premier Wen Jiabao will be the inspiration for a new movie score.
Winners of the Baihua Film Awards will be announced in Dalian tomorrow. The award is known one of China's highest film honors and is held every two years (it switches with the other big award the Golden Rooster Awards). As you can see by looking at this list of previous year's winners here, the prize will often go to films that are not exactly the most popular or well made, but rather are of good political pedigree. See this earlier post for the list of nominees.
Films Around TownScreening Times for Films in Beijing – Tuesday Sep 26
(All times and prices have been taken from today’s Beijing News or this website – it would be a good idea to call and confirm details) If you can read Chinese, this is by far the best site to consult.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Jet Li stars as Mummy Qin Shihuang, alongside Michelle Yeoh and Brendan Fraser in this third installment of the popular franchise. The release of the film in Mainland China was delayed but reviews from elsewhere have been uniformly bad. Early Chinese reviews suggest that viewers catch the version that’s been dubbed into Mandarin, it’s supposed to be a little better than the original. You can view the Trailer here.
CBD
15:00 15:30 16:00 16:50 17:20 17:50 18:20 18:40 19:10
19:40 20:10 20:40 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:30 23:00
Xidan
15:10 15:20 15:45 16:10 16:40 17:20 17：30 17：55 18：20 18：50 19：30 19：40 20：05 20：30 21：00 21：40
Sanlitun
15:40 16:30 17:20 18:1019:00 19:50 20:40 21:30
15:10 15:50 16:30 17:20
18:00 18:40 19:30 20:10 20:10 20:50
Haidian
15:10 16:05 16:35 16:45 17:20 18:10 18:40 18:50 19:00 19:30 20:15 20:45 20:55 21:10 21:40 22:20 23:00 23:20
Stellar International Cineplex
Theater 1 15:10 17:20 19:30 21:40
Theater 2 16:10 18:20 20:30 22:40 9:40
Theater 4 17:50 20:00 22:10
Theater 5 16:50 19:00 21:10
16:10 18:20 19:10 20:30 21:25
Wangjing
Stellar International Cineplex
15:25 16:00 16:30 17:10 17:45 18:20 18:50 19:30 20:00 20:20 20:40
21:05 21:45 22:25 23:00
Wangfujing
15:10 15:50 16:20 16:50 17:20 17:50 18:20 18:50 19:20 19:50 20:20 20:50 21:20 21:50 22:20 22:50
Dongsishitiao
15:00 15:40 16:20 17:00
17:40 18:20 19:00 19:40 20:20 21:00 21:40 22:20 23:00
Shuangjing
UME International Cineplex
15:30 15:50 16:10 16:30 16:50 17:10 17:40 18:00 18:20 18:40 19:00 19:20 19:50 20:10 20:30 20:50 21:10 21:30 22:00 22:20 22:40
Zhongguancun
15:20 15:50 16:15 16:40 17:10 17:40 18:10 18:35 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30 20:55 21:20 21:50 22:20
15:00 15:30 15:40 16:10 16:40 17:10 17:40 17:50 18:20 18:50 19:20 19:50
20:00 20:30 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:10 22:40 23:05
Chaoyang Park
19:50 21:00 22:00 23:35
Dongsi
15:30 16:25 16:55 17:15 17:40 18:00 18:30 19:00 19:25 20:05 20:35 21:05 21:30 22:30
Xinjiekou
15:15 16:05 16:40 17:20 18:10 18:45 19:25 19:40 20:15 20:50 21:25 22:15
Yayuncun
15:30 16:00 17:00 17:30 18:00 18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:30
East Fourth Ring Road
16:00 17:00 17:30 18:00 18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30 21:00 21:30 22:00 22:30
The Incredible Hulk
Louis Leterrier has taken the reins as director of the famous Marvel comic book figure, with Edward Norton playing the mutant scientist on a quest to escape his alter-ego. Where Ang Lee failed – a too-complicated plot weaved with a confusing Freudian backdrop – The Incredible Hulk succeeds: Comical preferences for stretchy pants and pseudo-sex scenes alongside fast-paced chase sequences with adrenaline-pumping transformations prove to be surefire ways to please a summer crowd. Unlike Speed Racer, The Hulk has been getting some pretty good reviews. You can take a look at the trailer here.
CBD
16:40 21:00
Xidan
15:10 16:00 17:20 18:15 18:55
19:30 20:25 21:05 21:40
Sanlitun
Village Mega Box
15:50 18:05 20:20
16:10 18:20 20:30
Haidian
15:55 18:05 20:15 22:25
Stellar International Cineplex
17:35 22:30
15:45 17:05 19:30
Wangjing
Stellar International Cineplex
16:10 18:10 22:35
Wangfujing
17:30 19:40 21:50
15:30 16:50 17:40 19:00 19:50 21:10 22:00
Dongsishitiao
17:20 19:20 21:20
Shuangjing
UME International Cineplex
15:20 17:30 19:40 21:50
Zhongguancun
17:15 19:35 21:55
12:00 14:40 16:20 18:30 20:40 22:50
Chaoyang Park
20:00 21:35 22:55
Dongsi
15:05
Xinjiekou
15:30 17:35 21:40
Sparrow
The second of Johnnie To's films to make it onto the big screen this year, Sparrow (Wen Qiao 文雀) debuted at the Berlin Film Festival in February. It seems as if the censors have cut a few scenes from this film about pickpockets in Hong Kong but what remains is a homage to the island city. A few different takes on the film can be found at Variety, Love HK Film and here.You can watch the trailer for Sparrow here.
CBD
17:30 19:00 21:40
Xidan
16:05 17:45 19:35 21:30
Sanlitun
17:00 19:00 20:40
Wangjing
Stellar International Cineplex
16:10 16:50 17:50 18:30
19:30 20:10 21:10 22:50
Speed Racer
The latest project from the Wachowski brothers is a live-action version of Japanese anime series Speed Racer. The result is heavy on action and visuals, and weak on storytelling. Read some rather disappointing reviews here and take a look at the trailer here. Despite the poor reviews the film's Chinese box office takings might be helped by the presence of Korean heart throb Rain's presence in the cast. View trailer here.
Xidan
18:10 20:40
Sanlitun
16:50
Wangjing
Stellar International Cineplex
16:50 19:45 22:20
20:20 22:35
The Deserted Inn
The Deserted Inn (荒村客栈 Huangcun Kezhan) is a Chinese horror flick that's been screening for the last couple of weeks. It managed to earn RMB 5 million on it's opening day and is continuing to prove popular with local audiences. No English subtitles. Take a peek at the trailer here.
CBD
15:30 19:30
Xidan
15:55 17:50 19:45 21:45
Shiquan Jiuemei (十全九美)
If Crazy Stone was the surprise film of 2007, Shiquan Jiuemei is the dark horse of 2008. The Chinese comedy about a prince in China's Ming Dynasty who attempts to learn carpentry, pulled in over RMB 10 million at the box office in it's first ten days after opening on August 1. You can take a look at the trailer here and listen to the original supergirl Li Yuchun sing the theme song here.
CBD
15:20 19:20
Xidan
16:05 18:00 19:50 21:50
Sanlitun
17:10 19:10 21:00
Despite what appear to be rather self-serving attempts by Zhao Bandi to persuade Chinese people to boycott the film, it's still proved very popular, becoming the first animated film to take over RMB 100 million at the Chinese box office. Reviews have also been good - most settling for the "it's all good fun" kind of appraisal. Aficionados of Chinese traditional painting have also enjoyed some of the in jokes and one review in a Beijing newspaper compared the films melding of East and West to one of KFC's "Lao Beijing" Chicken wraps. You can view the trailer here and visit the official site here (Chinese version here). The complete copy of the film is available here. The Beijing correspondent of the Guardian has also produced this audio report on the popularity of the film in Beijing.
SanlitunZiguang Cinema
16:00 17:50 20:00
Upcoming Films
Sep 14
Flood
Flood is a disaster film set in the UK. Estranged meteorologoist father Leonard (Courtnay) and Marine Engineer son (Carlyle) are caught up in a weather related disaster as spring tides meet a freak North Sea superstorm. Read some rather ordinary reviews here and here or take a peek at the trailer at the official site.
Sep 26
Painted Skin (画皮 Hua pi)Painted Skin is Chinese thriller that centers on a vampire-like woman who eats the skins and hearts of her lovers. Starring both Zhou Xun and Zhao Wei, the film looks ridiculous but should attract plenty of viewers. Take a look at the trailer (with English subtitles) here.
Sep 29
Asterix and the Olympics
Asterix, Obelix, and their friends have entered the famous Olympic games in Ancient Olympia. They are determined to taste victory, but the Gauls face formidable competition from both Greeks and Romans. See trailer here.
Oct ？
Batman Still no exact date on the domestic release of the new Batman movie The Dark Knight which has been breaking box office records around the world. At this stage it looks like it's set to appear in October but there is no guarantee that this won't change. Take a look at some reviews at Rotten Tomatoes or Metacritic and the trailer here.
Oct 9
Wanted Wanted marks James McAvoy's third appearance on the Chinese big screen this year. Unlike his earlier roles in Atonement and The Chronicles of Narnia, McAvoy plays the stereotypical apathetic young man who's stuck in a dead-end job but is offered an escape when he's introduced into the exciting world of assassins by a beautiful and dangerous woman called Fox (Angelina Jolie). It all sounds as if it's based on a comic book, that's because - as with a lot of blockbusters these days - it is. The film received positivie reviews when it was released in the States back in July, you can view some here. Take a look at the trailer here.
Nov 5
007: Quantum of Solace
The high-octane adventures of Bond (Daniel Craig) continue. This new mission sees the martini-sipping international man of mystery teaming up with old friends to navigate a minefield of treachery, murder and deceit. See trailer here.
Dec 12
Mei LanfangA biographical account of iconic Peking Opera star Mei Lanfang directed by Chen Kaige and starring Beijing-born singer Leon Lai. Ziyi Zhang stars as Mei’s lover Meng Xiaodong. More info available here. You can look at the "trailer" - it's really just a selection of still images taken from the film and set to a Peking Opera sound track - here.