Bodyguard: A New Beginning (2008)

'A New Beginning' focuses around the story of Leung, the bodyguard of a Chinese Triad boss, Wong, to whom his loyalty is unrivaled. Living in Hong Kong, Wong requests that his bodyguard ... See full summary »

Director:

Chee Keong Cheung

Writers:

Chee Keong Cheung, Oliver Morran

Stars:

Vincent Sze, Richard Ng, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vincent Sze	...	Leung
Richard Ng	...	Wong
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa	...	Kai
Carl Ng	...	Yuen
Stephanie Langton	...	Chloe
Mark Strange	...	Assassin Brother Alex
Nathan Lewis	...	Assassin Brother Chad
Fui-On Shing	...	Hui
Sophie Linfield	...	Sarah
Brandon Rhea	...	Drunken businessman fighter
Mike Leeder	...	Kurtz
Digger Mesch	...	Mendez
Ian Powers	...	Cole
Yuri Ting	...	Ramirez
Jacob J Ziacan	...	Gangster John Kreese

Storyline

'A New Beginning' focuses around the story of Leung, the bodyguard of a Chinese Triad boss, Wong, to whom his loyalty is unrivaled. Living in Hong Kong, Wong requests that his bodyguard travel to the UK to protect a young British woman, whose true identity is known only by Wong himself. Even his own errant son, Yuen, is kept in the dark, which leads to a betrayal that threatens to destroy the family and all that his father has worked hard to protect.

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Genres:

Action | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence including a brief sexual assault, and language

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English Cantonese

Release Date:

6 November 2008 (Czech Republic)

Also Known As:

Hong Kong adrénaline

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Company Credits

Production Co:

Intense Productions, Radius Pictures, ScreenOps

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min 95 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A scene where Yuri Ting and Mike Leeder drag Carl Ng into a car, was mistaken for a real fight by passersby who called the Police.

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Soundtracks

"Do You Like Chinese"
Written and Performed by Martin Thornton

User Reviews

Not the routine action movie you might expect

Director Chee Keong Cheung's strengths and weaknesses as a filmmaker are as evident in Bodyguard: A New Beginning (2008) as they were in his debut Underground (2007). Both are ambitious, ensemble films blending melodrama and martial arts action, as lavishly filmed as their budgets allowed. Cheung clearly has the best eye of all the directors of independent British action films but has yet to master his craft. While the characterisation and plotting are more coherent than in Underground a lack of focus is still apparent. Vincent Sze is ostensibly the lead, but he's largely silent and fails to make much of an impression. He's not presented as the next Jet Li as one expects. Instead it is experienced co-star Richard Ng who effortlessly emerges as the real star. Shot partly in Hong Kong and featuring Hollywood villain Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Bodyguard is a distinctive if not wholly successful film that's well worth seeking out.