Chinese director, screenwriter and producer He Ping, best known internationally for his hybrid ‘Chinese Westerns’, has died aged 65. Local press reported that he died of illness in Beijing on January 10.
He Ping was well known on the international film festival circuit and was one of the first Chinese filmmakers to work with a U.S. studio, directing Warriors Of Heaven And Earth with backing from the now defunct Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia (Cpfpa) in 2003. Similar to two award-winning films he made in the 1990s, the film was shot in the Western deserts of China and combined elements of classic Westerns and Chinese wuxia (swordplay) movies.
Born in Shanxi province, He started his career in the 1980s, initially directing stage productions and documentaries, and later transferring to the state-owned Xian Film Studio, where acclaimed directors such as Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige had also started their careers. His early fiction...
He Ping was well known on the international film festival circuit and was one of the first Chinese filmmakers to work with a U.S. studio, directing Warriors Of Heaven And Earth with backing from the now defunct Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia (Cpfpa) in 2003. Similar to two award-winning films he made in the 1990s, the film was shot in the Western deserts of China and combined elements of classic Westerns and Chinese wuxia (swordplay) movies.
Born in Shanxi province, He started his career in the 1980s, initially directing stage productions and documentaries, and later transferring to the state-owned Xian Film Studio, where acclaimed directors such as Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige had also started their careers. His early fiction...
- 1/12/2023
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
In the nine consecutive years I’ve attended the Toronto International Film Festival, it remains an elusive monstrosity of an event. With its hundreds of offerings, it’s a gluttonous buffet for the committed cineaste, a playground of auteurs mixed with unknown quantities. Even after having attended Sundance and Cannes, navigating the selections still somehow feels like ‘catching up’ with entries from Berlin, Locarno, and the concurrent Venice. And, therefore, everyone’s Toronto experience is bound to seem a bit different, even as streamlined as the festival is as it remains one of the most press and public friendly film festivals in existence.
Of course, there’s always complaints (or questions) as to what doesn’t make an appearance at the festival, and we’re always subject to the tastes of various programmers. For instance, why exactly room could not have been made for Polish master Andrzej Zulawski’s first...
Of course, there’s always complaints (or questions) as to what doesn’t make an appearance at the festival, and we’re always subject to the tastes of various programmers. For instance, why exactly room could not have been made for Polish master Andrzej Zulawski’s first...
- 9/28/2015
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
A big congrats to Lenny Abrahamson's "Room" for winning the Grolsch's People's Choice Awards at the recently concluded 40th Toronto International Film Festival! It's safe to say that "Room" will see a future at the Academy Awards. Previous winners that went on to grab the Best Picture Oscar were "Slumdog Millionaire," "The King's Speech," and "12 Years A Slave."
Here's the complete winners and press release from Tiff:
The Toronto International Film Festival® today announced award winners from the 40th Festival, which wraps up this evening. See a free screening of Room, the winner of the Grolsch People's Choice Award, Sunday, September 20 at 8pm.
The short film awards below were selected by a jury comprised of the head of the shorts program and creations unit at Canal+ France, Pascale Faure, film writer John Anderson (The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times), and actor Rizwan Manji (Outsourced, The Wolf of Wall Street...
Here's the complete winners and press release from Tiff:
The Toronto International Film Festival® today announced award winners from the 40th Festival, which wraps up this evening. See a free screening of Room, the winner of the Grolsch People's Choice Award, Sunday, September 20 at 8pm.
The short film awards below were selected by a jury comprised of the head of the shorts program and creations unit at Canal+ France, Pascale Faure, film writer John Anderson (The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times), and actor Rizwan Manji (Outsourced, The Wolf of Wall Street...
- 9/21/2015
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
Toronto: Lenny Abrahamson’s acclaimed drama starring Brie Larson has won Toronto’s People’s Choice Award in what is likely to further boost its awards season prospects.
In recent years, The King’s Speech and 12 Years A Slave have won the Toronto audience award en route to best picture Academy Award glory.
Room was one of the few films to emerge from this year’s festival selection with wide acclaim and awards buzz, in particular for Larson.
Toronto winners announced on Sunday:
Shorts Cuts Award For Best Canadian Short Film
Patrice Laliberté, Overpass.
Short Cuts Award For Best Short Film
Maïmouna Doucouré, Maman(s).
Honourable mention: Fyzal Boulifa, Rate Me.
City Of Toronto Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film
Andrew Cividino, Sleeping Giant
Canada Goose Award For Best Canadian Feature Film
Stephen Dunn, Closet Monster.
Honourable mention: Philippe Falardeau, My Internship In Canada
The Prizes Of The International Federation Of Film Critics (Fipresci Prizes)
Discovery...
In recent years, The King’s Speech and 12 Years A Slave have won the Toronto audience award en route to best picture Academy Award glory.
Room was one of the few films to emerge from this year’s festival selection with wide acclaim and awards buzz, in particular for Larson.
Toronto winners announced on Sunday:
Shorts Cuts Award For Best Canadian Short Film
Patrice Laliberté, Overpass.
Short Cuts Award For Best Short Film
Maïmouna Doucouré, Maman(s).
Honourable mention: Fyzal Boulifa, Rate Me.
City Of Toronto Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film
Andrew Cividino, Sleeping Giant
Canada Goose Award For Best Canadian Feature Film
Stephen Dunn, Closet Monster.
Honourable mention: Philippe Falardeau, My Internship In Canada
The Prizes Of The International Federation Of Film Critics (Fipresci Prizes)
Discovery...
- 9/20/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Toronto: Lenny Abrahamson’s acclaimed drama starring Brie Larson has won the Grolsch People’s Choice Award in what is likely to further boost its awards season prospects.
In recent years The King’s Speech and 12 Years A Slave have won the Toronto audience award en route to best picture Academy Award glory.
Room was one of the few films to emerge from this year’s festival selection with wide acclaim and awards buzz, in particular for Larson.
Toronto winners announced on Sunday:
Shorts Cuts Award For Best Canadian Short Film
Patrice Laliberté, Overpass.
Short Cuts Award For Best Short Film
Maïmouna Doucouré, Maman(s).
Honourable mention: Fyzal Boulifa, Rate Me.
City Of Toronto Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film
Andrew Cividino, Sleeping Giant
Canada Goose Award For Best Canadian Feature Film
Stephen Dunn, Closet Monster.
Honourable mention: Philippe Falardeau, My Internship In Canada
The Prizes Of The International Federation Of Film Critics (Fipresci Prizes)
Discovery...
In recent years The King’s Speech and 12 Years A Slave have won the Toronto audience award en route to best picture Academy Award glory.
Room was one of the few films to emerge from this year’s festival selection with wide acclaim and awards buzz, in particular for Larson.
Toronto winners announced on Sunday:
Shorts Cuts Award For Best Canadian Short Film
Patrice Laliberté, Overpass.
Short Cuts Award For Best Short Film
Maïmouna Doucouré, Maman(s).
Honourable mention: Fyzal Boulifa, Rate Me.
City Of Toronto Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film
Andrew Cividino, Sleeping Giant
Canada Goose Award For Best Canadian Feature Film
Stephen Dunn, Closet Monster.
Honourable mention: Philippe Falardeau, My Internship In Canada
The Prizes Of The International Federation Of Film Critics (Fipresci Prizes)
Discovery...
- 9/20/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Toronto: Lenny Abrahamson’s acclaimed drama starring Brie Larson has won the Grolsch People’s Choice Award in what is likely to further boost its awards season prospects.
In recent years The King’s Speech and 12 Years A Slave have won the Toronto audience award en route to best picture Academy Award glory.
Room was one of the few films to emerge from this year’s festival selection with wide acclaim and awards buzz, in partocular for star Brie Larson.
Toronto winners announced on Sunday:
Shorts Cuts Award For Best Canadian Short Film
Patrice Laliberté, Overpass.
Short Cuts Award For Best Short Film
Maïmouna Doucouré, Maman(s).
Honourable mention: Fyzal Boulifa, Rate Me.
City Of Toronto Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film
Andrew Cividino, Sleeping Giant
Canada Goose Award For Best Canadian Feature Film
Stephen Dunn, Closet Monster.
Honourable mention: Philippe Falardeau, My Internship In Canada
The Prizes Of The International Federation Of Film Critics (Fipresci...
In recent years The King’s Speech and 12 Years A Slave have won the Toronto audience award en route to best picture Academy Award glory.
Room was one of the few films to emerge from this year’s festival selection with wide acclaim and awards buzz, in partocular for star Brie Larson.
Toronto winners announced on Sunday:
Shorts Cuts Award For Best Canadian Short Film
Patrice Laliberté, Overpass.
Short Cuts Award For Best Short Film
Maïmouna Doucouré, Maman(s).
Honourable mention: Fyzal Boulifa, Rate Me.
City Of Toronto Award For Best Canadian First Feature Film
Andrew Cividino, Sleeping Giant
Canada Goose Award For Best Canadian Feature Film
Stephen Dunn, Closet Monster.
Honourable mention: Philippe Falardeau, My Internship In Canada
The Prizes Of The International Federation Of Film Critics (Fipresci...
- 9/20/2015
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Alan Zweig's documentary Hurt has won the Toronto International Film Festival's first Platform Prize. Jurors Claire Denis, Agnieszka Holland and Jia Zhangke say the decision's unanimous. Honorable mentions go to Gabriel Mascaro’s Neon Bull, He Ping’s The Promised Land and Pablo Trapero’s The Clan. More awards: Lenny Abrahamson's Room wins the People's Choice Award. Audiences have also voted for best documentary (Evgeny Afineevsky's Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom) and the best film in the Midnight Madness program (Ilya Naishuller's Hardcore). We've got the complete list of winners—and the trailer for Hurt. » - David Hudson...
- 9/20/2015
- Keyframe
Alan Zweig's documentary Hurt has won the Toronto International Film Festival's first Platform Prize. Jurors Claire Denis, Agnieszka Holland and Jia Zhangke say the decision's unanimous. Honorable mentions go to Gabriel Mascaro’s Neon Bull, He Ping’s The Promised Land and Pablo Trapero’s The Clan. More awards: Lenny Abrahamson's Room wins the People's Choice Award. Audiences have also voted for best documentary (Evgeny Afineevsky's Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom) and the best film in the Midnight Madness program (Ilya Naishuller's Hardcore). We've got the complete list of winners—and the trailer for Hurt. » - David Hudson...
- 9/20/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
With the 40th Toronto International Film Festival concluding today, the winners have been unveiled. Earning the top prize was the Brie Larson-led drama Room, which A24 will release on October 16th. Other winners included the first-person actioner Hardcore, Stephen Dunn‘s coming-of-age drama Closet Monster, and Hurt in the first-ever Platform section.
Check out the full list of winners below, with reviews where applicable, and catch up with all of our coverage (and more to come) here.
Shorts Cuts Award for Best Canadian Short Film – Overpass (Patrice Laliberté)
Short Cuts Award for Best Short Film – Maman(s) (Maïmouna Doucouré)
Best Canadian First Feature Film – Sleeping Giant (Andrew Cividino)
Best Canadian Feature Film – Closet Monster (Stephen Dunn)
Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (Fipresci) for the Discovery programme – Eva (Marko Škop)
Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (Fipresci) for Special Presentations – Desierto (Jonás Cuarón)
Netpac Award...
Check out the full list of winners below, with reviews where applicable, and catch up with all of our coverage (and more to come) here.
Shorts Cuts Award for Best Canadian Short Film – Overpass (Patrice Laliberté)
Short Cuts Award for Best Short Film – Maman(s) (Maïmouna Doucouré)
Best Canadian First Feature Film – Sleeping Giant (Andrew Cividino)
Best Canadian Feature Film – Closet Monster (Stephen Dunn)
Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (Fipresci) for the Discovery programme – Eva (Marko Škop)
Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (Fipresci) for Special Presentations – Desierto (Jonás Cuarón)
Netpac Award...
- 9/20/2015
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Exclusive: Beijing outfit launches with Tiff drama Promised Land, Simon Yam thriller, Blind Spot adaptation.
Newly minted Beijing-based international sales outfit Turbo Films has launched with a slate including veteran director He Ping’s Toronto drama The Promised Land.
The only Asian entry in Tiff’s Platform section, writer-director-producer He Ping’s first film set in the present day spotlights the massive internal migration that has seen millions of young people leaving their rural towns and villages to try and find a new life in China’s biggest cities.
Wang Jiajia (Wheat, So Young) and Zhang Yi (Mountains May Depart) star in the drama from production outfits Classics Media Co. and Beijing Junfei Century Culture Media Co.
Turbo Films, backed by a trio of private investors, is aiming to sell local-language fare with international appeal in the global market and has already amassed a busy slate.
At next month’s Asian Film Market in Busan, the company...
Newly minted Beijing-based international sales outfit Turbo Films has launched with a slate including veteran director He Ping’s Toronto drama The Promised Land.
The only Asian entry in Tiff’s Platform section, writer-director-producer He Ping’s first film set in the present day spotlights the massive internal migration that has seen millions of young people leaving their rural towns and villages to try and find a new life in China’s biggest cities.
Wang Jiajia (Wheat, So Young) and Zhang Yi (Mountains May Depart) star in the drama from production outfits Classics Media Co. and Beijing Junfei Century Culture Media Co.
Turbo Films, backed by a trio of private investors, is aiming to sell local-language fare with international appeal in the global market and has already amassed a busy slate.
At next month’s Asian Film Market in Busan, the company...
- 9/17/2015
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
This week sees the red carpet rolling into the centre of the Ontario capital for the fortieth edition of the Toronto Film Festival. Giving a headache to keen festival-goers everywhere the anniversary line-up boasts a staggering 289 feature titles including a whopping 132 world premières. Bookending the festival will be Jean-Marc Vallée's Demolition, which kicks things off on Thursday 10 September, and Paco Cabezas' Mr. Right, which draws proceedings to a close ten days later. The latter is a murderous rom-com starring Anna Kendrick and Sam Rockwell, the former stars Jack Gyllenhaal, grief-stricken and prone to random acts of destruction. But with such an enormous roster of films to choose from, it doesn't all hinge on the star-studded awards vehicles that may or not make their bow.
While the likes of Ridley Scott's The Martian, Stephen Frears' The Program and recent Venice bows such as The Danish Girl and...
While the likes of Ridley Scott's The Martian, Stephen Frears' The Program and recent Venice bows such as The Danish Girl and...
- 9/10/2015
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Films set to show at the 40th Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff), updated as announcements are made in the run up to the event.
Tiff will open on September 10 with Jean-Marc Vallée’s Demolition starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Naomi Watts.
Tiff 40
Key: Wp = world premiere; Nap = North American premiere; IP = international premiere; Cp = Canadian premiere.
GALASBeeba Boys (Canada), Deepa Mehta, WPDemolition, Jean-Marc Vallée WPDisorder (Maryland) (France-Belgium), Alice Winocour NAPThe Dressmaker (Aus), Jocelyn Moorhouse, WPEye In The Sky (UK), Gavin Hood WPForsaken (Canada), Jon Cassar, WPFreeheld (Us), Peter Sollett, WPHyena Road (Canada), Paul Gross, WPLolo (France), Julie Delpy, NAPLegend (UK), Brian Helgeland, IPMan Down (Us), Dito Montiel NAPThe Man Who Knew Infinity (UK), Matt Brown, WPThe Martian (Us), Ridley Scott, WPMiss You Already (UK), Catherine Hardwicke WPMississippi Grind (Us), Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden CPMr. Right (Us), Paco Cabezas WPThe Program (UK), Stephen Frears, WPRemember (Canada), Atom Egoyan, NAPSeptembers Of Shiraz (Us), Wayne Blair, WPStonewall ([link...
Tiff will open on September 10 with Jean-Marc Vallée’s Demolition starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Naomi Watts.
Tiff 40
Key: Wp = world premiere; Nap = North American premiere; IP = international premiere; Cp = Canadian premiere.
GALASBeeba Boys (Canada), Deepa Mehta, WPDemolition, Jean-Marc Vallée WPDisorder (Maryland) (France-Belgium), Alice Winocour NAPThe Dressmaker (Aus), Jocelyn Moorhouse, WPEye In The Sky (UK), Gavin Hood WPForsaken (Canada), Jon Cassar, WPFreeheld (Us), Peter Sollett, WPHyena Road (Canada), Paul Gross, WPLolo (France), Julie Delpy, NAPLegend (UK), Brian Helgeland, IPMan Down (Us), Dito Montiel NAPThe Man Who Knew Infinity (UK), Matt Brown, WPThe Martian (Us), Ridley Scott, WPMiss You Already (UK), Catherine Hardwicke WPMississippi Grind (Us), Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden CPMr. Right (Us), Paco Cabezas WPThe Program (UK), Stephen Frears, WPRemember (Canada), Atom Egoyan, NAPSeptembers Of Shiraz (Us), Wayne Blair, WPStonewall ([link...
- 8/25/2015
- ScreenDaily
Sue Brooks. Looking for Grace will screen in Platform, a new competitive section of the Toronto International Film Festival which showcases films that have a strong directorial vision. The road movie starring Richard Roxburgh, Radha Mitchell, Odessa Young and Terry Norris is the only Australian title in the running for the $C25,000 prize determined by the jury of filmmakers Jia Zhang-ke, Claire Denis and Agnieszka Holland. That strengthens Australia.s profile at the event which runs September 10-20. Jocelyn Moorhouse.s The Dressmaker will have its world premiere in Gala Presentations,. Simon Stone.s The Daughter will have its North American premiere in Special Presentations and Jennifer Peedom.s Sherpa and Gillian Armstrong.s Women He.s Undressed will compete in Tiff Docs.
Young, who also stars in The Daughter, plays 16-year-old Grace, who has run away from home. Her exasperated parents head to the West Australian wheat belt...
Young, who also stars in The Daughter, plays 16-year-old Grace, who has run away from home. Her exasperated parents head to the West Australian wheat belt...
- 8/13/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
The Tiff folks have unveiled their slated dozen features for their spanking brand new competitive section and they’ve managed to lasso some high profile world preems that will compete alongside Int. and Na premieres. Claire Denis, Agnieszka Holland and Jia Zhang-ke for which the name of the programme section is named after (Tiff referenced his 2000 film), will see a class comprised of the likes Joachim Lafosse and his piping hot The White Knights, David Verbeek (Full Contact starring Grégoire Colin – see pic above), Fabienne Berthaud and yet again actress Diane Kruger with Sky and Ben Wheatley‘s highly anticipated High Rise. Also included in the comp we find Pablo Trapero‘s Venice-bound The Clan, Eva Husson‘s hotly tipped directorial debut Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story) and a docu entry that sounds absolutely brutal true story from Alan Zweig in Hurt. The winner will be announced on...
- 8/13/2015
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
The Toronto International Film Festival has, through its run, divided the films into numerous programmes to better identify and group together like-minded features. One of the new additions to the programme in 2015 will be the Platform selection, which will showcase films with a strong directorial vision. What is unique about this programme is that the selected films, twelve in total, will be judged by a three-person jury during the event, with the top film taking home a $25,000 prize. The first ever group of judges at the 2015 event will be comprised of filmmaker Jia Zhang-ke, whose 2000 film Platform was cited as the inspiration for the programme, alongside filmmakers Claire Denis and Agnieszka Holland. The lineup for the Platform was announced today, and can be seen below, alongside their official synopses.
Bang Gang, directed by Eva Husson, making its World Premiere
Biarritz. Sixteen-year-old George, a beautiful high-school student, falls in love with Alex.
Bang Gang, directed by Eva Husson, making its World Premiere
Biarritz. Sixteen-year-old George, a beautiful high-school student, falls in love with Alex.
- 8/13/2015
- by Deepayan Sengupta
- SoundOnSight
Twelve titles also include films by Pablo Trapero, Joaquim Lafosse, He Ping and Fabienne Berthaud.Scroll down for full list
The Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 10-20) has unveiled the 12 titles that will comprise the inaugural line-up for Platform - the new juried programme that champions director-led cinema from around the world.
The competitive strand includes the world premiere of Ben Wheatley’s highly-anticipated High-Rise, a dystopic depiction of a society that starts a class war in a high-rise apartment. The adaptation of Jg Ballard’s 1975 novel stars Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans and Elisabeth Moss.
Also receiving its world premiere is Fabienne Berthaud’s Sky, a France-Germany co-production that star Diane Kruger, The Walking Dead’s Norman Reedus and Girls star Lena Dunham.
Kruger plays Romy, a married woman on holiday in the Us who storms out on her French husband (Gilles Lellouche) after an argument and wanders into the desert outside of Las...
The Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 10-20) has unveiled the 12 titles that will comprise the inaugural line-up for Platform - the new juried programme that champions director-led cinema from around the world.
The competitive strand includes the world premiere of Ben Wheatley’s highly-anticipated High-Rise, a dystopic depiction of a society that starts a class war in a high-rise apartment. The adaptation of Jg Ballard’s 1975 novel stars Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans and Elisabeth Moss.
Also receiving its world premiere is Fabienne Berthaud’s Sky, a France-Germany co-production that star Diane Kruger, The Walking Dead’s Norman Reedus and Girls star Lena Dunham.
Kruger plays Romy, a married woman on holiday in the Us who storms out on her French husband (Gilles Lellouche) after an argument and wanders into the desert outside of Las...
- 8/13/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Hong Kong – Chinese filmmakers from across generations and movie-making backgrounds have united in calling for an overhaul of Beijing’s much-maligned film censorship system, with most calling for the establishment of the internationally common system of classifying films in accordance to their suitability for audiences of different ages. Prominent directors such as Zhang Yuan (Beijing Bastards, Crazy English), Wang Xiaoshuai (Beijing Bicycle, 11 Flowers), Gao Qunshu (The Message, Golden Horse award-winner Beijing Blues), He Ping (Warriors of Heaven and Earth, Wheat) and Zhang Yang (Shower, Getting Home) have spoken out on Sina Weibo (China's version of Twitter) in support
read more...
read more...
- 12/18/2012
- by Clarence Tsui
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
5.Corey Yuen
Other names: 元奎
Yuan Kui
Yuan2 Kui1
Cory Yuen
Don Yuen
Yuen Fooi
Nationality: Hong Kong
Workplace: France, Hong Kong, USA
Cory Yuen as been choreographing movies since 1973, is first movie was Chinese Hercules, starring Bolo Yeung. He was a member of the Peking Opera Schools and one of the Seven Little Fortunes. In July 1981, Yuen made his Hong Kong directorial debut in 1982 film Ninja in the Dragon’s Den, along with Hiroyuki Sanada, Conan Lee and Hwang Jang Lee. In June 1985, Yuen made his American directorial debut in 1986 film No Retreat, No Surrender, which marked the film debut of Belgium martial artist actor Jean-Claude Van Damme.
n 1993, he began an alliance and good friendship with action star Jet Li. He directed several of Li’s films, beginning with Fong Sai-yuk and Fong Sai-yuk II, and continuing through The Bodyguard from Beijing, The New Legend of Shaolin and My Father Is a Hero,...
Other names: 元奎
Yuan Kui
Yuan2 Kui1
Cory Yuen
Don Yuen
Yuen Fooi
Nationality: Hong Kong
Workplace: France, Hong Kong, USA
Cory Yuen as been choreographing movies since 1973, is first movie was Chinese Hercules, starring Bolo Yeung. He was a member of the Peking Opera Schools and one of the Seven Little Fortunes. In July 1981, Yuen made his Hong Kong directorial debut in 1982 film Ninja in the Dragon’s Den, along with Hiroyuki Sanada, Conan Lee and Hwang Jang Lee. In June 1985, Yuen made his American directorial debut in 1986 film No Retreat, No Surrender, which marked the film debut of Belgium martial artist actor Jean-Claude Van Damme.
n 1993, he began an alliance and good friendship with action star Jet Li. He directed several of Li’s films, beginning with Fong Sai-yuk and Fong Sai-yuk II, and continuing through The Bodyguard from Beijing, The New Legend of Shaolin and My Father Is a Hero,...
- 6/29/2012
- by kingofkungfu
- AsianMoviePulse
In recent years there has been no shortage of Chinese war epics. Every year several prominent directors stick their names to one or other excessive big-budget affair where no expenses are spared to recreate the largest battles in China's rich and sprawling history of warfare. Ping He's Wheat may look like it fits this mold, but actually it doesn't (at all). It's a remarkably small and humble film, which is exactly where its true strength lies. Rather than focus on the actual warfare, He directs his camera at a village full of left-behind women. Year after year they have to survive on their own while the man are waging war in nearby cities and villages. Uncertain of their men's fate, the women go about their...
- 1/10/2012
- Screen Anarchy
Twitch has learned that Mainland actress Fan Bing Bing is in final negotiations to take the female lead opposite Donnie Yen in China 3D Agency's upcoming remake 3D Iceman Cometh. The project, to be shot in 3D and co-directed by Donnie Yen, Raymond Yip and Christopher Sun, is due to start filming in February next year and apparently it was Donnie himself who went after his Bodyguards And Assassins co-star to play the Hong Kong girl who helps his Ming Dynasty Imperial Guard adjust to life in the 21st Century. Fan is not only one of China's most beautiful actresses but she has shown a wonderfully diverse range in films like He Ping's underrated Wheat, to breakout festival hit Buddha Mountain, on which she also served...
- 11/24/2011
- Screen Anarchy
The dark side of mainland China's domestic film industry flexing its muscles on the world stage ('We can too compete') is when it takes Hollywood self-indulgence and refines it into something many times worse. Witness Eva Jin's Sophie's Revenge, where superstar Zhang Ziyi (The Banquet, 2046) tries her hand at daffy romantic comedy - the resulting disaster is an odious misfire on just about every level and a definite front runner for worst film of 2009.
Zhang (who also produced) clearly sees the film as some kind of glossy hybrid of Jeunet & Caro whimsy paired off with the mass-market appeal Meg Ryan or Sandra Bullock used to have. The very first scene is a flight of fantasy, her eponymous artist imagining a television interview as wartime film noir interrogation.
Her doting public want to know what the inspiration behind her new comic 'The Love Handbook' was. Cue the film as lengthy flashback,...
Zhang (who also produced) clearly sees the film as some kind of glossy hybrid of Jeunet & Caro whimsy paired off with the mass-market appeal Meg Ryan or Sandra Bullock used to have. The very first scene is a flight of fantasy, her eponymous artist imagining a television interview as wartime film noir interrogation.
Her doting public want to know what the inspiration behind her new comic 'The Love Handbook' was. Cue the film as lengthy flashback,...
- 12/19/2009
- Screen Anarchy
There have been so many period war epics made over the past decade, that what would once have been regarded as a highlight of the release schedule, too often passes by without notice. Were this down to simple audience complacency, that would be easily redeemable, but all too frequently these films have become soulless, generic and devoid of passion. I therefore approached He Ping's latest drama, Wheat, with such trepidation and muted expectations. It is with no small degree of enthusiasm, therefore, that it can be revealed how triumphant this film is.
- 12/12/2009
- Screen Anarchy
There is no need to bother Leni Riefenstahl and her Triumph des Willens to demonstrate how powerful propaganda can often be, but it's exactly in cases like hers that you often wonder what her legacy would have been, if ridden of all the political ramifications of (some of) her works. That is one of the reasons why today's Mainland Cinema is so vibrant and interesting, even in its most quintessential main melody form: we're often dealing with pretty obvious pieces of cinematic propaganda, works funded by the government and whose foremost purpose is to drive the masses into supporting a certain creed or philosophy. But for every insipid turd like 建国大业 (The Founding of a Republic), you get plenty of eclectic variations on this melody, works which do fulfill their "quota" of bleeding-heart national sentimentalism, but also manage to focus a large portion of their makers' efforts in building a cohesive,...
- 11/29/2009
- Screen Anarchy
The 40th International Film Festival of India began on Monday with the screening of a Chinese historical drama. "Wheat" (Mai Tian) is directed by He Ping.
The film, which is set in 260 B.C, depicts the period when China was ravaged in a long and bloody war between the Qin and the Zhao dynasties.
A poster exhibition with the theme "Venus: the Feminine Roles and the Reels" also opened at the venue on Monday as part of the Film Festival.
The exhibition will show for the first time around 350 posters which portray women in Indian cinema from the old classic era to the modern-day films.
The film, which is set in 260 B.C, depicts the period when China was ravaged in a long and bloody war between the Qin and the Zhao dynasties.
A poster exhibition with the theme "Venus: the Feminine Roles and the Reels" also opened at the venue on Monday as part of the Film Festival.
The exhibition will show for the first time around 350 posters which portray women in Indian cinema from the old classic era to the modern-day films.
- 11/23/2009
- icelebz.com
Hnr's Michael Stevens reporting from Toronto... Love And Other Impossible Pursuits, starring actress Natalie Portman, directed by Don Roos, will have its world premiere at this year's Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff). Premise of Love, adapting author Ayelet Waldman's novel, follows a newlywed Harvard Law School grad's attempt to connect with her new stepson. Other Galas include writer/director Rodrigo Garcia's Mother and Child starring Annette Bening, Naomi Watts and Kerry Washington, Carlos Saura's I, Don Giovanni, Matthias Emcke's Phantom Pain, Jan Kounen's Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky and Alejandro Amenabar's "Agora". The Joneses starring Demi Moore, directed by Derrick Borte screens in Special Presentations, as well as Christian Carion's L'Affaire Farewell, Dev Benegal's Road Movie, Claire McCarthy's The Waiting City, Giuseppe Tornatore's Baaria and He Ping's Wheat. Special Presentations will also include the North American premieres of John Hillcoat's The Road,...
- 8/14/2009
- HollywoodNorthReport.com
Yes there are other films we're excited to see in this final Tiff line-up announcement - Alejandro Amenábar's Agora, My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done by Werner Herzog - but let's face it the chance to see John Hillcoat's adaptation of the The Road two months early is just so damn cool that we had to give it top billing here.
You can check out the full Galas and Special Presentation line-ups after the break, or learn more about the entire festival over at the official Tiff site.
Galas
Agora Alejandro Amenábar, Spain
North American Premiere
In the fourth century, while Egypt was under the Roman Empire, violent religious upheaval in the streets of Alexandria spills over into the city’s famous library. Trapped inside its walls, the brilliant astronomer Hypatia (Rachel Weisz) and her disciples fight to save the wisdom of the ancient world. Among...
You can check out the full Galas and Special Presentation line-ups after the break, or learn more about the entire festival over at the official Tiff site.
Galas
Agora Alejandro Amenábar, Spain
North American Premiere
In the fourth century, while Egypt was under the Roman Empire, violent religious upheaval in the streets of Alexandria spills over into the city’s famous library. Trapped inside its walls, the brilliant astronomer Hypatia (Rachel Weisz) and her disciples fight to save the wisdom of the ancient world. Among...
- 8/13/2009
- QuietEarth.us
Little late on this, but hey; mainland director He Ping was supposed to get his mainstream breakout hit with the 2002 wuxia pian Warriors of Heaven and Earth. Sony Classics snapped it up hot on the heels of Crouching Tiger and Hero‘s success, hoping that with an all-star cast, score from superstar Bollywood composer Ar Rahman and Dp Zhao Fei’s epic cinematography it would be the next big thing to wow the West. Critical reception was fairly mixed and Warriors did nowhere near the business of Ang Lee or Zhang Yimou’s big hitters.
Six years later He Ping has returned to lavish period filmmaking and while Wheat looks even less likely to garner mainstream success, this seems to be the film where giving him a budget finally pays off. This is the story of two deserters in the Warring States era who end up taking refuge in an...
Six years later He Ping has returned to lavish period filmmaking and while Wheat looks even less likely to garner mainstream success, this seems to be the film where giving him a budget finally pays off. This is the story of two deserters in the Warring States era who end up taking refuge in an...
- 8/7/2009
- by Eight Rooks
- Screen Anarchy
Another one for the archives; let’s take a look at a film that deserves more attention – director He Ping (Warriors of Heaven and Earth) and the second of his ‘Chinese Westerns’, the little-seen Sun Valley from 1995. Swap six-shooters for swordplay, the Old West for the steppes – this glorious, flawed but fascinating little film is crying out for any kind of DVD release. Review after the break.
- 7/24/2009
- by Eight Rooks
- Screen Anarchy
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