Warriors of Virtue (1997)

A young boy is whisked away to the mythical land of Tao where he becomes the center of a conflict between an evil lord and a group of animal warriors.

Director:

Ronny Yu

Writers:

Michael Vickerman (screenplay), Hugh Kelley (screenplay)

Stars:

Angus Macfadyen, Mario Yedidia, Marley Shelton

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Angus Macfadyen	...	Komodo
Mario Yedidia	...	Ryan Jeffers
Marley Shelton	...	Elysia
Chao Li Chi	...	Master Chung (as Chao-Li Chi)
Jack Tate	...	Yun
Doug Jones	...	Yee
Don Lewis	...	Lai / Mayor Keena (as Don W. Lewis)
J. Todd Adams	...	Chi
Adrienne Corcoran	...	Tsun
Michael J. Anderson	...	Mudlap (as Michael John Anderson)
Tom Towles	...	Grillo
Lee Arenberg	...	Mantose
Dennis Dun	...	Ming
Roy Ceballos	...	Willy Beest
Jason Hamer	...	Mosely

Storyline

A young man, Ryan, suffering from a disability, wishes to join the other kids from his schools football team. During an initiation rite, Ryan is swept away through a whirlpool to the land of Tao. There he is hunted by the evil Lord Komodo, who desires the boy as a key to enter the real world. Ryan is rescued by the protectors of Tao, five humanoid kangaroos, each embued with the five elements and virtues. Ryan learns his valuable lesson while saving the land of Tao.

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Plot Keywords:

kangaroo | football | furry | sword and sorcery | water boy | 

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Taglines:

In a world beyond your imagination a battle for the universe has begun.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for fantasy action violence and some language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ryan quotes two movies: "Houston, we have a problem" from Apollo 13 (1995) and "Shit happens" from Forrest Gump (1994), both of which starred Tom Hanks.

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Goofs

At the beginning of the scene where we're introduced to Tsun, a safetly line (to pull her up) is visible shortly before she emerges from underground.

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Quotes

Ming: We all have our cocoons, Ryan. It's the struggle to free ourselves that makes us who we truly are.

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Connections

Referenced in The Lego Ninjago Movie (2017)

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Soundtracks

Tennessee Plates
Performed by Charlie Sexton
Written by John Hiatt & Mike Porter
Produced by Nile Rodgers
Charlie Sexton Appears Courtesy of MCA Records by Arrangement with Universal Music Special Markets
Published by Careers- BMG Music Publishing, Inc. (BMI) and Brother Gekko Music (BMI)

User Reviews

Ninja Kangaroos?

This movie is like the little girl with the curl - when it's good it's very very good, when it's bad it's horrid. The sets are great and there are some neat effects, but for some reason whoever produced this decided to use five Ninja KANGAROOS as the heroes. I can just see the production meeting: "Hedgehogs? Noo. How about beavers? Noo. Kangaroos? Yeah, kangaroos!!".

The guy who plays Komodo (the head baddie) seems to have some talent and presence, but the director has him alternately mumbling, whining and screaming in a random pattern. The rest of the actors are an odd mix of caricatures and straight acting.

The plot and "message" are good but have been done before many times. Mr. Miyagi, oops I mean Yoda, er Obi-wan Kenobi, no I mean Master Chung keeps cropping up to spew some platitudes and even comes back after death to encourage Luke Skywalker, oops I mean Ryan, the boy hero.

This movie is not all bad and there's worse ways to waste an evening. The viewer ends up wishing, however, that the producers would have shifted some of their money away from sets and special effects and into a script and direction.

Details

Country:

USA Hong Kong China Canada

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

2 May 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Warriors of Virtue

Filming Locations:

Beijing, China

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,277,084, 4 May 1997

Gross USA:

$6,524,620

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$6,537,036

Company Credits

Production Co:

China Film Co-Production Corporation, IJL Creations, Law Brothers Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

131 min

Sound Mix:

DTS SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1