Painted Skin 2: The Resurrection

[GeneChing]

Donnie's back. Recall Painted Skin 1 (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=47527)?

"Painted Skin 2" Starts Shooting In Da Lian (http://english.cri.cn/6666/2010/07/08/2602s581717.htm)
2010-07-08 16:22:37 CRIENGLISH.com Web Editor: shixisheng
A sequel to director Gordon Chen's romantic fantasy story "Painted Skin" recently started shooting in Dalian city, northeastern China's Liaoning province.

A sequel to director Gordon Chen's romantic fantasy story "Painted Skin" recently started shooting in Dalian city, northeastern China's Liaoning province.

Adopted from Chinese novelist Pu Songling's famous work "Erotic Ghost Story" or "Liao Zhai Zhi Yi", the first installment of the movie tells about a love triangle that takes place between a human couple and a fox spirit. Action star Donnie Yen, along with mainland actors Chen Kun, Zhao Wei, Zhou Xun and Sun Li starred in the film released in 2008. It pocketed 230 million RMB or about 33million US dollars at the box office.

The second installment will be an adventure story more than a love tale. It tells of when the couple's son grows up and makes a journey to the west to seek the source of eternal youth for his parents. During the trip, he conquers many difficulties which are given to him by some powerful demons.

Donnie Yen, Zhao Wei, Zhou Xun and Sun Li will join the film again, and mainland actor Huang Xiaoming will replace Chen Kun to play the male lead, Wang Sheng and his son Wang Ying.

[GeneChing]

畫皮Ⅱ (香港版預告) Painted Skin 2 (HK Trailer) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czhA4szPexQ)
This looks so much better that PS1.

[doug maverick]

ok i was about to rip apart that corny outline..but the trailer looks good.

[GeneChing]

PS2 working it at Cannes (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=53853)

Follow the link in the first article for a photo progression of the makeup job.

How Actress Zhou Xun Turns into a Fox Demon in "Painted Skin 2"
2012-05-15 15:01:55 Chinese Films
http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/05/15/08692e03711447c887fc4bbd4dc1070d.jpg
A still photo oof "Painted Skin 2" features Xiaowei, a fox demon portrayed by actress Zhou Xun. [Photo: Mtime.com]
The fantasy blockbuster "Painted Skin 2" will hit cinemas nationwide on June 28.

A series of photographs featuring actress Zhou Xun turning into a fox demon were released today, Mtime.com reports.

In the film, Xiaowei, a fox demon portrayed by Zhou Xun, needs to trade skins with Vicki Zhao to play a role.

The exchange of skins was a major hurdle for the make-up team, an undertaking so difficult that it was broken up into 35 separate sections. In order to really get a vivid image, 100 makeup artists spent 60 weeks preparing for this single scene.

For actress Zhou Xun, playing the role of Xiaowei was not an easy job.

"I spent 5 hours on makeup before shooting and two hours on makeup removal every day. I am the first to come to the set and the last one leave," Zhou was quoted as saying. "Although the makeup artists and I are tortured by the process, the final result is pretty successful. I believe Xiaowei's on-screen fox demon will give audiences an unusual visual shock."

By Liu Shuai


"Painted Skin 2" Set to Release in 2D and 3D Formats (http://www.chinesefilms.cn/141/2012/05/16/141s9464.htm)
2012-05-16 16:59:45 Chinese Films

Producer Pang Hong, director Wuershan and lead actor Feng Shaofeng last night made an appearance at a press conference held in Beijing and announced that the film "Painted Skin 2" will be screened nationwide in 2D/3D formats in June, Mtime.com reports.

It has been revealed that the star-studded lineup for the film, including the artistic director Yang Zhenjian, producer Pang Hong, director Wuershan and cast members Zhou Xun, Yang Mi, Feng Shaofeng, Kris Phillips and Cheng Tingjia, will arrive in France to promote the film at the 65th Cannes International Film Festival.

A new trailer tailor-made for the film's promotion at Cannes was viewed by 500 movie fans at the news conference.

Hu Xiao, the 3-D visual effects supervisor of the film, revealed that "Painted Skin 2" is a 3-D film made by a Chinese team with international-level quality.

"We met with many difficulties during the production, but we are confident that the final visual effects will be on par with that of the 3-D 'Titanic'." Hu Xiao stated.

Moviegoers can watch the film in cinemas starting June 28.

By Liu Shuai


Intimate Zhou Xun and Vicki Zhao in "Painted Skin 2" (http://www.chinesefilms.cn/141/2012/05/15/141s9428.htm)
2012-05-15 15:19:31 Chinese Films

http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/05/15/55e3e94f65804fcdbde655c129827919.jpg
http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/05/15/97ea246e71964b5684d558e33959c62f.jpg
Director Wuershan's fantasy film "Painted Skin 2" is set to hit theatres on June 8. Two still shots featuring intimate actresses Zhou Xun and Vicki Zhao in the film have been released. [Photo: Mtime.com]

[GeneChing]

Thu, 31 May 2012 02:50:32 GMT
Zhou Xun avoids Vicki Zhao by using body double (http://entertainment.xin.msn.com/en/celebrity/buzz/asia/zhou-xun-avoids-vicki-zhao-by-using-body-double)
The actresses who are rumoured to be on bad terms avoided each other on the set of their new movie

http://sin.stb.s-msn.com/i/FD/6E5E255826B93E1B46B3ABB8EF67.jpg
Zhou Xun Vicki Zhao

How far would you go to avoid someone you hate at work?

Actress Zhou Xun insisted on using a body double for all her scenes with Vicki Zhao on the movie Painted Skin: The Resurrection. Other than frontal shots, the two actresses will have no contact with each other, according to a tip-off on Tuesday.

Since the filming for the movie commenced, the pair has been rumoured to be on bad terms. The pair reportedly compared the ratings for their other movies, the fee that they received from the movie and there was even a "chair-kicking incident" in one of the artiste's waiting room.

In other related news, producers of the Taiwanese movie LOVE which starred Shu Qi and Vicki, had originally approached Zhou Xun to be part of the cast. Zhou Xun reportedly rejected the role when she learnt that Vicki would also be involved. These two should just duke it out. Maybe mud wrasslin... I'd be glad to referee.

[GeneChing]

There are more if you follow the link...


Vicky Zhao, the Vulnerable Princess Gets Naked in "Painted Skin 2" (http://www.chinesefilms.cn/141/2012/06/06/122s10026_6.htm)
2012-06-06 14:41:07 Chinese Films

http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/06/06/642fa7375da14c149adab8fea0a4ba37.jpg
http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/06/06/5da19e3cdf584654ace86dd3760e4674.jpg
"Painted Skin 2" released a batch of new still photos featuring Vicky Zhao, a princess who has scars on her face, in the movie. Zhao was seen getting naked under water. She and Zhou Xun will offer a skins changing performance.

[Hebrew Hammer]

Interestingly her armor looks a lot like Samurai layered armor as apposed to Chinese...the whip is a nice touch. I usually pay extra for that. :D

Now if I had to pick a Demoness to be seduced by here, because I deal with this exact issue in my every day life, I'm leaning towards Zhou Xun! If she would only return my calls...

[GeneChing]

Painted Skin 2: The Resurrection: Film Review (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/painted-skin-2-resurrection-shanghai-film-festival-gordon-chan-kris-phillips-338550)
10:34 AM PDT 6/17/2012 by Deborah Young

The Bottom Line
Spectacular if blemished Chinese fantasy aiming for high lyricism should pull in female viewers and fans of the 2008 original.

Cast
Zhou Xun, Zhao Wei (Vicki Zhao), Chen Kun,Yang Mi, Chen Tingjia, Feng Shaofeng (William Feng), Fei Xiang (Kris Phillips)

Director
Wu Ershan

Screenwriters
Ran Ping, Ran Jianan

The sequel to the 2008 film by Gordon Chan kicked off the Shanghai International Film Festival Sunday.

The unbridled visual creativity of big-budget Chinese fantasy films offers a thrilling entry point into Painted Skin 2: The Resurrection, a spectacular mythological period piece that segues from the 2008 film directed by Gordon Chan. But the bigger the expectations, the harder they fall, and many scenes fail discouragingly to live up to the director Wu Ershan’s (The Butcher, the Chef and the Swordsman) lyrical ambitions, when not downright ridiculous. The result is a roller-coaster of a film that will divide audiences particularly along gender lines, having greater appeal for female viewers both because it is fundamentally a love story with a noble, long-haired, romantic hero, and thanks to the presence of four strong and powerful women characters who run the show. The print screened at the opening of the Shanghai Film Festival was breathtaking in 2D, though a 3D release is planned in China at the end of June.

This classic Chinese ghost story refuses to die, having been adapted for the screen a number of times by directors as illustrious as King Hu. Here the tale follows from its predecessor: Xiaowei (Zhou Xun, reprising her role) is a fox demon who has been imprisoned under ice after saving the lives of human beings in Painted Skin I. Her beautiful face attracts the attention of the female bird demon Quer (Yang Mi), who pecks her out of the ice, effectively reopening a Pandora’s box of trouble.

To regain her youth and beauty, Xiaowei is obliged to devour human hearts, and her first victim is a luscious barbarian prince who will come back to haunt her in the final scenes. But what she really wants is to become human, and that requires a warm, innocent human heart freely given. The rules governing demons are quite intricate, and easily spoofed in the character of comic demon-hunter Pang (Feng Shaofeng) who gets romantic with the bird demon in her pixie-ish human guise.

The main story, however, belongs to Princess Jing (Zhao Wei) and her dashing young guard General Huo Xin (Chen Kun). Jing was mauled by a bear when she was 15, and Huo Xin fled the court in shame at not protecting her. Now, eight years later, she wears a mysterious gold mask on a quarter of her beautiful face, hiding the scars that disfigure her. Donning a man’s armor, she crosses China to find her true love Huo Xin, though his status will never allow them to marry, and though she’s betrothed to the very same Tian Liang barbarian prince that Xiaowei seemed to have dispatched. But never say never in this film. Feeling rebuffed by Huo Xin for her looks (though his reasons for coyness are utterly noble), the aching princess turns for help to the fox demon Xiaowei, who proposes they swap faces and bodies, at the price of taking possession of Jing’s warm heart.

Between Princess Jing, the fox spirit Xiaowei, the cute but powerful bird demon and the fur-clad barbarian princess (Chen Tingjia), there’s not a weak lady in the house. Performances run surprisingly deep, and the bond that links Jing and Xiaowei, in particular, rings very true in spite of the square-off between divas Zhou Xun and Zhao Wei. Women will certainly identify with a lot that is going on here: selfish and selfless love, sacrificing everything for a man, fighting off rivals for his affection, and the frantic search for youth and beauty to capture his heart (mythological “plastic surgery” is clearly a mistake in this story, shown in a poetically-grisly scene of mask-switching.)

On the other hand, all auds will enjoy the visuals and the extraordinary animation sequences that carry the story when it soars high, along with scattered but well-handled fight scenes that show off the superhuman prowess of the young general. His ability to snag a falling coin with an arrow, even blindfolded, gives way to wrestling with giant warriors and snarling wolf-slaves in spectacular later scenes.

The unsuccessful parts are linked to the disappointing depiction of the Tian Liang barbarians, who live in a city carved out of rock beyond China’s Western border. Leading the brood is a tattooed grand wizard (Taiwan pop singer and Broadway performer Fei Xiang a.k.a. Kris Phillips) with a Spiderman halo and shaven head. If the elaborate costumes of Jing’s forces seem inspired by the Terracotta Army, their rivals take their cue from animals, in manners as well as apparel, while their black magic rituals are a laughable throwback to long-outgrown film stereotyping. All this compromises the climactic scenes as Huo Xin’s army storms the barbarians’ Game of Thrones-style fortress, though even here there are moments of great beauty and fantasy.

Bottom line: Spectacular if blemished Chinese fantasy aiming for high lyricism should pull in female viewers and fans of the 2008 original.

Venue: Shanghai Film Festival (opening film), June 17, 2012.

Production companies: Ningxia Film Corp., Dinglangda Culture Development, H. Brothers, Kylin Films
Cast: Zhou Xun, Zhao Wei (Vicki Zhao), Chen Kun,Yang Mi, Chen Tingjia, Feng Shaofeng (William Feng), Fei Xiang (Kris Phillips)
Director: Wu Ershan
Screenwriters: Ran Ping, Ran Jianan
Producers: Pang Hong, Wang Zhonglei
Executive producers: Tao Kun, Pang Yong
Director of photography: Huang Yuetai
Production designer: Hao Yi
Editor: Xiao Yang
Music. Katsunori Ishida
Sales Agent: Huayi Brothers
No rating, 132 minutes
"This classic Chinese ghost story refuses to die"... love that line.

[GeneChing]

June 18, 2012, 6:03 PM HKT
‘Painted Skin’ Sequel Opens Shanghai Film Fest (http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2012/06/18/painted-skin-sequel-opens-shanghai-film-fest/)
By Dean Napolitano

“Painted Skin: The Resurrection,” China’s latest big-budget action movie, kicked off the Shanghai International Film Festival over the weekend.

A sequel to 2008′s “Painted Skin,” the film reunites most of the original’s cast, including Zhou Xun, Zhao Wei and Chen Kun. Notably absent this time around is kung-fu star Donnie Yen.

“Painted Skin: The Resurrection,” whose budget is reportedly as high as 150 million yuan ($23.5 million), also features a new director, Wuershan, who replaces the original film’s Gordon Chan. Singularly named and hailing from Inner Mongolia, Wuershan is known for his commercial work and made his feature-film debut in 2010 with “The Butcher, the Chef and the Swordsman,” a martial-arts black comedy about a large blade traversing ownership among three men.

Set in ancient China, “Painted Skin: The Resurrection” is about a demon (Ms. Zhou) who consumes the hearts of men to remain young and beautiful, and the pursuit of true love that will transform her into a human. Critics praised the sequel’s cinematography and costumes but knocked what they described as the movie’s “paper-thin characters and incoherent story.”

The Hollywood Reporter said “many scenes fail discouragingly to live up to” the director’s “lyrical ambitions, when not downright ridiculous.” But trade publication Film Business Asia described it as a “very entertaining, slightly over-long costume fantasy whose performances and sheer technique carry a script that often punches above its weight.”

“Painted Skin: The Resurrection” opens across China on June 28 and in early July in other parts of Asia.

Follow Dean Napolitano on Twitter @NapolitanoWSJ
I liked tBtC&tS (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=58753), so I'm hopeful Wuershan can pull this off.

[Sardinkahnikov]

I must say that this looks incredibly silly. I mean, "Erotic Ghost Story"? Please.

And this coming from a guy who loves the Bill & Ted movies.

[GeneChing]

EGS was made back in the late 80s, during the Fant-ASIA movement. It was huge for Amy Yip (and if you don't know her, you don't know HK Cat III films). She was in one of my all time fav HK flicks Blue Jean Monster.

"Painted Skin 2" Grosses 6 Million at First Round of Screening (http://www.chinesefilms.cn/141/2012/06/29/122s10422.htm)
2012-06-29 10:27:48 Chinese Films
http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/06/29/c7a023b8c5a74cdeafa522815c6081c1.jpg
Wang Zhonglei (right), Zhou Xun (center) and Chen Kuo-fu(right) attended a fan meeting event of "Painted Skin 2." [Photo: Mtime.com]

Wang Zhonglei, CEO of Huayi Bros, announced at a fan meeting event yesterday in Beijing that the fantasy movie "Painted Skin: The Resurrection" had grossed 6 million yuan (US$943,000) after its first round of screening, Mtime.com reports.

Actress Zhou Xun and producer of the movie Chen Kuo-fu were also spotted at the event.

According to Wang, over 200,000 people watched the movie at midnight across the country, which set a new record for domestic movies. The revenue ranked third place for the first day of screening at China cinemas, right after "Transformers 3" (12 million yuan/US$1.88 million) and Titanic 3D (10 million yuan/US$1.57 million).

The movie was highly praised by audiences that said it had superior special effects, costume designs and cinematography.

"Painted Skin: The Resurrection" is screened only in 3D currently.

By Chen Nan

[GeneChing]

I'm pretty eager to see this, not only because of its significance to Chinese cinema now, but because I'm intrigued by Wuershan's work and have been crushing on Zhao since Shaolin Soccer (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46486). I saw the first installment mostly because Donnie was in it.


Painted Skin puts China back on top (http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/painted-skin-puts-china-back-on-top)
By Stephen Cremin
Wed, 04 July 2012, 09:15 AM (HKT)
Box Office News
http://www.filmbiz.asia/media/BAhbB1sHOgZmSSI6MjAxMi8wNy8wMy8xMy8xNy80OS83MzMvcG FpbnRlZF9za2luX3Jlc3VycmVjdGlvbi5qcGcGOgZFVFsIOgZw Ogp0aHVtYkkiDTUwMHgxMDAwBjsGVA?suffix=.jpg&sha=b739cda4
Wuershan 烏爾善's Painted Skin: The Resurrection 畫皮Ⅱ broke box office records in China this weekend where it had the biggest opening yet for a local film.

The 130-minute action-fantasy-romance, screening exclusively in 3-D, grossed RMB298 million ($47.3 million) on 6.65 million admissions over four days at an average ticket price of RMB45 ($7.13). Tickets in Beijing retailed for as much as RMB120 ($19.02), in line with prices for Hollywood 3-D films in China.

It is historically the third highest opening in China, following this year's 3-D revival of Titanic (1997) and last year's Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Titanic took RMB468 million ($74.2 million) in its first six days; Transformers, also shown in 3-D, took RMB401 million ($63.6 million) in its first four days in cinemas.

By comparison, Avatar (2009) took RMB287 million ($45.5 million at current exchange rates) in its first week on release. Strong demand and a shortage of 3-D screens at the time contributed to the science-fiction film's record 10-week run at the top of the box office, a feat that Resurrection will likely not match.

However, Resurrection will likely dominate local cinemas in the coming weeks and exceed $100 million. New films opening this month include Patrick LEUNG 梁柏堅's Wu Dang 大武當之天地密碼, CHEN Kaige 陳凱歌's Caught in the Web 搜索, and The Four 四大名捕, co-directed by Gordon CHAN 陳嘉上.

Although Hollywood films — including The Hunger Games, Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted, Men In Black 3 and The Avengers — are still playing in Chinese cinemas, there are no US films scheduled to open in China until 25 June. That date marks the belated release of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1.

It has been 24 weeks — almost six months — since another Chinese film topped the local box office charts, Derek YEE 爾冬陞's The Great Magician 大魔術師 in mid-January. The dominance of Hollywood films — in particular 3-D films — has been a major concern for the local industry this year.

Resurrection is co-produced and distributed by Huayi Brothers Media Corporation 華誼兄弟傳媒股份有限公司. After a lukewarm 2011, during which it focused on production, it has a strong lineup of titles in post-production including FENG Xiaogang 馮小剛's war drama 1942 一九四二.

Huayi's previous box office successes include Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame 狄仁杰之通天帝國 (2010) (RMB109 million in five days), Aftershock 唐山大地震 (2010) (RMB180 million in four days) and If You are the One II 非誠勿擾Ⅱ (2010) (RMB210 million in five days).

In 2008, Gordon Chan's Painted Skin 畫皮 (2008) made approximately RMB232 million on its theatrical run in China. Resurrection reunites most of the original cast but is officially not a sequel. The decision to convert the new film to 3-D was first announced during the Cannes Film Festival in May.

[GeneChing]

Vicky Zhao is wearing my shirt!! I've been looking for it all morning! :mad:

"Painted Skin 2" Sets Seven New Records for Chinese Films (http://www.chinesefilms.cn/141/2012/07/03/122s10470.htm)
2012-07-03 14:22:02 Chinese Films
http://www.chinesefilms.cn/mmsource/images/2012/07/03/38ebeb2f2afe4efb9cb11907735c0698.jpg
"Painted Skin 2" sets seven new records for Chinese films. [Photo: xinhua]

A ****tail-party celebrating the box office success of "Painted Skin: The Resurrection" was held yesterday in Beijing. According to a report on Xinhuanet.com, the movie had set seven new records for Chinese films.

Producer Pang Hong announced at the occasion that the movie had generated 300 million yuan (US$47.1 million) after four days of screening.

It set seven news records for domestic films including: the highest box office revenue at midnight (6 million yuan/US$942,000); the highest box office revenue at first day of screening (70 million yuan/ US$1.099 million), the highest box office revenue for a single day (90 million yuan/ US$1.413 million), the fastest time to break a cumulative (cume) of 200 million yuan (US$31.4 million) in 2 days; the fastest time to break a cume of 300 million yuan (US$47.1 million); and the highest box office revenue for a first week of screening and a single week of screening.

Wang Zhonglei, the CEO of Huayi Bros., expressed his gratitude towards the production team and the movie's cast.

Leading actors Vicky Zhao, Chen Kun and Fei Xiang were also present at the event to enjoy the news.

By Chen Nan
I so wish that was my shirt she was wearing...:o




Painted Skin: The Resurrection (http://www.timeout.com.hk/film/features/51915/painted-skin-the-resurrection.html)
Posted: 4 Jul 2012

It could have been titled Painted Skin: The Resurrection of an Exhausted Story for a Bigger Buck. Four years after Hong Kong director Gordon Chan coaxed a heartbreaking film of unconditional love from an oft-adapted short story in the supernatural classic Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio, the ‘franchise’ is passed on to the Mongolia-born artist-turned TV commercials director-turned filmmaker Wuershan, whose irrepressible visual flair and penchant for the ultra-stylish (witness his feature debut The Butcher, the Chef and the Swordsman) seems to have found its perfect home with this mega-budget production.

In the first movie, the temptress fox demon Xiao Wei (played by Zhou Xun) was tortured by her love for an army commander (Chen Kun) who’s happily married to a dutiful wife (Zhao Wei), eventually getting punished for her bid to save the mortal couple. Set 500 years after the original’s story, this loosely connected sequel sees Xiao Wei finally being freed from her centuries-long imprisonment under ice, upon when she swiftly comes across a royal guard-cum-general (Huo Xin, again by Chen) and the slightly disfigured princess (Jing, again by Zhao) who’s been carrying a torch for him despite a separation of more than eight years.

The fact that the star-crossed lovers are again played by Chen and Zhao is implicitly a consequence of reincarnation – and explicitly a result of the original’s enormous box office draw. More narrative impasse arrives in the form of Huo Xin’s inexplicable reluctance to return Jing’s affection, and the movie’s lack of a dramatic core is highlighted by its central ‘mystery’ – steadfastly maintained by Chen, who looks as if he’s forbidden to emote – that’s about the only issue setting the plot going: is the scarred Jing no longer pretty enough for her indecisive former bodyguard? Or is he just not that into her?

Such trivial matters of the heart rarely make for an engaging epic, and The Resurrection’s major dilemma – whether Jing should trade her heart (and human status) for Xiao Wei’s beautiful look (and the demon’s constant need to devour human hearts) – plays out like an unwitting riff on Kim Ki-duk’s Time, in which a woman resorts to cosmetic surgeries to win back her beau. Wuershan’s luxurious, effects-driven feature may have presented us with a most spectacularly picturesque world of fantasy; at its heart, however, this tacky and meandering effort is but a very poor man’s Vertigo.

Edmund Lee

Dir Wuershan, category IIB, 131 mins, opens on July 5

Waiting on that first KFM review here...:)

[GeneChing]

I had a feeling this would do well. Still waiting on that first KFM review...

Resurrection takes China BO record (http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/resurrection-takes-china-bo-record)
By Stephen Cremin
Tue, 24 July 2012, 17:45 PM (HKT)
Box Office News

http://www.filmbiz.asia/media/BAhbB1sHOgZmSSIsMjAxMi8wNy8yNC8wMi80Mi8wNi81NDgvYn Vuc2hpbnNhYmEuanBnBjoGRVRbCDoGcDoKdGh1bWJJIg01MDB4 MTAwMAY7BlQ?suffix=.jpg&sha=3b283e93
Painted Skin: The Resurrection 畫皮Ⅱ is officially China's highest grossing domestic film. In 25 days, Wuershan 烏爾善's action fantasy has taken RMB686 million ($107 million) in China.

Resurrection has taken the box office record from Let the Bullets Fly 讓子彈飛 (2010) which made RMB674 million. It had narrowly taken the record from Aftershock 唐山大地震 (2010), which had taken RMB665 million a few months earlier.

Due to the higher ticket prices of the 3-D Resurrection, it has yet to match the admission records of either film. At an average ticket price of RMB44 ($6.90), it has been viewed by 15.5 million people in cinemas.

Resurrection was ranked second at the box office last week behind another action-fantasy, The Four 四大名捕. The 2-D film has now made RMB151.9 million ($23.8m million) in China. A sequel is currently shooting.

In third place, CHEN Kaige 陳凱歌's contemporary drama Caught in the Web 搜索 has now taken RMB147 million (US$23 million) in 16 days. His most recent film, the historical drama Sacrifice 趙氏孤兒 (2010), made RMB199 million (US$31.1 million).

The strongest new film last week was Bunshinsaba 筆仙 (pictured), South Korea's AN Byung-ki 안병기's Chinese-language remake of his own Bunshinsaba: Ouija Board 분신사바 (2004). The horror took RMB32.0 million (US$5.01 million) in 7 days.

The highly-anticipated remake features a Chinese cast and local scriptwriters, but employs a South Korean cinematographer, CHOI Sang-mook 최상묵, and composer, JEONG Yong-jin 정용진.

Another local horror, The Death is Here 筆仙驚魂 , released in June used a similar Chinese name and poster art inspired by the original South Korean horror. It made RMB23.3 million ($3.64 million) in cinemas.

Also newly released last week was GAO Qunshu 高群書's award-winning Beijing Blues 神探亨特張. The docu-drama made RMB4.30 million (US$670,000) over 3 days.

[SimonM]

Picked up a copy of Painted Skin II yesterday. Will be viewing some time next week.

[GeneChing]

Painted Skin 2 : the Resurrection Movie Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwoS-O2idNM)


Why Painted Skin 2 has taken China by storm (http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2012/jul/31/painted-skin-2-china-storm)

Following China's ban on foreign films, Painted Skin 2 has become the country's highest grossing local film of all time, while also departing from tradition

Even The Dark Knight Rises isn't dark enough to slip through a Chinese blackout. Christopher Nolan's big finale recently got the thumbs up from the Beijing censors – but the ban on foreign films that started on 25 June means it has to wait its turn for a cinema slot. But what's bad news for angsty Gotham billionaires is happy days for human heart-quaffing fox demons; part of the reason why the Chinese government periodically imposes these restrictions. Supernatural romance sequel Painted Skin 2: The Resurrection, released three days after the ban, became the first local film in nearly six months to sit on the No 1 spot.

It did a bit more than that, in fact. Not only was it China's third highest opening weekend ever (300m yuan/$47m, behind Titanic 3D and the third Transformers), but it's now the highest grossing local film of all time, too ($111.8m to date). Directed by Mongolian-born up-and-comer Wuershan, it's a throwback to the heyday of the 90s Hong Kong supernatural titillator: actor-singers Zhou Xun and Zhao Wei play the aforementioned fox demon and a disfigured princess who, competing for the attention of a local frontier general, end up trading bodies. Think a Taoist Face/Off, with shimmery underwater sapphic writhings instead of showers of slow-mo bullet casings.

The Hollywood Reporter praised Painted Skin 2's "unbridled visual creativity", while shrinking from its more retrogressive elements, especially the depiction of some eye-rolling, black-magic-practising barbarians who were "a laughable throwback to long-outgrown film stereotypes".

But mostly, Wuershan gets his undeniably broad story stylings singing with mythic resonance. Not everything about his film is staunchly traditional, though. One obvious reason for the scale of its success is that it has tapped successfully into the female demographic that seems to be crucial if any blockbuster, Chinese or not, is to hit warp speed. Not just by casting two women leads, but by giving them decent roles, too, and a timeless theme – the significance of beauty – with deep-lunged dramatic breathing room. "Zhao's scenes with Zhou are much more emotionally resonant than those with the weak-eyed Chen [Kun], her putative romantic partner," noted Film Business Asia's Derek Elley.

Even more of a departure for the industry could be the fact that Painted Skin 2's backers Huayi Brothers – the country's largest private media company – avoided the director-centric approach of much Chinese film, and opted to put power in the hands of its producers instead: the Hollywood way. "They executed a market-oriented strategy in their selection of director, their screenplay development, their choice of release date, and their investment and production management," writes Robert Cain on his Chinafilmbiz blog, "It could have a long-lasting impact on Chinese film production."

Of course it's ironic that Painted Skin 2 needed a little old-fashioned government help for this apprentice in Hollywood market-economy ways not to be crushed by the real Hollywood. But that is the kind of paradox China likes now to throw up. Wuershan should know: he has embraced all players. His first film, hyperactive martial-arts comedy The Butcher, the Chef and the Swordsman, was for Fox International, executive-produced by Doug Liman (Mr and Mrs Smith), while his debut homegrown production yanks him right back towards classical Chinese culture. That always has exotic allure for western audiences; with Ice Age 4 tempting Chinese audiences back to Hollywood, we'll see how loyal the home crowd are feeling.

• Next week's After Hollywood will look at Spain's answer to Twilight. Meanwhile, what global box-office stories would you like to see covered in the column? Let us know in the comments below.

• Painted Skin 2 will be released in the UK as Demon Hunter: The Resurrection on Blu-Ray and DVD from Cine-Asia on 5 November.

[GeneChing]

Picked up a copy of Painted Skin II yesterday. Will be viewing some time next week.
But where's the review? :eek:

So last Friday, I had an interview with RZA in Chinatown (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=64140) and that evening, I was working Phish at BGC, so I figured I'd stay in SF, work from home on Saturday, and treat myself to either Expendables 2 (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=58108) or Miike's Harakiri (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=60345). Century at Embarcadero had neither, but Metreon had PS2. Metreon is AMC and AMC recently got bought out by a Chinese company, so they are playing some new Chinese movies. So I caught that and Dark Knight (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=62583) as it started right after PS2 ended. The showing I attended was essentially empty (there was one Asian couple, and then some theater hoppers ducked in but escaped quickly when they saw the subtitles).

Man, I wish I saw this in 3D. Like Avatar, a lot of it is CGI, so it is probably fairly robust 3D. It is visually stunning, like Legend of Zu was in its day. The color schemes are outrageous, cascades of flowing silk, glittering golden armor and ghostly white hair tentacles. I'm delighted to have seen this on the big screen. It's so visual and psychedelic. Vicky Zhao Wei and Zhou Xun return but this story is only loosely connected to the first. Vicky is a scarred princess general and gets to cry hell of a lot, which is her forte with those crazy huge eyes of hers. Zhou is the fox demon and she also has huge eyes, perfect for a demon. And Yang Mi perfectly chirpy as the bird demon. It's sappily romantic in that Chinese sacrifice-love-for-station-and-circumstance, and some of those scenes get a little long, but the musical interlude is a traditional melancholy ballad and all three actresses are just stunning in their roles. It's funny, sexy, tragic, campy and stylish, and apart from a few romantic scenes, moved at a decent pace to keep me engaged. The romantic scenes are redeemed by the literal giving of hearts, as demons have no hearts so they must eat them regularly and have one given willingly to become human.

Plus there's some fun sword fights. It's magical flying about coupled with some decent chopping.

Loved it, loved it, loved it, but I'm as much a sucker for Chinese myth and Vicky as I am for Catwoman, so take that into account.

It's all about Wuershan for me now. I loved this movie. I loved tBtC&tS (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=58753). I'm watching everything he makes for a while.

I just realized that Yang Mi was also the hottie in Wu Dang (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=62423) but I read her 'English' name in the credits. She has two English names: Mini Yang and Mimi Yang. I didn't put that together as her character in this film was so different.

[GeneChing]

According to Box Office Mojo, it's playing in 6 theaters in the U.S., two of which are in the S.F. Bay Area. :cool:


A Fantasy Land Where Love and Betrayal Reign (http://movies.nytimes.com/2012/08/17/movies/painted-skin-the-resurrection-by-wuershan.html?_r=0)
‘Painted Skin: The Resurrection,’ by Wuershan
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS
Published: August 16, 2012

Despite its obsession with a triumvirate of powerful women, “Painted Skin: The Resurrection,” Wuershan’s fantastical follow-up to Gordon Chan’s popular 2008 original, plays like the death knell of feminism. Not that this is likely to be of concern to the film’s target audience, whose appetite for ancient Chinese ghost stories is more vulnerable to a scarcity of special effects than to a surfeit of regressive sexual attitudes.

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/08/17/arts/17RDP_PAINT/17RDP_PAINT-popup.jpg
Chen Kun as Gen. Hou Xin in “Painted Skin: The Resurrection,” a fantasy film directed by Wuershan.

That said, this deliciously nutty love story — sample dialogue: “Let me eat this heart, then we can pick azaleas together” — is blindingly gorgeous to look at and exceptionally well acted, at least by the women. As a fox demon recently freed after 500 years in an ice prison, Zhou Xun is craftily seductive, munching on human hearts to postpone refreezing. As the lovelorn princess who conceals her scarred face behind a golden mask, Zhao Wei pines like a pro and brandishes a sword as well as any warrior. And the splendidly named Yang Mini, playing a bird demon unwisely aflutter for a goofy demon hunter, is bewitchingly playful.

Then there are the men, who range in unworthiness from a comatose king and an insipid general (Chen Kun) to a bald wizard with a bad case of gingivitis. Besotted by the general’s flowing locks and limpid eyes, the princess exchanges her heart for the fox’s demonic beauty, a transaction accomplished with the aid of sinuous animation and much underwater hanky-panky. Imagine John Woo’s “Face/Off” crossed with the Neve Campbell-Denise Richards pool scene from “Wild Things,” and you’ll get the idea. The moral? Never go swimming with a woman whose head zips up the back.

[Lucas]

According to Box Office Mojo, it's playing in 6 theaters in the U.S., two of which are in the S.F. Bay Area. :cool:

i hate you :mad:

[GeneChing]

me love you long time (http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=160_1345659267)

[Lucas]

me love you long time (http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=160_1345659267)

lol owned!!


I'm just jealous is all, its not playing near me. I'll be watching Hara-Kiri 3D tomorrow night though :D

[GeneChing]

Only the 2D version of Hara-Kiri (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=60345) is playing here and it's up in SF. Not sure if I'll be able to make it up there in time. :( I will look forward to your review of it however. Have a great weekend!

[Lucas]

Only the 2D version of Hara-Kiri (http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=60345) is playing here and it's up in SF. Not sure if I'll be able to make it up there in time. :( I will look forward to your review of it however. Have a great weekend!

Thanks Gene, you too! 6 o'clock and I'm out of here!!!!

'They'll never take our Freedom!'

[omarthefish]

I must say that this looks incredibly silly. I mean, "Erotic Ghost Story"? Please.

And this coming from a guy who loves the Bill & Ted movies.

That bugged me too but for different reasons. "Erotic Ghost Story" is a made up name with very little relationship to the original Chinese that they were "translating". The movies are based on a monster from an actual classic collection of ancient Chinese folktales but the more standard English name for the text is "Tales of The Strange". It's kind of like a Chinese Grim's fairy tales.

edit: here's a wiki on "Erotic Ghost Story": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liao_Zhai
from the wiki:

The main characters of this book apparently are ghosts, foxes, immortals and demons, but the author actually focused on people’s real life. He used those oddities to illustrate his ideas of the society and the government. He criticized the corruption and unjustness in the society and sympathized on those poor people. There are four main themes in this collection.

First is to complain the feudal system where everyone is not equal. The author exposed that many officers and rich people committed crime without punishment just because they had privilege. This theme can be found in these stories, such as “the Cricket”, “Xi Fangping”, and “Shang Sanguan” The author was angry with the unfairness of the feudal government.

Secondly, the author disclosed the corrupt examination system at that time. Because Songling had taken imperial exams, he had real experience and found that the exams were unfair. Many students cheated and bribed examiners or the officers who graded their paper. In addition, this education system has destroyed the scholars’ mind and ruined their creativity. Stories, such as “Kao San Sheng”, “Ya Tou”, and “Scholar Wang Zi-an”, contain this theme.

Third theme is to admire the pure and faithful love between the poor scholars and powerless women. Songling wrote many stories about the love between beautiful and kind female ghosts and poor students. The author highly praised those women who helped their lovers or husbands to achieve success and took care of their husbands’ life. Readers can find those good-looking and kind-hearted female ghosts or foxes in the stories like “Lian Xiang”, “Yingning” and “Nie Xiaoqian”.

Fourth is to criticize people’s immoral behavior and to educate people by those stories. The author embedded some moral standards and Taoist principles into the stories, so they are like parables, such as “Painted Skin” and “The Taoist of Lao Mountain”

Oddly enough, this movie caught my eye because when PS1 (the movie, not the gaming system) came out, completely by coincidence, I was preparing a presentation on the original for a course I was taking at college. The only thing the movie(s) have to do with the original Chinese tale is the general idea of the monster. Like most of the stories in Liao Zhai Zhi Yi (Tales of the Strange) the protagonist is not a badass army general but rather a shy intellectual with no money. Wiki has a decent summary of "Painted Skin" but it differs a bit from how I remember it. It gets the gist across though.

Anyways, a hell of a lot of Chinese action movies have been based (very loosely) on stories from Liao Zhai. There's another one out very recently about some guys who get lost inside a painting in a temple and in the world of the painting there is also a painting of the "real" world that they came from. The supernatural people on the other side tell "fantastic" stories about the "strange" world in their painting. Very meta. Also several hundred years old.