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Thread: Kiltro & Mirageman

  1. #1
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    Kiltro & Mirageman

    Both films were picked up by Magnolia. Anyone seen either of these?

    Meet Marko Zaror, The New Maestro of Martial Arts
    Oct 11, 2007 C. Robert Cargill

    If the name Marko Zaror doesn't ring a bell for you, you're not alone. Although odds are you might have seen him from behind. No, it's nothing like that. Up until now Zaror was best known (or rather unknown) as Duane "The Rock" Johnson's stunt double in The Rundown. But that was before he got together with his best friend Ernesto Diaz Espinoza and decided to do something completely unheard of. They set out to make the world's very first martial arts films made in South America.

    Based in their native Chile and produced by, of all people, an American producer from Denver, Colorado, these films are unlike anything anyone else has tried to make. And while Zaror and Espinoza had to assemble and train a stunt team from scratch, convince investors to put money into something truly foreign in that region and even try to get insured by companies that had no clue how to insure such a thing, they made not one, but two such films.

    And here's the kicker. They're really, really good.

    Marko Zaror isn't Jet Li, nor is he on par with the acrobatics or punishment taking of current sensation Tony Jaa. Instead he is attempting to do something completely different. He's focused on crafting characters that are both exquisite martial artists and richly drawn with big hearts. He's a hulking giant of a guy with swoon-inducing good looks that convinced many a woman (my wife included) to take in a martial arts film even when they didn't want to. But unlike many martial artists, the last thing he is focused on is looking cool. On the contrary, he plays ****s, un-hip, nearly brainless oafs who instead make up for their shortcomings with their sweet natures and martial arts abilities.

    The result is a pair of lovable characters who are incredibly believable. Add in the total lack of wires and the unconventional methods used in stunt choreography and you end up with a pair of films that are incredibly fun to watch and make you want to stand up and cheer. The first film, Kiltro, is Ernesto's riff on Kill Bill, telling a revenge story about the son of a great martial artist who falls in love with, but is repeatedly spurned by, the daughter of his father's best friend. When an evil martial artist arrives hell bent on decades-old revenge, Marko's Zamir must track down a great martial artist and convince him to return to save the woman he loves.

    The second, and far superior film, Mirageman is a spoof of sorts on superhero films. It tells the story of a lowly bouncer who becomes a superhero in hopes of helping his superhero obsessed little brother out of his comatose state. A mix of great action and a comedy (stemming from the problems of trying to be a superhero in the real world) create an adventure that won the Audience Award for Best Film at this year's Fantastic Fest where it played for the first time in North America. Making the film even more remarkable is the total lack of planned choreography: it was shot from the hip and the fights evolved naturally between the martial artists, creating a very realistic and exciting vibe.

    Marko Zaror. Remember that name. Magnolia Pictures has secured the rights for both films and my guess is that a year from now everyone will know that name. These are a pair of movies you really need to keep on your radar.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  2. #2
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    marko

    marko is a cool cat. and i think he'll make a big splash if he omes state side. kiltro is a very good looking film. i haven't sen the other one.

  3. #3
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    Marko Zaror has serious skills. Rare to see a big man move like that.
    "For someone who's a Shaolin monk, your kung fu's really lousy!"
    "What, you're dead? You die easy!"
    "Hold on now. I said I would forget your doings, but I didn't promise to spare your life. Take his head."
    “I don’t usually smoke this brand, but I’ll do it for you.”
    "When all this is over, Tan Hai Chi, I will kick your head off and put it on my brother's grave!
    "I regard hardships as part of my training. I don't need to relax."

  4. #4
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    I've seen Kiltro

    I haven't seen Mirage Man.

    Chilean Martial-Arts Star Marko Zaror Discusses His Latest Film, Kicking Dudes in the Face

    Amidst the hordes of Slave Leias, Spider-Women and Imperial Stormtroopers at New York Comic-Con it was easy to miss Marko Zaror, Chile's only martial-arts star, in town to promote his upcoming film, Mirage Man, due in theaters this fall. Taught karate by his mother, Zaror made his action debut in 2006's Kiltro, a martial-arts flick that rocked the Chilean box office. In Mirage Man, already a cult hit in Chile, he plays a tightly wound bouncer who decides to become a superhero (watch the trailer here). Zaror spoke to Vulture about his days as a Hollywood stuntman, his fans back home, and working without a net.

    How did you wind up making Chile’s first martial-arts film?
    I started as a martial artist, but at 19 I left Chile and went to Mexico. In Mexico, I started doing low-budget films, gangster films, and decided I wanted to do this for my life, so I moved to L.A. I worked as a dishwasher, then a waiter, then I taught in a martial-arts school, and little by little I got into the industry as a stunt double in real movies, small movies. That’s how I ended up doing stunts in The Rundown for "the Rock," and that’s the movie where I won the World Stunt Award.

    Private investors raised cash for you to shoot a movie in L.A, but you and director Ernesto Diaz Espinoza ran off to Chile to make Kiltro.
    We had to transform everything I learned from The Rundown, working with all this money and equipment, into something we could do with no money and no equipment. Instead of automatic remote-control pulls, we had to do hand pulls using a wire and a pulley. We tie a guy to one end of a wire, have some people climb a staircase and grab the other end, then when I kick the guy they jump down the stairs and he just flies through the air. We had some accidents, a few falls, a couple of guys hit their heads a couple of times. The ambulance was on the set, but nothing went out of hand.

    Did people in Chile think you were crazy for doing this?
    Everybody. You can see a little bit of the spirit of my country in Mirage Man in the way they put down the superhero, saying “Oh, you’re a clown, you’re a creep.” They were really like that to us. In Chile, when you do something new, everyone’s first reaction is to put you down. You really need to make it big for them to recognize you. First, the whole world has to say you’re the best and then my country will say, “Okay, maybe you are awesome.”

    You held an open call in Chile to build your stunt team. Who’d you get?
    Four hundred people showed up. Wrestlers, martial artists, people that had regular daytime jobs and they just trained as a hobby, they all came. There were a lot of good martial artists, but that’s not all you need to be a good stuntman. You need to be humble enough to receive an impact and understand it’s not personal. And you need to have a good pain tolerance.

    How’s Mirage Man doing in Chile?
    It’s still in theaters right now, and doing really good. We beat Rambo at the box office, and we beat Jumper. We are committed to making people go, “Wow!” with just two people fighting. Like when the guy jumps at me and I stop him in the air with a kick in the face and make him change direction. It’s not a trick.

    Is he okay?
    Well, he was kind of dizzy for a little bit, but he was fine later.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  5. #5
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    Enter to win Mirageman

    Enter our latest online sweepstakes for your chance to win a Mirageman DVD.

    I've seen both Kiltro and Mirageman now.

    Kiltro didn't do it for me. It was that cliche brotherhood of assassins and one assassin finds redemption plot, with some jedi undertones - a very typical B martial arts film, only really outstanding because it was shot in Chile and that's an interesting environment for a film. But Marko is cool. He's like a diamond in the rough in this. He's got great martial skills and fantastic potential as an action star. He's one to watch for sure.

    Mirageman on the other hand, was really entertaining. It surprised me with where it went and was very funny in a droll sort of way, and very heartfelt. Totally loved it. It's almost a martial arts sleeper film. Now I totally get Zaror and look forward to his next project.

    Meanwhile, good luck with the sweepstakes everyone.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  6. #6
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    Our Mirageman winners have been announced

    Congrats to our winners.

    Anyone see Chinango or Mandrill yet?
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

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