Kung Fu Yoga

[GeneChing]

Jackie's character is 'Jack'. He often goes by roles that have his name. In one scene in KFY, he is referred to as 'Jackie.' But was this the same 'Jack' as in the Myth? Was it Asian Hawk aka Condor aka Jackie from Armor of God? Archaeologist adventurer - Indy clones. I gotta start a thread on Chinese Tomb Raiders films because that's totally trending now.

As happy as I am that Jackie is still alive and active in the film industry, I just can't get interested in seeing any of his newer stuff.

The 2003 Zatoichi remake starring Beat Takeshi features an out-of-place song and dance number at the end that, in hindsight, was probably an attempt to mimic or spoof Bollywood movies(?).

I feel ya. But I'm still loyal. He's 62 now, 63 in less than two months, and his body is beaten and broken, but he's still at it. He's risked so much of his body for our entertainment, like no other performer in history, so like I said, I'm with him to the bitter end. And I love Bollywood, so I was really down with this idea. As for Beat's Zatoichi, I hated it. The dance sequence at the end, which was more weird Japanese film than Bollywood to me, was the only part that woke me up.

FEB 6, 2017 @ 01:50 AM
Why Indian-Chinese Venture 'Kung Fu Yoga' Failed To Impress Bollywood\
Suparna Dutt D'Cunha , CONTRIBUTOR
I cover startups & enterprises in India and the UAE.
Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.


Jackie Chan and Bollywood actor Sonu Sood at a promotional event for Kung Fu Yoga in Mumbai. (Photo courtesy Getty)

It cost millions of dollars and took two years to make. Its aim was to meld two great civilizations (read markets) — China and India. In spite of a joint venture between the two Asian movie giants, Kung Fu Yoga, failed to impress Indian moviegoers and critics. By common consent, its story is a mangled mess. However, the movie apparently worked for Chinese audiences, as it was released during the Chinese New Year weekend.

With a production cost of $65 million, the film, which earned over $145 million worldwide, is only doing average in India, given Chan’s popularity in the country. Released in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu languages across India on February 3 — a week after its release in China, Singapore and Malaysia, Kung Fu Yoga made a paltry 40 million rupees ($595,000) on the first day of its release.

In one of the multiplexes in Mumbai, there were only 14 viewers for the first show. It is expected to do better in the southern states of India than the rest of the country, according to a report by box office collection. However, its overall collection in India is not likely to be anywhere close to Raees and Kaabil.

On the face of it, it’s odd because this archaeological adventure has all the hit elements that would impress the audience. The film was shot in Tibet, Dubai, Iceland and India, and with a line-up like martial arts legend Jackie Chan and Indian actors Sonu Sood, Disha Patani and Amyra Dastur, it's a surprise that it failed to strike a chord with the Indian audience.

One reason for the poor reception was perhaps the lack of a decent script. The filmmaker, Chan’s frequent collaborator Stanley Tong, seems to have taken Kung Fu Yoga’s plot from the formulaic recycle bin.
 While Livemint describes the film as an “ill-advised mash-up”, Firstpost says Kung Fu Yoga is a “dated tosh”.

Chan, an archaeologist, teams up with Indian professor Ashmita (Disha Patani) and her assistant Kyra (Amyra Dastur) to locate India’s lost treasure in Tibet. Sood, who starred in Bollywood blockbusters Jodhaa Akbar and Dabangg, plays the villain — a descendant of the original owners of the treasure. 
“From fire-eaters and exotic magicians who perform rope tricks, to multiple cameos by snakes and modern-day princesses, the film shamelessly panders to all manner of stereotypes,” writes film critic Rajeev Masand in news18.com.

Over a decade ago, in 2005, Tong made a similar kind of film, with Chan and Indian actress Mallika Sherawat, called The Myth, which bombed at the box office. Audience preferences have clearly changed since then.


Jackie Chan, Sonu Sood and Bollywood actress Amrya Dastur. (Photo courtesy Getty )

Interestingly, Kung Fu Yoga is one of three Chinese-Indian projects commissioned during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to India in 2015. 
The other two projects are a biographical feature of Xuan Zang, based on the seventh-century monk’s pilgrimage to India, and Buddies in India, which is comedian Wang Baoqiang’s directorial debut. Xuan Zang is China’s official pick for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards although it wasn't nominated.

Though no match for the success of Hollywood, Bollywood films have gained popularity in China in recent years. They are released in Chinese cinemas and shown on the movie channel of state broadcaster China Central Television. In the past few years, India and China have been collaborating more to produce films. There are joint productions, festivals and exchange programs for artists and students to encourage appreciation of popular culture. Co-production films help Indian film gain access to China by circumventing a quota system for import films and benefit Chinese films as well.

“India and China should make many films together. Indian actors are working in Chinese films and vice versa, and both countries are gaining from this exchange. The two countries might share a different relationship politically, but cinema is bringing them together. More Chinese filmmakers now want to come to India and make films here,” Sood, who also stars in Xuan Zang, said in an interview with Times of India.

Maybe the makers of Kung Fu Yoga reckoned that the digital-native audience, who get profuse and intense audiovisual experience outside the multiplex, desire and expect nothing more than mindless spectacle. Certainly, thinking like this seems pretty pervasive in film industries of both China and India. But that needs to change.

As more Indian-Chinese co-production films are released in the coming years, filmmakers need to keep in mind that an ideal crossover film has to surpass a spectacle and connect emotionally. If that happens, it will stand a better chance of holding onto an audience. There’s no obvious reason why good action and a good story shouldn’t go together.

But in the end, Jackie makes bank on this without U.S. or India.

[Jimbo]

Gene, I have nothing but respect for JC, and also respect your loyalty. I got so badly turned off by New Police Story, 1911, and others, that it's really hard for me to watch his new stuff.

As for the Zatoichi remake, I also hated it. I couldn't understand why so many people loved it. They probably hadn't seen any of the original series. Shintaro Katsu WAS Zatoichi. Period. End of story. Beat Takeshi might be a good actor in his own right, but his bleach-blond rendition of Zatoichi lacked the charisma, likability, believability and natural humor that Katsu brought to the role. In short, Takeshi wasn't even fit to carry Katsu's sandals as the Zatoichi character.