Shanghai Fortress

[GeneChing]

More news from Cannes - Shanghai Fortress has Shu Qi in it so I guess I'm in although I'm really more interested in the wake of The Wandering Earth.

ASIA MAY 13, 2019 1:30PM PT
Cannes: China’s Times Vision Bets on Sci-Fi ‘Shanghai Fortress’ (EXCLUSIVE)
By REBECCA DAVIS


CREDIT: TIMES VISION

Chinese sales and distribution company Times Vision has brought two new titles to Cannes this year, including “Shanghai Fortress,” a big-budget summer sci-fi blockbuster that producers hope will replicate the success of “The Wandering Earth.” Its other film at the Marche is family drama “Looking Up.”

“Shanghai Fortress” stars Taiwanese actress Shu Qi and Chinese idol Lu Han, one of the country’s highest-paid celebrities, who rose to fame as a member of the South Korean boy band Exo. It is expected to debut in early August, with China Film Group as the primary distributor.

Adapted from a popular sci-fi novel by writer Jiang Nan, the futuristic romance was produced by HS Entertainment Group Inc. The firm was behind the 2013 romantic comedy “So Young,” the directorial debut of actress Vicky Zhao Wei and the 2017 TV series “Nothing Gold Can Stay,” a palace drama.

“Looking Up” is a family drama starring Deng Chao (Zhang Yimou’s “Shadow,” 2016’s “The Mermaid”) that centers on the changing relationship between a father and his young son. Deng directed the feature jointly with writer-director Yu Baimei (“Devil and Angel,” “The Break-Up Guru”). It is set to hit Chinese theaters July 26, with Maoyan as the China distributor.

Times Vision recently sold the rights to action thriller “Savage,” the debut feature from Chinese screenwriter Cui Siwei, to numerous territories worldwide. Rights were purchased by Well Go for North America, Wild Bunch for France, Koch Films for Germany, Cai Chang for Taiwan, At Entertainment for Japan, NK Contents for Korea, and Encore for in-flight.

The film debuted April 30 in China but, overshadowed by “Avengers: Endgame” and “Capernaum,” has not performed very well, making just $3.92 million (RMB27 million).

But Times Vision CEO Nathan Hao told Variety he was optimistic for the prospects of his new slate, particularly “Shanghai Fortress.” “We think the film will have a good chance because there’s been such great achievements in the world box office and streaming for ‘The Wandering Earth,'” he said. That film debuted in February and has gone on to become the second-highest grossing film of all time in the country, with earnings of $677 million (RMB4.66 billion), paving the way for the genre in the Middle Kingdom.

[GeneChing]

[GeneChing]

still wanna see it

China's Latest Big-Budget Sci-Fi Film 'Shanghai Fortress' Crashes After Liftoff
12:32 AM PDT 8/13/2019 by Patrick Brzeski


Huaxin Media
Lu Han (center) in 'Shanghai Fortress'

The alien invasion film was highly anticipated after the $700 million success of 'The Wandering Earth' earlier this year, but it has been brought low by withering reviews and audience complaints.
Shanghai Fortress, China's latest big-budget science fiction tentpole, crashed and burned shortly after liftoff over the weekend.

The expensive film's flop is a blow to the Chinese industry's efforts to ramp up production values so that it can begin competing with Hollywood's effects-heavy blockbusters on more equal footing. After the colossal success of sci-fi tentpole The Wandering Earth earlier this year — it earned $700 and rave local reviews — hopes were high that Shanghai Fortress might be the next big breakthrough.

Costing an estimated $57 million (RMB 400 million), Shanghai Fortress was developed and produced over a period of five years. The movie is an adaptation of a 2009 novel of the same name, about a group of young people hiding out in Shanghai, which has become humanity's last redoubt against a devastating alien invasion. It stars Taiwanese actress Shu Qi and pop star-turned-actor Lu Han (the latter previously Disney's marketing ambassador for the Star Wars franchise in China).

Shanghai Fortress briefly opened at the top of China's box office during the first half of Friday, but its ticket sales quickly plummeted as negative reviews and harsh word of mouth began to course through local social media. It earned $11 million Friday, but crashed to $3 million Saturday and $1.7 million Sunday, finishing in fourth place for the weekend with $15.4 million, including previews. Meanwhile, local animation hit Ne Zha added $66.5 million during the same frame, lifting its total to nearly $500 million after three weekends, according to Artisan Gateway.

Shanghai Fortress is rated just 3.3/10 on Douban, the influential Chinese film reviews website, and more than half of the 60,000-plus filmgoers who have scored the film gave it just one star out of five. On ticketing app Maoyan, where the scoring system tends to be much more generously weighted, Shanghai Fortress has a rating of 5.8/10, by far the lowest of any title now on release.

Online complaints about the film have come from all angles, including incoherence in its story, undercooked special effects and a poor performance from Lu Han, whose popularity stems more from his pop idol persona than his chops as an actor (local sci-fi buffs were critical back when Lu was cast in the film more than two years ago). Fans of the original Shanghai Fortress novel were particularly vocal about their disappointment in the film.

Shanghai Fortress’ director, Teng Huatao, responded to the flameout with a heartfelt apology posted to social media. "In the past, there were members of the audience who didn’t like my movies. But their criticism was always aimed at the movies [themselves]. But today I saw that some internet users are saying, 'The Wandering Earth opened the door to Chinese science fiction and Shanghai Fortress closed it,'" Teng wrote.

"I am very saddened," he went on. "This showed not only their dissatisfaction with the movie, but that their hopes for Chinese sci-fi were dashed. As the director, I have ultimate responsibility for this. I am very sorry."

Shanghai Fortress was Teng's first attempt at the sci-fi genre. He is best known for his romantic films, like Up in the Wind (2013) and Love Is Not Blind (2011), both successes.

The lead producer of Shanghai Fortress is Chinese studio Huaxin Media, a subsidiary of HS Entertainment. China Film Group, Tencent Pictures and several other local film labels also had stakes in the movie. HS Entertainment has been preparing for a public offering in China; the disappointment of Shanghai Fortress could prove to be a setback to those plans.

[GeneChing]

News
Chinese Director Says He’s ‘Truly Sorry’ for Sci-Fi Flop
After the big-budget film ‘Shanghai Fortress’ tanked in theaters, netizens are wondering whether there will ever be new hope for the genre to live long and prosper in China.
Kenrick Davis
Aug 12, 2019 2-min read

A star-studded movie once projected to become China’s next big sci-fi blockbuster performed so poorly during its opening weekend that its director has issued a public apology.

Teng Huatao, the director of “Shanghai Fortress,” on Saturday expressed his “extreme sadness” over myriad memes joking that the movie had “closed the door” on expectations for Chinese sci-fi. While such films have performed poorly in recent years, the runaway success of February blockbuster “The Wandering Earth” had ushered in a surge of excitement and optimism about the genre’s future — that is, until now.

“It doesn’t just show dissatisfaction with the film,” Teng wrote in a lengthy, emotional statement that has received over 1 million likes. “It also shows a loss of hope in Chinese sci-fi. As the director, I’m inescapably responsible for this, and I’m truly sorry.”

Based on a 2009 novel of the same name, “Shanghai Fortress” tells the story of young people hiding out in the Chinese megacity, which has become mankind’s last refuge in the face of an alien invasion. Despite its all-star cast (featuring celebrities like Lu Han and Shu Qi), six years in production, and 400 million-yuan ($57 million) budget, the movie raked in just 115 million yuan in its opening weekend. On review website Douban, it has an abysmal 3.3 out of 10 average rating from over 120,000 reviewers.

The film’s scriptwriter, Yang Zhi — who wrote the original novel and is widely known by his pen name, Jiang Nan — has also apologized online, particularly to the fans of his book who were bitterly disappointed after waiting so many years for the film.

Rather than worry about the future prospects of Chinese sci-fi, however, many netizens have expressed hopes that the movie’s dismal performance will lead producers to stop relying on the “fan economy” to guarantee ticket sales. In China, it’s common practice for studios to cast big-name stars with huge online fan bases to boost box office performance — regardless of whether the web celebs can act.

“It’s OK, Teng. You closed the door on ‘high-traffic celebrities’ being used to boost box office sales,” one user commented under a related article. “This is far more important than opening the door for Chinese sci-fi films.”

Editor: Bibek Bhandari.

(Header image: A promotional poster for the Chinese sci-fi film ‘Shanghai Fortress,’ which recouped less than one-third of its budget on its opening weekend. @电影上海堡垒 on Weibo)

What's the parallel of the Warcraft Redemption for PRC films in the USA? Oh right, there isn't one.

[GeneChing]

What a tragic way to go. I'll be interested to hear how Chase Me handles this.

NOVEMBER 26, 2019 11:56PM PT
Taiwanese-Canadian Actor Godfrey Gao Dies After Collapsing on Set of Reality Show
By PATRICK FRATER and REBECCA DAVIS


CREDIT: ERIC CHARBONNEAU/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK

Taiwanese-Canadian actor Godfrey Gao died Wednesday of sudden cardiac arrest after he collapsed while shooting a Chinese sports reality show in eastern China’s Zhejiang province, the show’s official social media account said. He was 35.

Gao was in the middle of a late-night shoot for Zhejiang TV’s reality show “Chase Me,” which puts contestants head-to-head in a series of athletic competitions, primarily by running through cities late at night. He was taken to the hospital but died hours later. Sudden cardiac arrest occurs when the heart suddenly stops beating and usually leads to death if not treated within minutes.

“I am deeply saddened by the news,” said Andrew Ooi, his friend and former manager at Echelon Talent. “Godfrey was not only a client at one point but, more importantly, a friend. We will miss him dearly, and our hearts go out to his family, especially his parents.”

On Wednesday, “what happened to Godfrey Gao” and “Chase Me” both became top search items on China’s Weibo social media platform, where many complained that the show was too difficult and tiring for participants. Online commentary said Gao appeared to have a cold the day of his death, yet worked a 17-hour day from when the shoot began on Tuesday at 8:30AM until he collapsed while running at almost 2AM the next day. He shouted out “I can’t go on” before he fell, according to online comments from those who said they had witnessed the scene. Actors Huang Jingyu (“Operation Red Sea,” “Pegasus”), Hong Kong singer William Chan, and Taiwanese singer Calvin Chen of Taiwanese boy band Fahrenheit were also part of the same show.

Gao first rose to fame as a model, becoming the first Asian man to model for Louis Vuitton in 2011. He grew up in Vancouver, where he was a graduate of Capilano Unviersity.

His China career took off after the 2016 local drama “Remembering Wang Lichuan,” which put him on the map for Chinese fans. Most recently, he appeared in July’s Chinese sci-fi film “Shanghai Fortress,” which was acquired by Netflix. He also had roles in Hollywood films such as 2013’s “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones,” an action film based on the eponymous popular young adult novel series, where he played alongside Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell Bower.

Gao was meant to be a groomsman at former Taiwanese basketball star James Mao’s wedding this Friday. His body will be brought back to Taipei in the coming days.

[GeneChing]

Here is a bad film, a big budget PRC bad film. Based on a significant Chinese Sci-Fi novel, it was a horrible flop, losing millions, and the director, producer and even the author of the original novel apologized. And rightly so. Some sort of space crystal is brought to earth and powers all our cities. Then some sort of alien comes to take it and destroys all our cites. Shanghai is protected by a glowing honeycomb forcefield shield powered by the crystals that also power the city and a weapon called the Shanghai cannon. There are some big scenes for sure - big crowd scenes, big military vehicles, big sets, and a lot of mediocre cgi. The aliens are bots with an extra set of arms/talons. They come out of a big mother ship that peaks down from stormy skies.

Then there's Shu Qi, ruiner of movies. She's still gorgeous - that perfect skin, those voluptuous lips - but once again, she's in a horrible film probably because everyone got distracted by her beauty. There a spring-autumn romance - the boy toy lead (a pop singer in rea life) is crushing on Shu Qi - but he's like 14 years her junior and not even in her league. It's dumb. The resolution is sappily romantic and almost redeems it but no. Shu Qi does look sharp in uniform however.

It took me several days to finish this because I kept falling asleep. I should've given up but I wanted to complete this review. I hope you appreciate my sacrifice.

No sword fights. Lots of dumb cgi explosions.