Sun Li Movies
Two rivals strike up a wary friendship in this blend of historical drama, action and comedy starring international martial arts star Jackie Chan. It's 227 B.C., and during the era of the warring states, a fifty-something Liang soldier (Jackie Chan) captures a wounded Wei general (Wang Leehom) in the wake of a battle. The soldier's goal in taking the general prisoner isn't glory but the hope of collecting a reward so he can buy some land and start a farm once then fighting is over. The general, however, is vain and arrogant and insists he was taken captive only after his own men turned against them. As the two men slowly make their way back to Liang territory, they're followed by a duplicitous Wei prince (Steve Yoo) who has his own reasons for wanting the general back, as well as villains and scoundrels on both sides. While the soldier and the general don't get along at first, in time a grudging admiration grows between them as the general comes to appreciate the decency and good nature of his captor. Da Bing Xiao Jiang (aka Little Big Soldier) was an official selection at the 2010 Berlin International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jackie Chan, Wang Lee Hom, (more)
- 2008
This action-fantasy opus from Hong Kong director Gordon Chan - a co-production of Hong Kong, China and Singapore with a predominantly Chinese cast - represents at least the third screen incarnation of a famous macabre Asian short story from the Qing Dynasty. (Prior versions emerged in 1966 and 1993). The setting is the Yuan Dynasty of the 13th and 14th centuries. As the tale opens, soldiers rescue a resplendent orphan girl, Xiao Wei (Zhou Xun) from desert bandits. She is taken in by General Wang (Chen Kun) and his wife Peirong (Vicki Zhao), who lavish attention on her, but three months into the unofficial adoption, a bizarre series of events befalls the city: a gruesome serial killer begins striking all over the map, killing his victims by ripping out human hearts. Deeply distrustful of the young girl and suspicious that she may actually be a bloodthirsty demon disguised as a human, Peirong summons the help of General Pan Yong (Donnie Yen), a washed-up, burnt-out alcoholic who has formally retired from military service. Lo and behold, as it turns out, Pan has befriended a Chinese ghostbuster, Xia Bing (Sun Li), who, as it turns out, has been chasing Xiao for years in revenge for her ghastly murder of one of his relatives. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- 2005
- PG
- Add Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles to QueueAdd Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles to top of Queue
On the heels of such extravagant historical swordplay epics as Hero and House of Flying Daggers, Mainland Chinese director Zhang Yimou returns to the reins to tell this intimate tale of an aging father who attempts to remedy a longstanding rift with his grown son. Summoned to Tokyo by his daughter-in-law, Rie (Shinobu Terajima), village fisherman Gou-ichi Takata (Ken Takakura), arrives at a city hospital to find his son, Ken-ichi (Kiichi Nakai), bedridden by liver cancer. Though Gou-ichi attempts to use the visit as a catalyst to heal a decade-long dispute between the pair, stubborn Ken-ichi rejects his father's attempt at reconciliation outright. Subsequently handed a videotape by Rie before departing back to the countryside, Gou-ichi returns home unsuccessful in his efforts to build a bridge of peace between himself and his ailing son. Upon watching the videotape, a research project exploring the Chinese folk arts that was shot by Ken-ichi in the Southern province of Yunnan, Gou-ichi is oddly affected by the onscreen failure of his son in convincing well-known opera singer Li Jiamin (playing himself) to perform the titular song, a classic operatic piece espousing the values of friendship. Now determined to travel to Yunnan and videotape the performance that his son could not, Gou-ichi embarks on a life-changing quest that will not only give him a greater understanding of the relationship between himself and his own son, but set into motion a healing process that will also have a profound impact on the troubled opera singer and the man's long-lost illegitimate son as well. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ken Takakura, Kiichi Nakai, (more)
Sun Zhou's stylized Zhou Yu de Huoche (Zhou Yu's Train) is the story of a woman in love. Zhou Yu (Gong Li) and teacher Chen Ching (Tony Leung Kar-Fai) fall in love. After Ching gives Zhou a poem he wrote for her, she begins taking a train ride twice a week to his home in order to have sex with him. During her time on the train, she strikes up a relationship with a veterinarian (Sun Honglei), but she ends their time together when she learns that he spied on her during one of her visits with Ching. Gong Li has a second role as a another woman obsessed with Chen who is trying to ascertain the nature of his relationship with Zhou. This film was shown out of competition at the Berlin Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi
- Starring:
- Gong Li, Tony Leung Kar-Fai, (more)
Prepare for a wild ride with the folks of the Dirty South Syndicate in this release featuring outrageous stunts, plenty of explosions, and refined southern belles who instinctively whip off their shirts at the sound of the engine's roar. It's mayhem at 200mph as these thrill-seeking jackasses hydro-skim across rivers on motocross bikes and blast through traffic at unprecedented speeds. If it's never been attempted, these daredevils will put their lives on the line in order to thrill the crowds and break new ground. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Dr "G", Mike Stone, (more)
