max zhang

IP MAN 3 Punches In On A Christmas Release This Year!

Who says Christmas doesn’t come early? Minding the aforememtioned initial poster which actor and action star Donnie Yen shared earlier this year, Yen fans and sudden overnight practioners of Wing Chun can now revel in the comfort of a December 25, 2015 release of director Wilson Yip‘s Ip Man 3. A trailer is expected by the week of September 30 with a script by Edmond Wong and Yen returning one last time to portray the late great martial arts Grandmaster who spent a huge morsel of his life training the one and only Bruce Lee during his upbringing away from the U.S.. It’s rather sobering as well with Yen having been teasing an exit away from action movies for a while now even though he’s still knowingly attached to a few more, so I guess we’ll never know when that happens until it does. For now, after immortalizing the cinematic […]

Well Go USA Announces SPL 2: A TIME FOR CONSEQUENCES For 2016 Release!

Lee B. Golden III

Courtesy of Bravos Pictures It’s safe to say that director Soi Cheang‘s latest theatrical bit of action fanfare, SPL 2: A Time For Consequences, is a hit no matter what some opinions may be. Several reviews floating online are lending well-balancef earfuls to the film’s credit as an otherwise exciting follow-up to the first film in 2005. Tony Jaa and Wu Jing star at the forefront of this thematic continuation which sees Jing as an embattled undercover cop teaming up with a Thai prison guard to take down a courrupt warden. A film like this being celebrated this much deserves a broader release, and of course it was only a matter of time before Well Go USA snagged it for us, which could also mean great things with the third installment of the trilogy now pending. Read the official announcement! Plano, TX (August 10, 2015) – Well Go USA Entertainment […]

SPL 2: A TIME FOR CONSEQUENCES Lands New Character Posters And Featurette!

Lee B. Golden III

Three-way final fights in film can be the cream of the crop for any action films when done right, and Soi Cheang‘s approach to the climatic action scene to be shown in this month’s release, SPL 2: A Time For Consequences, is especially one fans are aching for. The film sequelizes Wilson Yip’s 2005 installment, SPL, now with Wu Jing switching gears as a key protagonist along with Tony Jaa in a story of a disavowed deep cover cop and a prison guard who must find compromise as a intricate case of organ black market smuggling unfolds while a corrupt warden and an array of criminals plot against them. Max Zhang plays one of the major villains in this one, and accordingly, he tackles the task of taking on both action stars in the new film which arrives on June 18, 2015. Several featurettes are online highlighting the action with […]

SPL 2: A TIME FOR CONSEQUENCES Lets Out The Mayhem In A Brand New Trailer!

Lee B. Golden III

The verdict is still out on how well director Soi Cheang‘s SPL 2: A Time For Consequences will stand with audiences. In the meantime, the promotional campaign remains on-going and the footage is pulling no punches with actors Wu Jing, Tony Jaa and Max Zhang at the center of this gruesome crime tale thematic of Chinese astrology. The plot of this particular sequel installment is quite intricate with a much more grander scale for its characters and setting. My own summation here: Run by a corrupt warden (Zhang), a Thai prison and its illegal orga smuggling ring and an elusive crimeboss (Louis Koo) are the initial stake for an undercover Hong Kong cop (Jing) whose cover is blown and must find a way to break out, while serving as the only bone marrow match for the dying daughter of one of the guards who helps him (Jaa). The film is […]

Watch A New Featurette For SPL 2: A TIME FOR CONSEQUENCES!

Lee B. Golden III

Depending on whether or not you’re into featurettes or anything that may potentially spoil your later enjoyment for director Soi Cheang‘s latest, SPL 2: A Time For Consequences, consider yourself otherwise warned. The film is just a little over a month away and Bravos Pictures is now underway with marketing the film with the usual assortment of posters, trailers and featurettes, and speaking of the latter, there are already a few now making the rounds. The one at the bottom doesn’t seem so bad…well, at least compared to one I caught earlier this month (find that one and watch it at your own risk), and should whet the appetite a bit more ahead of the film’s release. Preset by the first film nearly a decade ago, Wu Jing and Max Zhang are joined by international action star Tony Jaa and co-stars Louis Koo and Simon Yam as the film maintains […]

Cuts And Bruises A Plenty In A New Featurette For RISE OF THE LEGEND

Lee B. Golden III

Moviegoers in China are less than a month away from the theatrical release of director Roy Chow‘s newest, Rise Of The Legend. As such, you can expect the usual order of TV spots, promos and featurettes along the way before then, including this week for which one other featurette has made its onto YouTube. The new film highlights the rebellious origins of martial arts master and legend, Wong Fei-Hung and his fellow cohorts in their enduring battle against human traffickers, gangsters and the criminally corrupt. Talks of injuries have been had in the year or so since filming, a few of which can now be viewed here with lead actor Eddie Peng trying to punch his way through a fake pillar, and co-star Max Zhang, who damn near went half blind while filming, basically. And all for our amusement as film lovers, no doubt, which is all the more reason […]

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[UPDATED] RISE OF THE LEGEND Shares New Ink With Pick Up From Universal

Lee B. Golden III

The latest cinematic telling of the life and legend of martial arts master and healer Wong Fei-Hung has some new production and distribution participants in its midst with news that the folks Universal Pictures International are joining in as co-producers and majority international rights holders of director Roy Chow‘s new film, Rise Of The Legend. The new film stars Unbeatable lead, actor Eddie Peng in the title role, whose image can be now seen in the newest sales banner courtesy of Deadline: The film is produced by Bill Kong with a script by Christina To, featuring Peng who follows in the footsteps of previous martial arts cinema icons and written Chinese novels dating back to the 1930’s. The lead actor is joined by co-star and producer Sammo Hung, with Wang Luodan, Jing Boran, Wong Cho Lam and SPL 2 co-star Zhang Jin, in addition to actor Tony Leung Ka-fai and […]

'Consequences' Surround The New English Title For SPL 2

Lee B. Golden III

Thai action star Tony Jaa just got some screentime in Cannes with the unveiling of footage from his new internationally cast action thriller, Skin Trade with Dolph Lundgren and Michael Jai White, which could lead to some exciting distribution news in the days or weeks ahead. In the meantime, principal photography is already underway as of May 1 for Jaa’s new action thriller, Sha Po Lang 2, and the second of two posters have already begun circulating the internet for the film’s presentation in Cannes this month. View it below: In light of the new poster unveiling this month, co-producer Mike Selby has confirmed from producers Wilson Yip and Paco Wong who designed the new poster that the film’s accompanying English sales title will be A Time For Consequences. Serving as a thematic sequel/prequel following the spectacular 2005 crime pic, Sha Po Lang, the new film is directed by Cheang […]

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Tony Jaa Is A Uniformed Hero In A New Set Pic For SPL2

Lee B. Golden III

Action hero Tony Jaa took to Facebook on Thursday to unveil the latest costume try-on ahead of rehearsals for the forthcoming production of The Monkey King helmer Pou Soi-Cheang‘s latest film, SPL 2, the long-awaited follow-up to the 2004 crime thriller which starred Donnie Yen and Sammo Hung. Jaa‘s participation in the film was finally confirmed in recent months after a few years of speculation went by. Check out the photo below with the enclosed caption. “Costume and Rehearsal Time for SPL II. This is going to be a lot of fun. Great cast and great crew. TJ.” In accordance with previous reports, it appears that based on the photo above, Jaa will likely star as the Thai prison guard who helps an undercover whose dying daughter’s fate rests on his willingness to help a cop break out of prison. Of course, this is just one aspect of a much […]