siff 2017

DIAMOND DOGS: Sunny Pang Taps Into His Primal Instincts In The First Official Trailer

More than a decade after earning Best Director acclaim for 2005 shortfilm, Subtitle, director Gavin Lim has since begun paving the way with his feature debut upon returning to the Singapore International Film Festival later this month. His new feature debut, Diamond Dogs, has hit the web with a splashy and violent new look at the upcoming small-budgeted action thriller headlined by none other than Singaporean action star Sunny Pang who has already won in-roads with global audiences for his imposing gravitas opposite Iko Uwais in Mo’ Bros action thriller, Headshot.

A stage three cancer diagnosis leaves deaf and mute Johnny with little to lose when he is lured into a deadly underground social experiment. Funded by the uber rich, it pits fighters against one another in a test of animalistic aggression and adrenaline. Johnny’s fight to the top is brutal, fueled by the sole desire to exact revenge on the man who caged him in.

Action star Sunny Pang delivers up pulsating bouts of violence in director Gavin Lim’s gritty revenge flick, supported by scene-stealing turns from Mediacorp heartthrob Andie Chen, TV star Rosalind Pho and Japanese temptress Anri Okita. Peeling back the layers of the dark, bitter soul of man isn’t always pretty, but Lim infuses the shadowy instincts of Diamond Dogs with a relentless energy that will leave audiences breathless.

This won’t be Pang’s only outing going into 2018 with a small flurry of local TV dramas as well as further big screen aspirations as a film star now burgeoning with audiences on a far bigger scale. Seeing Headshot will give you an idea on how hard he goes with physical action and he never ceases to impress, and I’m certain that audiences he’s tended to including at Fantastic Fest in Austin and at Toronto’s TIFF would concur.

A little forewarning is needed as you might want to consider what you’re about to see as something of a NSFW trailer to watch in private. Otherwise, peep the trailer below to your heart’s content!

Director Renny Harlin To Helm Chinese-Language Action Adventure Thriller, THE HANGING COFFIN

Lee B. Golden III

Acclaimating amply to the Asian aesthetic is noted Hollywood director Renny Harlin since relocating to Beijing, China in the last few years. With projects like Skiptrace and the recent production of Legend Of The Ancient Sword under his belt, Harlin is now readying his third Chinese-language film, The Hanging Coffin.

The film was announced on Sunday last weekend at the top of the 20th installment of the Shanghai International Film Festival. Plot details are unclear while Harlin will direct from a script by The Shallows scribe Tony Jaswinski which will boast an “action adventure-cum-thriller featuring extreme sports, tomb raiding and mutant creatures” according to THR.

The film hails from Shanghai Film Group and Shanghai New Wave Films and is expected to cast both Hollywood and Chinese talent in the coming months.

INVISIBLE GUARD: Lucida Boards Yuen Woo-Ping Martial Arts Thriller

Lee B. Golden III

Legendary martial arts maestro Yuen Woo Ping has a few projects well on the way, including a remake of Miracle Fighters currently titled The Thousand Faces Of Dunjia which is set to arrive this December. Not stopping short anytime soon, he is now reported to be handling another project in the form of Invisible Guard.

Variety‘s report on Monday also comes with the announced attachment of multifaceted film firm, Lucida Entertainment, whose founder, veteran producer and John Woo cohort Terence Chang launched the company year ago this week with a five-film syllabus; That package also includes the forthcoming Once A Thief redux, The Adventurers which Chang’s own Mannix Pictures is producing as well.

Nothing’s been divulged in terms of plot while the nature of the film, which Chang is executive producing, will be that of a live-action adaptation of a popular animated martial arts action series which has spanned two seasons, earning more than 6.6 billion views throughout China’s major online video platforms. What is known of the show likely being referenced here is that it takes place at the end of the Tang Dynasty with rebels looking to overthrow the government whose secret group of criminals-turned-uniquely skilled warriors have since disbanded. In lieu of the proceeding tale lies that of a young orphan trained in martial arts into young adulthood, and the mystery of a presumed-lost treasure along with legendary sword that gives its wielder control of the world.

Lucida, whose Xin Yang serves as CEO, is also in the market for talent management having just signed Huang Jingyu (upcoming Guns And Kidneys and Operation Red Sea), Wang Chuanjun (The Wasted Times) and Godfrey Gao (The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones).

“Terence had constructed a comprehensive business model and professional production service system, which helped Lucida to handle projects from development through post-production. In the future, with many more resources including animation, gaming and new media, Lucida hopes to incorporate new strategies to its business model,” Xin said. “Lucida is on its way to creating a Chinese film production company with Hollywood standards.”

Production and casting details remain pending as well as general contextual updates on the film. Site reader Yi Liu Christina contributed to this report.

Martial Grace And Grit In Four New Photos From Zhang Yimou’s SHADOW

Lee B. Golden III

Life has been good to acclaimed director Zhang Yimou whose latest mild stumble with fantasy thriller, The Great Wall still earned enough to maintain his relevance. He’s since kept afloat with the production of Mandarin-language Three Kingdoms era-set pic, Shadow, for which attendees at the Shanghai International Film Festival had the opportunity to get a glimpse of with Deng Chao, Sun Li, Zheng Kai, Wang Qianyuan, Guan Xiaotong, Wu Lei and Wang Jingchun starring.

Written by Zhang and co-scribe Wei Li, Shadow hails from Village Roadshow Pictures Asia (VRPA) and Le Vision Pictures who are co-producing. Plot specifics and other details are pending while in the wake of the film’s first look offering at the Shanghai International Film Festival on Saturday, Screendaily has since provided a quartet of pics that further hint at the balletic style and grace so often utilized in Zhang’s model approach to action in films like Hero and House Of Flying Daggers.

Check out several of the cast in the album below.