by Iain Mitchell
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Joan Chen's directorial debut, “Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl”. It's a film that despite the star power of its director and visible cultural impact (its title is now likely more associated with the American experimental rock band who took their name from it) feels curiously under-seen these days.
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Given the still ubiquitous debate about Asian representation in Hollywood, there's a sad irony that Chen, probably best known for her turn as Josie Packard in the original series of “Twin Peaks”, came to direct “Xiu Xiu” in part due to lack of opportunities afforded to her that weren't tired ‘Dragon lady' stereotypes. Even in Chen's highly positive experience of making Bernardo Bertolucci's “The Last Emperor” she noted in an interview with NPR that the film's producers were...
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Joan Chen's directorial debut, “Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl”. It's a film that despite the star power of its director and visible cultural impact (its title is now likely more associated with the American experimental rock band who took their name from it) feels curiously under-seen these days.
on Amazon by clicking on the image below
Given the still ubiquitous debate about Asian representation in Hollywood, there's a sad irony that Chen, probably best known for her turn as Josie Packard in the original series of “Twin Peaks”, came to direct “Xiu Xiu” in part due to lack of opportunities afforded to her that weren't tired ‘Dragon lady' stereotypes. Even in Chen's highly positive experience of making Bernardo Bertolucci's “The Last Emperor” she noted in an interview with NPR that the film's producers were...
- 5/18/2023
- by Guest Writer
- AsianMoviePulse
An international movie star on screens both big (Bernardo Bertolucci’s Oscar-winning The Last Emperor) and small, Joan Chen’s film career went behind the camera with her feature directorial debut, Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl. Released in the United States on May 7th, 1999 (the day the U.S. and NATO “accidentally” bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade), Chen’s film was adapted from a novella by Geling Yan and tells the story of the title character, a young girl (Li Xiaolu) who lives with her family in Chengdu and is being forced into Mao’s Down to […]
The post “You Don’t Find Yaks in America”: Joan Chen on Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “You Don’t Find Yaks in America”: Joan Chen on Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 11/25/2022
- by Erik Luers
- Filmmaker Magazine-Director Interviews
An international movie star on screens both big (Bernardo Bertolucci’s Oscar-winning The Last Emperor) and small, Joan Chen’s film career went behind the camera with her feature directorial debut, Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl. Released in the United States on May 7th, 1999 (the day the U.S. and NATO “accidentally” bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade), Chen’s film was adapted from a novella by Geling Yan and tells the story of the title character, a young girl (Li Xiaolu) who lives with her family in Chengdu and is being forced into Mao’s Down to […]
The post “You Don’t Find Yaks in America”: Joan Chen on Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
The post “You Don’t Find Yaks in America”: Joan Chen on Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.
- 11/25/2022
- by Erik Luers
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
The Secret Talker by Geling Yan (out May 4) is a deliciously dark and twisty novel all about uncovering new things about each character - and it's not until the end that it all completely clicks. Qiao Hongmei, the protagonist, has left everything for her husband: her military intelligence job in China, her ex, the childhood village she's eager to forget. Glen, a well-off American professor, sweeps her off to a life of leisure and study in the San Francisco Bay Area. "If this were the ending," Hongmei says, "it really would be a very sweet fairy tale."
But that is only the beginning of the novel, originally published in 2005 and newly translated from Chinese by Jeremy Tiang. The plot picks up years after Hongmei leaves China, and her relationship with Glen is disintegrating. Her skin crawls when he touches her, and they communicate via notes left on the kitchen counter.
But that is only the beginning of the novel, originally published in 2005 and newly translated from Chinese by Jeremy Tiang. The plot picks up years after Hongmei leaves China, and her relationship with Glen is disintegrating. Her skin crawls when he touches her, and they communicate via notes left on the kitchen counter.
- 5/4/2021
- by Maggie Ryan
- Popsugar.com
Exclusive: Redford, Chan to narrate English and Mandarin versions of BBC documentary sequel; Goldcrest handles sales.
Robert Redford and Jackie Chan have been set to narrate the English and Mandarin versions of documentary Earth: One Amazing Day, the sequel to 2007 box office hit Earth.
Directed by Peter Webber (The Girl With The Pearl Earring) and Richard Dale (The Human Body) the film is currently in post-production at the BBC Earth Films’ studio.
Script comes from Frank Cottrell-Boyce (The Railway Man) while score is overseen by Alex Heffes (The Last King Of Scotland).
The Mandarin-language version will be co-directed by Lixin Fan (Last Train); screenwriter Geling Yan (Flowers of War) and music producer Roc Chen (Chinese music consultant on Kung Fu Panda 3) are also on board.
The film will tell the story of one day in the life of the planet, “celebrating the billions of real-life dramas that occur in the natural world every day”.
A co-production between...
Robert Redford and Jackie Chan have been set to narrate the English and Mandarin versions of documentary Earth: One Amazing Day, the sequel to 2007 box office hit Earth.
Directed by Peter Webber (The Girl With The Pearl Earring) and Richard Dale (The Human Body) the film is currently in post-production at the BBC Earth Films’ studio.
Script comes from Frank Cottrell-Boyce (The Railway Man) while score is overseen by Alex Heffes (The Last King Of Scotland).
The Mandarin-language version will be co-directed by Lixin Fan (Last Train); screenwriter Geling Yan (Flowers of War) and music producer Roc Chen (Chinese music consultant on Kung Fu Panda 3) are also on board.
The film will tell the story of one day in the life of the planet, “celebrating the billions of real-life dramas that occur in the natural world every day”.
A co-production between...
- 2/9/2017
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
Let’s get this out-of-the-way. This new film from China has nothing to do with the Oscar-winning 1970’s classic Coming Home from director Hal Ashby. Mind you, there have been Asian remakes of English language films such as the Blood Simple (the Coen brothers’ first flick) inspiring A Woman, A Gun, And A Noodle Shop. This cinematic adaptation of a celebrated novel begins during the most repressive era of the Mao regime (perhaps when “Red China” was the most crimson), when the country had cut almost all ties with the West. It looks back at how the political climate was tearing families apart as the trio at this story’s center learns that all their problems do not end after the reunion in Coming Home.
The film begins sometime during those turbulent 1960’s. Teenager Dan Dan (Huiwen Zhang) is focused on rehearsing for the upcoming auditions for the ballet celebrating the military,...
The film begins sometime during those turbulent 1960’s. Teenager Dan Dan (Huiwen Zhang) is focused on rehearsing for the upcoming auditions for the ballet celebrating the military,...
- 10/1/2015
- by Jim Batts
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
American romantic dramas could take a lesson or two from foreign films. A new trailer for Zhang Yimou’s (House of Flying Daggers, Raise the Red Lantern) latest film was released by Sony Pictures Classics. Here’s the synopsis:
Lu Yanshi (Chen Daoming) and Feng Wanyu (Gong Li) are a devoted couple forced to separate when Lu is arrested and sent to a labor camp as a political prisoner, just as his wife is injured in an accident. Released during the last days of the Cultural Revolution, he finally returns home only to find that his beloved wife has amnesia and remembers little of her past. Unable to recognize Lu, she patiently waits for her husband’s return. A stranger alone in the heart of his broken family, Lu Yanshi determines to resurrect their past together and reawaken his wife’s memory.
Based on the book by Geling Yan, Coming Home...
Lu Yanshi (Chen Daoming) and Feng Wanyu (Gong Li) are a devoted couple forced to separate when Lu is arrested and sent to a labor camp as a political prisoner, just as his wife is injured in an accident. Released during the last days of the Cultural Revolution, he finally returns home only to find that his beloved wife has amnesia and remembers little of her past. Unable to recognize Lu, she patiently waits for her husband’s return. A stranger alone in the heart of his broken family, Lu Yanshi determines to resurrect their past together and reawaken his wife’s memory.
Based on the book by Geling Yan, Coming Home...
- 6/10/2015
- by Sarah
- SoundOnSight
Sony Pictures Classics has unveiled the new trailer for Coming Home, the historical romance from director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Hero). Based on the novel by Geling Yan, Coming Home centers on a married couple, Lu Yanshi (Chen Daoming) and Feng Wanyu (Gong Li), who are separated when the former is sent to a labor […]
The post ‘Coming Home’ Trailer: Zhang Yimou Serves Up an Historical Romance appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘Coming Home’ Trailer: Zhang Yimou Serves Up an Historical Romance appeared first on /Film.
- 6/9/2015
- by Angie Han
- Slash Film
What if you returned home to your loved one, a wife, a husband, any significant other, after years apart and they didn't recognize you? That is the idea behind Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou's latest film, Coming Home, based on Geling Yan's novel The Criminal Lu Yanshi, which opened in China a few weeks ago and just premiered out-of-competition at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival. This is a beautiful, tender, moving film about love and dedication and patience, and will leave you with tears in your eyes, as long as you still have a beating heart inside your chest. It may be a simple story, but it's such a special, sincere film made with care. Beloved actor Chen Daoming stars as Lu Yanshi, and we first meet him during the end of the Zedong-led Chinese Revolution in the 1940s. Ousted as a criminal of the party, he attempts to reconnect with his wife,...
- 5/20/2014
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Well Go USA has acquired North American rights to the Mandarin-language "Dangerous Liasons" starring Ziyi Zhang. The Chinese production will have its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival September 10. Directed by Jin-ho Hur and adapted by Geling Yan from Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' 19th-century novel, the story of love seduction and betrayal is set in Shanghai. Dong-gun Jang and Cecilia Chung also star. The film had its world premiere at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival in Directors' Fortnight.Repping the film for the U.S. are Ying Ye, Managing Director of Easternlight, with Cassian Elwes.
- 9/8/2012
- by Indiewire
- Indiewire
Blu-ray & DVD Release Date: July 10, 2012
Price: DVD $27.98, Blu-ray $29.99
Studio: Lionsgate
Christian Bale stars in Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War.
The veteran Chinese director Zhang Yimou (A Woman, A Gun and A Noodle Shop) revisits the Nanjing massacre of 1937 in the 2011 historical war drama film The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale (Velvet Goldmine).
In 1937, Nanjing, the capital of the Jiangsu province in China stands at the forefront of a war between China and Japan. As the invading Japanese Imperial Army overruns China’s capital city, desperate civilians seek refuge behind the nominally protective walls of a western cathedral. Here, John Miller (Bale), an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation, takes shelter along with a group of innocent schoolgirls and thirteen courtesans. Finding himself in the unwanted position of protector of both groups from the horrors of the invading Japanese army, Miller discovers the meaning...
Price: DVD $27.98, Blu-ray $29.99
Studio: Lionsgate
Christian Bale stars in Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War.
The veteran Chinese director Zhang Yimou (A Woman, A Gun and A Noodle Shop) revisits the Nanjing massacre of 1937 in the 2011 historical war drama film The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale (Velvet Goldmine).
In 1937, Nanjing, the capital of the Jiangsu province in China stands at the forefront of a war between China and Japan. As the invading Japanese Imperial Army overruns China’s capital city, desperate civilians seek refuge behind the nominally protective walls of a western cathedral. Here, John Miller (Bale), an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation, takes shelter along with a group of innocent schoolgirls and thirteen courtesans. Finding himself in the unwanted position of protector of both groups from the horrors of the invading Japanese army, Miller discovers the meaning...
- 4/23/2012
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
In The Flowers Of War, Director Zhang Yimou (Raise The Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House Of Flying Daggers) tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. The film, set during Japan's 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl's point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a group of schoolgirls from a terrible fate at the hands of the Japanese. The Flowers Of War was adapted by Liu Heng and Geling Yan from the novel by Geling Yan. The film is produced by Zhang Weiping (marking his tenth collaboration with Zhang Yimou) under his New Pictures Film banner. The...
- 1/21/2012
- by Pietro Filipponi
- The Daily BLAM!
New clip from The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Xinyi Zhang and Paul Schneider. Helmed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House of the Flying Daggers) from the script by Liu Heng, based on the novel by Geling Yan, The Flowers of War tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. The new clip is called "Permit," courtesy of Yahoo Movies. The film, set during Japan’s 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl’s point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a group of schoolgirls from a terrible fate at the hands of the Japanese.
- 1/21/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
New clip from The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Xinyi Zhang and Paul Schneider. Helmed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House of the Flying Daggers) from the script by Liu Heng, based on the novel by Geling Yan, The Flowers of War tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. The new clip is called "Permit," courtesy of Yahoo Movies. The film, set during Japan’s 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl’s point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a group of schoolgirls from a terrible fate at the hands of the Japanese.
- 1/21/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
New clip from The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Xinyi Zhang and Paul Schneider. Helmed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House of the Flying Daggers) from the script by Liu Heng, based on the novel by Geling Yan, The Flowers of War tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. The new clip is called "Permit," courtesy of Yahoo Movies. The film, set during Japan’s 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl’s point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a group of schoolgirls from a terrible fate at the hands of the Japanese.
- 1/21/2012
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Chicago – In our latest foreign-language edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 35 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the Golden Globe-nominated foreign-language film “The Flowers of War” starring Christian Bale from the director of “Hero”!
“The Flowers of War” from director Yimou Zhang also stars Ni Ni, Xinyi Zhang, Paul Schneider, Shigeo Kobayashi, Atsurô Watabe, Dawei Tong, Tianyuan Huang, Bai Xue, Takashi Yamanaka, Shawn Dou, Kefan Cao and Hai-Bo Huang from writer Heng Liu based on the novel by Geling Yan. The film opens in Chicago on Jan. 20, 2012.
To win your free pass to the advance Chicago screening of “The Flowers of War” courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just answer our question below. That’s it! This advance screening is on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2011 at 7 p.m. in downtown Chicago. Directions to enter this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup and win can be found beneath the graphic below.
The movie poster for...
“The Flowers of War” from director Yimou Zhang also stars Ni Ni, Xinyi Zhang, Paul Schneider, Shigeo Kobayashi, Atsurô Watabe, Dawei Tong, Tianyuan Huang, Bai Xue, Takashi Yamanaka, Shawn Dou, Kefan Cao and Hai-Bo Huang from writer Heng Liu based on the novel by Geling Yan. The film opens in Chicago on Jan. 20, 2012.
To win your free pass to the advance Chicago screening of “The Flowers of War” courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, just answer our question below. That’s it! This advance screening is on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2011 at 7 p.m. in downtown Chicago. Directions to enter this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup and win can be found beneath the graphic below.
The movie poster for...
- 1/14/2012
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
The latest feature from internationally heralded Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou, The Flowers of War, is not a tale of soldiers and strategies, but rather of the women and children caught in the crossfire of war. Based on Geling Yan’s novel The Thirteen Flowers of War, this sweeping historical drama is set amidst the horrific backdrop of the Rape of Nanjing, the six-week period in which the Japanese invaded Nanjing, China, and killed hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians, then–as the weeks drew on–raped the survivors. Yimou, who has created such visually stunning features as House of Flying Daggers and Ju Dou, does not shy away from the brutal realities of this heinous moment in history. The film’s violence is unrelenting and yet beautiful, punctuated with the bold colors for which Yimou is known. For example, when a war-torn building is blown sky high, amid the gore and dust,...
- 12/16/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
State partially funds Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War – starring Christian Bale and set during 1937 Rape of Nanking – to boost nation's film industry
China's most expensive film, a bloody blockbuster about the Japanese army's massacre of civilians in Nanjing, will be released in cinemas across the country on Friday as Beijing steps up its efforts to project its "soft power" across the world.
The Flowers of War, a £60m epic, is China's official entry to the best foreign language film section of the Academy Awards.
The film is partially funded by the state, following increased government investment in the media and culture industries.
But official hopes that it might represent a resurgent Chinese film industry have been dented by early reviews that castigate its poor plot, wooden acting and propagandist message.
The film stars Christian Bale as an American mortician who tries to save Chinese women and children from rape...
China's most expensive film, a bloody blockbuster about the Japanese army's massacre of civilians in Nanjing, will be released in cinemas across the country on Friday as Beijing steps up its efforts to project its "soft power" across the world.
The Flowers of War, a £60m epic, is China's official entry to the best foreign language film section of the Academy Awards.
The film is partially funded by the state, following increased government investment in the media and culture industries.
But official hopes that it might represent a resurgent Chinese film industry have been dented by early reviews that castigate its poor plot, wooden acting and propagandist message.
The film stars Christian Bale as an American mortician who tries to save Chinese women and children from rape...
- 12/16/2011
- by Jonathan Watts, Justin McCurry
- The Guardian - Film News
If you haven't noticed, the entire world has caught Batman fever this past week. Between our prologue screening report, the launch of Operation Early Bird, and the brand new poster, The Dark Knight Rises has been at the front of our minds. But July 20, 2012 - the release date of Christopher Nolan's trilogy finale - won't be the next time you'll be able to see a brand new Christian Bale movie. The Flowers of War, the new film from director Zhang Yimou, will be available in limited distribution later this month and today we have a brand new trailer. Check it out below. Based on the novel by Geling Yan, The Flowers of War tells the story of a western man named John (Bale) who finds himself caught in Nanking during the Japanese raid of 1937. Finding refuge with a group of women, John poses as a priest and tries to...
- 12/12/2011
- cinemablend.com
Not too long ago the small outfit Wreckin Hill Entertainment picked up Us rights [1] to Zhang Yimou's new film The Flowers of War. That's the film in which Christian Bale plays a roguish American who ends up taking responsibility for a group of girls and women who take refuge in a church during Japan's siege of Nanking during World War II. The film is China's entry for this year's Best Foreign Language film (it is also the most expensive film produced in China) and has an Oscar-qualifying run set to begin December 21 in New York, with openings on Dec 23 in La and San Francisco. To promote that Oscar run there is now a Us trailer for the film, and it is far more coherent and story-oriented than the sales trailer [2] we saw some time ago. It still shows off the film's wartime scope, but it also foregrounds the narrative so...
- 12/12/2011
- by Russ Fischer
- Slash Film
China's official 2012 Foreign Language Oscar submission is Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War, which has since been picked up for domestic distribution by Wrekin Hill Entertainment and will hit Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York theaters in late December for one week Oscar qualifying runs before expanding for a nationwide release in Winter 2012. The film is an adaptation of Geling Yan's novel "13 Flowers of Nanjing," centering on the Nanjing Massacre, when Japanese troops killed thousands of Chinese citizens in what was then the nation's capital in 1937. Christian Bale plays John Haufman, an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation takes shelter, joined by a group of innocent schoolgirls and thirteen courtesans, equally determined to escape the horrors taking place outside the church walls. You can check out the domestic trailer directly below and get a more detailed plot synopsis and check out a couple...
- 12/10/2011
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
After his last performance earned him a very much well-deserved and long-awaited Oscar in last year’s The Fighter, it came as a bit of a surprise to discover that Christian Bale’s follow-up film would become China’s entry into next year’s Oscars, The Flowers of War.
Previously titled Nanjing Heroes and 13 Flowers of Nanjing, The Flowers of War comes from renowned director Zhang Yimou, whose credits include Hero and House of Daggers, and whose films have twice won the coveted Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival.
We got the incredibly powerful first trailer for the film back in October, which is definitely worth your attention, and we’ve now got three brilliant new international posters for the film to share with you, courtesy of Imp Awards.
The film is set in 1937 during the Nanking Massacre, in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Based on the novel The 13 Women of Nanjing,...
Previously titled Nanjing Heroes and 13 Flowers of Nanjing, The Flowers of War comes from renowned director Zhang Yimou, whose credits include Hero and House of Daggers, and whose films have twice won the coveted Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival.
We got the incredibly powerful first trailer for the film back in October, which is definitely worth your attention, and we’ve now got three brilliant new international posters for the film to share with you, courtesy of Imp Awards.
The film is set in 1937 during the Nanking Massacre, in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Based on the novel The 13 Women of Nanjing,...
- 12/6/2011
- by Kenji Lloyd
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
3 posters and the trailer for Zhang Yimou’s The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale Helmed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House of the Flying Daggers), The Flowers of War tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. Pic is is China's bid for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and is produced by Zhang Weiping via his New Pictures company, working together with Yimou for a tenth time. Liu Heng adapts the screenplay, based on the novel by Geling Yan. The Flowers of War is set during Japan’s 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl’s point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a...
- 12/6/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
3 posters and the trailer for Zhang Yimou’s The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale Helmed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House of the Flying Daggers), The Flowers of War tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. Pic is is China's bid for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and is produced by Zhang Weiping via his New Pictures company, working together with Yimou for a tenth time. Liu Heng adapts the screenplay, based on the novel by Geling Yan. The Flowers of War is set during Japan’s 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl’s point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a...
- 12/6/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
3 posters and the trailer for Zhang Yimou’s The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale Helmed by Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, Hero, House of the Flying Daggers), The Flowers of War tells an epic story of love and sacrifice. Pic is is China's bid for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and is produced by Zhang Weiping via his New Pictures company, working together with Yimou for a tenth time. Liu Heng adapts the screenplay, based on the novel by Geling Yan. The Flowers of War is set during Japan’s 1937 invasion of China, is told from a young girl’s point of view, not as a history lesson, but as an intimate, elemental and paradoxically universal celebration of the human spirit. Bale stars as a dissolute Westerner who seeks refuge in a Catholic church. There he meets a beautiful Chinese courtesan who helps him rescue a...
- 12/6/2011
- Upcoming-Movies.com
Here is the new poster for Zhang Yimou's film The Flowers of War, which is set during the Japanese occupation of Naking in 1937. Thanks for Chris Ball, the film will have an awards-qualifying U.S. release in La, NY and San Francisco in late December. In early 2012, Flowers of War will be expanded throughout the U.S.
Shigeo Kobayashi stars alongside Bale in the film, which is 60 percent in Mandarin and 40 percent in English. The film is based on Heng Liu's screenplay adapted from Geling Yan's book The 13 Women of Nanjing. Zhang Yimou's film tells the story of "an American who finds himself trapped in China's capital city when it is overrun by the Japanese Imperial Army in 1937. Pretending to be a priest, he hides out at a church compound that is a girls school. Soon, a group of prostitutes also find refuge there as the Japanese overtake...
Shigeo Kobayashi stars alongside Bale in the film, which is 60 percent in Mandarin and 40 percent in English. The film is based on Heng Liu's screenplay adapted from Geling Yan's book The 13 Women of Nanjing. Zhang Yimou's film tells the story of "an American who finds himself trapped in China's capital city when it is overrun by the Japanese Imperial Army in 1937. Pretending to be a priest, he hides out at a church compound that is a girls school. Soon, a group of prostitutes also find refuge there as the Japanese overtake...
- 11/11/2011
- by Tiberius
- GeekTyrant
Zhang Yimou’s The Flowers of War, starring Christian Bale, was going to be released in China long before it would hit state side, that was a given. The film is scheduled for a December 16th release. But there was no American distributor willing to pick it up.
But Wrekin Hill Entertainment in conjuction with Row 1 Productions have stepped up to the plate and will give The Flowers of War a limited release late December just in time for a Academy qualifying run. Eventually The Flowers of War will get an extended release in January.
In The Flowers of War, Christian Bale plays a priest in Nanking who must defend his church and it’s students from the Japanese forces who threaten them. You can check out the trailer here.
Here is the official press release
Los Angeles, CA (November 7, 2011) — Chris Ball, President and CEO of La-based film production and distribution company Wrekin Hill Entertainment,...
But Wrekin Hill Entertainment in conjuction with Row 1 Productions have stepped up to the plate and will give The Flowers of War a limited release late December just in time for a Academy qualifying run. Eventually The Flowers of War will get an extended release in January.
In The Flowers of War, Christian Bale plays a priest in Nanking who must defend his church and it’s students from the Japanese forces who threaten them. You can check out the trailer here.
Here is the official press release
Los Angeles, CA (November 7, 2011) — Chris Ball, President and CEO of La-based film production and distribution company Wrekin Hill Entertainment,...
- 11/8/2011
- by Mike Lee
- FusedFilm
American audiences will be able to see Christian Bale in another movie thanks to Chris Ball's new independent distribution company Wrekin Hilll Entertainment, and Row 1 Entertainment. THR reports that they have acquired North American distribution rights to Zhang Yimou's epic film The Flowers of War, set during the Japanese occupation of Naking in 1937. The film will be shown in La, NY and San Francisco in late December as part of it's awards-qualifying run. Wrekin Hill will then expand the film through the early part of 2012.
Flowers was planned as an awards contender by Zhang Weiping, who financed the $90 million-budgeted film under his New Pictures Film Banner. The film is China's official Oscar entry for best foreign language picture, but once it gets a U.S. release, it can be submitted in other categories, including acting and directing. Zhang's past films include House of Flying Daggers and Hero. Flowers of War will premiere in Beijing,...
Flowers was planned as an awards contender by Zhang Weiping, who financed the $90 million-budgeted film under his New Pictures Film Banner. The film is China's official Oscar entry for best foreign language picture, but once it gets a U.S. release, it can be submitted in other categories, including acting and directing. Zhang's past films include House of Flying Daggers and Hero. Flowers of War will premiere in Beijing,...
- 11/8/2011
- by Tiberius
- GeekTyrant
The Chinese release of Zhang Yimou's WWII film The Flowers of War is imminent in China, where the film will open on December 16. But its fate has been undecided in the States. Now Wrekin Hill Entertainment, in association with Row 1 Productions, will release the movie in a limited late December Academy qualifying run, and give the movie a wider release in early 2012. In The Flowers of War, which is set in 1937, Christian Bale plays "a salty mortician who apparently has come to town to bury the priest of a cathedral in Nanking," and ends up taking over for the priest when invading Japanese forces threaten the students of a girls' school that is also housed in the cathedral. We saw a Chinese sales trailer [1] not long ago, but with distribution set for the movie we can probably expect a trailer for Us audiences in short order. The press release is below.
- 11/8/2011
- by Russ Fischer
- Slash Film
Zhang Yimou.S The Flowers Of War - China.S Oscar Entry – Goes To Wrekin Hill In Association With Row 1 Productions
Epic Starring Christian Bale Will Open In Late December 2011
Following Its Wide Release on Dec. 16 in China
Chris Ball, President and CEO of La-based film production and distribution company Wrekin Hill Entertainment, announced today that his company, in association with Row 1 Productions, have acquired the North American distribution rights to award-winning Chinese director Zhang Yimou.s (Raise the Red Lantern, Hero) and producer Zhang Weiping.s The Flowers Of War starring Academy Award® winning actor Christian Bale (The Fighter, The Dark Knight). The film has been selected as this year.s official foreign language entry for China at the Academy Awards. Wrekin Hill, in association with Row 1, will open the film in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco in late December 2011 and the film will then expand through...
Epic Starring Christian Bale Will Open In Late December 2011
Following Its Wide Release on Dec. 16 in China
Chris Ball, President and CEO of La-based film production and distribution company Wrekin Hill Entertainment, announced today that his company, in association with Row 1 Productions, have acquired the North American distribution rights to award-winning Chinese director Zhang Yimou.s (Raise the Red Lantern, Hero) and producer Zhang Weiping.s The Flowers Of War starring Academy Award® winning actor Christian Bale (The Fighter, The Dark Knight). The film has been selected as this year.s official foreign language entry for China at the Academy Awards. Wrekin Hill, in association with Row 1, will open the film in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco in late December 2011 and the film will then expand through...
- 11/8/2011
- by Melissa Howland
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
After months of speculation that went hand-in-hand with talk of Oscars, the U.S. distribution contest for Zhang Yimou‘s The Flowers of War has ended a tad anticlimacticly. A press release announces that Wrekin Hill — the company recently behind Hesher, The People vs. George Lucas, and The Way Back — have picked up the Christian Bale starrer for an opening later this year. With Row 1, they’ll release it in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco “in late December 2011,” rolling it out to other markets at the start of next year.
Awards hope isn’t completely dissipated by this news — but it could very well be hurt. Wrekin Hill is a very small distributor who couldn’t find the proper method to support Peter Weir‘s The Way Back, a film that could have easily earned a nomination for something more technical — cinematography, perhaps — so long as it had the proper backing.
Awards hope isn’t completely dissipated by this news — but it could very well be hurt. Wrekin Hill is a very small distributor who couldn’t find the proper method to support Peter Weir‘s The Way Back, a film that could have easily earned a nomination for something more technical — cinematography, perhaps — so long as it had the proper backing.
- 11/8/2011
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
Los Angeles, CA (November 7, 2011) — Chris Ball, President and CEO of La-based film production and distribution company Wrekin Hill Entertainment, announced today that his company, in association with Row 1 Productions, have acquired theNorth American distribution rights to award-winning Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s (Raise the Red Lantern, Hero) and producer Zhang Weiping’s The Flowers Of War starring Academy Award® winning actor Christian Bale (The Fighter, The Dark Knight). The film has been selected as this year’s official foreign language entry for China at the Academy Awards. Wrekin Hill, in association with Row 1, will open the film in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco in late December 2011 and the film will then expand through early 2012. The Flowers Of War will have a wide release in China on December 16th following three premiere events in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Based on a screenplay by Heng Liu (The Story of Qiu Ju...
- 11/8/2011
- by MIKE FLEMING
- Deadline
The Flowers Of War is a upcoming war movie, brought to us by director Zhang Yimou and starring Christian Bale. He stars as a missionary, who is caught up in the chaos in Nanking as the Japanese Imperial Army overran the Chinese capital city in 1937.
Plot
Set in 1937, Nanking stands at the forefront of a war between China and Japan. As the invading Japanese Imperial Army overruns China’s capital city, desperate civilians seek refuge behind the nominally protective walls of a western cathedral. Here, John Haufman (Bale), an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation takes shelter, joined by a group of innocent schoolgirls and thirteen courtesans, equally determined to escape the horrors taking place outside the church walls.
The Flowers of War is a 100 Million Us Dollar Epic, director Zhang Yimou (House Of Flying Daggers) and is based on the novel The 13 Women of Nanjing by Geling Yan.
Plot
Set in 1937, Nanking stands at the forefront of a war between China and Japan. As the invading Japanese Imperial Army overruns China’s capital city, desperate civilians seek refuge behind the nominally protective walls of a western cathedral. Here, John Haufman (Bale), an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation takes shelter, joined by a group of innocent schoolgirls and thirteen courtesans, equally determined to escape the horrors taking place outside the church walls.
The Flowers of War is a 100 Million Us Dollar Epic, director Zhang Yimou (House Of Flying Daggers) and is based on the novel The 13 Women of Nanjing by Geling Yan.
- 10/26/2011
- by kingofkungfu
- AsianMoviePulse
Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War made a big statement less than a month ago when China submit it as their Foreign Language Oscar contender. The film stars Christian Bale and is an adaptation of Geling Yan's novel "13 Flowers of Nanjing," centering on the Nanjing Massacre, when Japanese troops killed thousands of Chinese citizens in what was then the nation's capital in 1937. Bale plays John Haufman, an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation takes shelter, joined by a group of innocent schoolgirls and thirteen courtesans, equally determined to escape the horrors taking place outside the church walls. The Flowers of War does not yet have a domestic distributor, but it will be hitting theaters in China this December and I can only assume, if it lands an Oscar nomination we'll hear about it being picked up soon enough. Check out the international trailer below and for more information,...
- 10/21/2011
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
So much attention has been focused on Christian Bale’s return to the role of Batman in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming The Dark Knight Rises that it’s been easy to forget he has another very substantial film coming out in just a few months’ time.
The Flowers of War, previously titled Nanjing Heroes and 13 Flowers of Nanjing, has already been chosen as China’s entry into the Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category, directed by renowned director Zhang Yimou (Hero, House of Flying Daggers).
The first trailer for the film has now arrived, via Twitch Film, giving us a look at what promises to be a very powerful film. It’s an incredibly interesting choice for Bale to get involved with the project, making this his next film following on from his Oscar-winning turn in last year’s The Fighter.
The film is set in 1937 during the Nanking Massacre,...
The Flowers of War, previously titled Nanjing Heroes and 13 Flowers of Nanjing, has already been chosen as China’s entry into the Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category, directed by renowned director Zhang Yimou (Hero, House of Flying Daggers).
The first trailer for the film has now arrived, via Twitch Film, giving us a look at what promises to be a very powerful film. It’s an incredibly interesting choice for Bale to get involved with the project, making this his next film following on from his Oscar-winning turn in last year’s The Fighter.
The film is set in 1937 during the Nanking Massacre,...
- 10/21/2011
- by Kenji Lloyd
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Toh! caught twenty minutes of gorgeous, horrifying footage of Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War (formerly Heros of Nanking) at Toronto, along with every distributor in town. It's China's most expensive movie to date, and will open there and across Asia on December 16, and is rumored to be near a deal for Us distribution. The film stars Christian Bale, with what looks like a strong performance, as a mortician in wartorn 1937 Nanking who steps up to protect a group of schoolgirls and prostitutes taking shelter at the Winchester Cathedral. Adapted by Liu Heng from the novel by Geling Yan, it is inspired by true events during the Rape of Nanking. Here's more from Toronto. The film is China's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar. [via ComingSoon]...
- 10/20/2011
- Thompson on Hollywood
We are looking for upwards of 65 total submissions for Oscar's list of Foreign Language contenders and we are inching closer as I have just added 18 more titles to the list bringing the total up to 40. Today I added submissions from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Israel, Peru, Slovakia, South Africa and Vietnam along with China's submission of Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War starring Christian Bale.
Yimou, as I'm sure most of you know, is best known for helming House of Flying Daggers and Hero and with Flowers of War he's working from an adaptation of Geling Yan's novel "13 Flowers of Nanjing," centering on the Nanjing Massacre, when Japanese troops killed thousands of Chinese citizens in what was then the nation's capital in 1937. Bale plays John Haufman, an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation takes shelter,...
Yimou, as I'm sure most of you know, is best known for helming House of Flying Daggers and Hero and with Flowers of War he's working from an adaptation of Geling Yan's novel "13 Flowers of Nanjing," centering on the Nanjing Massacre, when Japanese troops killed thousands of Chinese citizens in what was then the nation's capital in 1937. Bale plays John Haufman, an American trapped amidst the chaos of battle and the ensuing occupation takes shelter,...
- 9/23/2011
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
In the most mainstream-ready news yet for this year's Best Foreign Language Film competition, China has submitted Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War. The movie has changed titles at least three times now (literally) but yes, that's the very expensive Christian Bale film based on Geling Yan's historical novel The 13 Flowers of Nanjing which is about the Nanjing massacre when Japanese soldiers slaughtered Chinese civilians in 1937. Bale will play a priest who is helping to save Chinese citizens. I believe previous titles included The 13 Women of Nanjing and Nanjing Heroes. After a very long production the movie will supposedly be opening this December.
Zhang Yimou and Christian Bale on the set
Christian Bale in a still from the film that just can't pick a title!
Zhang Yimou is a superstar as auteurs go, having previously directed international hits and awards magnets like Ju Dou (Oscar nominee Foreign Film ), Raise the Red Lantern...
Zhang Yimou and Christian Bale on the set
Christian Bale in a still from the film that just can't pick a title!
Zhang Yimou is a superstar as auteurs go, having previously directed international hits and awards magnets like Ju Dou (Oscar nominee Foreign Film ), Raise the Red Lantern...
- 9/23/2011
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
Imaginechina/Zuma Press Director Zhang Yimou.
Twenty minutes of footage from “Raise the Red Lantern” director Zhang Yimou’s latest film was screened for prominent U.S. film distributors and the media at the Toronto International Film Festival Friday morning.
“The Flowers of War,” a World War II drama whose working title was “Heroes of Nanking,” stars Christian Bale as an American caught in the former Chinese capital amidst the infamous “Rape of Nanking” by the Japanese Imperial Army, in...
Twenty minutes of footage from “Raise the Red Lantern” director Zhang Yimou’s latest film was screened for prominent U.S. film distributors and the media at the Toronto International Film Festival Friday morning.
“The Flowers of War,” a World War II drama whose working title was “Heroes of Nanking,” stars Christian Bale as an American caught in the former Chinese capital amidst the infamous “Rape of Nanking” by the Japanese Imperial Army, in...
- 9/9/2011
- by Michelle Kung
- Speakeasy/Wall Street Journal
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