Fistful of challenges
NOT only is award-winning Malaysian filmmaker Michael Chuah Ghiap Hun going to direct his first action film, he will also be starring in it as well.
The Singapore action film titled Fist Of Dragon or Long, Quan (previously known as Long De Quan Ren) also features Singaporean artistes Fiona Xie (Rule#1) and Henry Thia (Love Matters) and China starlet Wang Xiao Chen (Legend Of The Condor Heroes).
Malaysian filmmaker Michael Chuah checking the angles for his new action movie.
Chuah’s previous movie Seed Of Darkness had the distinction of being the first Malaysian Mandarin full-length film to be picked by a Hollywood distributor, namely Buena Vista Columbia Tristar.
Tagged as Malaysia’s first horror film shot in HD, Seed Of Darkness (2006) was about single mother Yan who moves into a new apartment with her daughter Ying Ying, who was conceived through in-vitro fertilisation, only to find the child communicating with an unseen entity she calls her father.
Although he made his directorial debut with a horror film, Chuah declared that his first love is for actioners. “I have always wanted to work on action movies.
“When I was young I loved to watch movies by Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, in which the protagonist is always very heroic and stands up for the weak.
“I feel that nowadays we are getting less of that kind of movie because Jet Li is not as active and Jackie Chan is in Hollywood making a lot of cops-and-robbers films.
“There is no longer the heroic Chinese icon that was previously portrayed by them. I really miss the 90s when I would go to the cinemas and watch movies like Wong Fei Hung and Fong Sai Yuk as well as other Jet Li-type heroic characters,” Chuah mused during an interview recently.
Singaporean actress Fiona Xie will also star in Fist Of Dragon.
Hence, when the opportunity to make Fist Of Dragon came knocking, Chuah leapt into action. He came up with the concept for the film and got the first draft of the script completed last year.
“Basically, we put an 80s kind of hero in a modern setting. The story is set in a small town, a place that is cut off from the city, so it is easily controlled by local triads,” shared the director.
The story revolves around Li, who travels from China to Malaysia at the request of his father to help his uncle, who is facing financial difficulties.
Arriving in a new country, he feels out of place because of cultural differences. Soon, he discovers that some local mobsters are giving his uncle a hard time and decides to teach them a lesson.
However, he encounters resistance from the locals as his actions incur the wrath of the triads and they threaten the whole town.
Moreover, his uncle’s daughter, Lily, is with the triads, which causes their relationship to sour when the two groups clash.
Actress Wang Xiao Chen of China.
Co-produced by Singapore’s Fusion Media and China’s Desen International Media Co in collaboration with Malaysia’s Evo Pictures, the film has a S$1.5mil (RM3.6mil) budget, most of which will be invested in the action sequences. Like C.L. Hor’s martial arts flick Kinta, the cast of Fist Of Dragon features fresh faces.
“Because the martial arts skill is important in this film, we can’t find suitable candidates from the local TV scene as most of them are not martial artistes.”
Acknowledging that apart from martial arts skills, action choreography along with charisma formed part of the equation, Chuah offered, “Donnie Yen set a very high standard with Ip Man and is now getting the recognition that he deserves.”
The biopic of Bruce Lee’s mentor won for best picture and best action choreography (by Sammo Hung) at the recent 28th Hong Kong Film Awards.
With great gusto, Chuah auditioned actors and shortlisted suitable candidates before putting them through months of intensive martial arts training in order to prepare them for the combat sequences.
Even the actresses had to undergo some combat training as they were expected to fight as well.
After Chuah finally picked his leading man, the inevitable happened. Contractual issues with the actor’s company threatened to throw a spanner in the works. With the movie due to commence filming and deadlines looming, the 29-year-old filmmaker found himself in a bind.
Where would he find another fresh-faced heroic fellow with a satisfactory martial arts background and how could he train him in time?
To producers Ann An (from Singapore’s Fusion Media) and Peter Li (China’s Desen International Media), the solution was obvious. Both nominated the director to fill the void.
Born and bred in Kuala Lumpur (his parents are Penangites), Chuah is a seasoned martial arts practitioner who started training at the age of nine.
He later joined the Chin Woo Athletic Association and became the state representative for Kuala Lumpur in wushu meets.
Inspired by action heroes such as Lee, Chan, Li and Yen, Chuah also set up Evo Stunt Team three years ago to work on commercials and stunts for movies.
With his problem solved, the stoic young man set himself to task and his actioner was soon back on track. Filming began on May 26 in Malacca, where two thirds of the movie is set. The movie will also be filmed in KL and in China. It is due for release next March in China, Singapore and Malaysia.
