The Storm Warriors

Back in 1997, a unique film came out combining wuxia with the latest CG effects at the time. The film was called The Storm Riders, a very satisfying evolution of the genre that was both a narrative success as well as a visual feast; certainly the first Chinese comic come-to-life. It was helmed by a young director named Andrew Lau. He went on to create this little trilogy known as Infernal Affairs. Well, jump forward 12 years later as the sequel, The Storm Warriors, is now in production. Both Ekin Cheng & Aaron Kwok reprise their roles as Wind & Cloud respectively with Simon Yam and Charlene Choi also joining the cast. In the director's chair(s) are Danny and Oxide Pang (The Eye, the original Bangkok Dangerous).

As with any good wuxia film, the story focuses on a threat to the country, this time by a Japanese warlord named Lord Godless. After either imprisoning or eliminating the land's martial artists, only our heroes are left. According to the official introduction of the film, The Storm Warriors will pit Wind against Cloud as Wind makes the decision to study darker arts in order to increase his power to defeat Lord Godless. Unfortunately, as warned by a little green "martial arts master" in another series, darkness ends up consuming him. Cloud and his allies will be forced not only to battle the villain, but a former friend as well. How will it end?

It certainly sounds epic and I believe this is going to be the Pang Brothers' first outing into something of this scale. Visual stylists that they are, one can already get a sense of the production value being employed, both in these character illustrations:



and in this brief teaser:



One will also note the visual style of the film, relying on heavy use of green screen, digital grading, and speed variations ala Zack Snyder. There is another clip of a battle scene available on the official website under "Top Secret" that has been a source of controversy among net denizens. Most people seem to hate it. For a wuxia film, it is certainly different, but I must caution those who look at it and assume this is part of the movie. The fact of the matter is, you don't know that. Also, there are parts of this video that seem to hint that this is nothing more than a sizzle reel, a test of whether the visuals can be achieved that's shown off to investors. The final look of the film is still largely unknown. With the film slated for a December release, I am sure we will eventually find out. For now, however, be cautiously optimistic at the prospect of the return of Chinese fantasy films.