The Lost Bladesman is a new martial arts movie of Alan Mak and Felix Chong, staring Donnie Yen, Sun Li, Jiang Wen, Alex Fong, and Andy On is set to release on April 28, 2011.
Alan Mak and Felix Chong (Infernal Affairs Trilogy) are handling writing and directing duties again on this biographical retelling of Guan Yu. Donnie Yen will also be the action choreographer, so the action should be pretty intense for this one.
Plot: During the warring period of the three kingdoms, ancient China is in turmoil. To unify the country general CAO CAO, the real power behind the emperor, enlists the aid of the greatest warrior in the land GUAN YUN CHANG. However, Guan Yun Chang is a loyal friend of CAO CAO’s enemy LIU BEI. To persuade the peerless warrior to fight, Cao Cao takes his beloved QI LAN hostage. After leading Cao Cao’s forces to victory Guan Yun Chang sets out with Qi Lan to rejoin Liu Bei. But now Cao Cao has deemed him too great a threat to live, and on the journey he must face all the forces at the emperor’s command sent to destroy him.
Donnie Yen said: “At first, I was having doubts when the producer approached me. I wasn’t very familiar with The Three Kingdoms, while I have done many period martial arts movies, I wasn’t confident of portraying such a major historical character, fearing that I might tarnish everyone’s hero. So, I laid down one condition: If you could hire directors Alan Mak and Felix Chong, I would accept this role. For I have faith in their ability in handling this period historical film The Lost Bladesman. The audience are getting more fastidious, you have to inventing something new.”
Being in charge of the action choreography too, Donnie Yen says, “The fights were designed according to the background of the historical character, Guan Yu was living in the warring period, so I couldn’t use my favourite modern MMA, but rather, I used body language as a guideline. In order to break out from Cao Cao’s camp, Guan Yu has to fight all the way through, and the process is full of twists. But, being able to wield the Crescent Moon Blade doesn’t equate being able to act as Guan Yu, the action is not an issue to me, rather, the question is how to grasp and portray the audience’s image of Guan Yu.”
Donnie Yen will next be teaming up with Takeshi Kaneshiro in a martial arts movie by director Peter Chan that was inspired by One-armed Swordsman in August. He would play a ruthless killer who has committed all sorts of dastardly deeds, and being wanted by the authority, he leads a fugitive life.
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source: wu-jing, filmsmash