city with no mercy/flashpoint

[Lucas]

I was going to mention this in my last post.

Has anyone else noticed the increasing levels of grappling / groundwork you are finding in Donnie's more recent films?

Think hes trying to say something?

edit:

sprawl ftw LOL

[jethro]

He said in the special features of Killzone (SPL) that he has been watching the UFC ever since the sport started and in SPL he wanted to start making his fights look more real. Over the last 25 years or so MMA has been used in quite a lot of movies, but they would only use maybe 5 applications throughout the whole movie. In old school movies the fight scenes are more of a dance than a fight. That is just what was popular. People weren't impressed by the different techniques, they wanted that dance style (which is what I prefer. I love the old school fights). In the mid to late 80's it was all about the kickboxing type of style. Then the new wave movies were all about wire fu. Donnie was smart to recognize how popular UFC/Pride has gotten and that is why he has put it in SPL. If Bruce Lee would have lived and made more movies it probably would have been popular in movies a long time ago. there is a movie from the 40's where Jimmy Cagney uses Judo against a big Japanese guy and gets him in an armbar and a chokehold. Check out this awesome fight scene- http://youtube.com/watch?v=3SlFNB_-s_o

[sanjuro_ronin]

The original Manchurian Candidate has a nice ( for the time) and realistic fight scene.

[mickey]

Greetings,

That was some good choreography. Donnie learned a lot from Yuen Woo Ping. Yuen's influence is very much there.

I did not understand Donnie's release at @00:49. He had the guy around the waist. All he had to do was squeeze like hell.


mickey

[jethro]

If Donnie didn't let go of his waist at the 49 second mark he may have gotten his pretty face messed up

[GeneChing]

It's playing in SF at the Lumiere.

FLASHPOINT
IN THEATERS MARCH 14th
New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco

The creators of Kill Zone take action to the next level with a breakthrough combination of hard-hitting mixed martial arts battles and nail-biting tension. Kung fu legend Donnie Yen (Hero, Seven Swords) returns as the police force’s most dangerous detective, building a case against a vicious trio of drug smuggling brothers. When evidence is destroyed and witnesses are murdered, he takes the fight directly to his enemies – no holds barred. Climaxing with a spectacular 16-minute bone-crunching showdown, this Hong Kong smash hit is “an entertaining action blowout” (Ross Chen, LoveHKFilm).

[doug maverick]

yeah i was planning on going to see it. gotta find a theater that has it. cause i want to see it on the big screen

[GeneChing]

Good call on Yu Xing. I'm biased because I knew him but I think he's one to watch.

'Flash Point'

POLITE APPLAUSE Action. Starring Donnie Yen, Louis Koo and Collin Chou. Directed by Wilson Yip. (R. 88 minutes. At Bay Area theaters. See complete movie listings and show times, and buy tickets for select theaters, at sfgate.com/movies.)

Donnie Yen executes two beat-downs before the opening credits of "Flash Point," the latest Hong Kong action picture from the martial arts master. It works out to about a punch every four seconds.

At 44 years old, Yen quite can't keep up that pace. But his latest movie has a solid story, which keeps things interesting during the quiet moments when nobody is getting kicked in the head. And even though Yen is arguably 10 or more years past his high-flying prime, he's exploring new martial arts disciplines, giving his action scenes in this movie a fresh look.

The subtitled "Flash Point" takes place more than a decade ago, which is fitting, because so much of it is filmed like a 1990s American action movie. Specifically, director Wilson Yip seems to be going for a "Lethal Weapon" vibe, with heavy elements of camaraderie and light banter, villains who are unrealistically menacing and even background music that seems suspiciously similar to the Eric Clapton guitar work from that series.

Yen is Jun Ma, a detective who gets results but is still on the edge of suspension, because too many of his suspects end up badly beaten or dead. If you're bothered that he's a cliche that dates back to "Dirty Harry," then this may not be the movie for you. Because there's also a rising gang member who doesn't play by the rules, some kindly colleagues who aren't long for this world and a partner (Louis Koo) who is always getting himself into trouble.

While his movie character can't fight very well, Koo is arguably the lead actor, getting more lines and screen time than Yen, who is basically an attack dog - staying mostly in the background until the action starts. It's a nice arrangement for the audience, allowing the more dashing Koo (so good in the "Triad Election" movies) to drive the narrative forward while Yen takes over for the fight scenes.

And those scenes, supervised closely by action director Yen, are mostly great. Yen has developed a recent passion for mixed martial arts, and his more traditional punches and flying kicks are supplemented by some close-quarters Muay Thai kicks and even some jujitsu submission holds. Ultimate Fighting Championship fans will be happy.

Yen also likes to discover new talent and isn't afraid to showcase existing talent that might overshadow his own skills. Collin Chou is appropriately mean as a gangster. And relative newcomer Yu Xing, despite his penchant for dressing like Sylvester Stallone in "Rocky II," brings a menacing energy to a henchman role.

-- Advisory: This film contains strong language, violence and a cranky partner who is too old for this @$%#.

- Peter Hartlaub

[doug maverick]

yeah i didn't like yu xing's character's wardrobe either i widh he would've had more of a hip hop look to him, would've looked cooler his style was way to out of date.

[Shaolinlueb]

flash point was good. i think i might have liked s.p.l. better though

[GeneChing]

Enter for your chance to win a FLASHPOINT: 2 DISC ULTIMATE EDITION DVD, which releases today from the good people at Dragon Dynasty. Five lucky winners will receive this spectacular new double disc collector's edition of one of the hottest kung fu flicks to emerge in recent years. Contest ends on 6:00 p.m. PST on 5/4/08. Good luck everyone.

[jethro]

I just got the DVD and it says there's a commentary with Donnie. Sweet!

[jethro]

flash point was good. i think i might have liked s.p.l. better though

I agree. I don't know how to describe it, but SPL was just cooler. I think SPL was a better overall movie, but I enjoyed Flash Point more because of the final fight. I'm all about the fights when watching movies.

[Jimbo]

Yeah, Yen is very smart to incorporate MMA/BJJ into his newer fights. Because it's what is popular right now. Out here in SoCal, MMA is the most popular thing going, I'm betting probably more than all the other martial arts put together. In our town, there are even popular training clubs that teach "cage fighting" to kids as young as 7 or 8 or so. The explosion of popularity really accelerated since the show "Ultimate Fighter" began several years ago.

Yen's use of the moves in movie scenes is far superior than other (U.S.) screen interpretations of MMA. Although I thought it a bit interesting that one of the moves he throws Sammo with in SPL looked a lot like a "hurricanrana" that you'd see in WWE/pro-wrestling.

It's true that Bruce Lee did, in a very early, simplistic way, incorporate grappling moves in many of his (otherwise stand-up) fights. He had Bob Baker get him in an arm bar in Fist of Fury/Chinese Connection; he bit his way out. He choreographed the exact same sequence between Bolo and John Saxon in ETD. BL kills Chuck Norris' character in Way/Return of the Dragon with a type of guillotine choke. He kills Kareem Abdul-Jabber with a headlock choke in GOD.

[jethro]

Yeah he is smart to put in the MMA. I got Flash Point at Best Buy today, and for the first time ever I saw a Dragon Dynasty release in the front of the store in the new release section. Nice to see something without Jackie or Jet's name on it in Best Buy and they are actually trying to sell it. Unlike stuff like Exiled which for some reason is in the martial arts section and DragonPrincess/Karate Warriors 2-pack which can be found in the horror section.