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Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In

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Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In
Theatrical release poster
Traditional Chinese九龍城寨之圍城[1]
Simplified Chinese九龙城寨之围城
Hanyu PinyinJiǔ Lóng Chéng Zhài·Wéi Chéng
JyutpingGau2 Lung4 Sing4 Zaai3•Wai4 Sing4
Directed bySoi Cheang
Screenplay by
Based onCity of Darkness
by Yuyi
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyCheng Siu-keung
Edited byCheung Ka-fai
Music byKenji Kawai
Production
companies
Distributed byMedia Asia Distribution
Release date
  • 1 May 2024 (2024-05-01)
Running time
126 minutes
Countries
  • China
  • Hong Kong[3]
Languages
BudgetHK$300 million[4]
Box officeUS$95.3 million[5]

Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (simplified Chinese: 九龙城寨之围城; traditional Chinese: 九龍城寨之圍城; Jyutping: gau2 lung4 sing4 zaai6 zi1 wai4 sing4; lit. 'The Siege of Kowloon Walled City') is a 2024 action film directed by Soi Cheang,[6][3] and starring Louis Koo, Sammo Hung, Richie Jen, Raymond Lam, Terrance Lau, Kenny Wong, Philip Ng, Tony Wu and German Cheung. The film was based on the novel City of Darkness by Yuyi and the manhua of the same name by Andy Seto.[7]

Having been in development since the 2000s, production for the film officially began in November 2021[8] and wrapped in April 2022. The film was released in Hong Kong and China on 1 May 2024, and was selected to be in the Official Selection (Midnight Screening) of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, as part of screened out of competition.[9] The film received critical acclaim.

The film became the second-highest-grossing domestic film of all time in Hong Kong.[10] The film was selected as Hong Kong’s official entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards.[11]

Plot

[edit]

The film is set in 1980s Hong Kong. It follows the story of Chan Lok-kwan, a troubled youth who accidentally enters the notorious Kowloon Walled City. Lok-kwan, a refugee from the mainland, is trying to survive by participating in underground fighting rings. He seeks to buy a fake ID to improve his life but is betrayed by Mr. Big, a local crime syndicate boss. In a desperate move, Lok-kwan steals drugs from Mr. Big and flees to the Walled City, where he encounters Cyclone, the local crime lord who rules the area with a mix of authority and compassion.

In the Walled City, Lok-kwan learns about the order and chaos within the community and forms bonds with Cyclone and his gang. On the other hand, Mr. Big and his gang try to take over the Walled City, leading to intense battles.

Also Chan Lok-kwan's father is revealed to be Jim, the notorious 'King of Killers' who murdered Chau's family. Now, Lok-kwan must pay for that.

Cast

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  • Louis Koo as Cyclone (龍捲風): a martial arts master who strives to protect the safety and stability of the residents in the Kowloon Walled City.[12][13]
  • Sammo Hung as Mr. Big (大老闆): a crime lord who is solely focused on maximizing his wealth and personal interests.[12][13]
  • Richie Jen as Dik Chau (狄秋): a high-ranking member of the triad, as well as the biggest landlord in the walled city.[14]
  • Raymond Lam as Chan Lok-kwan (陳洛軍): a refugee who settled in the walled city but became entangled in the chaos within and faced the imminent demolition of the city.[12][15]
  • Terrance Lau as Shin (信一): the loyal second-in-command of Cyclone's outlaw gang who later becomes a companion to Chan.[16][12]
  • Philip Ng as King (王九): Mr. Big's right-hand man.[13]
  • Tony Wu as Twelfth Master (十二少): a katana-wielding member of Cyclone's outlaw gang who later becomes a companion to Chan.[12][17]
  • German Cheung [zh] as AV (四仔): a kickboxer in Cyclone's outlaw gang who later becomes a companion to Chan.[12][17]
  • Kenny Wong as Tiger (Tiger哥): Twelfth Master's boss and the head of the Temple Street gang.
  • Aaron Kwok as Jim (陳占/殺人王): the notorious 'King of Killers' who was ultimately defeated by Cyclone. He is also Chan Lok-kwan's father.
  • Chu Pak Hong as Woman Beater (九索): a woman beater who dabbled in prostitution and drugs. He was beaten up by the Kowloon 4 (Lok-kwun, Shin, Twelfth Master and AV).
  • Fish Liew as Fanny (燕芬姐): a walled city local who works in a fishball stall.
  • Cecilia Choi as Jim's wife (蘇玉儀/占妻): Jim's wife and Lok-kwun's mother.[18]
  • Jozev Kiu as Double Blade (阿七): owner of a char-siu rice stall in the walled city.[19][better source needed]

Production

[edit]

The project had been in development since the 2000s, where it was set to be co-directed by John Woo and Johnnie To and star an all-star cast of Chow Yun-fat, Andy Lau, Tony Leung, Sean Lau, Louis Koo, Anthony Wong, Sun Honglei, Anita Yuen and Zhang Jingchu, with Nicolas Cage, James McAvoy, Li Baotian, Jang Dong-gun, Li Bingbing and Zhang Fengyi making special appearances, as shown on a teaser poster, although nothing was confirmed.[20]

On 13 April 2013, Media Asia announced the project was to be titled Dragon City and set to be directed by Derek Kwok and starring Donnie Yen, who would also serve as action director and producer through his production company, Super Hero Films, and was set to begin production in September of that year.[21][22]

After seemingly stuck in development hell for several years, Media Asia once again announced the project on 28 February 2021, with Soi Cheang set to direct while Koo, Richie Jen and Zhang Jin are set to star.[7] Principal photography for the film officially began on 22 November 2021, as was revealed in a post on the film's official Facebook page,[8] although the cast was not revealed yet until the film held its production commencement ceremony on 30 November, which was attended by Cheang, producers John Chong and Wilson Yip and cast members Koo, Sammo Hung, Jen, Raymond Lam, Terrance Lau, Kenny Wong, Tony Wu, German Cheung, Philip Ng, Chu Pak Hong and Chung Suet Ying. Koo revealed that two replica sets of the Kowloon Walled City were built for filming, while actual magazines, record albums, televisions and commercials from the 1980s will be used as props.[23][24] All the main cast spent a year training to prepare for the film's fight scenes.[25] On 3 April 2022, filming was officially wrapped and the film went into the post-production process.

Release

[edit]

Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In was theatrically released in Hong Kong and China on 1 May 2024. The film achieved great financial success in Hong Kong, surpassing the record for the most-viewed local film by July 2024 with 1.59 million viewers.[26] It also became the highest-grossing film in Hong Kong that year, earning $105 million HKD.[27]

The cast and crowd at the film's midnight screening at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival

The film was also selected to be in the Official Selection (Midnight Screening) of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where it was screened on 16 May 2024.[28] It also released in the UK on 24 May 2024. The film was also showcased at the 23rd New York Asian Film Festival on 28 July 2024, as the closing film of the festival.[29]

The film had its Canadian premiere at the 28th Fantasia International Film Festival on August 1, 2024.[30] It will also be showcased at 37th Tokyo International Film Festival in Gala Selection in November 2024.[31]

Reception

[edit]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 92% of 37 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.8/10. The website's consensus reads: "An action-packed homage that nails the nitty-gritty choreo-crazed daze of '80s Hong Kong cinema to masterful effect."[32] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 77 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[33]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "《九龍寨城之圍城》映期確定預告曝光". 29 March 2024. Archived from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Facebook. Archived from the original on 14 March 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ a b Adlakha, Siddhant (20 May 2024). "'Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In' Review: Blazing Action Delights Get Marred by Languid Soap Opera". Variety. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  4. ^ "鄭保瑞重塑寨城日常 三不管以外老香港故事". Ming Pao. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In". The Numbers. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
  6. ^ "Les films de la Sélection officielle 2024". 11 April 2024. Archived from the original on 11 April 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  7. ^ a b "Media Asia launches second Hong Kong omnibus project". Archived from the original on 21 September 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  8. ^ a b "九龍城寨·圍城 - 大家好耐無見啦，有無掛住我哋？😉 俾幾日時間你哋估下有咩演員 🤫". Facebook.
  9. ^ "Les films de la Sélection officielle 2024". 11 April 2024. Archived from the original on 11 April 2024. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  10. ^ "《九龍城寨之圍城》 票房突破8251萬 榮登香港電影史上華語電影總票房第2位". Yahoo News (in Chinese). 28 May 2024. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  11. ^ Rosser, Michael (20 September 2024). "Hong Kong enters 'Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled In' to Oscar race". Screen International. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  12. ^ a b c d e f "John Chong on Making 'Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In' an Authentic Dive into Notorious Kowloon Walled City and Yet Emblematic of Hong Kong's New Wave (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. 14 March 2023. Archived from the original on 23 March 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  13. ^ a b c "九龍城寨之圍城丨動作篇製作特輯揭演員訓練過程 古天樂與洪金寶首拍對打戲獲讚賞" (in Chinese). TOPick. 9 April 2024. Archived from the original on 9 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  14. ^ 莫匡堯 (30 March 2024). "九龍城寨之圍城︱龍卷風古天樂型到炸裂 電影VS港漫造型終極對比" (in Chinese). HK01. Archived from the original on 19 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  15. ^ "鄭保瑞重塑寨城日常 三不管以外老香港故事" (in Chinese). Ming Pao. 19 April 2024. Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  16. ^ "【九龍城寨】古天樂+林峯演經典港漫角色 監製莊澄：100%還原城寨面貌" (in Chinese). TOPick. 16 March 2023. Archived from the original on 30 March 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  17. ^ a b "《九龍城寨之圍城》5月1日上映 重現城寨舊貌 瘋狂打鬥活現漫畫角色" (in Chinese). Ming Pao. 29 March 2024. Archived from the original on 19 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  18. ^ "九龍城寨之圍城丨首條宣傳片發布 古天樂演龍捲風造型曝光" (in Chinese). TOPick. 29 March 2024. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  19. ^ "三個必看九龍城寨電影的原因？" (in Chinese). Comicbook.hk. 17 April 2024. Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
  20. ^ "Kowloon Walled City teaser poster". Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  21. ^ "Hong Kong's Media Asia Announces Two Donnie Yen Action Vehicles". The Hollywood Reporter. 12 April 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  22. ^ "ACE COP FIGHTING CRIME IN DRAGON CITY". Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  23. ^ "【九龍城寨】古天樂回味80年代香港 洪金寶高興可繼續拍香港電影". Archived from the original on 6 January 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  24. ^ Chan, Ilsa (2 December 2021). "Sammo Hung, 69, Makes Acting Comeback In HK Movie, Says It's Because He Has "No Money"". 8days.sg. Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
  25. ^ "HK actor Sammo Hung to star in new Louis Koo film because he has 'no money'". Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  26. ^ Li, Ambrose (2 July 2024). "Twilight of the Warriors delivers knockout blow to become the most-watched local film ever". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  27. ^ Wong, Sylvia (3 July 2024). "Hong Kong box office down 17% in first half of 2024 despite local hit". Screen Daily. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  28. ^ "The Screenings Guide of the 77th Festival de Cannes". Festival de Cannes. 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  29. ^ Bergeson, Samantha (13 June 2024). "New York Asian Film Festival 2024 Hosts 'Twilight of the Warriors' and 'Fly Me to the Moon' Premieres". IndieWire. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  30. ^ "Fantasia's 28th Edition Awards Filmmaker Mike Flanagan, Closes with the World Premiere of André Forcier's Ababouiné". Fantasia International Film Festival. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  31. ^ "37th TIFF's Gala Selection Unveiled; Trailer with Festival Song to Screen from Sept. 20". Tokyo International Film Festival. 20 September 2024. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  32. ^ "Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  33. ^ "Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
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