My other lawn, its shredded
December 7, 2015 12:43 PM   Subscribe

 
Apparently I will watch anything with Michelle Yeoh in it, even if it has a terrible vocoder-and-synthesizer version of a Creedence song as the soundtrack.
posted by Cookiebastard at 12:52 PM on December 7, 2015 [26 favorites]


Really been looking forward to this. Also, what Cookiebastard said
posted by comealongpole at 12:56 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


The elders say, "A faithful heart makes wishes come true."
posted by Kikkoman at 12:57 PM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


Yeah, that song was a really strange choice for that trailer. I guess it fit the atmosphere, but I wanted more Tan Dun & Yo Yo Ma cello.

Has it been mentioned that Donnie Yen is also in this and that it's being directed by fight choreographer Woo-Ping Yuen?
posted by sleeping bear at 12:57 PM on December 7, 2015 [4 favorites]


That song is terrible! But it can't be part of the movie. They never have the actual music in trailers.

The concept of Netflix making a sequel (for TV) of a movie that was hugely successful in theatres is an interesting one, but it looks good! Very cinematic.
posted by Kevin Street at 12:57 PM on December 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


Huh.
posted by brennen at 12:59 PM on December 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


Can someone please do a cut without that song? It legit ruined the trailer for me, I thought it was a dubstep recut or something.
posted by Tevin at 1:00 PM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


Michelle Yeoh is the only actress I know who comes close to what Ingrid Bergman had in terms of presence and range. Apparently I'm not alone in my love for her.

I'm glad Netflix is making it... seems like Netflix takes chances that most movie producers won't these day.
posted by Sheydem-tants at 1:00 PM on December 7, 2015 [10 favorites]


My other lawn, its shredded

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is the fourth book in the five-book Crane-Iron Series. I've been expecting a prequel or sequel ever since the success of the first movie. I'm surprised it took this long.
posted by grouse at 1:06 PM on December 7, 2015 [7 favorites]


I dunno, this looks like it might be a little heavy on the CG and green-screen work (for instance, those look like digital doubles in the tower fight sequence featured at the end of the trailer), which doesn't seem very Crouching Tiger to me, and the music choice is crass enough to make me feel like Netflix lacks a clue. Anyway, they're opening this on Imax screens? I guess it must play better when the footage hasn't been edited by a Cuisinart, which seems to have been the case here.
posted by Mothlight at 1:08 PM on December 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


I liked the original so much that I doubt I will watch this. I don't want to know any more about those characters, their arcs were so perfect.
posted by grumpybear69 at 1:22 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Uh, I guess none of you remember the haunting Imogen Heap cover of CCR in the original film? Michelle Yeoh and Chow Yun-fat are just about to express their love for each other and start a new life together, but they learn the Green Destiny has been stolen again, necessitating they keep their feelings hidden and stay in Hunan to catch Jade Fox.
Thing got bad and things got worse
I guess you know the tune
Oh lord, stuck In Loudi again...
posted by Ian A.T. at 1:23 PM on December 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


I am in no way an authority on the genre, but dang does that director have a track record. I imagine this may be a more standard action film than the original, but it may be a pretty good one.
posted by kittens for breakfast at 1:24 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


Just because
posted by infini at 1:33 PM on December 7, 2015 [8 favorites]


I'm happy to see Jason Scott Lee. He sort of disappeared for a while, didn't he? But I'm skeptical that it's going to capture any of the magic of the original without Ang Lee and James Schamus on board.
posted by cazoo at 1:39 PM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


Holy shit I'd forgotten how utterly amazing that CTHD fight scene was.
posted by Mei's lost sandal at 1:42 PM on December 7, 2015


Crouching Tiger is one of those movies that left me cold while everyone else went bonkers over it. I didn't dislike it, but I don't remember much about it either. SEE ALSO: American Beauty

As far as this trailer... All that sticks out is that really shitty Creedence cover and that really shitty CGI. When will people get over the whole dour, slowed down pop song cover thing?
posted by brundlefly at 1:44 PM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


In Roger Ebert's review of the original, he made a special point of letting us know that Chow Yun-Fat and Ziyi Zheng were really up in those bamboo trees. 40 feet up.

If the sequel comes close to that, I'll be impressed.
posted by Sheydem-tants at 1:45 PM on December 7, 2015 [5 favorites]


dang does that director have a track record

Yeah, he's one of the greatest action choreographers ever to walk God's green earth. I'm having a hard time remembering the particulars of the movies he's actually directed though. But then I've only seen a few — Drunken Master, Wing Chun and I guess Iron Monkey? I haven't seen Tai Chi Master. I mean, obviously there are worse things than a new action movie with choreography by Yuen Woo-Ping. But what was special about Crouching Tiger was the melding of his sensibility with Ang Lee's more western-inflected style. I dunno — I know there were people who thought CT,HD was too much of a romance and not enough of an action movie, and maybe this will be exactly what they're looking for.
posted by Mothlight at 2:00 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


I'm so excited for this, but I hate that song so damn much.


There better be a hammer dulcimer somewhere in the actual film.

And a tavern fight.

Ideally, a hammer dulcimer during a tavern fight.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 2:30 PM on December 7, 2015 [6 favorites]


Yeah, he's one of the greatest action choreographers ever to walk God's green earth. I'm having a hard time remembering the particulars of the movies he's actually directed though. But then I've only seen a few — Drunken Master, Wing Chun and I guess Iron Monkey? I haven't seen Tai Chi Master.

Tai Chi Master was released on DVD in the US as "Twin Warriors" and it is FUCKING BANANAS.

It is a movie that feels like the director had a stopwatch that alarmed every five minutes, at which point he was forced to include an insane action sequence no matter how inappropriate.

It's pretty great!
posted by selfnoise at 2:38 PM on December 7, 2015 [11 favorites]


Though still wildly inappropriate, this would have been a better music choice than whatever that shit was.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 2:45 PM on December 7, 2015




In Roger Ebert's review of the original, he made a special point of letting us know that Chow Yun-Fat and Ziyi Zheng were really up in those bamboo trees. 40 feet up.

If the sequel comes close to that, I'll be impressed.


Zhang will not play in this one. Her agent says she's not interested unless Ang Lee is directing.

I kinda don't see what there is to be excited about here. It looks like it has pretty good action choreography, pretty good actors. Okay. So?

I don't remember anything about the story of Crouching Tiger. I don't care that they're continuing the story. I would be interested if Ang Lee was directing, cuz the guy's a genius.

But this looks like it will be a pretty solid martial arts flick. I'm not such a huge fan of the genre that I have to see every entry that's pretty solid.

Is the story that Yuen (or Yuen + money) was the reason Crouching Tiger was excellent, so the new one will be excellent too?
posted by grobstein at 3:06 PM on December 7, 2015


The consistent typoing of names irks
posted by infini at 3:10 PM on December 7, 2015


OH HAY I HAVE FIXED THE MUSIC FOR EVERYBODY YOURE WELCOME

When in doubt, go with the old standbys in a variety of flavours:
Lux Aeterna
Carmina Burana O Fortuna
Inception trailer theme
posted by juv3nal at 3:23 PM on December 7, 2015 [7 favorites]


The Inception Trailer worked out really well actually. The timing was fairly spot on with various cuts that were flashing on screen.

This looks great by the way. I cannot wait.
posted by Fizz at 3:39 PM on December 7, 2015


I've seen CT,HD probably about 20 times.

Aside from the movie itself being very enjoyable to me these are my favorite tidbits about it:

James Schamus wrote the original screenplay in English, which then was translated into Ancient Mandarin (which is sort of like Latin to the Chinese as in it's old and hardly anyone speaks it anymore) then translated back into English for the subtitled version. So even the writer was like, that's not exactly what I wrote but hey it works.

There's a scene where Jen Yu gets out of the carriage and the commentator makes an offhand comment about how that dress took 6 weeks to make. They had used a local Chinese seamstress who hand made it the way dresses have been made for hundreds of years. It was onscreen for roughly 20 seconds.

CT,HD has always read to me as a loving, obsessive tribute to a certain kind of storytelling. A lot is talked about movies these days about how movies are deconstructions of a genre. Not your "typical horror/drama/romcom etc." is a tagline. CT/HD was the opposite, it could not be a more cookie cutter mystical warrior kung-fu movie. That is if you just read the script. Ang Lee turned into something so much more.

This new trailer shows a film that, aside from the name, looks nothing at all like what CT,HD was. I have a bad feeling it only carries the name CT,HD pt2 because that's what would sell.
posted by M Edward at 4:28 PM on December 7, 2015 [8 favorites]


Crouching Tiger is one of those movies that left me cold while everyone else went bonkers over it. I didn't dislike it, but I don't remember much about it either.

yeah, I thought it was awful.

Ive since learned that I just think ang lee makes shitty movies (I actually went and read life of pi after seeing the movie on a long flight, just because it seemed like the source material had some ideas that the movie was to clumsy to get to, and don't get me started on the eric bana hulk)

I'm a life long fan of martial arts movies, and all the hype it got I was SORELY disappointed. Like, everyone who saw this
who told me it was amazing had never seen Rumble in the Bronx, or Enter the Dragon, or ... anything else remotely in the genre.

I might watch this just because it's not an ang lee movie. He is an awful director, who thinks belaboring obvious things 150% more than the average belaborer makes him subtle. Also, he straight up dissed the cgi group that did all the beautiful work on Pi, which was just a hamfisted Christian "based on" screenplay of a very smart book.

Anyway, I'll watch this just because ang lee isnt involved, and hope it's better than his constipated garbage.
posted by lkc at 4:31 PM on December 7, 2015


Just because

This is me in the kitchen, grabbing wooden spoons, spatulas, whisks... knives. Whatever tools it takes to win the battle for an edible dinner.
posted by Short Attention Sp at 4:54 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


He is an awful director, who thinks belaboring obvious things 150% more than the average belaborer makes him subtle

Don't be so subtle. Just tell us if you like Ang Lee or not.
posted by ctmf at 4:56 PM on December 7, 2015 [11 favorites]


This looks (and sounds) terrible. The original used CGI to erase the wires and cranes that they used to haul the actors around the air but most of the action was real; this looks like a video game cut scene in comparison. And using a CCR cover that sounds like someone imitating Neil Young from the Trans album is just so weird and wrong.
posted by octothorpe at 5:08 PM on December 7, 2015 [3 favorites]


I might watch this just because it's not an ang lee movie. He is an awful director, who thinks belaboring obvious things 150% more than the average belaborer makes him subtle.

OK so who are some good directors I should try instead? I've only been watching mainstream Hollywood movies lately and could use some suggestions.
posted by polymodus at 5:25 PM on December 7, 2015


OK so who are some good directors I should try instead? I've only been watching mainstream Hollywood movies lately and could use some suggestions.

For an even more oblique (genre-but-kinda-anti-genre) take on wuxia than CTHD, I've heard good stuff about Hou Hsiao-hsien's The Assassin.
posted by juv3nal at 5:34 PM on December 7, 2015


I also really liked Wong Kar Wai's Ashes of Time and The Grandmaster.

Zhang Zhimou's Hero and House of Flying Daggers are decent as well.
posted by juv3nal at 5:49 PM on December 7, 2015 [2 favorites]


I really thought you guys were overdoing the handwringing over the music. Please accept my apologies.
posted by evilDoug at 8:36 PM on December 7, 2015 [4 favorites]


I also really liked Wong Kar Wai's Ashes of Time and The Grandmaster.

Zhang Zhimou's Hero and House of Flying Daggers are decent as well.


I liked The Grandmaster a lot, too. Haven't gotten around to Ashes of Time but Wong is a genius.

Hero is great as well, it's beautiful and I always point out that the photography was done by Christopher Doyle, Wong's long-time cinematographer (no more, seems sad). It is one of the more visually striking movies. House of Flying Daggers didn't really work for me. But I suppose I should make a set and call Zhang a genius too. And Christopher Doyle.

Tony Leung is a genius, too, why not. He is actually in 3 of these 4 movies. (The 3 I liked.) (I finally got around to watching Infernal Affairs, too, (it's the source from which The Departed was adapted,) it's quite good, terrible English title, but anyway what I'm getting around to is I had no idea who the cast was ahead of time, imagine my delight to discover Tony Leung in the starring role, wow!)

But anyway if this is really an open call for any good movies, yes! Good suggestions!
posted by grobstein at 8:59 PM on December 7, 2015


Chocolate is a great Thai martial arts movie!

The first 15 minutes are as overwrought as a Thai auto insurance commercial, but the rest of the movie is about a little girl trying to collect a bill for her mom who needs surgery.
posted by lkc at 9:20 PM on December 7, 2015 [1 favorite]


When HULK was coming out I remember some bit of marketing or another referring to Ang Lee as an "action demigod".

The dude had made one action movie and even that was the least actiony action movie that ever actioned. I don't know why that annoyed me so much.

(Meanwhile, I'm one of ~5 people in the world who really liked HULK.)
posted by brundlefly at 9:24 PM on December 7, 2015


House of Flying Daggers didn't really work for me.
Yeah it's probably the weakest of the ones I listed, but I still put it a cut above a lot of other stuff I didn't mention because it feels relatively high budget/high production value.
posted by juv3nal at 11:04 PM on December 7, 2015


Yeah, Ang Lee's Hulk was the best.
posted by Coventry at 11:20 PM on December 7, 2015


I hope the accents are more unified this time around. I found it a bit jarring to hear Hong Kong, Taiwanese and Beijing-accented Mandarin in the same movie.

I'm a life long fan of martial arts movies, and all the hype it got I was SORELY disappointed. Like, everyone who saw this who told me it was amazing had never seen Rumble in the Bronx, or Enter the Dragon, or ... anything else remotely in the genre.

Okay, I can understand not loving Ang Lee as a director, but I also want to point out that CTHD isn't a martial arts movie exactly, but an adaptation of a wuxia novel, a genre that functioned as YA literature for many Chinese men in Lee's generation. The movies you cited as examples are very different beasts.
posted by peripathetic at 2:04 AM on December 8, 2015 [6 favorites]


If you watch THE GRANDMASTER, try to find the region-free Blu-ray, which has the superior Chinese cut of the film.
posted by Ian A.T. at 6:52 AM on December 8, 2015 [2 favorites]


I've been avoiding watching the Grandmaster because the only version I can find is the Weinstein's crappy American cut. I'm not sure if my blu-ray player can handle region-free disks.
posted by octothorpe at 7:07 AM on December 8, 2015


I wonder if showing Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon to my five year old is a Awesome Dad Idea or Bad Dad Idea.

Usually, when I get home from work I find him standing on one foot in the living room, eyes closed, with a plastic sword help aloft in one hand while the other holds a lit LED tea light close to his chest. If he's having spaghetti for dinner, his shirt will be off. "I'm focusing my chi, Daddy," he says, "We can play later."
posted by robocop is bleeding at 7:54 AM on December 8, 2015 [7 favorites]


Is this in English? The trailer seems to feature Michelle Yeoh speaking in English. Would be weird (and a pity) if the sequel's in English when the original was in Mandarin.
posted by aielen at 11:34 AM on December 8, 2015


I hope the accents are more unified this time around.

that would be the right thing to do but it'll also one of those "native speakers of Chinese are a minority audience so who cares, this is about the big bucks" kind of thing

which, given the English narration by Yeoh's character, it seems like it's totally going to be the latter thing

me, I'm just going to rewatch my Stephen Chow collection
posted by runt at 12:33 PM on December 8, 2015


that would be the right thing to do but it'll also one of those "native speakers of Chinese are a minority audience so who cares, this is about the big bucks" kind of thing

I don't know what the international release will be like for this movie, but Hollywood has been going out of its way to cater to Chinese audiences for a while now. In pursuit of the big bucks, obviously!

Why China, not the U.S., is the audience Hollywood wants
The game-changer for China becoming the primary target of Hollywood’s blockbuster movie focus has been the performance of Transformers: Age of Extinction. Paramount (VIAB), the studio behind the film, laid much groundwork in China, from moving physical production for part of the film there (and hiring famous Chinese actors) to featuring many well-known Chinese products in the form of placements in the movie (even Chinese viewers were perplexed by a scene were a character uses an ATM card from the China Construction Bank while deep in the heart of Texas).

As far as Transformers goes, “[Paramount] didn’t even bother having a premiere here, they did the thing in China,” Brown observes. The numbers do speak for themselves. Transformers has pulled in over $300 million from China alone, whereas box office receipts in the U.S. are around $241 million for a movie that just crossed the $1 billion mark in worldwide ticket sales. Transformers has now beat out Avatar to be the number one grossing film in Chinese box office history.

“It’s a massive audience, [the Chinese] get really excited about going to the movies,” Brown opines. “They’re sleeping in the streets for Spiderman there, it’s a totally different ballgame.”
posted by brundlefly at 2:46 PM on December 8, 2015


Crouching Tiger is one of those movies that left me cold... SEE ALSO: American Beauty

I won't argue interpretation, because, you know, whatever... but it occurs to me that what those two films have in common is a strong emphasis on a certain languid mood. Perhaps it's that mood that fails to connect with some viewers while moving others.

Just a thought.
posted by rokusan at 7:34 AM on December 9, 2015 [1 favorite]


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