The Heavenly Kings
| The Heavenly Kings | |
|---|---|
| Traditional | 四大天王 |
| Simplified | 四大天王 |
| Mandarin | si da tian wang |
| Cantonese | sei dai tin wong |
| Directed by | Daniel Wu |
| Produced by | Conroy Chan Andrew Lin Daniel Wu Terence Yin Patrick Lee |
| Written by | Daniel Wu |
| Starring | Daniel Wu Terence Yin Andrew Lin Conroy Chan |
| Music by | Jun Kung |
| Cinematography | Kim Chan Phat Chan |
| Editing by | Kim Chan Phat Chan |
| Distributed by | Golden Scene |
| Release date(s) | 20 April 2006 |
| Running time | 86 minutes |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Cantonese |
The Heavenly Kings (四大天王) is a 2006 Hong Kong film directed by Daniel Wu.
Contents |
[edit] Background
In 2005, Chinese media began to report that Daniel Wu had formed a boyband, Alive, with Terence Yin, Andrew Lin, and Conroy Chan.[1] Wu and his band mates posted information, updates, personal thoughts (including slamming Hong Kong Disneyland, for which they were spokespersons[2]), and the band's music, at their official website.[1][1][3] In 2006, Wu made his writing and directorial debut with The Heavenly Kings, which chronicles Alive's formation and exploits.[4] After the film's release, however, it was revealed that The Heavenly Kings was actually a mockumentary of the Hong Kong pop music industry, and Alive was constructed purely as a vehicle to make the movie; the film's characters represented only 10-15% of their real-life counterparts[5] and much of the footage blurred the line between fiction and reality.[4] Wu admitted his own singing voice "sucked really bad," and the band had their voices digitally enhanced for its music, to prove that "it's easy to fake it."[3]
[edit] Cast and roles
- Conroy Chan Chi-Chung - Himself
- Jackie Chan - Cameo (uncredited)
- Jaycee Chan - Cameo
- Jacky Cheung - Cameo
- Stephen Fung - Cameo
- Josie Ho - Cameo (uncredited)
- Tony Ho
- Ella Koon - Cameo (uncredited)
- Jo Kuk - Kei Kei (as Jo Koo)
- Andrew Lin Hoi - Himself
- Candy Lo - Cameo
- Karen Mok - Cameo
- Jason Tobin - Sandy
- Nicholas Tse - Cameo
- Paul Wong - Cameo
- Daniel Wu - Himself
- Miriam Yeung - Cameo
- Terence Yin - Himself
[edit] Reception
Despite some backlash from the media over being intentionally fed false information in the movie[6] about illegal downloads of the band's music,[5] Wu won the best new director award for the film at the 26th Hong Kong Film Awards, an achievement he called "a group effort."[6] The film has also been nominated for Best Original Film Song at the same Awards ceremony: Composer: Davy Chan; Lyricist: Li Jin Yi and Singer: Alive.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Chen, Fengfeng (2005-08-04). "Daniel Wu forms a new band". China Radio International. http://english.cri.cn/2246/2005-8-4/140@263595.htm. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
- ^ Rothrock, Vicki (2005-09-04). "A word of cultural caution". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117928490.html. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
- ^ a b Johnson, G. Allen (2007-04-25). "A model, actor, singing sensation (well, sort of) and now a director". SF Gate. San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/25/DDGDMPE72A1.DTL&hw=daniel+wu&sn=002&sc=399. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
- ^ a b Eddy, Cheryl (2007-04-25). "Bubblegum bandits". San Francisco Bay Guardian. http://www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=3503. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
- ^ a b "The great Cantopop swindle". The Standard. 2006-05-22. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=40&art_id=17068&sid=7552943&con_type=3&d_str=20060422&sear_year=2006. Retrieved 2008-05-18.
- ^ a b Young, Jennifer (2007-04-29). "Daniel Wu, "Heavenly King"". indieWIRE. originally from SF360. Archived from the original on 2008-03-13. http://web.archive.org/web/20080313172117/http://www.indiewire.com/people/2007/04/people_daniel_w.html. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
[edit] External links
- The Heavenly Kings at the Internet Movie Database
- The Heavenly Kings at HK Cinemagic
- Review at sanfranciscochinatown.com
- loveHKfilm entry
- Interview with Terence Yin: "Heavenly Kings: Revealing the Entertainment Industry". December 28, 2008.
