Classic Shaw Brothers return to the screen

Classic Shaw Brothers return to the screen

Kenny Santana, Contributor, Jakarta

Jakarta moviegoers may have been reluctant to part with their
ticket money in recent times. It has been rather a case of pot-
luck with too many Hollywood blockbusters and most not worth the
price of popcorn. But, now with the re-release of martial arts
flicks One-Armed Swordsman and The 36th Chamber of Shaolin there
is finally some action worth paying for.

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin opens this week in Mega Mall
Pluit, North Jakarta, while One-armed Swordsman was screened last
month at the same mall.

One-Armed Swordsman revolves around central character, Fong
Kong, played by Jimmy Wang Yu. Fong Kong is the son of a waiter
who becomes a swordsman and stands by his girl and his teacher.
The film has broken the box office record as it reaped 1 million
U.S. dollar gross income.

The film has been remade several times, and both the director
and Jimmy Wang Yu's performance have been praised by big names
like Quentin Tarantino and John Woo. Tarantino also proclaimed
that The 36th Chamber of Shaolin was the third greatest Kung-fu
film of all time.

The local distributor of these films is Fiesta Films, a
relatively new name in the industry here.

However, while Fiesta Films may not ring a bell, the former
distributor Musica VideoVan has been in the industry for a few
years. Musica VideoVan used to distribute for 20th Century Fox
and MGM/UA home videos. Not to mention some Singaporean sitcoms
like Phua Chu Kang and Under One Roof.

In January 2002, Musica VideoVan became the Indonesian
representative for Celestial Pictures, a company dedicated to
bringing Shaw Brothers films back to audiences.

Headed by a former Warner Bros. Pictures chief, Celestial
Pictures have digitally re-mastered more than 80 Shaw Brothers
films. They have brought a wide range of movies -- comedy to
martial arts, drama to action -- to cable TV, VCD and DVD and
now, the big screen.

Fiesta marked its debut in mid 2002 with the distribution of
horror hit, The Eye, followed by another horror flick, Three.

Asked what motivates them to re-release classic movies, Fiesta
Films representative Esther Cesie said, "Releasing Shaw Brothers
movies to the big screen is part of our plan to bring alternative
movies to cinemas. And we chose One-Armed Swordsman and The 36th
Chamber of Shaolin because they're great kung-fu classics."

Esther also stated that in other Asian countries like Hong
Kong and Singapore, Shaw Brothers re-releases have been a big
success, even culminating in a Shaw Brothers film festival.

However Esther explained that Fiesta is going to take things
one step at a time. The films are only being shown at one
location, on one screen.

"It's an investment issue. We'd like to see how the audience
reacts first.

"This is not just about profit. Of course, we'll be delighted
if we break even, but more importantly, we want to bring the good
old times back. How many forty-something Hong Kong film lovers
will be thrilled to have these movies re-released."

A Hong Kong films fanatic, Hans Muljadi told The Jakarta Post,
"It's a good thing to have more alternative movies here.
Nevertheless, the distributor should have promoted them better. I
don't think a lot of people know about these screenings."

He also said that while the films may not attract younger
crowds, the effort still deserves a big thumb-up.

Special screenings of classic movies may not be unusual for
cinemas in other countries, but here, this is a new notion.

In the future, based on audiences' reactions, Fiesta Films
will release more Shaw Brothers feature films.

At least two films are scheduled to be screened next year. And
Fiesta Films is also considering screening these movies in other
cities, most likely Medan. More classics, less cliche-ridden
Hollywood trash, this can only be a good thing for cinema
regulars. Keep your fingers crossed.

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin is now playing at Mega Mall 21 Pluit.