Shaolin Soccer

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Shaolin Soccer
Traditional Chinese 少林足球
Shaolin Soccer

Promotional Poster (for Chinese market)
Traditional 少林足球
Cantonese Siu3Lam4 Zuk1Kau4
Directed by Stephen Chow
Produced by Yeung Kwok-Fai
Written by Stephen Chow
Tsang Kan-Cheung
Starring Stephen Chow
Zhao Wei
Wong Yut Fei
Patrick Tse
Danny Chan Kwok Kwan
Music by Lowell Lo
Raymond Wong
Cinematography Kwen Pak-Huen
Kwong Ting-Wo
Editing by Kai Kit-Wai
Studio Star Overseas Ltd
Universe Entertainment Ltd
Distributed by Universe Entertainment Ltd.
Release dates
  • 12 July 2007 (2007-07-12)
Running time 112 minutes
Country Hong Kong
Language Cantonese
Box office US$42,776,760[1]

Shaolin Soccer is a 2001 Hong Kong comedy film co-written, directed by Stephen Chow, who also stars in the lead role. A former Shaolin monk reunites his five brothers, years after their master's death, to apply their superhuman martial arts skills to play soccer and bring Shaolin kung fu to the masses.

In 2008 a sequel, produced by, but not starring Stephen Chow, was released entitled Shaolin Girl. Very few of the cast from the original film made an appearance.

Plot

Sing (Stephen Chow) is a master of Shaolin kung fu, whose goal in life is to promote the spiritual and practical benefits of the art to modern society. He experiments with various methods, but none bear positive results. He then meets "Golden Leg" Fung (Ng Man Tat), a legendary Hong Kong soccer star in his day, who is now walking with a limp, following the treachery of a former teammate Hung, now a rich businessman.

Sing explains his desires to Fung who offers his services to coach Sing in soccer. Sing is compelled by the idea of promoting kung fu through soccer and agrees to enlist his former Shaolin brothers to form a team under Fung's management. Sing and Fung attempt to put together an unbeatable soccer team. Fung invites a vicious team (some of which Sing previously encountered) to play against them and the thugs proceed to give the Shaolin team a brutal beating. When all seems lost, the Shaolin disciples reawaken and utilize their special powers, dismantling the other team's rough play easily. The thugs then give up, and ask to join Sing's team.

Empty Hand uses his super speed to catch objects kicked at him.

Sing meets Mui (Vicki Zhao), a baker with severe acne who uses T'ai chi to bake and even takes her to look at very expensive dresses at a high-end department store after hours. She soon forms an attachment to Sing and even gets a makeover in an attempt to impress Sing. However, this backfires and when Mui reveals her feelings to him, he tells her he only wants to be her friend. This revelation, coupled with the constant bullying from her overbearing boss, leads Mui to disappear.

The striker of Team Evil prepares for his most powerful attack.

Team Shaolin enters the open cup competition in Hong Kong, where they chalk up successive and often ridiculous one-sided victories. They end up meeting 'Team Evil in the final. Team Evil, helmed by none other than Fung's old nemesis, Hung, who assembled a squad of players who have been injected with an American drug, granting them superhuman strength and speed, making them practically invincible. Team Shaolin, which had steamrolled their earlier opponents, are brought back to reality when Team Evil's amazing capabilities prove more than a match for them. At a critical moment, Mui, who has shaved her hair and gotten rid of her acne, reappears to keep goal for Team Shaolin.

In his final attack, Team Evil's striker leaps into the sky and turns the ball into a glowing orb. When he kicks the fiery ball towards Mui, she and Sing combine their martial skills and rocket the ball down field, which tears the ground and sucks up everything in its path. The ball plows through Team Evil's goal post and destroys half of the stadium. Sing is then thrown into the air in celebration as the trophy is presented to him and his team.

A newspaper article then shows Hung being stripped of his title of soccer chairman and sent to jail for five years, while Team Evil players are permanently banned from playing soccer professionally. With people all over the world practicing kung fu in their daily lives, Sing's dream is finally fulfilled.

Cast and characters

Major

  • Iron Head (Wong Yut Fei): Eldest Shaolin brother, "Iron Head" spent much effort gaining the kung fu style that makes his head as tough as iron. He worked as a janitor at a nightclub, which his head leads his boss on bullying him. He then quits and joins Sing's team.
  • Hooking Leg (Lam Chi-Sing): Second brother, "Hooking Leg" has Shaolin skills resembling ground tumbling boxing. He works as a chef but washes dishes. He then quits and rejoins Sing.
  • Iron Shirt (Tin Kai-Man): Third brother "Iron Shirt" can absorb all kinds of blunt force attacks with little to no injuries, as well as siphoning and shooting the ball with his abdomen. He works as an accountant, but quits his job and joins Sing. At the championship, he replaces Empty Hand as the new goalie but gets multiple injuries while trying to prevent Team Evil from scoring. He is taken away by the hospital.
  • Empty Hand, (lightning hand) (Danny Chan Kwok Kwan): Fourth brother "Empty Hand", lightning hand, bears much resemblance to Bruce Lee and his bullet-fast hands makes him the first goalkeeper for Team Shaolin. He works at an unknown job, but quits and joins Sing. However, he is taken away by the hospital at the championship when a Team Evil player mercillessly kicks the ball to their net, sending him flying towards the audience, and he is replaced with Iron Shirt.
  • "Mighty Steel Leg" Sing (Stephen Chow): He is the Forward striker for Team Shaolin, and the main protagonist of the film. Fifth brother Sing is a master of the "Shaolin Mighty Steel Leg" kicking technique. His leg is powerful enough to accurately kick an old refrigerator onto a pile of junk or to send a soccer ball into the upper atmosphere.
  • Light Weight Vest (Lam Chi Chung): Sixth brother "Light Weight" is obese and gluttonous. However, he is empowered to lighten his weight and soar through the sky for short periods. He works at a grocery store and eats a lot of junk food. He quits and joins Sing.
  • "Golden Leg" Fung (Ng Man Tat): He is an ace player in the 1980s. However, he accepted a bribe to throw a penalty shot, resulting in a tragic end to his career and his leg.
  • Mui (Vicki Zhao): A baker and Sing's love interest, She has severe acne and uses T'ai chi to bake, but her tears make it salty, forcing her boss to fire her. During the championship game against Team Evil, she volunteers to be the new goalkeeper.
  • Hung (Patrick Tse): The coach of Team Evil and the main antagonist, he had led his team to five consecutive national championships, but they face Team Shaolin in defense of the title.

Minor

  • Team Evil's striker #9 (Sik Chi Wan): He can back flip and soar into the sky to kick a fiery ball to its target.
  • Team Evil's Goalkeeper #21 (Cao Hua): He is able to guard with one hand in his pocket. His incredibly strong hands are capable of crushing a thick metal crossbar.
  • Team Dragon Players #7 & #11 (Cecilia Cheung and Karen Mok): They work as a team and can run so fast that it appears as if they are flying inches above the ground.
  • Team Rebellion Captain (Fung Min Hun): He is a vicious mobster who wields a crescent wrench and steel mallet as weapons.
  • Team Tofu Captain (Vincent Kok): Captain of the team that Team Shaolin faces in preliminaries.

Production

Inspiration

According to an interview with Premiere Magazine, Chow stated,

“ Actually the 'over the top' CG and kinetic soccer moves were an inspiration that came from a classic Japanese anime (ongoing manga series) called Captain Tsubasa. The animation was very big in Hong Kong over ten years ago when it sweeped kids of all ages and even adults loved it. It has a cult following in Europe as well. But it was only possible with pen and ink back then, now with the advent of CGI, it can really be done....(the idea of combining it with Kung Fu was in my head for many years but we had to wait for the CG technology to mature)[2] ”

Casting

Apart from several veteran actors, Chow stated in an interview with Premiere magazine that he cast several people in his entourage who had no prior acting experience before Shaolin Soccer. For example, Lam Chi Chung (Light Weight) had worked as Chow’s screenwriter and Danny Chan Kwok Kwan (Empty Hand) was the dance choreographer hired to design the "Michael Jackson dance number" that followed Sing and Mui’s first meeting early in the film. Chow comments he made Chan wear Bruce Lee’s yellow-and-black tracksuit because only the goalkeeper "can wear a special uniform." Tin Kai Man (Iron Shirt) had been Chow’s production manager on several movies, but had acted in numerous minor roles in previous films.[3] For instance, he played a young wanna-be Triad member in Chow’s preceding movie, King of Comedy. Cecilia Cheung and Karen Mok, who briefly appear as Team Dragon Players 7 & 11 in Shaolin Soccer, had major roles in King of Comedy. Chow defends his decision to hire non-actors, saying, "In terms of finding talent, I try to bring out the funniest thing I notice about them during casting, if it made us laugh at the casting, it will also do on the big screen."[4]

Vicki Zhao, who played the Mandarin-speaking Mui, said it was a different step for her to star in a Hong Kong production. However, Zhao admitted that she was not impressed with her look with less makeup because she is easily recognizable for her beautiful appearance.

Three of the principal cast members appeared in Chow's Kung Fu Hustle: Danny Chan Kwok Kwan (Empty Hand) portrayed Brother Sum, boss of the "Axe Gang"; Tin Kai Man (Iron Shirt) portrayed the loud-mouthed advisor of Brother Sum; and Lam Chi Chung (Light Weight) portrayed Bone, Chow’s sidekick and partner in petty crime. Fung Min Hun (Team Rebellion Captain) briefly appeared as Cecilia Cheung's abusive boyfriend in King of Comedy and the Four Eyes Clerk who beats up both Sing and Bone when they make fun of him on the bus in Kung Fu Hustle.[5]

Home video releases

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the film was released on DVD[6] and Video CD in 14 September 2001.[7] The DVD release was shortened by 10 minutes, with the option for viewers to access the deleted scenes in the middle of the film. The scenes deleted from the DVD version are the dance sequence in front of Mui's bakery, much of the conversation over Mui's makeover and the blooper reel before the end credits. Viewers can also access the making of key special effects scenes as well.

The film was also released in UMD format for the Sony PSP on 23 December 2005.[8]

United States

The 2004 U.S. DVD release by Miramax Films deleted 23 minutes of footage from the original cut; the omitted footage includes "Golden Leg" Fung's flashback opening sequence and Sing's interactions with Mui. This version features an English dub with Chow dubbing his own voice and Bai Ling as the voice of Mui. In addition, the DVD gives viewers the option to play the original Hong Kong version.[9]

United Kingdom

In the UK, the film was released on Blu-ray disc by Optimum Releasing on 26 January 2010.[10]

Japan

The Japanese version of the film was released by Pioneer LDC on 22 November 2002.[11] It was reissued by The Clockworks Group on 21 December 2003.[12]

Italy

The Italian dub of the film features the voices of professional footballers Damiano Tommasi, Vincent Candela, Marco Delvecchio, Giuseppe Pancaro and Angelo Peruzzi.

Box office and reception

Shaolin Soccer did well at Hong Kong box office eventually grossing HK$60,739,847, making it the highest grossing film in the region's history at the time. It held the record until 2004 when it was topped by Stephen Chow's next feature Kung Fu Hustle. Shaolin Soccer earned a worldwide gross of US$$42,776,760.[1]

Shaolin Soccer received highly positive reviews from film critics; review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 91% of critics had given the film positive reviews based on 90 reviews.

China ban

China's State Administration of Radio, Film and TV rejected Shaolin Soccer from theatrical and DVD/VCD release, because Stephen Chow did not apply for Chinese permission for public screenings in Hong Kong.[13]

Awards

21st Annual Hong Kong Film Awards

  • Winner: Best Picture
  • Winner: Best Director (Stephen Chow)
  • Winner: Best Actor (Stephen Chow)
  • Winner: Best Supporting Actor (Wong Yat-Fei)
  • Winner: Best Sound Effect
  • Winner: Best Visual Effect
  • Winner: Outstanding Young Director (Stephen Chow)
  • Nomination: Best Action Choreography
  • Nomination: Best Cinematography
  • Nomination: Best Costume Design
  • Nomination: Best Editing
  • Nomination: Best Screenplay
  • Nomination: Best Original Film Score
  • Nomination: Best Original Song[14]

7th Golden Bauhinia Awards

  • Winner: Best Picture
  • Winner: Best Actor (Stephen Chow)
  • Winner: Best Supporting Actor (Wong Yat-Fei)[15]

Media adaptations

Comic books

Chinese

The first of a four volume Shaolin Soccer manhua was published in Hong Kong roughly nine months after the film originally premiered in 2001. The characters were drawn with large manga-like eyes and cartoonish bodies, but the artists were careful to retain the likenesses of each actor who portrayed them.[16][17]

American

ComicsOne approached noted comic book artist Andy Seto with the idea of creating a two volume manhua-style graphic novel adaptation of the feature film. Seto attached himself to the project because the film was very popular and, therefore, had "a certain level of marketing value".[18] The project was officially announced on 30 June 2003 and the release of vol. 1 was scheduled to coincide with the film’s US premiere in August, but the film was pushed back.[19] The Miramax film corporation bought the American film rights to Shaolin Soccer before its release in China,[20] so they helped publish the comic book along with two Chinese film companies who originally produced the film.[21] Volumes 1 (ISBN 1-58899-318-3) and 2 (ISBN ISBN 1-58899-319-1) were released in August and November 2003 and sold for US$13.95 each. Their suggested reading level was age 13 and above.[21][22]

Seto worked to make the novel as faithful to the film as possible but he admits that Stephen Chow's brand of Mo lei tau comedy does not translate well into illustrations.[18] He stated in an interview that "the Shaolin Soccer comic is 80% movie adaptation with 20% new content."[18] This new content includes a backstory about Steel Leg's training in Shaolin before the death of his master, as well as completely rewriting entire sections of the movie. For example, in the film a group of bar thugs beat up Sing and Iron Head after listening to their lounge-style tribute to Shaolin kung fu. The following day, Sing seeks out the group and uses his Shaolin skills to beat the thugs using a soccer ball. Fung sees the brawl and comes up with the idea of fusing kung fu and soccer. However, in the comic book, Sing is meditating in the park when he gets hit in the head with a soccer ball. The cocky players mock him and destroy a stone statue of his deceased master. Sing proceeds to use the soccer ball as a weapon.

Another example is the fact the characters are visually different from the film. All of their comic book personas look to be in their twenties to thirties, with highly toned athletic physiques (with the exception of Light Weight); even Iron Head, who was the eldest of the six brothers, appears younger than he should.

Reception

Several online reviews have criticized the American adaptation for its apparent lack of story line coherence, mixture of realistic and cartoonish drawing styles, and bad Chinese-to-English translation, among other issues. In regards to the translation, one reviewer stated, "It's almost as if the book was translated with a first-year English student referencing a Chinese-to-English dictionary, with strangely assembled sentences and strange bursts of dialogue peppering the pages."[23] Another common complaint was that the comics seemed to be geared towards those people who had previously seen the movie. Without this familiarity, a newcomer would lose track of the storyline because of the overcrowded pages and rapidly shifting plot.[23][24][25]

In popular culture

Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, co-creators of the Avatar: The Last Airbender animated television series, stated in an interview that "Shaolin Soccer is one of our favorite movies. It has tons of fantastic action and lots of funny moments. Some of the effects provided inspiration for how bending (the art of controlling the elements) might look on the show."[26]

The Chinese website xiaoyouxi.com has eight flash animations devoted to Shaolin Soccer. They range from non-playable 16 bit video games where the characters reenact the soccer games from the film to animations highlighting Sing and Mui’s strained relationship (one of which is accompanied by the song "Hazard" by Richard Marx).[27]

One episode of Keroro Gunso had a soccer theme which parodied this movie.

The music video for the American R&B singer-songwriter and rapper Lumidee song "Dance" launched for the 2006 FIFA World Cup album soundtrack has scenes of the movie.

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Shaolin Soccer at Box Office Mojo
  2. ↑ Q&A: Stephen Chow - Page 2 of 3
  3. ↑ Ross Chen. "Tin Kai-Man". Lovehkfilm.com. Retrieved 2009-03-24. 
  4. ↑ Lootens, Kristin (2003-12-06). "Q&A: Stephen Chow". Premiere.com. Retrieved 2009-03-25. 
  5. ↑ Pollard, Mark (2005-08-22). "Kung Fu Hustle (2004)". Kung Fu Cinema. Retrieved 2009-03-25. 
  6. ↑ YESASIA.com - Shaolin Soccer (Extended Version) (Hong Kong Version) DVD
  7. ↑ YESASIA.com - Shaolin Soccer (Extended Version) VCD
  8. ↑ YESASIA.com - Shaolin Soccer (UMD Video For PSP) (Hong Kong Version)
  9. ↑ Patrizio, Andy (2004-08-17). "Shaolin Soccer: The goofy goodness finally comes to DVD". IGN. Retrieved 2013-01-02. 
  10. ↑ YESASIA.com - Shaolin Soccer (2001) (Blu-ray) (UK Version)
  11. ↑ YESASIA.com - Shaolin Soccer (Japan Version)
  12. ↑ YESASIA.com - Shaolin Soccer (International Version) (Japan Version)
  13. ↑ HK$300 million funded to develop local film industry
  14. ↑ "21st Annual Hong Kong Film Awards". LoveHKFilm.com. Retrieved 2009-03-25. 
  15. ↑ "Golden Bauhinia Awards: 2002". IMDb. 2002-03-17. Retrieved 2009-03-25. 
  16. ↑ (Chinese) Announcement of the first Shaolin soccer comic book
  17. ↑ (Chinese) Release of the second volume
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Kung fu comic creator / Interview with Andy Seto
  19. ↑ CULT FILM 'SHAOLIN SOCCER' TO GET COMIC ADAPTATION
  20. ↑ 'Shaolin Soccer' Scores Winner at HK Film Awards
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Seto, Andy. Shaolin Soccer (Vol. 1). Fremont, CA: ComicsOne Corp., 2003 (ISBN 1-58899-318-3)
  22. ↑ Seto, Andy. Shaolin Soccer (Vol. 2). Fremont, CA: ComicsOne Corp., 2003 (ISBN 1-58899-319-1)
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 iComics.com review
  24. ↑ The Fourth Rail review
  25. ↑ The Ticker review
  26. ↑ "In Their Elements." (September 2006) Nick Mag Presents, p. 6
  27. ↑ (Chinese) Shaolin Soccer Special Edition
  • Leong, Anthony (2003). "Shaolin Soccer". Asian Cult Cinema 38 (1st Quarter): pp.8–11. 

External links

Films directed by Stephen Chow
Directed alone
Directed with Vincent Kok
Directed with Lee Lik-Chi
Directed with Derek Kwok
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