White Tiger (1996 film)

Last updated
White Tiger
White Tiger key art.jpg
Directed byRichard Martin
Written by
  • Don Woodman
    Gordon Melbourne
    Roy Sallows
    Bey Logan (story)
Produced by
  • Robert Vince
  • William Vince
  • Roy McAree (executive)
  • Michael Strange (executive)
Starring
CinematographyGregory Middleton
Edited byKerry Uchida
Music byGraeme Coleman
Production
companies
Keystone Entertainment
Den Pictures
Distributed by Malofilm (Canada)
Evergreen Entertainment (U.S.)
Release dates
May 28, 1996 (Canada; U.S.)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish
BudgetUS$2.3–2.5 million

White Tiger is a 1996 Canadian action film directed by Richard Martin, starring Gary Daniels, Julia Nickson, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, George Cheung and Lisa Langlois. Daniels stars as a disenfranchised DEA agent looking to eliminate the triad boss (Tagawa) responsible for the death of his partner, while succumbing to the charms of a mysterious woman (Nickson) who may be a killer herself.

Contents

Plot

DEA agents Mike Ryan and John Grogan are summoned to Seattle to take part in raid targeting triad boss Victor Chow. The squad stakes out the rendez-vous point between Chow and an Chow an associate named Tang. Chow introduces Tang to a revolutionary drug he created, but things turn sour between the two factions and a gunfight erupts. Ryan and Grogan have to intervene, but Chow gets a hold of Grogan and uses him as a human shield to protect his escape, before killing him once he has reached his motorboat.

Ryan is discharged of the case by his superiors, but decides to track down Chow on his own. Back in Hong Kong, rival crime bosses decide to put a hit on Chow, who has become too big and reckless for their taste. Ryan visits a night club owned by Chow, and meets a mysterious woman named Jade, who seems well informed about the kingpin. Mike is also contacted by Detective Fong, a former acquaintance of his, who objects to his intrusion in his jurisdiction. But despite their friendship, Fong's allegiances may not be what they seem.

Cast

Production

Original production

White Tiger started filming in Hong Kong under the name Tiger Storm. The film was then produced by East West Pictures, a company created by British expatriate martial artist Mark Houghton and local businessman Ed Maher, both of whom had made a number of tough guy appearances in local films. Houghton reached out to fellow Briton and former student, Impact magazine writer Bey Logan. The latter relocated to Hong Kong to work on the film, writing the screenplay and helping with sales. [1] That early version included notable martial arts actors who did not make it into the final film, such as British kickboxer Winston Ellis, Hong Kong-based Australian Kim Maree Penn [2] and, in her film debut, Mark Houghton's daughter Charlene. [3] Ellis reported that he had recently returned home from filming in an early May 1994 interview. [4] However, about one third of the way in, the inexperienced producers had run out of money, causing filming to be suspended and a falling out with Logan. [1]

Rebooted version

Robert Vince of Canadian company Keystone Entertainment bought out the embattled investors. Thanks to Daniels' appeal and a sizzle reel made from the original footage, he managed to raise enough money for an entirely new shoot. While some actors from the first version were apparently left under the impression that filming might resume with them, [2] it was found more practical to discard all of the Hong Kong material and redo the movie from scratch, keeping the outline of Logan's script. [1] As it had previously done in the past, KeyStone partnered with Den Pictures, the California-based company founded by Japanese expatriate J. Max Kirishima (who has a minor role in the film). The new version had a budget of US$2.3 to 2.5 million. [1] [5] It was during an unrelated trip to the American Film Market that Logan found out that the film—then still called Tiger Storm—was being finished. He walked up to the producers' booth and complained that he had not been paid for his story, one of the few things remaining from its original incarnation. He was immediately cut a check for his services. [1]

The rebooted film started shooting in June 1995, and spanned several locales across British Columbia, Canada. [6] [7] Daniels choreographed the fight sequences himself. The villain's main henchman was played by Ron Yuan, whom he asked the production to bring over from Los Angeles, as the two had remained friends following their first experience working together on Ring of Fire . The actor deemed the cast and crew, as well as the overall shoot, to have been one of the most agreeable of his career. [8] : 48:12 

SS Prince George

Villain Victor Chow's lair was located aboard the SS Prince George, a passenger ship turned floating hotel docked in Britannia Beach while waiting to be sold. [9] Although spectacular, the fiery explosions rocking the deck during the film's finale were not meant to damage its structure, and the ship remained afloat in the shoot's immediate aftermath. However, in October 1995 two fires broke out onboard, badly damaging the Prince George, which started listing. Oil leaks and asbestos dust also threatened local environment. [10] Possible lingering effects from the film shoot were considered by investigators. It was verified that the producers possessed proper fire insurance, and the company's experts demanded to examine the ship. [9] The coast guard's investigation ultimately could not assign blame for the fires. [10] The ship was sold for scraps, but sank near the Aleutian Islands in October 1996, while en route to the Chinese steel mill where it was to be dismantled. [11]

Release

Home media

The film was released on VHS tape in Canada and the U.S. on May 28, 1996. [6] [12] It was distributed by Malofilm in Canada, [13] and Evergreen Entertainment in the U.S. [14] The film was also released on LaserDisc by disc-based media specialists Image Entertainment on June 19, 1996. [15] In Japan, the film was released on VHS on October 18, 1996, by M's Pictures. [16]

Reception

While a favorite of Daniels' and his fanbase, the film was poorly received by the mainstream press, with particular criticism for the star's performance. The Edmonton Journal dismissed the film as "a hackneyed array of high kicks, flying fists and exploding cars". [13] TV Guide was not impressed either, finding it "tediously stretched out with endless slow-motion shots of shootouts and explosions." The magazine added that while "Daniels might be capable in the martial arts", he suffered from a "bland personality" and "somnambulistic acting", concluding that "[a]s with most films of this type, more imagination has gone into the stunts than the script." [17] British reference book Elliot's Guide to Home Entertainment was no more enthusiastic, writing that it "ha[d] nothing original to offer " and was "not exactly helped by a weak and lifeless performance from Daniels". [18]

The BBC's Radio Times was more amenable to the film as a whole, calling it "an efficient crime thriller", but it, too, found fault with Daniels' performance, writing that he "lacks the charisma to carry the action between the fight sequences." [19] In his book The American Martial Arts Film, M. Ray Lott gave a rare positive opinion of the actor's dramatic performance, writing that White Tiger "features all of Daniels’ strengths, both as an actor and a martial artist", praising his attempts at emotion and levity in separate scenes of the movie. [20]

Cancelled sequel

According to Daniels, the film was commercially successful, and a sequel was considered. Ultimately, it did not happen, and the actor has acknowledged that he deserved some of the blame for the project's stalling. [8] : 49:37 

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Action film</span> Film genre

The action film is a film genre which predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as David Bordwell suggested they were films that favor spectacle to storytelling, others such as Goeff King stated they allow the scenes of spectacle to be attuned to story telling. Action films are often hybrid with other genres, mixing into various forms ranging to comedies, science fiction films, and horror films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chow Yun-fat</span> Hong Kong actor (born 1955)

Chow Yun-fatSBS, previously known as Donald Chow, is a Hong Kong actor. He has collaborated with filmmaker John Woo in five Hong Kong action films: A Better Tomorrow (1986), A Better Tomorrow II (1987), The Killer (1989), Once a Thief (1991) and Hard Boiled (1992), and in the West for his roles as King Mongkut in Anna and the King (1999), Li Mu-bai in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) and Sao Feng in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sammo Hung</span> Martial artist, film producer, director

Samuel "Sammo" Hung Kam-bo is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and director, known for his work in martial arts films, Hong Kong action cinema, and as a fight choreographer for other actors such as Jackie Chan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinema of Hong Kong</span> Hong Kong film industry

The cinema of Hong Kong is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of political and economic freedom than mainland China and Taiwan, and developed into a filmmaking hub for the Chinese-speaking world.

Chopsocky is a colloquial term for martial arts films and kung fu films made primarily by Hong Kong action cinema between the late 1960s and early 1980s. The term was coined by the American motion picture trade magazine Variety following the explosion of films in the genre released in 1973 in the U.S. after the success of Five Fingers of Death. The word is a play on chop suey, combining "chop" and "sock".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yuen Woo-ping</span> Hong Kong film director

Yuen Woo-ping is a Hong Kong martial arts choreographer and film director who worked in Hong Kong action cinema and later Hollywood films. He is one of the inductees on the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong. Yuen is also a son of Yuen Siu-tien, a martial arts film actor. He attended the China Drama Academy for one year as a day student of Master Yu Jim-yuen as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bolo Yeung</span> Hong Kong actor

Yeung Sze, better known as Bolo Yeung, is a Hong Kong former competitive bodybuilder, martial artist and a martial arts film actor. He is globally known for his performances as Bolo in Enter the Dragon, and the dominant Chong Li in Bloodsport as well as other numerous appearances and long career in Hong Kong martial arts films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ti Lung</span> Hong Kong actor

Tommy Tam Fu-wing, known professionally by his stage name Ti Lung, is a Hong Kong actor, known for his numerous starring roles in a string of Shaw Brothers Studio's films, particularly The Duel, The Blood Brothers, Clans of Intrigue, The Avenging Eagle, The Sentimental Swordsman and its sequel, as well as the classic John Woo film A Better Tomorrow and its sequel.

<i>Kung Fu Hustle</i> 2004 film by Stephen Chow

Kung Fu Hustle is a 2004 martial arts action comedy film directed, produced and co-written by Stephen Chow, who also stars in the leading role, alongside Huang Shengyi, Yuen Wah, Yuen Qiu, Danny Chan Kwok-kwan and Leung Siu-lung in prominent roles. The story revolves around a murderous neighbourhood gang, a poor village with unlikely heroes and an aspiring gangster's fierce journey to find his true self. The martial arts choreography is supervised by Yuen Woo-ping.

Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. Action films from Hong Kong have roots in Chinese and Hong Kong cultures including Chinese opera, storytelling and aesthetic traditions, which Hong Kong filmmakers combined with elements from Hollywood and Japanese cinema along with new action choreography and filmmaking techniques, to create a culturally distinctive form that went on to have wide transcultural appeal. In turn, Hollywood action films have been heavily influenced by Hong Kong genre conventions, from the 1970s onwards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raymond Chow</span> Hong Kong film producer

Raymond Chow Man-wai, was a Hong Kong film producer, and presenter. He was responsible for successfully launching martial arts and the Hong Kong cinema onto the international stage. As the founder of Golden Harvest, he produced some of the biggest stars of the martial arts film genre, including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Jimmy Wang Yu, Cynthia Rothrock and Tsui Hark.

Alexander Fu Sheng, also known as Fu Sing, was a Hong Kong martial arts actor. One of Hong Kong's most talented performers, Fu rose to prominence in the 1970s starring in a string of movies with the Shaw Brothers that accrued him international stardom throughout Asia and parts of North America.

Gary Edward Daniels is an English actor, producer, martial artist, fight coordinator and former world light heavyweight kickboxing champion. Born and raised in London, England, Daniels started to take martial arts lessons at the age of eight. By his late teens, he became a competitive kickboxer. In 1980, Daniels moved to the United States to continue the sport. In 1990, he won the WKBA California State Light Heavyweight Championship and the PKA World Light Heavyweight Championship.

Kung fu film is a subgenre of martial arts films and Hong Kong action cinema set in the contemporary period and featuring realistic martial arts. It lacks the fantasy elements seen in wuxia, a related martial arts genre that uses historical settings based on ancient China. Swordplay is also less common in kung-fu films than in wuxia and fighting is done through unarmed combat.

<i>The Shrine of Ultimate Bliss</i> 1974 Hong Kong film

The Shrine of Ultimate Bliss, also known as Stoner, A Man Called Stoner, and Hong Kong Hitman is a 1974 Hong Kong action film which was produced by Raymond Chow and directed by Huang Feng.

Hsiao Ho, is a Hong Kong martial arts film actor, stunt performer and action choreographer. A Hakka, he has acted in many films directed by Lau Kar-leung, including Mad Monkey Kung Fu and Legendary Weapons of China. In 1985 he portrayed legendary kung fu warrior Fong Sai-Yuk in the Lau directed action-comedy, Disciples of the 36th Chamber and also took a lead role in Fake Ghost Catchers, directed by Lau Kar Wing. Fake Ghost Catchers is marketed by Celestial Pictures as being made two years before Ghostbusters. Hou is also known for portraying the "disfigured swordsman" and doubling complicated action scenes in 1993's Iron Monkey. He was also the action director for the movie Shaolin Avengers (1994). In 1982 he was nominated for Best Action Choreography for the movie Legendary Weapons of China at the Hong Kong Film Awards alongside Lau Kar Leung and Ching Chu who also provided choreography for the film.

Hong Kong Legends was a United Kingdom DVD distribution company, based in Hertfordshire and operating from the UK and Australia between 1999 and 2007. Hong Kong Legends was initially part of Medusa Communications, who, along with Soulblade bought up the UK distribution rights for film titles previously owned by Eastern Heroes label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law Kar-ying</span>

Dr Law Kar-ying is a Hong Kong Cantonese opera singer and actor.

Billy Chow Bei-lei is a Hong Kong-Canadian former professional kickboxer and actor. He competed in the Welterweight and Super Welterweight divisions from 1977 to 1992. He was the WKA Super Welterweight champion from 1984 to 1986, and retired with a professional record of 45-0-8.

<i>Kung Fu Jungle</i> 2014 Hong Kong film

Kung Fu Jungle, also known as Kung Fu Killer and Last of the Best, is a 2014 Hong Kong-Chinese action thriller film directed by Teddy Chan and starring Donnie Yen, Wang Baoqiang, Charlie Yeung and Michelle Bai. The film premiered at the 58th BFI London Film Festival on 12 October 2014 and was later released theatrically on 30 October 2014 in Hong Kong and 31 October 2014 in China.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Lanuque, Arnaud (December 28, 2004). "Interview Bey Logan". hkcinemagic.com. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  2. 1 2 Leeder, Mike (July 1997). "Dangerous Curves: Kim Maree Penn". Femme Fatales. Vol. 6, no. 1. Forest Park: Clarke, Frederick S. p. 42.
  3. ↑ Bramhall, Paul (February 26, 2018). "The Legend of the Unfinished Fu: The Lowdown on 25 Incomplete Martial Arts Flicks". cityonfire.com. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Martial arts king Winston's a film star". Evening Post. Reading. May 5, 1994. p. 9  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  5. ↑ "Actioners speak louder than words". Variety. October 16, 1995. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "White Tiger: Notes". tcm.com. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
  7. ↑ Edwards, Ian (September 9, 1996). "Special Report: Toronto International Film Festival". Playback. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  8. 1 2 Adkins, Scott (host) (October 29, 2020). "Gary Daniels". The Art of Action. Episode 22. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
  9. 1 2 Pynn, Larry (October 27, 1995). "Spill feared as ship smoulders". The Vancouver Sun. p. B2  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  10. 1 2 Lee, Jeff (June 6, 1996). "A Toxic Ship". The Vancouver Sun. p. B1  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  11. ↑ Murphy, Patrick (October 30, 1996). "Prince George finally out of its misery". Times-Colonist. Victoria. p. A3  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  12. ↑ John, Law (May 23, 1996). "On Video". Niagara Falls Review. p. C2  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  13. 1 2 Kohanik, Eric (May 31, 1996). "Screening the new releases". Edmonton Journal/TV Times. p. 58  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  14. ↑ "New On Video". News and Observer. Charlotte. May 30, 1996. p. 7E  – via newspapers.com (subscription required).
  15. ↑ "White Tiger (1996) [ID3303HL]". LaserDisc Database. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  16. ↑ "ドラッグマスター('95米) [VIDEO他]". cdjournal.com (in Japanese). Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Reviews: White Tiger". TV Guide. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  18. ↑ Elliot, John (1997). "The Films". Elliot's Guide to Home Entertainment (4th ed.). London: Aurum Press. ISBN   1854104853.
  19. ↑ Fane Saunders, Kilmeny, ed. (2003). RadioTimes Guide to Films (4th ed.). London: BBC Worldwide. p. 1560. ISBN   0563487542.
  20. ↑ Lott, M. Ray. "The 1990s: DTVs – Martial Arts Films Find a New Outlet". The American Martial Arts Film. Jefferson: McFarland & Company. ISBN   0786418362.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.