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InC-terview with Flying Swords of Dragon Gate director Tsui Hark

By InCinemas / 04 Jul 2012 (Wednesday)

Thanks to Celestial Movies, InCinemas got the opportunity to know a little more about Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate through its director Tsui Hark!

FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE is slated to air on Celestial Movies (Starhub TV Cable ch 868 and SingTel mioTV ch 52) on Sunday 15 July, as the main show to kick start the Celestial Superstars Club, featuring the latest Chinese Blockbusters and Mega Superstars.

Q: Congratulations on your latest film, THE FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE, which will premiere exclusively on Celestial Movies next month. How do you feel about it?
Tsui: I feel really happy that this movie is making its debut on TV screens! Viewers can now watch it at the comfort of their home at their own time.

Q: How was it like working with Jet Li?
Tsui: I was so glad to work with Jet Li this time. Everything went very smoothly, be it sharing or filming. He brought us so many good memories. Once you see him on screen, his heroic image would immediately come to your mind.

We always felt the spirit of the Chinese tradition from Jet Li since Shao Lin Temple. We see the moral values in Jet and most importantly, he is very responsible for others. Say, he recently took up the duties for One Foundation, showing that his magnanimity and personalities are a match.

The audience can look forward to his performance in Flying Swords of Dragon Gate as his character is very different from those he had played before. And thanks to the 3D technology, the action in the movie looks more dimensional and powerful.

Q: What was the most challenging scene to shoot during production? Why was it challenging?

Tsui: The biggest challenge should be the climate and natural environment, not just for me to shoot the movie but for the cast as well. The actors pointed out that it was hard for them to say the lines because of the sandy wind, making it hard for them to focus. Reapplying their makeup took a longer time too.

Besides, there were a great number of characters in this production and it was hard to design the filming schedule at times since it was not possible to attend to the needs of the entire cast.

Most of them hadn't experienced such a challenging shoot before. I was happy to work with them as most of them were professional and willing to take difficulties. We didn’t have many problems during the production.

(Find the biggest blockbusters at Celestial Superstar Club this July and August)

Q: You previously denied that THE FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE is not a remake of Raymond Lee’s DRAGON INN (1992), but a reimagining of old material. Could you tell us more about it?

Tsui: The plot of the Flying Swords of Dragon Gate takes place three years after what happened in New Dragon Inn. Three years after Jade burnt down Dragon Inn, Dragon Inn appeared again. The emperor is very concerned about who is there and what will happen.

It is actually a very different story. In this series of Dragon Gate Inn, there are two gangs of people.

One comprises of the eunuchs, skilled in manipulating the emperor while the other is made up of patriotic heroes, seeking to deal with this situation. There are disputes even among the ‘heroes’, and to save the victims from the eunuchs, they need to pretend to be villains. What you can see from this part is quite different from the previous.

It is exciting to see how the groups battle out with intelligence, trying to destroy one another. As the story goes on, it’s not just about the struggle between mankind, but of mankind versus nature as well.

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Q: THE FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE is billed as the first 3-D wu xia movie. What do you think of this technology? Do you think future wu xia films should be shot and presented in 3-D?

Tsui: The equipment used for shooting 3D movies is like our eyes, simulating the 3D world we can see in reality. Before the production, we had been to different places to examine different 3D techniques, say, Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan or even mainland China.

We had also done a lot of interviews and sharing. However, only using the equipment I mentioned cannot make a 3D movie. Because we need to adapt to a lot of relations between physics and biology when observing an environment.

We had also managed to find the crew members involved in the production of Avatar to offer us training. Through our interviews and sharing with many 3D experts, we have learnt so much more than what we had known in the first place.

Q: What will your next project be?

Tsui: My next project is "Detective Dee: The Prequel (working title)" and "Tracks in the Snowy Forest 3D (working title)"

Catch Flying Swords of Dragon Gate on Celestial Movies (Starhub TV Cable ch 868) and SingTel mioTV ch 52) on 15 July 2012 at 9:00pm.

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InC-terview with Flying Swords of Dragon Gate director Tsui Hark