Podcasts about Zhou Xun

Director Cheng Er's espionage noir film set in Japanese-occupied Shanghai in the 1940s about a group of daring Chinese who set up an underground network to undermine the puppet regime. Starring Tony Leung, Wang Yibo, Zhou Xun, and Huang Lei ** Deep Dive Movie Reviews contain spoilers **  3:10 - Complex layers of loyalties & secrets 11:28 - The Hidden Blade's “long con” 12:55 - Shanghai as a setting 19:45 - Tony Leung 22:19 - Final score for Hidden Blade

香奈儿品牌形象大使周迅(Zhou Xun)朗读《从文艺复兴到另一种复兴》中的节选，本书由范妮·阿拉玛撰写，讲述舍农索城堡的故事。该城堡不仅是本季系列作品的灵感源泉，亦是发布会的举办地。

Made from the simple juice of the poppy, opium is arguably the oldest and most widely used drug in the world. Since prehistoric times it has been used to relieve physical pain and quieten troubled minds. It has enabled medical breakthroughs, and inspired some of the greatest Romantic poets and composers. But opium, and its later derivatives morphine and heroin, has also brought addiction and untold misery and death, destroyed families, and corrupted entire countries. Its trade has provoked wars, and is still making global headlines today, from its production in Afghanistan to the opioid crisis in the United States. Bridget Kendall explores opium's long and complex history with Doris Buddenberg, former head of United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Afghanistan, and curator of a recent exhibition on opium; Zhou Xun, Reader of Modern History at the University of Essex; and Mike Jay, author and cultural historian, whose books on the history of drug use include ‘High Society'. Image: Opium poppy flower Credit: yamatao/Getty Images

In this episode of Wuxia Weekend we talk about Tsui Hark's Flying Swords of Dragon Gate. It stars Jet Li, Zhou Xun, Chen Kun, Gwei Lun-mei, Louis Fan, Li Yuchun, Mavis Fan, with appearances by Gordon Liu and Zhang Xinyu. This is the most recent Dragon Gate film, and is set after the events of New Dragon Inn.  Check out Distressor's "Just Breathe", they generously allowed us to use their music in our introduction.  Support us on Patreon 

说到周迅，我们可能会联想到玻璃的材质、水的形状或者空气的色彩，她是骑士女士，是青草蔷薇，是一棵橡树。从《大明宫词》《画皮》到《如果·爱》《李米的猜想》《明月几时有》，周迅在漫长岁月中演绎过懵懂可爱、倾慕深情、决绝果敢、隐忍强势。最近，她主演的《你好，之华》来到荧幕中。她像玻璃像水像空气，是骑士女士，是青草蔷薇，是一棵橡树。When others are acting, Zhou Xun chooses to experience. For her performance always coming out naturally, it is pure without purpuse. Like a light and a free bird in the sky, she is flying and never fall down. English Planet is telling you something about her.

说到周迅，我们可能会联想到玻璃的材质、水的形状或者空气的色彩，她是骑士女士，是青草蔷薇，是一棵橡树。从《大明宫词》《画皮》到《如果·爱》《李米的猜想》《明月几时有》，周迅在漫长岁月中演绎过懵懂可爱、倾慕深情、决绝果敢、隐忍强势。最近，她主演的《你好，之华》来到荧幕中。她像玻璃像水像空气，是骑士女士，是青草蔷薇，是一棵橡树。When others are acting, Zhou Xun chooses to experience. For her performance always coming out naturally, it is pure without purpuse. Like a light and a free bird in the sky, she is flying and never fall down. English Planet is telling you something about her.

说到周迅，我们可能会联想到玻璃的材质、水的形状或者空气的色彩，她是骑士女士，是青草蔷薇，是一棵橡树。从《大明宫词》《画皮》到《如果·爱》《李米的猜想》《明月几时有》，周迅在漫长岁月中演绎过懵懂可爱、倾慕深情、决绝果敢、隐忍强势。最近，她主演的《你好，之华》来到荧幕中。她像玻璃像水像空气，是骑士女士，是青草蔷薇，是一棵橡树。When others are acting, Zhou Xun chooses to experience. For her performance always coming out naturally, it is pure without purpuse. Like a light and a free bird in the sky, she is flying and never fall down. English Planet is telling you something about her.

We talk about the 2008 Painted Skin film, starring Vicki Zhao, Zhou Xun, Chen Kun, Donnie Yen and Betty Sun.  Check out Distressor's "Just Breathe", they generously allowed us to use their music in our introduction.  Support us on Patreon 

We talk about Painted Skin: The Resurrection (2012), starring Zhao Wei, Zhou Xun, Yang Mi and Chen Kun.  Check out Distressor's "Just Breathe", they generously allowed us to use their music in our introduction. Support us on Patreon 

Back into the world of foreign films, we look at the oddly engaging Flying Swords of Dragon Gate. Show your thanks to Major Spoilers for this episode by becoming a Major Spoilers Patron at patreon.com/MajorSpoilers. It will help ensure Zach on Film continues far into the future! FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE A Ming Dynasty freedom fighter (Jet Li), a female warrior (Zhou Xun) and a corrupt eunuch (Kun Chen) are among those who converge on a remote desert hostel that sits atop a city of treasures.

Back into the world of foreign films, we look at the oddly engaging Flying Swords of Dragon Gate. Show your thanks to Major Spoilers for this episode by becoming a Major Spoilers Patron at patreon.com/MajorSpoilers. It will help ensure Zach on Film continues far into the future! FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE A Ming Dynasty freedom fighter (Jet Li), a female warrior (Zhou Xun) and a corrupt eunuch (Kun Chen) are among those who converge on a remote desert hostel that sits atop a city of treasures.

I review the 2012 film Painted Skin: Resurrection, a sequel to the 2008 original. It was directed by Wu Ershan and stars Zhao Wei, Chen Kun and Zhou Xun. 

Xiaohua: Lately, an article discussing the word “暖男 Nuan Nan”, literally translated as warm guys, has been very popular on social networking sites. The article defines a Nuan Nan as a guy who is tender, considerate and understanding. They may not be tall, rich and handsome as others, but they prove to be very attractive to women. So do you think that more and more this type of guys is being favored by women? Liuyan: I think in theory true women would prefer this type of guys because who wouldn’t want an understanding boyfriend. But in reality, I really doubt it because I would very much like to nominate myself as, you know, someone who is in this category. But, as you all know, by now, I am not very lucky when it comes to a relationships, so I really doubt if this is what women truly want. John: yeah, now I think that women are famous for saying that this is what they want, but in practice, it rarely holds to be true. I mean if you’re a young man listening to this who is single, I would say the best way to find an attractive woman is not, in fact, to be one of these warm men. Really, what you find is that these warm men they end up becoming, you know, part of the, let’s just be friends category. And you know, people who complain that it is the jerks who always get the girls or, you know, why do girls always like jerks. Well, to be honest, because it’s partly true. And it’s not so much that women like men who are jerks, they like man who are manly, not in the sense that they’re chauvinistic, or they are disrespectful of women. But they have a masculine sense about them. Whereas these warm men, No.1. I doubt the veracity of many of these real life examples that people are basing, you know, this new memon. No.2 warm men would end up being more feminine right? And you know, in the end, as women, do you want a more feminine man or do you want someone who is going to, be the provider, be the leader of the family, you know, be a good and strong father to your children and things like that. Do you always want someone who is “oh, are you okay? Are you all right?” No, you want a man who says you know I’m gonna mess up that guy who just hurt you or something like that. Maybe not in every single example, but, I mean, I think that in general, it’s not so much about being a jerk, it’s about being masculine. And again about somebody’s examples, okay, fine, we can see these in fiction, but then people are bringing them up in real life. And we’re only looking at celebrities, right? Xiaohua: exactly! John: We’re only looking at Zhou Xun and her husband where apparently every time that there is a rainy scene, he is waiting with a dry towel. You know what, that probably happened once, all right? Maybe once, maybe it didn’t happen. You have to remember that celebrities when they are telling you this, they want people to think of their life as if it’s a movie and they want people to think their life is perfect and that’s part of their attraction, that is how they make money and continue to sell entertainment products. So, you know, looking at these examples, Zhou Xun, Lin Qingxia and Chen Kaige. I mean, maybe it happened once, but probably never happened at all. Xiaohua: or even if they happened, I mean, come on, after all, they are still very handsome guys that we are talking about, right, that these female celebrities happen to fall in love with. John: sure. Liuyan: so who is to say they fall for them because they are “Nuan Nan” or they fall for them because they are handsome or because they have money or things like that. Xiaohua: yeah, but I do have a different opinion as the woman here in the room. I think that no woman in the world would hate such quality of “Nuan Nan”, you know, being warm, being considerate, being attentive, no woman would hate that, in fact, women love that in a guy, but I think what makes the difference here is whether these “Nuan Nan” would take the initiative to woo a girl or to show them that they are attentive. John: right, and that’s about confidence. Xiaohua: yah, right, and I don’t think that a “Nuan Nan” necessarily is a shy guy. Although, you know a lot of these guys are pretty shy when it comes to a relationship. So, I think this golden rule here is that guys still have to take the initiative. John: man still need to be the man. Xiaohua: yeah, otherwise women don’t know these qualities about you, so, you know, how can they appreciate that and fall in love with you? Liuyan: en, I don’t know, because I have initiated plenty of times, but you know, none of that works. And every time John just nailed it. It ends up being, always just be friends “you are a very nice guy, but I just don’t have that kind of feeling towards you and thanks” like that blablabla. John: well, this is the thing, I mean the difference between language and behavior. Yeah, a girl, a woman, she might say, you know, I like honesty. But in the end, you know, she doesn’t really want you to be completely and a hundred percent honest. There are some things that are best left unsaid. And so in that sense, you know, everything that you’ve been taught or that girls have told you in terms of getting a girl. I mean, to be honest, half, at least half of that is going to be wrong because yeah, she is telling you that this is how you go to get that girl, but on the other hand, her boyfriend is nothing like that or is only a little bit like that. Xiaohua: but I still think that there are no, you know, definite iron rules in courting a girl. John: oh, yes, yes and no. Xiaohua: people can give advice but they never follow them. John: yes, I know, but also I think there is the difference here also between sexual market value versus marriage market value and these are two going to be two different things. But But here we talk about boyfriends not about husbands.

Wire-tapping has always been just a hook in Siu Fai Mak and Felix Chong's "Overheard" series, the third and latest installment presents the most advanced techniques of espionage, but the gadget-mongering never overshadows the moral discourse in a Hong Kong-specific context. The story is set in modern time New Territories, Hong Kong, when the largely agrarian peninsula is targeted by powerful real estate tycoons, much like the rest of contemporary China. The influx of capital wakes up insatiable desires in the local residents and threatens to obliterate traditional, family-centered values. Qing Wan Lau, Daniel Wu, Louis Koo each represent a different character being caught in the game of eavesdropping. The keyword that introduces the story is "small house policy", whereby each indigenous male villager no younger than 18 is entitled to build a small house during his life time. To start business in the New Territories, property developers invest generously to purchase the entitlement from the villagers. Local delegates, having realized they can make huge profits because of this, seek to bypass developers for more money. In this process, the conflicts between different interest groups become a microscope, which puts human greed at the focal point. Movies about the dark side of humanity have been made throughout the history of motion pictures; what makes this one special is its distinctive Hong Kong characteristic. As a story set in the modern international metropolis, most of its characters are villagers. This creates a huge contrast and allows viewers an alternative perspective at the trend of property developments that have been fueling the national economy for the past few years. The story is a bit challenging to understand, due to its complexity and the sheer number of characters involved, but the script is apparently written with devotion. Many funny scenes that put a brake on the intense storytelling turn out to be important precursor for later developments--that's kind of like a lost art in Chinese filming making. The "Overheard" series has always been dominated by male characters. Mainland actress Zhou Xun is not given the opportunity to bloom, but she does better than the other female actress, Michelle Ye, further proof that Hong Kong filmmakers should start scouting for new female talent before viewers get used to seeing these roles occupied by mainland faces.

Wuxia, or martial arts, movies are a distinct genre of Chinese film. The most memorable ones are not necessarily those packed with nonstop action, but ones in which the main characters extol the so called Wuxia spirit–loyalty, sense of mission, free expression of emotion, the strong helping the weak...... Director Tsui Hark has succeeded in creating a lasting impression on viewers with many of his wuxia films, including "New Dragon Gate Inn." But will his new film "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate" be as successful as its prequel? Considering Tsui's previous achievements, his fans know he has at least an adequate understanding of the wuxia spirit. A typical example in "Flying Swords" is Jet Li's character Zhou Huai'an. As a skillful swordsman, Zhou feels obligated to cleanse the Ming government of power-crazed officials. As he has chosen a dangerous road, he has made a conscious decision to neglect the love and safety of female swordsman Ling Yanqiu. Nevertheless, Ling is willing to sacrifice herself for Zhou and his mission. Having survived a mission impossible with Ling, Zhou finally musters up enough courage to confront his feelings. More importantly, Tsui is also known as a bold director who refuses to be shackled by tradition and constantly remains on the lookout for creative outlets for his ideas and beliefs. He is quite alert to the needs of his time and willing to challenge tradition and himself to meet them. For example, "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate" is China's first domestically produced 3-D IMAX film. Tsui says the technology has greatly helped him further develop his filmmaking skills. Aside from famous movie actors Jet Li, Zhou Xun and Chen Kun, Tsui also included young actors such as Li Yuchun and Kwai Lun-mei in his new film. The fledglings may not be much to look at, but their presence holds a certain appeal for young viewers. Even among the famous actors, Chen Kun, who plays two roles in the movie, gives a much more convincing performance than Jet Li. The latter is certainly impressive with his martial arts skills, but falls short when it comes to showing the human and tender sides of his character. Tsui's creativity can also be seen in the diversity and originality of the weapons he assigns to each character. Some of them may have been designed to amplify the visual effects with 3-D technology, because they create quite a spectacle on an IMAX screen. Generally speaking, the focus of the film is on form rather than spirit. Tsui Hark certainly has a way of making his film entertaining with an abundant supply of comical and breathtaking 3-D scenes. As for a portrayal of the wuxia spirit, viewers must look hard not to miss it. But because Tsui is only catering to contemporary viewers' tastes, perhaps he is not the one to blame after all. On a scale from one to ten, "Flying Swords of Dragon Gate" deserves a seven.

ESWS 119 - Silent But Dirty Podcast episode 119 ES: THE SILENT WAR [聽風者], VULGARIA [低俗喜劇] WS: BRAVE Video: AMERICAN FUSION (2005) This week we look to the latest film pairing of Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Zhou Xun in THE SILENT WAR [聽風者]. We also discuss the latest film from director Pang Ho Cheung VULGARIA [低俗喜劇]. Then we head to hollywood with Pixar's latest offering BRAVE. And for a video discussion I talk about a 2005 American film starring Sylvia Chang called AMERICAN FUSION. We also discuss the opening of THE BULLET VANISHES [消失的子弹] in the mainland, some controversy over THE AVENGERS Blu-ray set, and DreamWorks' plan to open its first theme park in China. Show notes and details can be found at our main website. visit us at www.kongcast.com or email us at eastscreen@gmail.com As always, thanks for listening!

Bericht vom neunten Tag der Berlinale mit Bildern von Premiere des Films „Bel Ami“ in Anwesenheit von Robert Pattinson und Christina Ricci. Weiters Berichte zu „War Witch“, „Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate“ (mit Zhou Xun) und „Blut muss fließen“ sowie einem Rückblick auf die Filme der Berlinale.

Bericht vom neunten Tag der Berlinale mit Bildern von Premiere des Films „Bel Ami“ in Anwesenheit von Robert Pattinson und Christina Ricci. Weiters Berichte zu „War Witch“, „Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate“ (mit Zhou Xun) und „Blut muss fließen“ sowie einem Rückblick auf die Filme der Berlinale.