is out in theaters tomorrow! And Jang Dong Gun (장동건) is SMOKIN’ in this!

Since there have been a lot of recent flops with crossover Asian stars, I actually didn’t have the highest expectations, but after seeing the The Warrior’s Way, I really enjoyed it! It’s a beautiful film. Very artistic bridging the east and the west together in a surreal way with great moments from Jang Dong Gun, Kate Bosworth, Danny Huston, and Geoffrey Rush. When I first saw the trailer, I was reminded of Sukiyaki Western Django, but to be honest, I didn’t think that film was all that great (the bad english killed it for me… sorry). Also, fyi, I haven’t seen any of the films that I’ve heard it being compared to (300, Ninja Assassin, or Blood: The Last Vampire)… so to me, The Warrior’s Way is very fresh. I enjoyed the story, the visuals, and the characters! And of course, Jang Dong Gun is HOT in this.

The best part? Jang Dong Gun gets a little bit of action… and I’m not talking about the action with the ninjas or the cowboys!

Jang Dong Gun and Kate Bosworth star in Relativity Media’s The Warrior’s Way. — COPYRIGHT: © 2010 Laundry Warrior Ltd.

The Warrior’s Way opens nationwide Friday December 3, 2010. For more info, visit the official movie site: http://www.iamrogue.com/thewarriorsway

Have you ever asked yourself that question? When you’ve been in a situation where you were hustlin’ and grindin’… trying to make something happen with blood, sweat, and tears, but the odds are against you, and well, you just keep facing rejection? Meet Lester and Tony, two best friends who are trying to make it in entertainment. Neither of them can seem to catch a break. So seriously, why are they doing what they do?

I just watched this film a few hours ago, and to be honest, I wasn’t expecting much. I’ve seen a lot of “Asian American films” and I’ll just say my experience has lowered my expectations overall when it comes to that genre (films written/directed/produced by Asian Americans). Well, this film exceeded my expectations. I thought it was quite clever without any cheesy Asian stereotype jokes… gotta love the random inserts of satire. I also feel like it was a pretty good (and humorous) portrayal of what it’s like for those struggling to breakthrough in entertainment. The film has it’s flaws though. For example, I think some of the casting of supporting characters was a little strange (like I couldn’t really believe that some people were supposed to be related to each other) and the story drags just a little bit towards the end. But overall, very fun, cute, and feel good (with a not so typical Hollywood ending… actually, the entire film is not really typical). Finally, even though it may have been written, produced, and directed by an Asian American (Tom Huang, who actually stars in it as well), this story isn’t an Asian American story. If you’ve ever struggled for your passion, been jaded by rejection, or don’t know what you’re doing in life, you might be able to relate.

(ah yes, there’s romance in this, too!)

Sound like something you or someone you know would enjoy? Well, the DVD is now available at: Amazon.com, Target.com, BestBuy.com, and WalMart.com!

For more info, check out: whyamidoingthis.net

P.S. – It’s interesting timing that I happened to get a hold of this DVD right now… especially since Artichoke and I recently vlogged about our experiences in entertainment. So have I ever asked myself this question, “why am I doing this?” Heck yes. As recently as yesterday. But! I know what my answer is! :]

So this is the hottest flick in Taiwan right now… MONGA. I’d been hearing about it from my relatives and from watching TV, and then a friend who knows the director wanted to go see it… so we watched it last night! And it was quite good. I have to honestly say I wasn’t really expecting too much based on Taiwanese films I’d seen before (which actually isn’t very much), but this one was very well made, has a great story, and the actors are pretty hot. Puahaha. Takeshi Kaneshiro, watch out!

Random tidbits: The whole entire time, I kept thinking that one of the main characters, “Monk” (Ethan Ruan) looked so much like Kev Nish from FM! And then “Mosquito” (Mark Chao) kinda looked like Bruce Lee… haha.

I don’t know too much about the back story of this film and right now there’s no IMDB page for it either… hmm. Well, in short, it’s about a place called Monga, which according to my uncle, baaack in the day was a port where many mainlanders entered Taiwan from. Ok, if you don’t like spoilers, well here’s your SPOILER ALERT… In this film, the story takes place in the ’70s and ’80s and is about a group of friends, part of the Temple Front gang. The narrator of the story, Mosquito, is invited to be a part of the gang after a silly fight with members of another gang, the Back Alley. Mosquito has grown up without a father and has never had any real friends, so after Monk and the others take him under their wing, he fully embraces the new lifestyle and there’s no turning back. The story has a number of heart-wrenching twists and while it is a drama, there’s also a lot of humor which I loved. In the end, it all comes down to the characters trying to balance the harsh realities of a violent gangster life with the honor of friendship and brotherhood.

I have no idea when the film will be hitting the U.S., but I hope it will! Here’s the website, but it’s all in Chinese: mongathemovie.com

Normally, I don’t go out to theaters very much, but so far, this summer, I’ve been able to see a few movies, and so far so good.

Last night I watched UP in 3-D… such a touching film! I cried within the first 10 minutes! And honestly, I don’t even think you really need to watch the film in 3-D… the glasses are annoying at times. Pixar is definitely consistent with good storytelling here. I definitely want to see this one again.

STAR TREK. Who hasn’t seen it yet? Well, it’s def had a lot of buzz around it for awhile during this time of the J.J. Abrams reign. And for those who haven’t seen it yet, it’s def worth checking out in theaters. I’m no Trekkie, but they setup the story so well from the get go, that you don’t need to have any prior Star Trek knowledge. I also cried within the first 10 minutes… maybe even 5 minutes… haha. John Cho plays a very lovable Sulu and Zachary Quinto is hot as Spock… great casting.

I saw ANGELS & DEMONS via an advanced screening… I actually enjoyed it a lot. I’m not sure what readers of the books or viewers of the previous DA VINCI CODE movie thought, but I went into the film with no knowledge of the story, so everything was really fresh for me. A part of me thinks I might’ve liked it a tad more than Star Trek, just cuz’ of the subject matter (I tend to like psych thrillers… and even though this may not have been one, it did play mind tricks with me!).

So those are the flicks I’ve seen as of late and that might be it for me for the summer. Today I had a lunch meeting with a buncha film buffs and for the fall, it sounds like PRECIOUS is going to be really good.