Fantastic Almanac: THE MONKEY KING is one cool trippy look into Chinese Culture and Cinema

5/18/2014

THE MONKEY KING is one cool trippy look into Chinese Culture and Cinema

Mark Turner
Fantastic Almanac
05/18/2014

Based on a classical novel named Into The West from 16th Century China, during the Ming Dynasty, Sun Wukong or Monkey King is:

a monkey born from a heavenly stone who acquires supernatural powers. After rebelling against heaven and being imprisoned under a mountain for 500 years, he later accompanies the monk Xuanzang on a journey to India. Thus, according to legend, Buddhism is brought to ancient China. This much beloved story, is as much a part of Asian culture as The Iliad and The Odyssey or The Wizard of Oz are to the West. This first installment in a trilogy of live action 3-D movies is actually a prequel to The Journey To The West, the much told story of the Monkey King's adventures on the road to India. The Monkey King: Havoc In The Heavenly Palace will be released in the U.S. as The Monkey King. The first movie is the origins story - beginning with the birth of Sun Wukong and ending with his imprisonment for his crimes under the Five-Peaked Mountain. Along the way he acquires incredible powers, battling the armies of the gods and the armies of the demons to find his ... Written by Robert Harris / Global Star Productions

Yun-Fat Chow/The Mokey King

The film is supported by two major stars of American and Chinese Cinema. American audiences will recognize Donnie Yen, from such films as Blade II and The Hero, and Yun-Fat Chow of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and John Woo's The Killer.

Though it may look crazy, the Chinese box office numbers are nothing to laugh at. Monkey King was China's highest opening for a film, ever. It made about 20 million in US dollars in its first day and about 64 million in its first 4 days.

The Monkey King will be released for US audiences in select theaters, September 14th, 2014.

(2 trailers below)