Through a series of movies ranging from Highlander: Endgame to Blade II and Shanghai Knights, Donnie Yen quickly began to make his mark on the international market while maintaining a presence in more personal Eastern outings that helped his reputation and fanbase grow. Where once global audiences might have labelled Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee and Chow Yun Fat as the only billboard names with international clout, Donnie quickly joined the list of bankable stars with a following that went beyond the niche market.
In recent years, he’s kept that balance – the various Ip Man films have kept him busy on one side of the world while Bodyguards and Assassins and The Lost Bladesman also got impressive reviews in the UK and US.
When Impact caught up with Yen recently, it was clear he wasn’t resting on his laurels – 2013 and 2014 don’t seem any less busy.
IMPACT: You’ve been in Cannes promoting the production of Iceman 3D… this is a film that’s very much targeted at a wide audience who love good old fashioned action movies. It’s loosely based on The Iceman Cometh film from 1989 that starred Yuen Biao. It has a similar vibe to Highlander – the concept of ancient warriors fighting in the modern era.
DONNIE YEN: It’s basically the story of a Ming Dynasty warrior who travels four hundred years to modern day Hong Kong. It’s a very straight-forward, entertaining action film – with some romance and a bit of a black sense of humour. So hopefully this film can bring a lot of joy and entertainment to audiences… The original idea for this movie was from the movie of twenty years ago, but as we were producing and readying to make this film, we realised it was unnecessary to copy the original. The story’s completely different.
IMPACT: It’s also a film that you’ve been shooting in 3D. This isn’t the first time you’ve been involved with that format, but what have been your experiences with it? Is there a major difference in the way the film is shot?
DY: This is my second 3D movie. I did another film, Monkey King, which will be out at the end of this year. That was my first experience. It’s very difficult to adapt, especially with action movies. I’ve been making action films for many years and there’s a certain sophistication into bringing the best action on to the screen. Certainly there are requirements with 3D movies and the equipment and the cameras and general logistics. There are certain elements that mean you really have to adapt your style. In the beginning it was quite difficult. I’ll give you an example. The 3D cameras are quite heavy and there are restrictions in angles, but in the world of action film-makers, angles are a very crucial element in order to bring out the dynamics of the action itself. One example is that you can’t place the camera all the way down to the ground. If you want a really low angle to bring out the heroic factor, the camera will not allow that. So in areas like that, you have to make some adjustment…
IMPACT: There’s a great deal of CGI in The Iceman – is that yet another factor?
CGI is fine. Making movies is about… it’s like cooking. There’s so many ingredients and it is how you put it all together. At the end of the day you make a wonderful, delicious dish. Film-making requires so many departments and elements. Film itself is technology, so is CGI… If one requires CGI then, by all means, let it enhance the movie. But the most important thing is story-telling and touching audiences’ hearts. Whether it is an action movie or not, at the end of the day, when the audience walks out of the theatre, are they touched, are they excited. Did they cry, are they happy? THAT’s what’s important!
IMPACT: There’s little doubt that there’s now a big global audience for action films. Why do you think that eastern-produced movies travel so well?
DY: One advantage we have in action movies is that the physical performance is an international language, so there isn’t a language barrier. So when you involve the comedy elements in the physical performance, I believe all countries can understand it. It’s not a ‘local’ joke that requires a particular region or culture or understanding…
IMPACT: And you’ve spoken in the past about being very proud of the fact that you can show a variety of techniques and fighting styles depending on what’s needed for a particular role…
DY: I’m very lucky. I’m blessed that I started learning martial arts when I was really young and I have a lot of experience in different martial-arts styles. So I do understand a lot of the physical body mechanics. As a veteran film-maker, as a person who has been making action movies for so many years, I spend a lot of time trying to understand the background story of the character before I choose what style. Now I really don’t have to think about what style because once the character is properly in place, the style should come automatically. For instance, if I’m playing a policeman I will not be thinking about flying up to two-storeys high… so that’s already set a tone. In a movie like Iceman. the character was born four hundred ago, is an ancient warrior, rides a horse and holds swords… therefore it expands the certain world of creativity in terms of choreography.
I LOVE Mixed Martial Arts. I’ve done several films with it SPL, Flashpoint… and another film Special Identity that we’ve released the poster for. I think it’s a standard requirement for any contemporary action stories. For instance policemen… in modern countries they have to understand the modern culture.
IMPACT: Do you find working in Hollywood fundamentally different than Eastern locations? Or is a film-set basically a film-set wherever it is located?
DY: I wouldn’t say one was better than the other. They each have unique, individual film-makers. I think Hollywood is more of… I think the productions are so large, they don’t spend attention on one particular department. Our production is smaller and the only way for us to stand out in the world is that we have to choose certain departments. For this we chose the ‘action’ genre, so we pay more attention and pour more love into that aspect. In Hollywood they have to focus on a lot more. If you go into a buffet there’s a huge variety food. It’s great. But if you want a GREAT curry you go to a curry-house. That’s how I see it…
I think the growing economy in China, I think it’s a very fortunate situation with economic growth for the Chinese. Without the Chinese economy we wouldn’t be able to find this scale of production, not from Hong Kong at least. The whole world economy has had problems so we fell privileged as Chinese film-makers to have first-hand access to the available economy. I think it will get even bigger.
IMPACT: But wherever the film is made, you see festivals like the ones in Cannes as essential for raising awareness and its profile?
DY: I think for ANY film-maker in the world, Cannes is the number one place for them to bring their film here and present it to the rest of the world. It’s also a time to celebrate after all the hard work – film-making is tough mentally and physically. To be able to bring it to a prestigious event like this is a privilege, an honour. I believe that we’d like to come back every year. I’m here to drink some French wine and eat some good French food! (laughs)
IMPACT: There was talk of you being involved in The Expendables sequel, but it never happened. Is there a chance you’ll appear in the planned third outing?
DY: I was honoured that they asked me to be in it, but I didn’t find the role to be… challenging. Also, I had a tight schedule… there’s a third one, so if they ask me again, if the conversation is interesting then maybe I’d definitely be more excited about it.
IMPACT: With The Monkey King , Iceman and also the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon sequel all likely to be on screens within the next year or so, you’re keeping busy. What are the next challenges?
DY: Every one of my films is hard. There are no easy films for me. I think one of the reasons I make it so difficult for myself is because I strive to be innovative and top my last film. I push my limits as a film-maker – both mentally and physically. Look at some of the scenes… the locations we choose in itself can make it difficult.
