Shaolin Soccer

Shaolin Soccer
Promotional Poster (for Chinese market)
Traditional	少林足球
Simplified	少林足球
Pinyin	Shàolín Zúqiú
Jyutping	Siu3Lam4 Zuk1Kau4
Directed by	Stephen Chow
Produced by	Yeung Kwok-Fai
Written by	Stephen Chow Tsang Kan-Cheung
Starring	Stephen Chow Zhao Wei Ng Man Tat Patrick Tse Danny Chan Kwok Kwan
Music by	Lowell Lo Raymond Wong
Cinematography	Kwen Pak-Huen Kwong Ting-Wo
Editing by	Kai Kit-Wai
Distributed by	Universe Entertainment Ltd. (Hong Kong) Miramax Films (U.S.)
Release date(s)	July 12, 2001 (Hong Kong) June 1, 2002 (Japan) April 2, 2004 (U.S.) November 12, 2004 (UK)
Running time	102 minutes (Hong Kong DVD version) 87 minutes (U.S.) 89 minutes (Argentina)[1]
Country	Hong Kong
Language	Cantonese
Gross revenue	HK$333,658,728[2] US$$489,600

Shaolin Soccer is a 2001 Hong Kong comedy film co-written and directed by Stephen Chow, who also stars in the film. A former Shaolin monk reunites his five brothers, years after their master's death, to apply their superhuman martial arts skills to play soccer and bring Shaolin kung fu to the masses.

In 2008 a sequel, produced by, but not starring Stephen Chow, was released entitled Shaolin Girl. Very few of the cast from the original film made an appearance.

Plot

Sing (Stephen Chow) is a master of Shaolin kung fu, whose goal in life is to promote the spiritual and practical benefits of the art to modern society. He experiments with various methods to inform the modern world about shaolin kung fu, some of which include comedic song and dance routines, but all bear no positive results. He then meets Fung (Ng Man Tat), a legendary Hong Kong soccer star in his days, until his teammate Hung, now a rich businessman, paid him to miss a goal. After missing the game-winning penalty kick, Fung's “Golden leg” is broken by an angry baseball bat-wielding mob (hired by Hung), forcing him to retire from active play. Years later, on the day Fung learns of Hung's treachery, he meets Sing while in a drunken state in front of a shopping centre.

Sing tries to explain his desires to promote the modern uses of kung fu to Fung, who initially is unconvinced with Sing's idea and brushes off his pleas. When an irritated Fung throws a beer can at Sing, the younger man kicks the can high into the sky, vanishing without a trace, but the old man remains adamant. Later, miles away, Fung sees a huge crack in a brick wall, only to discover that it was caused by the very same beer can that Sing kicked. He removes the can from the wall, and is astounded when the wall breaks down due to the force of the impact. Coincidentally, Fung witnesses a fight between Sing and a gang of local thugs, who had ridiculed him. After Sing beats the gang in a one-sided fight (with his soccer ball kicking skills), Fung is hit with an idea and asks if Sing could use kung fu to play soccer. Sing likes the idea and agrees for Fung to become his coach.

Empty Hand uses his super speed to catch objects kicked at him.

Sing meets Mui (Vicki Zhao), a female baker with severe acne who uses Tai Chi to make mantou. Despite her appearance, Sing regularly visits her and even takes Mui to look at very expensive dresses at a high-end department store (where he works as a janitor) after hours. She soon forms an attachment to Sing and even gets a makeover. However, this backfires when the excessive amount of make-up used (reminiscent of Anita Mui's 1980s image) gives her an almost clown-like appearance. When Mui reveals her feelings to Sing, he tells her he only wants to be her friend. This revelation, coupled with the constant bullying from her overbearing boss, leads Mui to disappear.

Reuniting with his fellow Shaolin brothers, who have since led separate and busy lives, Sing and Fung attempt to put together an unbeatable soccer team, albeit after much persuasion and initial rejection by the other brothers. However, Fung is keen on proving his skills, and in order to turn Sing and his players into real soccer athletes, he invites a vicious team, consisting of local thugs (some of whom Sing had encountered previously) to play against them in an exhibition match; rather than score points, the thugs proceed to give the Shaolin team a brutal beating. When all seems lost, the Shaolin disciples reawaken their skills and win. A few of the thugs even beg Sing to be allowed to join their team, giving their squad enough players to compete professionally.

The striker of Team Evil prepares for his most powerful attack.

The newly formed Team Shaolin enters the open cup competition in Hong Kong, where they chalk up successive and often ridiculously one-sided victories. Their goal is to win the China Super Cup and to beat the notorious Team Evil, helmed by none other than Fung's old nemesis, Hung. Hung plans to win the Cup by assembling a squad of players who have been injected with an American drug and illegal training, granting them superhuman strength and speed, making them practically invincible. Team Shaolin, which had steamrolled their earlier opponents, are brought back to reality when Team Evil's amazing capabilities prove more than a match for them. At a critical moment, when Team Shaolin's Empty Hand and Iron Shirt are severely injured during the match, Mui reappears with her head shaven and her face free of acne to keep goal for Team Shaolin.

In preparation for his final and most powerful attack, Team Evil's striker leaps into the sky and summons dark demonic energy, turning the ball into a glowing orb. Mui slowly takes up the Tai Chi single whip posture to guard against the threat and channels her qi in the form of a Yin-yang symbol. When he kicks the fiery ball, it explodes towards Mui, but she leaps back and redirects the attack by twirling around and spinning it on her finger. Mui and Sing combine their martial skills and rocket the ball down field with so much force that it creates a horizontal tornado, which tears the ground and sucks up everything in its path. The ball plows through Team Evil's goal post and destroys half of the stadium, winning the tournament for Team Shaolin.

Hung is stripped of his title of soccer chairman and sent to jail for five years, while Team Evil players are permanently banned from playing football professionally. With people all over the world becoming aware of and practicing kung fu in their daily lives, Sing's dream is finally fulfilled.

Cast and characters

Major

• Iron Head (Wong Yut Fei): The eldest of the six Shaolin brothers, "Iron Head" spent much effort gaining the kung fu style that makes his head as tough as iron, which helps a lot against beer bottle abuses from his violent boss. After the death of his master and the subsequent split of the brothers, he drifted, becoming a janitor at a night club. After an absurd plan of Sing's involving kung fu and a humiliating music performance, Iron Head gets demoted. However, through a bit more difficulties along the way, he becomes a valuable player in Team Shaolin, with his powerful header.
• Hooking Leg (Lam Chi-Sing): The second-eldest brother, "Hooking Leg" has Shaolin skills resembling ground tumbling boxing. Because his family was poor and could not afford school, his father sent him to Shaolin to learn kung fu. Following his training, he couldn't find any other work besides transporting excrement and urine and washing dishes. When Sing and Fung approach him to join the soccer league, he reacts violently, even threatening to kill them with a meat cleaver, all because they still have full heads of hair, whereas his has fallen out. He finally joins after the idea of being part of family again sinks in.
• Iron Shirt (Tin Kai Man): Third brother "Iron Shirt" can absorb all kinds of blunt force attacks with little to no injuries, as well as siphoning and shooting the ball with his abdomen. When his master died, he went on to become a businessman. The thought of reuniting with his brothers overshadows his busy schedule, and he leaves to be a part of Team Shaolin. During the final game against Team Evil, he bravely volunteers to be Empty Hand's replacement goalkeeper, only to end up heavily injured by a vortex shot from the Team Evil striker.
• Empty Hand (Danny Chan Kwok Kwan): Fourth brother "Empty Hand" bears much resemblance to Bruce Lee and his bullet-fast hands makes him the first goalkeeper for Team Shaolin. He was unemployed for a stretch of time following the master's death. Instead of wearing the yellow robe uniforms like the rest of Team Shaolin, he wears the yellow-and-black tracksuit Lee made famous in Game of Death. During the final game against Team Evil, he is severely injured when he is hit at the face at point-blank range and sent flying through the net, crashing into the stands.
• "Mighty Steel Leg" Sing (Stephen Chow): The striker for Team Shaolin, fifth brother "Mighty Steel Leg" Sing is a master of the "Shaolin Orthodox School Mighty Steel Leg" kicking technique. His leg is powerful enough to accurately kick an old refrigerator onto a pile of other junk five to six meters tall or to send a soccer ball into the upper atmosphere. Sing remains dedicated to Shaolin kung fu, and despite various setbacks, he adamantly believes in Shaolin spirit and his dream. His schemes to promote Shaolin kung fu inevitably fail, until he meets Fung and leads him to the idea of combining martial arts with soccer.
• Light Weight (Lam Chi Chung): The youngest of the six brothers, "Light Weight" is obese and gluttonous, due to a viral pituitary infection resulting in his uncontrollable appetite. However, he is empowered to lighten his weight and soar through the sky for short periods. Unfortunately, since his master died, he lost faith and motivation, working at a grocery store, but spends most of the time gorging himself with junk food. He refuses the offer from Sing and Fung to play soccer at first, but hears out Sing's words of encouragement.
• "Golden Leg" Fung (Ng Man Tat): An ace player in the 1980s. However, after accepting a bribe to throw a penalty shot, resulting in a tragic end to his career, his leg is brutally broken by a mob of "disgruntled" supporters, who were in fact hired by Hung, the man who gave Fung the bribe. He later leaves Hung's care to become a street wanderer, with all hopes gone, until he meets Sing. Subsequently, he becomes the coach/manager of Team Shaolin.
• Mui (Vicki Zhao): A self-conscious, lonely girl who makes mantou at a local food stand owned by a dominating woman. Her secret to making them tasty is using her Tai Chi Chuan techniques to prepare the dough. Despite her bad complexion, Sing seems to admire Mui, and she eventually falls in love with him. Sing does not return her feelings, and while making mantou, her tears make the dough salty and bitter, forcing the owner to fire her. During the championship game against Team Evil, she shaves her head to pose as both a male player and a Shaolin acolyte, and volunteers to be the new goalkeeper, after both Empty Hand and Iron Shirt are severely injured. She is the only character in the original version of the film who speaks Mandarin, whereas everyone else speaks Cantonese.
• Hung (Patrick Tse): The movie's main antagonist, he paid Fung to throw an important game many years in the past and also paid angry fans to break his leg to ensure his bleak future. Now the coach of Team Evil, he had led his team to five consecutive national championships, but they face Fung's Team Shaolin in defense of the title.

Minor

• Team Evil's striker (Sik Chi Wan): His drug-enhanced body makes him more than a match for Sing's kicking skills. He severely injures both Empty Hand and Iron Shirt, overpowering the brothers' own unique Shaolin skills. This involves him doing a back flip, then bounding into the sky to kick the fiery ball at its target.
• Team Evil's Goalkeeper (Cao Hua): He is the only person who is able to guard against Sing’s powerful shots and can do so with one hand in his pocket. His incredibly strong hands are capable of crushing the thick metal crossbar on the soccer goal, and after easily catching three of Sing's most explosive kicks, he throws the ball clear across the field to the opposing goal, knocking Empty Hand to the ground.
• Team Dragon Players 7 & 11 (cameo appearances by Cecilia Cheung and Karen Mok): Two women who play in the men's league and disguise themselves by talking in deep voices and wearing a fake mustache and goatee. They work as a team and can run so fast it appears as if they are flying inches above the ground. In the American comic adaptation, they do not hide their gender and Weight Vest even develops a crush on one of them.
• Team Rebellion Captain (Fung Min Hun): While he appears to be a polite, soft-spoken young man, in reality he is a vicious mobster who wields a crescent wrench and steel mallet as weapons, which he hides in his shorts. Most of the players on his team make up the body of thugs who beat up Sing and Iron Head in the night club, days prior. Fung arranges a game between the two teams under false pretense of settling past disputes; in reality, Fung did this to give the Shaolin brothers their first taste of a real soccer game.

Casting

Apart from several veteran actors, Chow stated in an interview with Premiere magazine that he cast several people in his entourage who had no prior acting experience before Shaolin Soccer. For example, Lam Chi Chung (Light Weight) had worked as Chow’s screenwriter and Danny Chan Kwok Kwan (Empty Hand) was the dance choreographer hired to design the "Michael Jackson dance number" that followed Sing and Mui’s first meeting early in the film. Chow comments he made Chan wear Bruce Lee’s yellow-and-black tracksuit because only the goalkeeper "can wear a special uniform." Tin Kai Man (Iron Shirt) had been Chow’s production manager on several movies, but had acted in numerous minor roles in previous films.^[3] For instance, he played a young wanna-be Triad member in Chow’s preceding movie, King of Comedy. Cecilia Cheung and Karen Mok, who briefly appear as Team Dragon Players 7 & 11 in Shaolin Soccer, had major roles in King of Comedy. Chow defends his decision to hire non-actors, saying, "In terms of finding talent, I try to bring out the funniest thing I notice about them during casting, if it made us laugh at the casting, it will also do on the big screen."^[4]

Vicki Zhao, who played the Mandarin-speaking Mui, said it was a different step for her to star in a Hong Kong production. However, Zhao admitted that she was not impressed with her look with less makeup because she is easily recognizable for her beauty appearance. The voice of Mui was actually played by Bai Ling even though Vicki Zhao was the face.

Three of the principal cast members appeared in Chow's Kung Fu Hustle: Danny Chan Kwok Kwan (Empty Hand) portrayed Brother Sum, boss of the "Axe Gang"; Tin Kai Man (Iron Shirt) portrayed the loud-mouthed advisor of Brother Sum; and Lam Chi Chung (Light Weight) portrayed Bone, Chow’s sidekick and partner in petty crime. Fung Min Hun (Team Rebellion Captain) briefly appeared as Cecilia Cheung's abusive boyfriend in King of Comedy and the Four Eyes Clerk who beats up both Sing and Bone when they make fun of him on the bus in Kung Fu Hustle.^[5]

Awards

21st Annual Hong Kong Film Awards

• Winner: Best Picture
• Winner: Best Director (Stephen Chow)
• Winner: Best Actor (Stephen Chow)
• Winner: Best Supporting Actor (Wong Yat-Fei)
• Winner: Best Sound Effect
• Winner: Best Visual Effect
• Winner: Outstanding Young Director (Stephen Chow)
• Nomination: Best Action Choreography
• Nomination: Best Cinematography
• Nomination: Best Costume Design
• Nomination: Best Editing
• Nomination: Best Screenplay
• Nomination: Best Original Film Score
• Nomination: Best Original Song^[6]

7th Golden Bauhinia Awards

• Winner: Best Picture
• Winner: Best Actor (Stephen Chow)
• Winner: Best Supporting Actor (Wong Yat-Fei)^[7]

Reception

Shaolin Soccer did well at Hong Kong box office eventually grossing HK$60,739,847, making it the highest grossing film in Hong Kong history at the time. This record held until 2004 when it was topped by Stephen Chow's next feature Kung Fu Hustle and solidifying Stephen Chow as the undisputed box office king of Hong Kong.

Shaolin Soccer received highly positive reviews from film critics, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 91% of critics had given the film positive reviews based on 86 reviews. And 100% from top critics.

China's State Administration of Radio, Film and TV rejected Shaolin Soccer from theatrical and DVD/VCD release, because of the possibility of insulting Buddhists by putting "soccer" alongside "Shaolin" in the title. Stephen Chow refused to change the title; as a result, Shaolin Soccer's producers were banned from shooting films in mainland China for one year.^[8]

Comic books

Chinese

The first of a four volume Shaolin Soccer manhua was published in Hong Kong roughly nine months after the film originally premiered in 2001. The characters where drawn with large manga-like eyes and cartoonish bodies, but the artists were careful to retain the likenesses of each actor who portrayed them.^[9][10]

American

ComicsOne approached noted comic book artist Andy Seto with the idea of creating a two volume manhua-style graphic novel adaptation of the feature film. Seto attached himself to the project because the film was very popular and, therefore, had "a certain level of marketing value".^[11] The project was officially announced on June 30, 2003 and the release of vol. 1 was scheduled to coincide with the film’s US premiere in August, but the film was pushed back.^[12] The Miramax film corporation bought the American film rights to Shaolin Soccer before its release in China,^[13] so they helped publish the comic book along with two Chinese film companies who originally produced the film.^[14] Volumes 1 (ISBN 1-58899-318-3) and 2 (ISBN ISBN 1-58899-319-1) were released in August and November 2003 and sold for US$13.95 each. Their suggested reading level was age 13 and above.^[14][15]

Seto worked to make the novel as faithful to the film as possible but he admits that Stephen Chow's brand of Mo lei tau comedy does not translate well into illustrations.^[11] He stated in an interview that "the Shaolin Soccer comic is 80% movie adaptation with 20% new content."^[11] This new content includes a backstory about Steel Leg's training in Shaolin before the death of his master, as well as completely rewriting entire sections of the movie. For example, in the film a group of bar thugs beat up Sing and Iron Head after listening to their lounge-style tribute to Shaolin kung fu. The following day, Sing seeks out the group and uses his Shaolin skills to beat the thugs using a soccer ball. Fung sees the brawl and comes up with the idea of fusing kung fu and soccer. However, in the comic book, Sing is meditating in the park when he gets hit in the head with a soccer ball. The cocky players mock him and destroy a stone statue of his deceased master. Sing proceeds to use the soccer ball as a weapon.

Another example is the fact the characters are visually different from the film. All of their comic book personas look to be in their twenties to thirties, with highly toned athletic physiques (with the exception of Light Weight); even Iron Head, who was the eldest of the six brothers, appears younger than he should.

Reception

Several online reviews have criticized the American adaptation for its apparent lack of story line coherence, mixture of realistic and cartoonish drawing styles, and bad Chinese-to-English translation, among other issues. In regards to the translation, one reviewer stated, "It's almost as if the book was translated with a first-year English student referencing a Chinese-to-English dictionary, with strangely-assembled sentences and strange bursts of dialogue peppering the pages."^[16] Another common complaint was that the comics seemed to be geared towards those people who had previously seen the movie. Without this familiarity, a newcomer would lose track of the storyline because of the overcrowded pages and rapidly shifting plot.^[16][17][18]

Animation

Steel Leg powering up for an explosive kick that can be seen from outer space.

According to an interview with Premiere Magazine, Chow stated,

Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, co-creators of the Avatar: The Last Airbender animated television series, stated in an interview that "Shaolin Soccer is one of our favorite movies. It has tons of fantastic action and lots of funny moments. Some of the effects provided inspiration for how bending [the art of controlling the elements] might look on the show."^[20]

The Chinese website xiaoyouxi.com has eight flash animations devoted to Shaolin Soccer. They range from non-playable 16 bit video games where the characters reenact the soccer games from the film to animations highlighting Sing and Mui’s strained relationship (one of which is accompanied by the song "Hazard" by Richard Marx).^[21]

One episode of Keroro Gunso had a soccer theme which parodied this movie.

The music video for the American R&B singer-songwriter and rapper Lumidee song "Dance" launched or the 2006 FIFA World Cup album soundtrack has scenes of the movie.[1]

See also

• Battlefield Baseball

Notes and references

• Leong, Anthony (2003). "Shaolin Soccer". Asian Cult Cinema 38 (1st Quarter): pp.8–11. 

External links

• Miramax's Shaolin Soccer site
• Shaolin Soccer at the Internet Movie Database
• Shaolin Soccer at Allmovie
• Shaolin Soccer at Rotten Tomatoes
• Shaolin Soccer at LoveHKFilm.com
• Shaolin Soccer Fanlisting