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\tAlthough actor-turned-director Jiang Wen's 2007 arthouse film "The Sun also Rises<\/strong> (\u592a\u9633\u7167\u5e38\u5347\u8d77 tàiyáng zhàocháng sh\u0113ng q\u01d0)" failed him with takings of only 20 million yuan, his latest offering "Let the Bullets Fly<\/strong> (\u8ba9\u5b50\u5f39\u98de ràng z\u01d0dàn f\u0113i)<\/span>(2010)<\/span> <\/span>" is expected to do well during the New Year season's box-office battle.<\/span><\/p>\n \tIt is not the star-studded cast or magnificent scenery that makes the movie distinctive and appealing, it is Jiang's unique non-linear way of telling a Chinese gangster story <\/span>that proves he deserves the honor of one of China's best and boldest film makers.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n \tSet in war-plagued 1920s China, the film follows the adventure of a notorious bandit chief who descends upon a remote provincial town posing as its new mayor. However, a deadly<\/span> <\/span>battle of wit and brutality ensues when the bandit chief meets his match in the tyrannical local gentry Huang Silang.<\/span> <\/span>The film stars Jiang as the gang boss, Chow Yun-fat as the bully and popular comedy actor Ge You as a fraud.<\/span> <\/span>Although it is about a bloody confrontation between two gangs fighting for power in a remote town, director Jiang incorporates rich elements of suspense and black humor into<\/span> <\/span>plot and dialogue, to stop the film becoming your average anti-evil story.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n \tIt is both a funny and visually thrilling experience, particularly when the bandit chief wearing a mahjong-pattern mask communicates with his men during a fierce battle by<\/span> <\/span>whistling.<\/span> <\/span>There are no sentimental scenes or tragic moods displayed, even when the bandit chief's adopted son, also a gangster, dies during combat. As well as making new friends during<\/span> <\/span>his adventure, the gangster boss also comes to know the true values of life beyond money.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n \tThis film may be reminiscent of Quentin Tarantino's "The Inglorious Bastards" for the similar black-humored story-telling, the precise, fluid rhythm and the compelling<\/span> <\/span>personalities of the protagonists.<\/span> <\/span>Director Jiang doesn't deny his complex about hero and gangster. This kind of complex will probably last and prompt him to make a sequel, set against the turbulence of Shanghai<\/span> <\/span>during the 1920s and 1930s.<\/span> <\/span>As Jiang's first commercial work on the silver screen, the movie is among a long list of anticipated Chinese films set to jam-pack the festive season.<\/span> <\/span>It will face competition from Chen Kaige<\/strong><\/span>'s<\/span> <\/span>(\u9648\u51ef\u6b4c Chén K\u01ceig\u0113)<\/span> "Sacrifice," Feng Xiaogang<\/strong><\/span>'s<\/span> <\/span><\/strong>(\u51af\u5c0f\u521aFéng Xi\u01ceog\u0101ng)<\/span> "If You Are the One 2<\/strong><\/span> <\/span>(\u975e\u8bda\u52ff\u62702 f\u0113ichéng wùr\u01ceo2)<\/span>" and Wong Kar-Wai's "The Grand Master." But this time it seems that Jiang will get<\/span> <\/span>his confidence back as a film maker.<\/span><\/p>\n \tSource:Shanghai Daily<\/p>\n