Nano 2009: Day 5
Briefly scanned through the f-list whilst avoiding the nano and saw mention of a King of Fighters movie. OMG not another trainwreck inspired by a classic video game series. Seriously, if they're so hard up on ideas why don't they just make a movie based on Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball?
Comicbookmovie.com has the goods on the actors and the roles in the movie, and the first thing I notice was that Kyo Kusanagi is being played by Sean Faris. I guess I shouldn't be shocked by now, what with Dragonball having a white guy playing a Japanese character as well. But since Kyo's dad is in the movie and he's played by actor Hiro Kanagawa so maybe the movie will kinda play it off as Kyo being hafu? *shrugs* Eh, whatever. Never liked Kyo anyway.
Don't get me wrong, I love Will Yun Lee. But him as sociopathic, charismatic, fey badass muthafucker Iori Yagami? SON I AM DISAPPOINT. It's not going to be the same seeing Will on screen act all broody. Iori's the kind of fucker who starts coughing up blood in the middle of a fight and then enters berserker mode under the moonlight, and starts laughing maniacally as he slashes and dices. Good times.
So far, three things that the movie has going for it:
1) Mai Shiranui
I'm sure we can all understand Mai's popularity - yes, it has something to do with the fact that she dresses like a stripper. Seeing her is like having the 90s back, honestly. And when Hollywood wonders who could play the next hot-Asian-female-martial-artist-type, of course they picked Maggie Q. I don't know anyone who would bother complaining.
2) Terry Bogard
There could have easily have been a Fatal Fury live action film. I mean, there are 3 animated features and numerous comic adaptations of Terry's story. It would be a cinch to grab one of more of those threads and draft a screenplay. The target audience is a generation of adult gamers who instantly recognise the red cap and the Bogard name, who would pay to watch a piece of well-made nostalgia. But no, it's KOF that gets a turn, the franchise with the most convoluted storylines and the most numbers of characters.
3) Ryo Sakazaki
Fatal Fury was the shit, Art of Fighting was kickass, two video game franchises with solid storylines which could have made better transitions to live-action than KOF. The end.
I want to know who thought this was a good idea and greenlighted the movie. KOF was huge in Asia when I was growing up, and people there still cosplay as the characters. Do people in the US still remember the games? Did they watch the anime or read the manga/manhwa adaptations? Who's the target demographic? Didn't the studios learn anything from the last Street Fighter Chun Li movie or the Dragon Ball live action? Ugh, to add insult to injury how can there not be a Joe Higashi cameo? Bastards.
I don't have anything to add other than my sadface, so I'll end it with kittens.
Comicbookmovie.com has the goods on the actors and the roles in the movie, and the first thing I notice was that Kyo Kusanagi is being played by Sean Faris. I guess I shouldn't be shocked by now, what with Dragonball having a white guy playing a Japanese character as well. But since Kyo's dad is in the movie and he's played by actor Hiro Kanagawa so maybe the movie will kinda play it off as Kyo being hafu? *shrugs* Eh, whatever. Never liked Kyo anyway.
Don't get me wrong, I love Will Yun Lee. But him as sociopathic, charismatic, fey badass muthafucker Iori Yagami? SON I AM DISAPPOINT. It's not going to be the same seeing Will on screen act all broody. Iori's the kind of fucker who starts coughing up blood in the middle of a fight and then enters berserker mode under the moonlight, and starts laughing maniacally as he slashes and dices. Good times.
So far, three things that the movie has going for it:
1) Mai Shiranui
I'm sure we can all understand Mai's popularity - yes, it has something to do with the fact that she dresses like a stripper. Seeing her is like having the 90s back, honestly. And when Hollywood wonders who could play the next hot-Asian-female-martial-artist-type, of course they picked Maggie Q. I don't know anyone who would bother complaining.
2) Terry Bogard
There could have easily have been a Fatal Fury live action film. I mean, there are 3 animated features and numerous comic adaptations of Terry's story. It would be a cinch to grab one of more of those threads and draft a screenplay. The target audience is a generation of adult gamers who instantly recognise the red cap and the Bogard name, who would pay to watch a piece of well-made nostalgia. But no, it's KOF that gets a turn, the franchise with the most convoluted storylines and the most numbers of characters.
3) Ryo Sakazaki
Fatal Fury was the shit, Art of Fighting was kickass, two video game franchises with solid storylines which could have made better transitions to live-action than KOF. The end.
I want to know who thought this was a good idea and greenlighted the movie. KOF was huge in Asia when I was growing up, and people there still cosplay as the characters. Do people in the US still remember the games? Did they watch the anime or read the manga/manhwa adaptations? Who's the target demographic? Didn't the studios learn anything from the last Street Fighter Chun Li movie or the Dragon Ball live action? Ugh, to add insult to injury how can there not be a Joe Higashi cameo? Bastards.
I don't have anything to add other than my sadface, so I'll end it with kittens.
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