Movie Introduction

Unbeatable (激戰) is a Hong Kong film released in 2013, which is directed by Dante Lam and the main casts are Nick Cheung, Eddie Peng. Unbeatable is an unexpected inspirational and action movie that using Mixed Martial Arts be the theme of the movie. This movie is also a co-production between Hong Kong, Mainland China and Taiwan, this film also resulted the top box office of Chinese movie in 2013. (Apple Daily, 2014)

Not the traditional pattern

Unbeatable is not like a traditional genre for action movie, before you watch the movie or watched the trailer, you may expect that there is much coverage about the battle or competition for the Mixed Martial Arts, but the movie would like to cover more about the interpersonal relationship between the main characters, for example in the line of Lin Si-qi (performed by Eddie Peng) and his father (performed by Jack Kao). It is talking about Lin Si-qi would like to join the MMA competition to perk his father up, because of the failure of business.

Not the typical action film

And the another storyline, talking about Ching Fai (performed by Nick Cheung) how the interaction with Xiao Dan (Crystal Lee) and her mother (Mei Ting), these are some happiness and funny interactions, but also some sadness scene in the movie.

It is very special perspective that using the human relationship and emotion to talk about an action theme of movie rather than using a lot of the battle scenes to describe the movie, this is not a traditional narrative for action movie.

Co-production movies

Co-production is a good way that let the Hong Kong production movie can deliver to the mainland China, which is the big film market in the greater China. A coin has two sides, the advantages of co-production can reach bigger size of audiences, and attract the investment of mainland China, to have more production budget to produce the movies. (CAPITAL Entrepreneur, 2012)

Regulations and restriction of Co-production movies

But it is also have some regulations for co-production movie, one third of starring should come from mainland China and some of the scenes and storyline should be related to mainland China, it leads some of the movies lost the local Hong Kong style and the characteristic. (CAPITAL Entrepreneur, 2012)

Break the rules of Co-production movies

In contrast, Unbeatable is also a co-production film with the mainland China, not liking the traditional co-production film, like The Grandmaster(一代宗師), The Grandmaster(救火英雄), Bodyguards and Assassins(十月圍城). Unbeatable is quite special that you may feel the movie like a Hong Kong style, although it is invested by Bona Film Group Limited, a Beijing company. Except the beginning part of introducing Lin Si-q, other scenes are happened in Macau. The background of Macau is similar with Hong Kong, also using Cantonese be the first language.

Core value, Nostalgia and Collective memory in Hong Kong

The messages of the movie are quite old style of the city. For daily life, Ching Fai lived in an old house, the living condition is not too good, the street of Macau, training center are not the modernized style, and the audience may consonance of their collective memory of old Hong Kong.

Using the story of an only learnt few months of MMA player Lin Si-qi and the 48 years old former champion Ching Fai to bring out the key messages that if you work hard, and keeping on to fight, you may get the result, although you may not get the great success, anything is possible, it is quite match with the core value of old Hong Kong, or you may said nostalgia of Hong Kong.

Reference

Apple Daily, 2014. Focus: '【埋單計數】2013電影香港票房十大 有啲你點都估唔到！. Apple Daily, [online]2 January. Available at: < http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/enews/realtime/20140102/52052056> [Accessed 16 April 2014].

CAPITAL Entrepreneur, 2012. Focus: '【中港合拍 電影業唯一出路？. CAPITAL Entrepreneur, [online]. Available at: < http://www.capitalentrepreneur.com/common_emag/view_content.php?issue_no=100&pub_id=23&top_id=108&art_id=167723 > [Accessed 16 April 2014].

Unbeatable 2013, film, Dante Lam. Hong Kong.

Name: Law Yau Ki, Steve

Student ID: 21233925/10484135