Dragon Tiger Gate
Encyclopedia
Dragon Tiger Gate is a 2006 Hong Kong martial arts action film directed by Wilson Yip
and featuring fight choreography
by Donnie Yen
, who also stars in the film. The film is based on the manhua
Oriental Heroes
, which bears the same Chinese title as the film. The film's release in all English-speaking
territories is handled by The Weinstein Company
.
A punching bag
constructed for the film, measuring about 8 feet (2.4 m) high, 5 feet (1.5 m) wide and weighing about 400 pounds was certified as the world's largest by Guinness World Records
.
The story begins with the two sons, who were born to different mothers, of Wong, one of the founders of the academy. The older is named Dragon and the younger is named Tiger. When the boys were young, Dragon's mother left the academy and gave Dragon half of a jade amulet pendant and told him that his half-brother Tiger has the other half. When Dragon's mother was killed in a fire, Dragon was taken into the care of triad boss named Ma Kun and he grew up to become his bodyguard. Ma Kun's gang is a subject of the evil Luocha Cult.
Several years later, Tiger and his friends are dining in a restaurant and encounter Ma Kun and his men, who are receiving the Luocha Plaque. The plaque is a symbol of authority within the Luocha Cult and indicates that the holder is second only to the cult's leader Shibumi. Ma Kun and the leader of the White Lions Gang were arguing over the plaque when Tiger interrupts and starts a fight with the gangsters. They manage to seize the plaque. Just then, Dragon appears and fights with Tiger, whom he does not recognise to be his half-brother. Ma Kun calls for Dragon to pull back.
Later that night, Dragon confronts Tiger and his friends at a Japanese restaurant to take back the plaque. Tiger and his friends have been drugged by Scaly, another of Ma Kun's lackeys, who also wanted to seize back the plaque to prove to his boss that he is the better man. Scaly and his followers fight Dragon over possession of the plaque. Turbo Shek, another diner at the restaurant, is aroused by the commotion and he joins in the fight on Dragon's side. Dragon and Turbo defeat Scaly and his men and Dragon takes back the plaque from Tiger. Just then, Tiger discovers that Dragon has the other half of the jade amulet pendant and realises that Dragon is actually his half-brother.
Turbo follows Tiger back to Dragon Tiger Gate and wants to be enrolled into the academy to improve his martial arts. He is refused by the current leader of the academy, Master Wong, for his arrogance. Dismayed, Turbo waits outside the academy and promises not to leave unless he is accepted in as student. Master Wong agrees to spar with Turbo and defeats Turbo easily. Turbo is humbled and accepted by Master Wong as a student.
Meanwhile, Ma Kun returns the Luocha Plaque to signify his retirement. He is supported by Dragon, who wants to return to Dragon Tiger Gate, and his daughter Ma Xiaoling, who wants a simple life. Shibumi sees this as an insult and sends his henchmen, the Double Devils, to kill Ma Kun. He uses his subordinate Luocha to lure Dragon away while his minions kill Ma Kun. Dragon realises that he had been tricked and return to rescue Ma Kun but it is too late. Dragon slays the Double Devils after a vicious fight and leaves Ma Xiaoling in his brother's care before leaving.
Shibumi was impressed with Dragon for defeating his henchmen and goes to Dragon Tiger Gate to issue a challenge. With Dragon not present, Master Wong, Tiger and Turbo takes on Shibumi's challenge but were utterly defeated. Master Wong is killed by Shibumi while Tiger and Turbo are severely wounded. Ma Xiaoling brings Tiger and Turbo to Mount Baiyun to seek help from Master Qi. Master Qi heals the wounded Tiger and Turbo, and teaches them new martial arts techniques to fight Shibumi.
Tiger and Turbo storm into Shibumi's Black Pagoda to stop him from committing evil acts once and for all. Although their martial arts abilities have greatly improved since the last time they fought, they are still not Shibumi's match. At the critical moment, Dragon appears and fights Shibumi, eventually defeating him. Before the film ends, Dragon returns to Dragon Tiger Gate together with Tiger and Turbo.
Wilson Yip
Wilson Yip Wai-Shun is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker and screenwriter. His films include Bio Zombie, The White Dragon, SPL: Sha Po Lang, Dragon Tiger Gate, Flash Point, Ip Man, and Ip Man 2.-Early career:...
and featuring fight choreography
Stage combat
Stage combat is a specialized technique in theatre designed to create the illusion of physical combat without causing harm to the performers. It is employed in live stage plays as well as operatic and ballet productions. The term is also used informally to describe fight choreography for other...
by Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and world wushu tournament medalist...
, who also stars in the film. The film is based on the manhua
Manhua
Manhua are Chinese comics originally produced in China. Possibly due to their greater degree of artistic freedom of expression and closer international ties with Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan have been the places of publication of most manhua thus far, often including Chinese translations of...
Oriental Heroes
Oriental Heroes
Oriental Heroes is a popular Hong Kong-based manhua created by Wong Yuk-long, a writer/artist responsible for also creating a number of other popular manhua titles. It was created in 1970, and it continues to be published today. The book was the first Hong Kong manhua title based on action and...
, which bears the same Chinese title as the film. The film's release in all English-speaking
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
territories is handled by The Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company
The Weinstein Company is an American film studio founded by Bob and Harvey Weinstein in 2005 after the brothers left the then-Disney-owned Miramax Films, which they had co-founded in 1979...
.
A punching bag
Punching bag
A punching bag or punch-bag is a sturdy bag designed to be repeatedly punched. It's used for conditioning, physical exercise, and stress relief...
constructed for the film, measuring about 8 feet (2.4 m) high, 5 feet (1.5 m) wide and weighing about 400 pounds was certified as the world's largest by Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
.
Plot
Dragon Tiger Gate is an academy established by two powerful martial artists. The academy aims to train students with martial arts in order to uphold justice and combat the threat of the triads. The academy is also a haven for children who had been orphaned by triads.The story begins with the two sons, who were born to different mothers, of Wong, one of the founders of the academy. The older is named Dragon and the younger is named Tiger. When the boys were young, Dragon's mother left the academy and gave Dragon half of a jade amulet pendant and told him that his half-brother Tiger has the other half. When Dragon's mother was killed in a fire, Dragon was taken into the care of triad boss named Ma Kun and he grew up to become his bodyguard. Ma Kun's gang is a subject of the evil Luocha Cult.
Several years later, Tiger and his friends are dining in a restaurant and encounter Ma Kun and his men, who are receiving the Luocha Plaque. The plaque is a symbol of authority within the Luocha Cult and indicates that the holder is second only to the cult's leader Shibumi. Ma Kun and the leader of the White Lions Gang were arguing over the plaque when Tiger interrupts and starts a fight with the gangsters. They manage to seize the plaque. Just then, Dragon appears and fights with Tiger, whom he does not recognise to be his half-brother. Ma Kun calls for Dragon to pull back.
Later that night, Dragon confronts Tiger and his friends at a Japanese restaurant to take back the plaque. Tiger and his friends have been drugged by Scaly, another of Ma Kun's lackeys, who also wanted to seize back the plaque to prove to his boss that he is the better man. Scaly and his followers fight Dragon over possession of the plaque. Turbo Shek, another diner at the restaurant, is aroused by the commotion and he joins in the fight on Dragon's side. Dragon and Turbo defeat Scaly and his men and Dragon takes back the plaque from Tiger. Just then, Tiger discovers that Dragon has the other half of the jade amulet pendant and realises that Dragon is actually his half-brother.
Turbo follows Tiger back to Dragon Tiger Gate and wants to be enrolled into the academy to improve his martial arts. He is refused by the current leader of the academy, Master Wong, for his arrogance. Dismayed, Turbo waits outside the academy and promises not to leave unless he is accepted in as student. Master Wong agrees to spar with Turbo and defeats Turbo easily. Turbo is humbled and accepted by Master Wong as a student.
Meanwhile, Ma Kun returns the Luocha Plaque to signify his retirement. He is supported by Dragon, who wants to return to Dragon Tiger Gate, and his daughter Ma Xiaoling, who wants a simple life. Shibumi sees this as an insult and sends his henchmen, the Double Devils, to kill Ma Kun. He uses his subordinate Luocha to lure Dragon away while his minions kill Ma Kun. Dragon realises that he had been tricked and return to rescue Ma Kun but it is too late. Dragon slays the Double Devils after a vicious fight and leaves Ma Xiaoling in his brother's care before leaving.
Shibumi was impressed with Dragon for defeating his henchmen and goes to Dragon Tiger Gate to issue a challenge. With Dragon not present, Master Wong, Tiger and Turbo takes on Shibumi's challenge but were utterly defeated. Master Wong is killed by Shibumi while Tiger and Turbo are severely wounded. Ma Xiaoling brings Tiger and Turbo to Mount Baiyun to seek help from Master Qi. Master Qi heals the wounded Tiger and Turbo, and teaches them new martial arts techniques to fight Shibumi.
Tiger and Turbo storm into Shibumi's Black Pagoda to stop him from committing evil acts once and for all. Although their martial arts abilities have greatly improved since the last time they fought, they are still not Shibumi's match. At the critical moment, Dragon appears and fights Shibumi, eventually defeating him. Before the film ends, Dragon returns to Dragon Tiger Gate together with Tiger and Turbo.
Cast
- Donnie YenDonnie YenDonnie Yen is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and world wushu tournament medalist...
as Dragon Wong- Howard Sit as young Dragon
- Nicholas TseNicholas TseNicholas Tse is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actor and musician, and son of actor Patrick Tse. He is a member of the Emperor Entertainment Group...
as Tiger Wong- Tam Chun-ho as young Tiger
- Shawn YueShawn YueShawn Yue is a Hong Kong actor and singer. A former model, he has starred in many films such as Jiang Hu and Infernal Affairs II and has established himself as a recognized face in Hong Kong cinema.- Background :...
as Turbo Shek - Dong JieDong JieDong Jie is a Chinese actress and dancer.-Biography:Dong made her debut in Zhang Yimou's Happy Times , where she played a blind girl mistreated by her stepmother. Zhang selected Dong after a casting call on the Internet...
as Ma Xiaoling- Isabella LeongIsabella LeongIsabella Leong Lok-Sze is a Hong Kong-based actress and former singer.- Career :Her father was a descendant of a prominent Macanese family of Portuguese-English heritage, and her mother is Chinese...
as Ma Xiaoling (voice)
- Isabella Leong
- Chen Kuan-tai as Ma Kun
- Yu Kang as Shibumi
- Louis KooLouis KooLouis Koo is a Hong Kong actor. He was once a notable local television series actor, winning TVB's Best Actor award in 1999 for Detective Investigation Files IV. In recent years, he has focused on film...
as Shibumi (voice)
- Louis Koo
- Li XiaoranLi XiaoranLi Xiaoran is a Chinese actress. Apart from her acting career, she is also a dancer, having graduated from Beijing Dance Academy in 1993.-Filmography:-External links:* *...
as Luosha- Ella KoonElla KoonElla Koon Yun Na is Hong Kong-based Cantopop singer, actress and model. She is French by citizenship.-Biography:Ella Koon was born in the French Polynesian island of Tahiti, of Cantonese descent. She was raised in Hong Kong and attended high school in Birmingham, England...
as Luosha (voice) - Chan Kwan-king as young Luosha
- Ella Koon
- Yuen WahYuen WahYuen Wah is a Hong Kong based Chinese action film actor, action choreographer, stuntman and martial artist who has appeared in over 160 films and over 20 television series.-Early life:...
as Master Wong - Wong Yuk-long as Master Qi
- Vincent Sze as Scaly
- Tommy Yuen as Xing
- Sam Chan as Ming
- Alan Lam as Patch
- Nick Lam as Hei
- Xing YuXing YuXing Yu a.k.a. Shi Xing Yu gained his fame after playing the role of Coolie in the movie Kung Fu Hustle.He was a 32nd generation martial monk at the Shaolin Temple on Mount Song ....
as Fan - Yan Hua as Stick
- Sheren TangSheren TangSheren Tang Shui-man is a famous Hong Kong television actress who is known for not signing a long-term contract with TVB, preferring to work on a per-drama contract with the TV station. She is most famous for her roles in the mega-hit TVB drama series like War and Beauty, La Femme Desperado, The...
as Dragon's mother
Sequel
In a Hong Kong interview with the production crew, it was quoted that the cast and crew intends to create a sequel to expand the story on screen by summer of 2007. However, with the original cast committed to a long list of other projects, there has yet to be signs of any level of production or completion by the announced date. As of 2010, there has been no further mention of a sequel and suggestively, the sequel had been quietly scrapped.External links
- Dragon Tiger Gate at the Hong Kong Movie DatabaseHong Kong Movie DatabaseThe Hong Kong Movie DataBase is a bilingual website that was created in 1995 by Ryan Law to provide a repository for information about movies originating from Hong Kong and the people that created them....
- Dragon Tiger Gate on LoveAsianFilm.com
- Dragon Tiger Gate plot synopsis on donnieyen.com
- Dragon Tiger Gate film review