Warriors of Virtue
Encyclopedia
Warriors Of Virtue is a 1997 Chinese-American fantasy film
directed by Ronny Yu
. It is in English
, Mandarin, and Cantonese. Although commercially unsuccessful and critically panned, a sequel, Warriors of Virtue: The Return to Tao
, was made in 2002.
) is a high school
student with a disability in his leg that prevents him from joining his peers in various activities in school he would like to be a part of. He spends most of his time reading comic books and imagining other worlds where he might have a great adventure. One day, he stops at his favorite restaurant Ming's and, after a brief encounter with the head cook visits with Ming himself (Dennis Dun
) who is actually a good friend of Ryan's. He gives Ryan a manuscript
of Tao
which is a representation of the five elements that make up their mythology, explaining that through the book could lead to Ryan's true enlightenment. Ryan claims he doesn't need any "Self Help" books, but takes the manuscript anyway. Meanwhile at school, Ryan, who is a waterboy for the school's football team is caught eying quarterback Brad's (Michael Dubrow) girlfriend and they proceed to pick on him and his best friend Chucky (Ricky D'Shon Collins). When she stands up for Ryan, Brad instead invites Ryan and Chucky to an initiation ritual which involves them crossing a flimsy looking pipe in a water treatment plant in order to graffiti
their names on a wall. Ryan ignores Chucky's warnings, feeling particularly dejected for his disablement and tries to cross, however there is a releasing of water that floods the pool and throws Ryan into the water.
Ryan awakens some time later, dry and on the bank of a river in a mysterious and gargantuan forest. How he got there is unknown, but he notices that his leg works miraculously. After a short celebration he runs into soldiers who attack him, he flees and runs into another being in the forest who fights off his attackers, in the process of escaping, Ryan loses his backpack and with it the manuscript that Ming had given him. Ryan comes across a dwarf-like Mudlap (Michael J. Anderson
) who agrees to take him to safety when Ryan offers his watch as payment. He takes Ryan to Elysia (Marley Shelton
), a beautiful girl who takes him to Master Chung (Chao-Li Chi
) who leads the Warriors of Virtue; five anthropomorphic kangaroos
who wield the powers of the elements; Lai, the stern, short tempered warrior of Wood. Chi, the wise yet playful warrior of Fire. Tsun, the nurturing warrior of Earth. And Yee, the silent and righteous warrior of Metal. When asked about the fifth warrior Yun, the benevolent warrior of Water, they explain he had accidentally killed someone in battle and the guilt had driven him away. They are interested in the manuscript, which they call the Manuscript of Legend, but are disappointed to find that it was missing. After Ryan encounters Yun, they deduce that Komodo (Angus MacFadyen
), the leader of an army that is invading the once-purely natural zones to feed his desire to remain young by feeding on the the special mineral called zubrium from all the life springs of the forest-like realm of Tao, must have the book. Yun even saves Ryan from Komodo's minions Barbarocious (Ying Qu) and two other people.
The warriors join forces once again and while Tsun and Lai remain behind, Yee, Chi and Yun hope to invade Komodo's fortress for the book. Meanwhile, Elysia tells Ryan that her brother had been killed some time ago and how he reminds her of him, but while her back is turned one of Komodo's leaders General Grillo (Tom Towles
) kidnaps him and Elysia runs from the sound of Komodo's voice. As Yun, Yee and Chi break into Komodo's stronghold and try to take the book they realize they had been led into a trap set up by Elysia who ignores their pleas to leave Komodo who had become her lover and used her thirst for vengeance to turn her against them. They are then dropped into a deadly trap, which they barely manage to escape. Meanwhile General Grillo runs into Master Chung who quickly loses in a battle against him. When Komodo's armies invade, Chung then faces Komodo in a fierce battle that ends with him mortally wounded. Ryan runs, only to run into Mudlap who wittingly turns Ryan over to Komodo's army.
Moments later at Komodo's palace, Ryan discovers Elysia's treachery was due to the fact that Yun accidentally killed her brother in a battle. He discovers that Komodo plans to use his ability to read from the manuscript to return to Ryan's world and drink the life springs from there when Tao runs out. Ryan discovers that he too cannot read from the manuscript and the pages are blank. This sends Komodo into a rage which forces Elysia to defend Ryan. Barbarocious kills her in response to her defending Ryan. Komodo kills Barbarocious as Ryan escapes. Upset about the sudden and abrupt losses and betrayals, Ryan's only desire is to return home. Mudlap feels sorry for what he had done and returns the watch that Ryan had given him originally, telling him where the Warriors had convened. After Mudlap leaves, Ryan discovers he can read the manuscript and reads an inscription "Five is one, Positive Kung. To take a life, you lose a part of yourself." and begins to realize its meaning.
The Warriors, after laying Master Chung to rest are called out by Komodo who uses his powers to pit the warriors against five duplicates of himself. They are each overcome by the greater power of Komodo's dark magic until Ryan arrives, taunting Komodo into attacking him and ripping up the manuscript. He cries the inscription to the others who use their combined power as Komodo delivers a fatal blow against Ryan effectively returning Komodo to a good man and removing his powers. Ryan lies mortally wounded, but just before he succumbs, Yee, who had been forced by his virtue into a vow of silence thanks Ryan and speaks his name.
Suddenly, Ryan is back where he started, before crossing the pipe in his initiation. This time he takes Chucky's advice to "Make like Tom and cruise." As they leave, the pipe bursts as it did before, trapping Brad on the other side with no way out, his attitude prompts his friends to simply leave him there for the police to find. Ryan returns home, and one night, his dog comes to him while he sits in his room. He asks if he wants to hear about Tao as the screen goes black, and Ryan begins to share his adventure.
voted thumbs down and described Warrior of Virtue as "Generic junk made for the international action market,a cheap hybrid of Power Rangers
and Ninja Turtles." Roger Ebert
also voted thumbs down, however he praised the set design by Eugenio Zanetti
and said in his review "He made a great setting for a stupid story." It currently has a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes
.
Fantasy film
Fantasy films are films with fantastic themes, usually involving magic, supernatural events, make-believe creatures, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered to be distinct from science fiction film and horror film, although the genres do overlap...
directed by Ronny Yu
Ronny Yu
Ronny Yu Yan-Tai is a Hong Kong director, producer, and movie writer. Yu was born in Hong Kong and graduated from Ohio University. He has worked on both Hong Kong and American films.- Career :...
. It is in English
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...
, Mandarin, and Cantonese. Although commercially unsuccessful and critically panned, a sequel, Warriors of Virtue: The Return to Tao
Warriors of Virtue: The Return to Tao
Warriors of Virtue: The Return to Tao is a 2002 fantasy martial arts film, the sequel to the 1997 film Warriors of Virtue...
, was made in 2002.
Plot
Ryan Jeffers (Mario YedidiaMario Yedidia
Mario Yedidia is an American film actor.Yedidia was born in San Francisco. Yedidia starred in the film Warriors of Virtue, after working under the direction of Francis Ford Coppola on the movie Jack. He went on to feature in the Disney Channel movie Under Wraps...
) is a high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
student with a disability in his leg that prevents him from joining his peers in various activities in school he would like to be a part of. He spends most of his time reading comic books and imagining other worlds where he might have a great adventure. One day, he stops at his favorite restaurant Ming's and, after a brief encounter with the head cook visits with Ming himself (Dennis Dun
Dennis Dun
Dennis Dun is a Chinese American actor from Stockton, California, currently residing in Los Angeles.-Film and TV:Dun has had prominent roles in several films, notably Year of the Dragon , Big Trouble in Little China , The Last Emperor , Prince of Darkness , and A Thousand Pieces of Gold , Warriors...
) who is actually a good friend of Ryan's. He gives Ryan a manuscript
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
of Tao
Tao
Dao or Tao is a Chinese word meaning 'way', 'path', 'route', or sometimes more loosely, 'doctrine' or 'principle'...
which is a representation of the five elements that make up their mythology, explaining that through the book could lead to Ryan's true enlightenment. Ryan claims he doesn't need any "Self Help" books, but takes the manuscript anyway. Meanwhile at school, Ryan, who is a waterboy for the school's football team is caught eying quarterback Brad's (Michael Dubrow) girlfriend and they proceed to pick on him and his best friend Chucky (Ricky D'Shon Collins). When she stands up for Ryan, Brad instead invites Ryan and Chucky to an initiation ritual which involves them crossing a flimsy looking pipe in a water treatment plant in order to graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
their names on a wall. Ryan ignores Chucky's warnings, feeling particularly dejected for his disablement and tries to cross, however there is a releasing of water that floods the pool and throws Ryan into the water.
Ryan awakens some time later, dry and on the bank of a river in a mysterious and gargantuan forest. How he got there is unknown, but he notices that his leg works miraculously. After a short celebration he runs into soldiers who attack him, he flees and runs into another being in the forest who fights off his attackers, in the process of escaping, Ryan loses his backpack and with it the manuscript that Ming had given him. Ryan comes across a dwarf-like Mudlap (Michael J. Anderson
Michael J. Anderson
Michael J. Anderson is an American actor known for his roles as the Man from Another Place in David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks, the epilogue and prologue film of the series, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, and Samson Leonhart on the HBO series Carnivàle...
) who agrees to take him to safety when Ryan offers his watch as payment. He takes Ryan to Elysia (Marley Shelton
Marley Shelton
Marley Eve Shelton is an American film and television actress.Shelton began her acting career in her late teens, and appeared in several 1990s' television movies and shows. She made her film debut in the critically acclaimed drama Grand Canyon , and was cast in the films The Sandlot , Nixon , and...
), a beautiful girl who takes him to Master Chung (Chao-Li Chi
Chao-Li Chi
Chao-Li Chi was a Shanxi-born actor and dancer, who worked extensively in American television, including his best known role as Chao Li, opposite Jane Wyman's character in Falcon Crest. Additionally, his film credits include Big Trouble in Little China, The Joy Luck Club, The Nutty Professor,...
) who leads the Warriors of Virtue; five anthropomorphic kangaroos
KangaROOS
KangaROOS are an American brand of sneaker originally produced from 1979 through the 1980s, with a later revival that continues in present. They were notable for having a small zippered pocket on the side of the shoe, large enough for a small amount of loose change, keys, or more recently,...
who wield the powers of the elements; Lai, the stern, short tempered warrior of Wood. Chi, the wise yet playful warrior of Fire. Tsun, the nurturing warrior of Earth. And Yee, the silent and righteous warrior of Metal. When asked about the fifth warrior Yun, the benevolent warrior of Water, they explain he had accidentally killed someone in battle and the guilt had driven him away. They are interested in the manuscript, which they call the Manuscript of Legend, but are disappointed to find that it was missing. After Ryan encounters Yun, they deduce that Komodo (Angus MacFadyen
Angus Macfadyen
Angus Macfadyen is a Scottish actor.Angus Macfadyen was born in Glasgow and was brought up partly in Africa, France, the Philippines and Singapore. His father was a doctor in the World Health Organisation. He was once engaged to actress Catherine Zeta-Jones.Angus attended the University of...
), the leader of an army that is invading the once-purely natural zones to feed his desire to remain young by feeding on the the special mineral called zubrium from all the life springs of the forest-like realm of Tao, must have the book. Yun even saves Ryan from Komodo's minions Barbarocious (Ying Qu) and two other people.
The warriors join forces once again and while Tsun and Lai remain behind, Yee, Chi and Yun hope to invade Komodo's fortress for the book. Meanwhile, Elysia tells Ryan that her brother had been killed some time ago and how he reminds her of him, but while her back is turned one of Komodo's leaders General Grillo (Tom Towles
Tom Towles
Tom Towles is an American actor.Towles was born and raised in Chicago. He became an actor after a stint in the U.S. Marines, beginning with an uncredited performance in Dog Day Afternoon . He has appeared in film and television extensively since the 1980s...
) kidnaps him and Elysia runs from the sound of Komodo's voice. As Yun, Yee and Chi break into Komodo's stronghold and try to take the book they realize they had been led into a trap set up by Elysia who ignores their pleas to leave Komodo who had become her lover and used her thirst for vengeance to turn her against them. They are then dropped into a deadly trap, which they barely manage to escape. Meanwhile General Grillo runs into Master Chung who quickly loses in a battle against him. When Komodo's armies invade, Chung then faces Komodo in a fierce battle that ends with him mortally wounded. Ryan runs, only to run into Mudlap who wittingly turns Ryan over to Komodo's army.
Moments later at Komodo's palace, Ryan discovers Elysia's treachery was due to the fact that Yun accidentally killed her brother in a battle. He discovers that Komodo plans to use his ability to read from the manuscript to return to Ryan's world and drink the life springs from there when Tao runs out. Ryan discovers that he too cannot read from the manuscript and the pages are blank. This sends Komodo into a rage which forces Elysia to defend Ryan. Barbarocious kills her in response to her defending Ryan. Komodo kills Barbarocious as Ryan escapes. Upset about the sudden and abrupt losses and betrayals, Ryan's only desire is to return home. Mudlap feels sorry for what he had done and returns the watch that Ryan had given him originally, telling him where the Warriors had convened. After Mudlap leaves, Ryan discovers he can read the manuscript and reads an inscription "Five is one, Positive Kung. To take a life, you lose a part of yourself." and begins to realize its meaning.
The Warriors, after laying Master Chung to rest are called out by Komodo who uses his powers to pit the warriors against five duplicates of himself. They are each overcome by the greater power of Komodo's dark magic until Ryan arrives, taunting Komodo into attacking him and ripping up the manuscript. He cries the inscription to the others who use their combined power as Komodo delivers a fatal blow against Ryan effectively returning Komodo to a good man and removing his powers. Ryan lies mortally wounded, but just before he succumbs, Yee, who had been forced by his virtue into a vow of silence thanks Ryan and speaks his name.
Suddenly, Ryan is back where he started, before crossing the pipe in his initiation. This time he takes Chucky's advice to "Make like Tom and cruise." As they leave, the pipe bursts as it did before, trapping Brad on the other side with no way out, his attitude prompts his friends to simply leave him there for the police to find. Ryan returns home, and one night, his dog comes to him while he sits in his room. He asks if he wants to hear about Tao as the screen goes black, and Ryan begins to share his adventure.
Cast
- Mario YedidiaMario YedidiaMario Yedidia is an American film actor.Yedidia was born in San Francisco. Yedidia starred in the film Warriors of Virtue, after working under the direction of Francis Ford Coppola on the movie Jack. He went on to feature in the Disney Channel movie Under Wraps...
- Ryan Jeffers - Angus MacfadyenAngus MacfadyenAngus Macfadyen is a Scottish actor.Angus Macfadyen was born in Glasgow and was brought up partly in Africa, France, the Philippines and Singapore. His father was a doctor in the World Health Organisation. He was once engaged to actress Catherine Zeta-Jones.Angus attended the University of...
- Komodo - Marley SheltonMarley SheltonMarley Eve Shelton is an American film and television actress.Shelton began her acting career in her late teens, and appeared in several 1990s' television movies and shows. She made her film debut in the critically acclaimed drama Grand Canyon , and was cast in the films The Sandlot , Nixon , and...
- Elysia - Doug JonesDoug Jones (actor)Doug Jones is an American film and television actor best known to science fiction, fantasy, and horror fans for his various roles playing non-human characters, often in heavy makeup, in films and television series such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth and Fantastic Four: Rise...
- Yee, the Warrior of Metal - Chao-Li ChiChao-Li ChiChao-Li Chi was a Shanxi-born actor and dancer, who worked extensively in American television, including his best known role as Chao Li, opposite Jane Wyman's character in Falcon Crest. Additionally, his film credits include Big Trouble in Little China, The Joy Luck Club, The Nutty Professor,...
- Master Chung - Jack Tate - Yun the Warrior of Water
- Don W. Lewis - Lai, the Warrior of Wood, Major Keena
- J. Todd AdamsJ. Todd AdamsJ. Todd Adams is an American stage, film, and television actor who lives and works primarily in Southern California.Adams attended Brigham Young University where he was a student in the theater and film program. Some of his first professional roles were with the annual Utah Shakespearean Festival...
- Chi, the Warrior of Fire - Adrienne Corcoran - Tsun, the Warrior of Earth
- Michael J. AndersonMichael J. AndersonMichael J. Anderson is an American actor known for his roles as the Man from Another Place in David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks, the epilogue and prologue film of the series, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, and Samson Leonhart on the HBO series Carnivàle...
- Mudlap - Tom TowlesTom TowlesTom Towles is an American actor.Towles was born and raised in Chicago. He became an actor after a stint in the U.S. Marines, beginning with an uncredited performance in Dog Day Afternoon . He has appeared in film and television extensively since the 1980s...
- General Grillo - Lee ArenbergLee ArenbergLee Arenberg is an American actor, best known for his role as Pintel, one of Captain Barbossa's crew of miscreants, in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series.-Career:...
- Mantose - Dennis DunDennis DunDennis Dun is a Chinese American actor from Stockton, California, currently residing in Los Angeles.-Film and TV:Dun has had prominent roles in several films, notably Year of the Dragon , Big Trouble in Little China , The Last Emperor , Prince of Darkness , and A Thousand Pieces of Gold , Warriors...
- Ming - Roy Cebellos - Willy Beast
- Jason Hamer - Mosely
- Teryl RotheryTeryl RotheryTeryl Rothery is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as Dr. Janet Fraiser on Stargate SG-1.-Life and career:Rothery was born in Vancouver, British Columbia...
- Kathryn Jeffers - Ricky D'Shon Collins - Chucky
- Michael Dubrow - Brad
- Ying Qu - Barbarocious
- Stuart Kingston - Dullard
- Michael Vickerman - Dragoon Commander
- Adam Mills - Toby
Voice cast
- Scott McNeilScott McNeilScott McNeil is a Canadian actor and voice actor. He currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...
- Yun: Warrior of Water - Doug ParkerDoug Parker (voice actor)Doug Parker is a Canadian voice actor and voice director.He has been doing voices in several cartoons and anime.He is probably best known for playing Terrorsaur in Beast Wars, He also played Starscream who made a cameo appearance in the show...
- Yee: Warrior of Metal, Chi: Warrior of Fire - Kathleen BarrKathleen BarrKathleen Barr is a Canadian voice actress. She is also the sister of Professor Mark Lyle Barr at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.-Filmography:...
- Tsun: Warrior of Earth - Dale Wilson - Lai: Warrior of Wood
- Mina E. Mina - Master Chung
- Drew Reichelt - Dullard
- Venus TerzoVenus TerzoVenus Terzo is a Canadian actress best noted for her role as Detective Angela Kosmo in Da Vinci's Inquest and its spinoff, Da Vinci's City Hall. She was nominated in 2002 for the Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role in that same role...
- Barbarocious - Colin MurdockColin Murdock (actor)Not to be confused with Colin MurdochColin Murdock , is a voice actor who is often miscredited as Colin Murdoch.-Anime:* Cardcaptors - Spinner Sun* InuYasha - Ryokan, Sango's Father, Water God, Orochidayu* MegaMan: NT...
- Dragoon Commander - Jay BrazeauJay BrazeauJay Brazeau is a notable Canadian actor and voice actor. He was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.-Career:His credits include voicing Richard Condie's Oscar-nominated animated short La Salla. He also appeared in two of the first season episodes of Highlander: The Series in 1992...
- Willy Beast - Gary ChalkGary Chalk (actor)Gary Chalk is an English-born Canadian actor, tri-national US-Canadian-UK citizen and voice artist. He has lend hit voice in over 30 animated television series and has been in films such as The Fly II and Freddy vs. Jason....
- Mosely - Ian James CorlettIan James CorlettIan James Corlett is a Canadian animation voice artist, writer, and musician. He is the creator of Studio B Productions' animated series Being Ian and Yvon of the Yukon....
- Major Keena - Ward PerryWard PerryWard Perry is an anime voice actor who has voiced characters for a number of anime dubbed by the Ocean Group in Vancouver, Canada. He is mostly known as the voice actor of Dragonball Z Villain Kid Buu.-Credits:...
- Villager - Shane MeierShane MeierShane Meier is a Canadian actor who is probably most notable for playing the title role in The Matthew Shepard Story, a TV movie about the life and murder of Matthew Shepard....
- Toby - Michael Dobson - Chi: Warrior of Fire (uncredited)
Reception
Warriors of Virtue received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics. Film critic Kale Klein of the Carlsbad Current-Argus was so physically distressed by the film that he actually vomited during the initial screenings.On an episode of Siskel and Ebert, Gene SiskelGene Siskel
Eugene Kal "Gene" Siskel was an American film critic and journalist for the Chicago Tribune. Along with colleague Roger Ebert, he hosted the popular review show Siskel & Ebert At the Movies from 1975 until his death....
voted thumbs down and described Warrior of Virtue as "Generic junk made for the international action market,a cheap hybrid of Power Rangers
Power Rangers
Power Rangers is a long-running American entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live action children's television series featuring teams of costumed heroes...
and Ninja Turtles." Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
also voted thumbs down, however he praised the set design by Eugenio Zanetti
Eugenio Zanetti
Eugenio Zanetti is an Argentine dramatist, painter, film set designer, and theater and opera director.Zanetti was born in Córdoba, Argentina...
and said in his review "He made a great setting for a stupid story." It currently has a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
External links
- The Doug Jones Experience - Doug Jones as 'Yee'
- Warriors of Virtue at Rotten TomatoesRotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...