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Japan's Avex to invest in China's priciest film
2006-12-23
Japanese entertainment group Avex Group Holdings has said it will invest in John Woo's "Battle of Red Cliff," which is set to be China's most expensive ever film. Avex, a music label that has expanded its business to movies, said it would invest 20 million dollars with China's Chengtian Entertainment International in the latest film by Woo, who directed the second "Mission Impossible" movie. "Battle of Red Cliff" will narrate the fiercest battle of the Three Kingdoms, the turbulent era in the third century AD that was turned into a classic of Chinese literature. At a total estimated cost of 50 million dollars, the film would be the most expensive ever made by the Chinese film industry, Avex said Friday. Avex, which will obtain exclusive distribution rights to the movie, said in a statement it expected the "Battle of Red Cliff" to be "the biggest masterpiece of Chinese film history". The state-run China Film Group would produce the movie, which would begin production in the spring, it said. The film will star Hong Kong actors Chow Yun-Fat and Tony Leung, and South Korean actor Jeong U-Seong. Woo, 60, became one of the first Asian directors to win success in Hollywood with his 1997 action film "Face/Off" starring John Travolta and Nicolas Cage. He also directed "M:I-2," the second film in the "Mission Impossible" series starring Tom Cruise.
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