Well, the casting is certainly interesting…
It used to be a novelty for Hollywood actors to be hired for commercials in Asian countries on the basis of their international recognition – regardless of their appropriateness (or lack thereof) to the product at hand. Today, that sensibility has made the leap to feature films – with Western stars popping up in Eastern films, playing roles that they’d seldom be seen as prime for back home. Welcome to the new global cinema.
The latest casting-curiosity in that regard is Dragon Blade, a historical action-epic depicting a fictional battle between Roman legions under Emperor Tiberius (Adrian Brody – yes, really!) and Han Dynasty soldiers for control of the Silk Road. Jackie Chan stars as a Chinese hero who reluctantly teams with a Roman renegade played by John Cusack.
Cusack looks almost hilariously out-of-place doing the period/action routine, but this is no parody. The film comes from director Daniel Lee, who specializes in big international action co-productions like this, having most recently helmed the star-studded 2011 epic White Vengeance. Dragon Blade, despite it’s use of Western actors, currently has no U.S. release date, but will bow in China on February 19th at the beginning of Chinese New Year.
Source: Variety
Published: Dec 29, 2014 09:56 pm