Started from the bottom and 101 films later, action-movie icon, Jackie Chan is the recipient of the New York Asian Film Festival’s Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award. Receiving other merits along his 40-year career, this latest one is just another icing on the cake. His career that started in Hong Kong has also made him a legendary icon in the Hollywood. Balancing his acting career both in Hong Kong and Hollywood has always been his priority and dedication.
Chan’s latest blockbuster Chinese Zodiac (2012) may be his last ‘large-scale action picture’. Chinese Zodiac was a huge hit in China, raking in $140 million dollars at the box office overseas and has now made its way to the states. Film Society of Lincoln Center and New York Asian Film Festival honored Jackie Chan on June 10th with a special premiere screening of Chinese Zodiac followed by a Q & A session. And on June 11th, there was a press conference at Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office in New York.
Chinese Zodiac or CZ12 has a taste of the 1987 film, Armor of God, where Chan played a treasure-hunting Asian Hawk character, and that same character is in this film. Chinese Zodiac starts off with Asian Hawk stealing 12 antique bronze sculptures that represent the animals of the Chinese zodiac. Foreigners stole the sculptures in the 1800s and Asian Hawk’s mission is to bring them back to China. The movie is slightly edited for the North American audience but definitely still contains all the action and fun. Though Chan’s career may take a slow turn in the fighting and stunts portion of acting after this latest film, he surely has a lot of experience with telling stories and may start to take on more dramatic roles.
On top of these two days with the award ceremony and screening, the Film Society of Lincoln Center, the New York Asian Film Festival and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office is also proud to present “The Jackie Chan Experience” from June 23rd-27th. This event will pay tribute to Chan’s great career thus far, with a retrospective of 13 of his biggest films. This screening event is open to the public.
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